Lees ook:

-->Bespreking V For Vendetta

V for Vendetta marks James McTeigue's debut as a feature film director, but he has learned from the best. His career as an assistant director includes some of the highest-grossing films of all time: The Matrix Trilogy, Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones and Moulin Rouge. While working on the Matrix movies, producer Joel Silver and screenwriters the Wachowski brothers approached him to direct the movie adaptation of the graphic novel, and the Australian filmmaker leapt at the chance.

JAMES MCTEIGUE: With all the competition for a cinema these days, films come out for a limited amount of time. While a lot of people saw V for Vendetta, there are always people who can't get out to see films and this is their chance. With a film like V for Vendetta, which is complex and has a lot in it, maybe it is not possible to get everything out of it the first time around, so I think it will stand up to repeated viewing. There are also things that I put in the film as far as production design and cinematography which you will absolutely discover more in the DVD, especially things like V his hideout or the shadow gallery. I hope viewers and fans will get a kick out of that.

What were your influences in making this film?

JAMES MCTEIGUE: There has been a lot of talk about how political V is, but for me it is more a morality tale - at what point does an individual take responsibility for his own actions? I did watch a bunch of films while I was preparing, such as Fahrenheit 451, Clockwork Orange and Battle of Algiers. They are all about individual responsibility and morality made by incredible filmmakers.

What were some of the biggest challenges?

JAMES MCTEIGUE: One of the biggest challenges was making a cohesive narrative that people could follow. You want them to follow the journey of V and Evey and in some regards the Finch character too. They are your moral compasses, so you have to make sure the audience is with them.

What about getting permission to film at Whitehall for the climactic ending?

JAMES MCTEIGUE: That was quite a feat and I don't glibly say that it was easy. It took six months of negotiations and when I was out there shooting you would have probably heard me say it was a huge challenge, but as a director you have to be in the moment and when you are concentrating on the story, funnily enough, you are still trying to concentrate on the time you have to tell the story you need to tell and not thinking about the set and what went in to standing on that set. But that was a big day, I must say.

How difficult was it to direct an actor who wears a mask for his entire performance?

JAMES MCTEIGUE: I was lucky I had Hugo Weaving. He accepted the role and was not frightened of the mask. He was exploring the possibilities of what he could do with the mask, and I thought that was a great way to come at it. He did not look at it as a barrier between himself and the audience, but as something that was fantastic to explore. Then, through the way he moved his body and the way he used his voice, he managed to create V. I think for me to direct was a matter of guiding him and of telling him what worked and what did not. It was a challenge but obviously not insurmountable.

How was working with Natalie?

JAMES MCTEIGUE: I worked with Natalie on Star Wars and she is a fantastic woman. She can make your film better. It's not about what the film can do for Natalie Portman. She just wants to get inside the character and do her best. She does not carry the character around with her though, so you can always have a conversation with her and a laugh when you're done. She's an absolutely pleasure to have on the set.

Did this movie affect your views on violence?

JAMES MCTEIGUE: Absolutely, there is no clear choice anymore. You have to look between the lines these days to see what is actually said and done. The morality of situations, especially in this post 9/11 world, is very tricky. I think you have to look a little further nowadays; you have to absolutely question what our media is saying to you.

What kind of feedback did you get from fans?

JAMES MCTEIGUE: The fans have been absolutely supportive of the film. I guess the response has been that it's generally liked and that's a nice thing. Some of my friends pointed me to reviews that weren't that favorable, but they were pointing to the fact that the fans wrote back saying that the reviewer made the review about themselves and not about the movie itself, which I thought was very interesting.

Did you feel a lot of pressure turning such a beloved graphic novel into a movie?

JAMES MCTEIGUE: It's an added pressure but it's not one you take into the moviemaking process. You have to recognize that one is a piece of literature and the other is a movie and they are completely different mediums. I'm not making a straight rendition of a graphic novel because that would be pointless. My version of that work is my version.

What do you hope people get out of the movie?

JAMES MCTEIGUE: I see it as a lot of things; there is some action in it and some politics in it but I look at it as allegorical tale about the times we live in and about what our own morality is and an individual's choices. If you can put all that into a piece of entertainment that people can see on repeated viewings and get something more out of it each time they go back to it, that's all you can hope for.