A question about V for Vendetta (the comic book)

[dsc]

After watching the film I wonder if both the virus and the gay themes were as prominate in the book.

[WCGreen]

1. Not that I can remember....

[dsc]

3. so those were the director's choice

I had figured the comic book might have been an alegory about AIDS hysteria given the time of its debut.

[Kagemusha]

2. The virus was drawn up as a replacement for nuclear war aftermath

The nuclear war stuff felt a lot more relevant when the comic was originally written.

As for the gay themes, the comic didn't exactly shy from showing how people are scum either. The specifics may change but the theme did not.

[dsc]

4. cool

I was just trying to figure out how much of the movie's theme came from the director and thus might be related to Bush and how much came from the books and thus related to Thatcher.

[Sven77]

5. about the virus

interesting parallel with Rumsfeld being formerly employed by Tamiflu/Gilead and still having millions of dollars in shares. He is making a killing on the possible bird flu pandemic.

http://money.cnn.com/2005/10/31/news/newsmakers/fortune_rumsfeld/

as for your question, I think the movie added somethings to make it more upto date. Lewis Prothero, "The Voice of London" = Rush Limbaugh(pill popping)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V_for_Vendetta


wiki-V_for_Vendetta_(film)

[dsc]

6. very informative link

I think the comic book probably works better than the film ended up working. The mask is so limiting in the film and you end up not having any idea what V is thinking from one moment to the next. It is virtually impossible to act without the eyes and mouth.

[genie_weenie]

7. The Homosexuality theme is Very Important.

In fact it has been theorized that V was a homosexual, although it must be pointed out, Alan Moore has made it clear that V could be anyone save for Evey's father.

Oh and there is no personal love story with V and Evey in the book and Evey questions V about it early on...

The virus replaces the Nuclear War, which mainly hits Europe, used in the book...

Edit: I would be remiss if I did not mention that Moore thoroughly distanced himself from the movie adaptation since his Novel dealt with English themes and Anarchy and was not a mere parable for a Progressive Superman fighting against Bush...

[dsc]

10. I find that interesting given that V is clearly an anarchist

in the movie. While some of it can be read as a parable about Bush, the elements still appear to be nearly as he wrote them. After looking at the Wikopedia link I was stunned at how faithful an adaptation it was.

[TheWraith]

8. The virus didn't exist at all. Gay themes, close to the same, I'd say.

In the original, the cataclysm that enabled the fascist state was a nuclear war. The note from Valerie was exactly as depicted in the book, but the character of Gordon wasn't present, or at least wasn't nearly as prominant.

I would say that the movie is, in general, better than the book. While it does strip out some backstory as to how V is able to do the things he does, it brings together and updates the whole picture, and makes the characters a bit more real, I think.

[Redneck Socialist]

9. The gay theme was there...

just not as forward. The letter that Evie reads in her "cell" is taken almost word for word from the comics. The virus wasn't in the books, but they were doing medical experiments of various types in the internment camps.