Stephen Rea portrays a detective leading a desperate quest to stop V. Produced by Silver Pictures, Virtual Studios and Anarchos Productions, Inc., V for Vendetta was originally scheduled for release by Warner Bros. Pictures on 4 November 2005 (a day before the 400th Guy Fawkes Night), but was delayed; it instead opened in the United States on 17 March 2006, to mostly positive reviews from critics and became a box office success, grossing $134 million against a production budget between $50–54 million.

"[6] In the near future, Britain is ruled by the ultranationalist Norsefire political party, a fascist and totalitarian regime led by High Chancellor Adam Sutler, which controls the populace through propaganda and imprisons or executes those deemed undesirable, including immigrants, homosexuals, and people of alternative religions.

One evening, a Guy Fawkes masked vigilante, "V", rescues her from assault by the British secret police, known as The Fingermen, and brings her to witness his destruction of the Old Bailey via bombs.

The following morning, on 5 November, V hijacks the state-run television network BTN to address the nation, claiming credit for the attack and encouraging the populace to resist Norsefire by joining him outside the Houses of Parliament on Guy Fawkes Night in one year's time.

Assigned to capture V, Chief Inspector Eric Finch uses Surridge's journal and information from former covert operative William Rookwood (V in disguise), discovering that, two decades earlier, Surridge led biological weapons research and human experimentation at the Larkhill Detention Facility on behalf of then-Undersecretary of Defense Adam Sutler, creating the "St Mary's Virus".

Although dozens of political prisoners died during experimentation, an amnesiac in cell "V" developed mutated immunities and disfigurements as well as physical enhancements and eventually destroyed Larkhill during his escape.

Peter Creedy, head of the secret police, faked a terrorist attack by releasing the virus at targets including St. Mary's and used the resulting public fear to embed Norsefire in power.

Evey takes shelter with her former boss, talkshow host Gordon Dietrich, who shows her his collection of illegal materials such as subversive paintings, an antique Quran, and homoerotic photographs.

V returns to Evey, dying in her arms after admitting he loves her, and Finch finds her placing V's body aboard the train but, having become disillusioned with Norsefire, allows her to start it after she affirms that the people need hope.

With Sutler and Creedy dead, the military forces in London stand down as countless citizens dressed as V descend on Parliament and witness its destruction.

[16][17][18] As a film about the struggle between freedom and the state, V for Vendetta takes imagery from many classic totalitarian icons both real and fictional, including the Third Reich and George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four.

[12][10] For example, Adam Sutler[10] primarily appears on large video screens and on portraits in people's homes, both common features among modern totalitarian regimes and reminiscent of the image of Big Brother.

According to the Los Angeles Times, "With a wealth of new, real life parallels to draw from in the areas of government surveillance, torture, fear mongering and media manipulation, not to mention corporate corruption and religious hypocrisy, you can't really blame the filmmakers for having a field day referencing current events."

[27] He ended cooperation with his publisher, DC Comics, after its corporate parent, Warner Bros., failed to retract statements about Moore's supposed endorsement of the film.

Moore said that the script contained plot holes[28] and that it ran contrary to the theme of his original work, which was to place two political extremes (fascism and anarchism) against one another.

In preparation for the role, Portman worked with dialect coach Barbara Berkery to speak in an English accent, studied films such as The Weather Underground, and read the autobiography of Menachem Begin.

Much of the film was shot on sound stages and indoor sets, with location work done in Berlin for three scenes: the Norsefire rally flashback, Larkhill, and Bishop Lilliman's bedroom.

[25] V for Vendetta is the final film shot by cinematographer Adrian Biddle, who died of a heart attack on 7 December 2005, 9 months after the movie's world debut.

[33] To film the final scene at Westminster, the area from Trafalgar Square and Whitehall up to Parliament and Big Ben had to be closed for three nights from midnight until 5 am.

However, the filmmakers denied Euan Blair's involvement in the deal,[35] stating that access was acquired through nine months of negotiations with 14 different government departments and agencies.

[38] The soundtrack also features three vocals played during the film: "Cry Me a River" by Julie London, a cover of The Velvet Underground song "I Found a Reason" by Cat Power and "Bird Gerhl" by Antony and the Johnsons.

Sex and race, because they are easy and visible differences, have been the primary ways of organising human beings into superior and inferior groups and into the cheap labour on which this system still depends."

The film's story was adapted from Alan Moore and David Lloyd's graphic novel V for Vendetta; this was originally published between 1982 and 1985 in the British comic anthology Warrior, and then reprinted and completed by DC.

[4] The cast and filmmakers attended several press conferences that allowed them to address issues surrounding the film, including its authenticity, Alan Moore's reaction to it and its intended political message.

On the second disc of the special edition, a short Easter egg clip of Natalie Portman on Saturday Night Live can be viewed by selecting the picture of wings on the second page of the menu.

The website's critics consensus reads, "Visually stunning and thought-provoking, V For Vendetta's political pronouncements may rile some, but its story and impressive set pieces will nevertheless entertain.

[16] Margaret Pomeranz and David Stratton from At the Movies stated that despite the problem of never seeing Weaving's face, there was good acting and an interesting plot, adding that the film is also disturbing, with scenes reminiscent of Nazi Germany.

[64] Jonathan Ross from the BBC blasted the film, calling it a "woeful, depressing failure" and stating that the "cast of notable and familiar talents such as John Hurt and Stephen Rea stand little chance amid the wreckage of the Wachowski siblings' dismal script and its particularly poor dialogue.

"[66] Harry Guerin from the Irish TV network RTÉ states the film "works as a political thriller, adventure and social commentary and it deserves to be seen by audiences who would otherwise avoid any/all of the three".

On 17 April 2006, the New York Metro Alliance of Anarchists organised a protest against DC Comics and Time Warner, accusing it of watering down the story's original message in favour of violence and special effects.