Parents' Guide to

Wanted

By James Rocchi, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Explosive action film is extremely violent.

Movie R 2008 110 minutes
Wanted Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 16+

Based on 15 parent reviews

maudpicard
maudpicard Adult
July 10, 2019
age 18+

No redeeming value

The movie ends with the main character telling viewers to go shoot their way out of a boring job or existence. Yikes! Not the message any troubled kid or adult needs to hear right now. Not to mention, the plot is over-contrived, the 'training' scenes make no sense, and it's boring aside from the initial scenes. Violence is stylized way too much, there's no attempt to save innocents or even show remorse about their deaths. And they use cute mice as bombs. Ick. I love action films, but this is not worth your time & certainly not for an impressionable kid.

This title has:

Too much violence
Katiebdub
Katiebdub Adult
April 7, 2019
age 16+
Sex scene less than 2 min in and another one around 5 mins. Both are short but surprised us. Would have loved a warning when we watched it. A good bit of cussing as well.
See all 15 parent reviews

What's the Story?

WANTED, loosely based on a comic book series by Mark Millar, begins as the tedious, troubled life of white-collar wage-slave Wesley Gibbon (James McAvoy) is invaded by a stylish, sexy criminal named Fox (Angelina Jolie). She tells Wesley that his father -- long thought dead -- was not only killed yesterday, but was one of the world's greatest assassins. Fox wants Wesley to join her group, The Fraternity, so that he can avenge his father, save his own life from his father's killer, and join The Fraternity's secret mission of "maintaining the balance" of the world by eliminating presumably deserving targets named by a mystical device called "The Loom of Fate." But as Wesley embraces his new life and confidence, he learns that his newfound work has consequences, and his new mentors and peers have secrets.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (15):
Kids say (41):

Wanted is a bold, burly knockout action film that's immensely stylish and superbly shot, but it's also astonishingly violent and graphic. The English-language, big-studio debut of Russia-based director Timur Bekmambetov (best known in America for his Night Watch and Day Watch epic fantasies), Wanted is full of inventive special effects, edge-of-your-seat stunts, and hairpin twists and turns. Wesley, an unhappy office drone, becomes part of a criminal conspiracy that empowers and excites him; the fact that he and Fox kill people named by coded messages from "The Loom of Fate" is a mystical plot device that lends a thin layer of mystical philosophical rationalization to their violent deeds. And McAvoy, Jolie, and Morgan Freeman (as Fraternity leader Sloan) commit to their thin roles completely, and the film has several touches of gallows humor and bizarre bravado.

But when Wesley finds out that all is not as it seems, his newfound life turns poisonous and even more dangerous. The plot's changes and conspiracies are mostly an excuse for hyper-stylized on-screen violence with slow-motion fights and car stunts, curving bullets and beautifully shot bloodshed as Wesley fights to survive. Wanted offers nothing new -- it's clearly aping both The Matrix and Fight Club in its cinematography and sensibility -- but it's so enthusiastically well-made that it's a nearly perfect example of the modern action film. Wanted isn't high art, but it's superbly made trash, and the rare big-money action film that's as entertaining as it is excessive.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the appeal of action films. Why does violent entertainment have such a grip on the public imagination? Talk with your kids about the difference between real life and fantasy -- even teens. Point out that consequences exist -- even if it makes you feel humorless. The fact that violent movies stimulate parts of the brain bears some commentary from the parental units. Families can also contrast Jolie's positive public work as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations with her professional work in violent action films. Do the two roles fight against each other, or are they simply different aspects of the same person? Which do you think is the "real" her?

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