Along with The Dark Knight and Iron Man, Wanted was one of the big hits last summer. What you probably didn’t know is that Wanted is also a comic book property. Based on the hit comic book by Mark Millar, Wanted is the story of a secret society of assassins guided by Fate to keep the world in a constant state of balance.

Everyday salary-man Wesley (James McAvoy) lives a sad existence. He’s a neurotic little man constantly bullied by his boss and he sleep walks through life even with the knowledge that his best friend is sleeping with his girl. On a night unlike any other, he meets the mysterious Fox (Angelina Jolie) who saves him from a rogue assassin named Cross. Wesley learns his long lost father was a member of the mysterious order and through his bloodline he has the same knack and natural ability to become a top notch killer.

Despite the fact that Wanted strips any mention of the superheroes or super-villains seen in the comic, this is purely a fantasy story. Featuring curving bullets, magical healing baths, the ability to jump from building to building and a mystical loom which handily provides the identities of future victims, Wanted is anything but realistic.

Directed by Russian filmmaker Timur Bekmambetov (Night Watch/Day Watch), Wanted delivers comic book-style thrills wrapped in the unique visual style of its director. The film also has an A-List cast, featuring the talents of McAvoy (The Last King of Scotland) and Jolie as well as Morgan Freeman, Terrence Stamp, and popular hip-hop star Common. Genre fans might also recognize Night Watch/Day Watch star Konstantin Khabensky in a small role.

Armed with a great cast and a talented filmmaker, Wanted should be a slam dunk. Unfortunately, it isn’t. I don’t know if the blame/credit should go to comic book superstar and creator Mark Millar or the screen writers, but somebody really liked the movie Fight Club…a lot. So much so that Wanted often feels like a cheap knockoff with it’s first person narration and sad sack male angst. In fact, Wesley is so nerdy, so needy and so wimpy that I spent a majority of the film wishing he would go away.

That’s not a knock on James McAvoy. He’s a talented actor but he isn’t working with the strongest material. As cool as it is to see Morgan Freeman in a comic book action movie other than the Batman series, I get the feeling both he and McAvoy are slumming just a little bit. For every cool touch found in Wanted (fantasy fight action and cool villains), there is an equal amount of silliness and cringe-inducing dialogue.

Within Wanted is a great movie trying to get out, but it doesn’t quite happen. Even Bekmambetov’s direction seems a little handcuffed. His Russian epics Night Watch and Day Watch didn’t make a lick of sense, but they looked great. He again cuts loose on the action in Wanted, but somehow the effects seem muted and I constantly got the sense of "been there, seen that."

I’m not saying Wanted is a bad movie, it’s simply forgettable. Fans of mindless action will probably eat it up, but those who are more discriminating might also feel a little short changed. Short of spectacular, Wanted is just an average movie that should have been much more.

3 out of 5
Rated R for strong bloody violence, pervasive language and some sexuality

The DVD

The Wanted 2-Disc Special Edition comes fully loaded for those who really enjoyed the film. The movie is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic wide-screen and comes with a 5.1 surround sound audio track which really punctuates the flying bullets and shattering glass.

The DVD set’s second disc holds all the film’s bonus features.

Extended Scene – Wesley’s introduction to the firing range’s "targets" is shown in it’s unedited form

Cast and Characters (19:59) – This featurette takes a look at the actors and picks their brains regarding their characters. What’s surprising is the fair amount of time given to the secondary characters seen in "The Fraternity." McAvoy spends a lot of time talking about performing in a physical action role and his involvement in the stunt sequences.

Stunts on the L Train (2:31) – Watch stunt coordinator Nick Gillard (Star Wars prequels) work with McAvoy, Jolie and the stunt team in the Chicago train sequence.

Special Effects: The Art of the Impossible (8:28) – This feature takes a quick look at the Chicago train sequence and it’s moving bridge, the unusual set-up for the car flip and the gimbals used in the European train accident.

Groundbreaking Visual Effects: From Imagination to Execution (8:06) – Wanted used a lot of computer generated effects and in an interesting twist, this Hollywood production had a lot of its CGI created in Russia.

The Origins of Wanted: Bringing the Graphic Novel to Life (8:04) – Mark Millar discusses his comic series, it’s origin and inspiration. Writers Michael Brandt and Derek Haas add their contributions to the story.

Through the Eyes of Visionary Director Timur Bekmambetov (9:03) – The cast and crew gush all over the director. Timur seems like a very down to Earth guy and while Wanted isn’t the best film, it will be interesting to see what he will come up with next.

Wanted: Motion Comics (13:55) – Perhaps the most interesting of the bonus features, this extra shows several sequences from the comic which directly inspired scenes from the film and presents them in animated form.

"The Little Things" Music Video Mash-up (3:33) – Danny Elfman’s song is presented with clips from the film.

The Making of Wanted: The Game (10:00) – The video game adaptation is discussed in depth and several of its creators are interviewed. This bonus will only interest those who plan to play the video game.

Conclusion

The bonus features are fairly standard, never straying too far from the norm. The music video and video game features are almost useless but the rest of the material, while somewhat interesting, is about as throw-away as the movie. Most people will be satisfied by the standard edition DVD, which lacks the bonus features disc.

3 out of 5