Wanted (2008)

Wanted (2008)

6/10

Starring

James McAvoy

Angelina Jolie

Morgan Freeman

Directed by Timur Bekmambetov

Wanted is one of a kind. This movie is a mix of genres and the director Timur Bekmambetov, just made sure he fitted all the necessaries into this cinematic masterpiece. The action thriller had a dark tale to tell and it mixes that with some ironic comedy undertone and it poses a huge cast of thrilling actors.

Angelina Jolie and Morgan Freeman were at top billing for this movie back in 2008, when James McAvoy was mostly unknown. Over the years though McAvoy has turned out to be a prolific actor and this movie does his power of acting justice. McAvoy is Scottish, and he portrays an American who had his life turned upside down, flipped back up again to have it blown up in his face.

Wanted is based on a comic book miniseries Wanted (2003–04), by Mark Millar and J. G. Jones. The comic itself had a different path than the movie. This movie is well written to maintain the comics tone and diverge on a different path from the comic, as it just lifts elements from it.

The movie is based on the life of Wesley Gibson (James McAvoy). Gibson is what many will classify as a loser. He suffers from panic attacks and his live-in girlfriend cheats on him with his best friend. At work Wesley tries to make it through the day by being invisible, but that hardly happens as his boss is always on his case.

Aside from this there is a man being killed. We are shown a world, where this man is faster than normal, stronger and able to do amazing fits at a drop of a coin.

Wesley gets approached by a woman named Fox (Angelina Jolie) who saves him from being killed by a man named Cross. Fox takes Wesley to her boss Sloan (Morgan Freeman) who reveals to Wesley that he is the son of the man that was killed earlier in the movie. The person that killed the man Wesley now believes to have been is father is Cross and they want to train Wesley to take him down.

The training of Wesley in this movie is integral to the fun the movie packs. As we see him shoot the wings of flies, learn how to bend bullets and master his powers.

Wesley is keen on getting revenge for his father’s death, but to do so he was first taken into a series of murders and soon, he was ready. The twist is, he was not fully prepared for the truth and what lies ahead in the path that he has now chosen to follow.

Great action movie, one I will be watching later in the future.