Wanted DVD Review
Wanted, based on the comic book by Mark Millar and JG Jones, is about Wesley Gibson (James McAvoy) a low-on-the-totem-pole worker in a thankless job with a jerk for a boss and a best friend who just so happens to be sleeping with his (Wesley’s) girlfriend on the side. But Wesley puts up with it—all of it—due to lack of backbone.
My Rating: 
When Wesley is introduced to a secret organization of assassins, called The Fraternity, he finally starts to come out of his shell. In the process, he’s trained to be one of the assassins (and avenge his father’s recent death).
McAvoy (Atonement, Becoming Jane, Starter For 10) is an unlikely superhero, but he does an excellent job of evolving from a whiny office drone to a kick ass assassin. The film also stars Angelina Jolie as Fox, one of the assassins in The Fraternity; Cross (Thomas Kretschmann of Next, King Kong) as a rouge killer; and Sloan (Morgan Freeman) as the leader of the Fraternity. Rounding out the cast are Terence Stamp (Elektra, The Limey); Common (American Gangster, Smokin’ Aces); David O’Hara (The Departed, Hotel Rwanda); Chris Pratt (“The O.C.”, “Everwood”); and Lorna Scott (The Heartbreak Kid, Smokin’ Aces).
Freeman (Gone Baby Gone, Lucky Number Slevin, Million Dollar Baby) is good, but I prefer him in more serious dramatic turns. Jolie (A Mighty heart, The Good Shepherd, Mr. & Mrs. Smith) is smooth and believable, as always. It seems that Jolie is a money maker no matter what type of film she’s in, and while I’m not sure how well received Wanted was in the theaters, I have to say this was a definite step up from the Mr. & Mrs. Smith debacle of a few years ago.
Wanted definitely pushes the boundaries of the plausible (in the film, the assassins can curve bullets around objects with the power of concentration, and a magical loom doles out assassin’s assignments/predicts the future), but it’s entertaining nonetheless. The film is directed by Timur Bekmambetov, who has two hit Russian vampire flicks, Night Watch and Day Watch, under his belt, and co-written by Michael Brandt, Derek Haas and Chris Morgan.
The film is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen, with audio in 5.1 Dolby Digital English, with optional Spanish and French language tracks as well, in addition to a 2.0 English language track. Subtitles are available in English, Spanish and French.
Extras include an extended scene, a music video and a motion comic. There are also numerous self explanatory featurettes, including “Cast and Characters”, “Stunts on the L Train”, “Special Effects: The Art of the Impossible”, “Groundbreaking Visual Effects: From Imagination to Execution”, “The Origins of Wanted: Bringing the Graphic Novel to Life”, and “Through the Eyes of Visionary Director Timur Bekmambetov”.
The film is rated R for “strong bloody violence throughout, pervasive language and some sexuality.”
In the end, the story was interesting enough to make me curious for a sequel, so for that I give Wanted 3 stars out of 5 stars.