I don't say this often, but if you're just interested in a few hours of entertainment, don't go see this movie. I actually wish I hadn't. There were more unnecessarily placed expletives and exploding heads than anything I've seen lately. And just to clarify: I liked The Departed, and while it was over the top, it didn't insult my sensibilities the way Wanted did tonight. But for those of you who are bound to go (I'm a realist, some of you love the graphic novel!) here are some comments about the light and darkness that just might make you think. I'm spoiling everything, but I'll try to steer clear from anymore of my prudish sentiments!

Our "hero" is Wanted's version of Neo from The Matrix. He's trapped by the numbness of his life, the dull existence that he accepts, knowing that his live-in girlfriend has sex with his "best friend" on their lunch break, taking the abuse of his overbearing boss, and hating the life he knows. He finally accepts the invitation of the Fraternity of Assassins because he doesn't know who he is. This sense of identity, this understanding of who he is, comes with his membership in the group, and it comes from trying to follow in his assassin father's footsteps.

Isn't our identity the most important thing we can have? If we don't know who we are, we can't know what kind of decisions we want to make, establish our relationships with other people, or determine when we're making progress. As a follower of Christ, I find my identity in being the created child of God and by having been saved from sin and death by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Unlike the Weavers (the basis for the Fraternity), I don't reject my body or the physical existence because God created the world and me in it, and God's creation is, by definition, good. The Weavers and the premise the movie follows is that the world wasn't created by God, and therefore their killings aren't really sin but done for the betterment of the world. See how your identity affects everything else?

I did like the logic behind Fox's explanation of following through on the assassinations (different from the assassination themselves). If we make one choice, we have to accept that there are ripples or repercussions of what actions we take. Whether it's allowing "criminals" to go free by not executing them, or whether it's choosing to cheat on a test, on your taxes, or on your wife, there are effects that negatively impact your life (and yes, there are positive effects to choosing the right thing). Either way, cause and effect are worth considering.

Just to be clear, the movie is visually stunning, well-acted, and artfully put together. But the moral depravity of everyone in the movie is maddening! Only the title character and his father raise questions about how the choosing of kills works (see Time Cop or Minority Report for other wonderful sci-fi explorations of the same thing) but it's a socio-political statement. You can read that one into anything: it's about the law and justice, but it's also about the manipulation of power in the highest forms, like the way in which the reasons for war or invasion of another nation have been called into question. Don't confuse moral depravity with a lack of creativity or moral questioning.

Mark Millar is a smart guy, and he weaves wonderful tales. But this tale would be best left untold, this way. Now, as a friend of mine said upon leaving the theater, I'm going to go watch a Disney movie.