V for Vendetta, The World's Fastest Indian, She's the Man
11:33 a.m. Friday, March 17, 2006
Imagine George Orwell's "1984" if its central character had been a costumed crime fighter a la Batman and you'll have some idea of the dynamic at play in "V for Vendetta." Set in a not-so-distant future in which the threat of global terrorism has turned Britain into a totalitarian police state, Natalie Portman stars as a woman named Evey who is rescued from government goons by a masked freedom fighter known as V. Soon Evey becomes an unlikely ally of the vigilante, whose goal is to restore liberty to the repressed society.
Based on Alan Moore's acclaimed graphic novel, "V for Vendetta" revels in its subversive political ideas -- and doesn't hide behind metaphors to make its point. It's slightly more successful as a think-piece than it is an action blockbuster, but the merging of these two elements is what gives the oddball film its personality.
Also opening in Topeka this week is "The World's Fastest Indian." Sir Anthony Hopkins takes the lead in this biopic of famed New Zealander Burt Munro, who rebuilds a 1920 Indian motorcycle and uses it to compete at Salt Lake's infamous Speed Week.
And finally, for those who want to see a teenage updating of Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" -- or who still enjoy reruns of "Just One of the Guys" -- here comes "She's the Man." The movie stars Amanda Bynes as a gal who decides to visit her twin brother at his elite boarding school in London and ends up disguising herself as him.
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