John's Movie Musings

Back when I saw the trailer for Wanted I thought, "Well that looks just awful" with as much pretentiousness as Philip Seymour Hoffman with a venti half-caf double-shot latte. I mean come on, curving bullets by whipping the gun around really, really fast? No. Just no.

I also wondered why James McAvoy was in it. In the happy place my mind exists, Mr. Tumnus does not fraternize with Angelina Jolie. I look at that pairing like I do chocolate-filled bratwurst.

Turns out, the story's not too bad. This is assuming your expectations are appropriately aligned with a typical summer action flick. There's lots of gunplay - both with and without curving bullets, a few good car chases, and a high body count. But the actual story is a few notches above average. It's based off a comic and if they can make a two hour movie intriguing, I'm interested in what they did in print.

The biggest problem is that instead of being all fun and games, Wanted takes itself a bit too seriously. Think of the Garden of Eden. Action movies need to stay in the Garden where it's all fun and happy. But some decide they want to leave the Garden and explore Drama Fields. But Drama Fields leads to Gnashing Forrest, then into the Cliffs of Despair. This is not necessary, Mr. Action Movie. Stay fun and happy in the Garden. It's what's best.

Grade: B-