Wanted (2008) Long Review: 

Production/Critic: 6.5/10 or 7/10 (depends on the scene tbh)

Own Enjoyment: 5.5/10 or 8/10 (loved the movie but it felt like an empty shell the entire time)

How much would I recommend it to others: 6.8/10 (something to put on in the background while youre doing things)

Hey guys! I wasn't really sure how I wanted to start off doing movie reviews (initially wanted to pick a movie that means a lot to me) but then I realized I should talk about a movie that's fresh in my memory, regardless if it's good or bad. So that's how I landed on a movie that most people probably forgot existed (except back in the late 2000s): Wanted!

Why did I choose to watch this movie? Well, it was on my list for quite a bit and I finally decided to watch it because I had nothing better to do. And, I like James McAvoy too much. Going in, I didn't really know much about the movie. All I knew was that there were violence, vulgarity, and assassins! And I was right for the most part, but also kinda disappointed with how watered down the entire movie was (especially for one that did so well at the box office). Before I share my thoughts, I'd like to share some background and give a brief plot synopsis:

So Wanted (2008) is VERY VERY VERY LOOSELY based on the comics (same name!) by Mark Millar and JG Jones. While the comic books were more focused on satirizing the superhero genre (as The Sunday Times dubbed them as "Watchmen for supervillains") and mocking geek consumerism, the movie throws all of that out the fucking window!! What does the movie replace it with? Well, they basically kinda dumb it down for us and there's no superhero/supervillain shit AT ALL. Instead, the main focus is a secret society of super assassins who take down specific targets. Fortunately, the creators were pretty happy with the final product despite all the drastic changes and were somewhat involved in production. 

Wikipedia synopsis: Its plot revolves around Wesley Gibson (James McAvoy), a frustrated account manager who discovers that he is the son of a professional assassin and decides to join the Fraternity, a secret society in which his father worked. (My additions: Angelina Jolie and Morgan Freeman play Fox [Fraternity member] and Sloan [head of the Fraternity], respectively. Also this whole movie takes place in Chicago.)

Before I get to the movie, I wanna share my thoughts on the movie vs its source material. Am I glad that they made those changes? Actually, yeah. Usually I would rather there be some sort of semblance to what they're trying to adapt but I think simplifying the plot saved the movie from being an absolute shitshow instead of being just kind of boring. From what I can tell, the limited series reminds me a lot of how the comic version of The Boys is: over-the-top violence, gore, language, and sexual content that's almost edgy and cartoony (except possibly better; as much as I like The Boys comics shit gets old). Basically stuff that wouldn't fly with general audiences and further alienate the target audience (it's amazing how an R-rated movie back in 2008 did so well at the box office). However, I would like for there to be another adaptation; whether it's closer to the comics or expands on the movie is up to them. I think there's lots to be explored and either way it would do super well (can't go wrong with action thrillers about assassins and or the complications of a secret society of supervillains controlling the universe). 

This brings me to the eyesore of the movie: EVERYTHING. I'm pretty disappointed at how consistently boring it is the entire time. Yeah, there are cool action scenes, transitions, music (god bless Danny Elfman I love his stuff so much), and overall badass plot (it's basically like Y/N fanfiction for dudes), but it just felt watered down and lots of wasted potential. Maybe back in 2008 this was THE PEAK of self insert badassery but now it just feels like the movie could've been as smart as it were sexy and stylized. Not a fan of the narration (show don't tell especially when your script sounds like an edgy 13-year old trying to write the next Jack Reacher on Wattpad). It's overall not a bad movie to watch but it just wasn't for me (I did enjoy it though). I think the premise is cool, there were parts where I was pretty impressed (visual effects still hold up hooray!!), and all of the action scenes were very engaging. There's plenty of eye candy to go around; Angelina Jolie (duh she was THE woman of the 2000s-2010s) and James McAvoy (how could they reject him for not being conventionally "Hollywood" enough for Wesley then cast him cuz he's "geeky") made my gay heart flutter (didn't understand why Angelina Jolie was fawned over so much and now I get it). This movie was far from any of the cast's best roles (sorry) but they did what they could (pretty forgettable not gonna lie). Mad props to the stunt team; they blew it out of the park. 

Would I watch it again? Just for the action scenes and maybe the music (also certain actors because I'm weak like that). Overall, I would describe the movie as this:

Take everything good about The Matrix and throw it out so you're left with the shell. Then, fill the shell with what a non-gamer thinks Assassin's Creed is. Sprinkle some of The Lego Movie and Ratatouille on top. Don't forget a side of moderate Eastern European extravaganza. An hour and 50 minutes good enough to make $50 mil during opening weekend but not good enough to beat out Wall-E.