knives

• Amber Spyglass, The by Philip Pullman (2000)

  [5/10]

  "In this final volume of the triolgy, Pullman seems to have lost some control over his story. When you get to the end of The Amber Spyglass, you can sort of see where he was trying to take you, but he certainly didn't take a direct route. The story also becomes less about the characters we have followed for three books and more about the metaphysical events surrounding them."

• Subtle Knife, The by Philip Pullman (1997)

  [6/10]

  "For the middle book in a trilogy, Pullman manages to keep the plot and pacing in The Subtle Knife quite engaging, and he ends the book just about as suddenly and tragically as in The Golden Compass."

• V for Vendetta directed by James McTeigue (2006)

  [8/10]

  "The twisting and engaging story line more than makes up for the 'comic book' characters, and director JamesMcTeigue displays an excellent balance of mystery, suspense, and violence."

• Wanted directed by Timur Bekmambetov (2008)

  [8/10]

  "Over half of the film centers on Wesley training to take his place in the guild of assassins. Wesley doesn't have much fun training, but the film moves the story along with a nice combination of explosions, rapid-fire gunfights, chase scenes, and the discovery of cool and interesting things about the weavers' heritage and skills. You don't get a lot of deep thought out of Wanted, but you do get a fun, adolescent romp filled with plenty of action."

• Zodiac, The directed by Alexander Bulkley (2006)

  [5/10]

  "The Zodiac tries to capture the zeitgeist of the San Francisco Bay area while the Zodiac serial killer actively killed victims and corresponded with the local press."

  Average score: 6.40