V for vendetta film vs book

The storyline is based on a dystopian and post-apocalyptic history of the UK, following a nuclear war which had destroyed most parts of the world. Despite the similarities in titles, these artworks are clearly distinguished by their contexts. To start with, the book is discussing a plot in the 1980s, possibly a criticism of Thatcherism. On the other hand, the film is telling a future story, set in 2032 about modern USA with a dynamic political landscape. Given that Alan Moore released his book in 1982 before the film could be produced in 2005, there have claims linking this novel and the thriller movie. The policies set by this government are derogatory and exploitative to common citizens. It is also seen that the leadership of the Norsefire Party is operating a centralized form of government thereby enhancing excessive power for the rulers to exercise anarchism without being questioned by the regular citizens.

In this book, V is strongly against the principles of this government, especially due to the disempowering of trade unions and the prevalence of white supremacy. The interpretation of this novel reveals a close association of these themes with Margaret Thatcher’s government. As Prime Minister of the UK, Thatcher had uncompromised values and authority which eventually became known as Thatcherism (Moore 19). The Norsefire Party is favoured by these events thereby facilitating its ascent to power (Moore 17). At the same time, the Cold War is ongoing in full swing hence causing confusion and panic in the country. The Norsefire Party assures citizens of the United Kingdom that it is determined at regulating the threats thereby creating an enabling environment for the citizens to feel safe.

However, the leaders proceed to implement their fascism agenda without considering the fate of citizens. Alan Moore explains that leaders of the Norsefire Party were evil and corrupt thereby causing more chaos in the administration. The Representation of V as a Hero, Anti-Hero and Villain Alan Moore illustrates the character of V as an anti-hero. The book depicts V to be an anti-hero because he kidnaps his targets and mercilessly kills them. V is morally compromised because he does not want to negotiate with his targets. Furthermore, V does not verify whether his targets are the actual proponents of the exploitative regime or regular citizens who are also oppressed. The character is praised for his brilliance and bravery but he is overly aggressive when planning to revenge (Moore 37).

While Alan Moore considers him as an outright anti-hero, the Wachowskis ambiguously portrays V in two dimensions. That is, he is aggressive and brutal toward his fellow citizens and also implicates similar focus when dealing with the oppressive government. In another aspect, Alan Moore considers V to be revenging against Thatcherism and all the white supremacists in the United Kingdom while the Wachowskis are focusing on V’s mission against the conspiracies of the Bush administration, hence justifying his aggressiveness when dealing with the oppressors. The Evolution of Evey Alan Moore describes Evey as a teenage prostitute who is living in the streets after a tragedy befell her family. Even though Evey understands that the oppressive government had influenced her ordeal, she is not planning any form of revenge against the Norsefire Party (Moore 53).