Wanted

Anxiety-prone office drone Wesley Allan Gibson's (James McAvoy) chances of dramatically changing his life are next to nil—until he's recruited by a secret society of assassins headed by the sinister Sloan (Morgan Freeman) to exploit a skill Wesley doesn't even know he has: the ability to fire a gun in such a way as to make the bullet curve. Under the tutelage of seductive, aptly named Fox (Angelina Jolie), Wesley becomes a somewhat reluctant but effective killing machine. Sound ridiculous? Well, of course it does, but just like similar modern-day movies that turn comic books into marginally plausible movies, Wanted tries to bring a patina of believability to the proceedings, with Russian director Timur Bekmambetov (Night Watch) backed by an impressive array of talented craftspeople: from cinematography to set design to stuntwork to special effects, the film boasts a level of fastidiousness that extends to the tiniest detail. Unfortunately, no such care has been taken to correct the plot's silliness, flesh out the two-dimensional characters, or explain the plethora of physical feats that defy the laws of physics. Overall, however, this is still a tolerable complement to a bowl of popcorn. A strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a 20-minute featurette on cast and characters, 14 minutes of “Motion Comics” animated segments, a “making-of” featurette on the video game (10 min.), a “Special Effects: The Art of the Impossible” featurette (9 min.), the production featurettes “Through the Eyes of Visionary Director Timur Bekmambetov” (9 min.), “Groundbreaking Visual Effects: From Imagination to Execution” (8 min.), “The Origins: Bringing the Graphic Novel to Life” (8 min.), and “Stunts on the L Train” (3 min.), an extended scene (2 min.), “The Little Things” music video mash-up by composer Danny Elfman, and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray is the U-Control option which offers an interactive video commentary with material from the featurettes accessible during the film, a “Scene Explorer” with multi-angle perspectives (as well as storyboards and art), “Assassin Profiles” on the characters, an in-film option to watch the “Motion Comics,” an alternate opening, and the BD Live function. Also included is a bonus digital copy of the film. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a slam-bang but absolutely ludicrous action thriller.] (E. Hulse)