Wanted (2008)

2 1/2 Stars (out of 4)

The Loom of Fate

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Like a bloodthirsty Harry Potter, Wesley (James McAvoy) is a dissatisfied worker drone, tormented by an overweight, Dursley-like boss. Fortunately, a mysterious girl named Fox (a tattooed Angelina Jolie) whisks into his life with an offer to join an ancient organization and to learn assassination techniques, including the way to shoot bullets around corners. Director Timur Bekmambetov (Night Watch and Day Watch) can't decide on a tone, and the film feels by turns ridiculous and dead serious. (How can the "loom of fate" not be funny?) Likewise, his slick, computer aided slo-mo trickery doesn't mesh with his jerky, fast-paced action. Morgan Freeman co-stars in his typical wise mentor role. Three screenwriters adapted the comic book by Mark Millar and J. G. Jones.

DVD Details: Universal's Two-Disc edition comes with optional language tracks and subtitles, plus something new: a "descriptive video service," in which a voice describes the action onscreen, presumably for sight-impaired viewers. The second disc includes all the extras, including one two-minute extended scene (a training sequence), a cast & characters featurette (20 minutes), a "stunts" featurette (2-1/2 minutes), a "special effects" featurette (8 minutes), three other featurettes, some "motion comics," a music video and a promo for the video game. There's an Easter Egg, for which you have to enter the "Code of the Fraternity." Disc Two also comes with a digital copy of the film for your computer or iPhone. (It apparently expires at the end of 2009.) Also available on AskMen.com: Wanted