Quotes

Dialogue

V: I can assure you, I mean you no harm. Evey: Who are you? V: Who? Who is but the form, following the function of what, and what I am is a man in a mask. Evey: Well, I can see that. V: Of course you can. I'm not questioning your powers of observation, I'm merely remarking upon the paradox of asking a masked man who he is. Evey: Oh, right. V: But on this most auspicious of nights, permit me then, in lieu of the more commonplace sobriquet, to suggest the character of this dramatis persona. Evey: Are you like a crazy person? V: I am quite sure they will say so. But to whom may I ask am I speaking? Evey: I'm Evey. V: Evey? E-V — of course you are. Evey: What does that mean? V: It means I, like God, do not play with dice, and do not believe in coincidence. Are you hurt?

Dialogue

Sutler: Gentlemen, you have had four hours, you had better have results. Mr Creedy? Peter Creedy: The Bailey area is quarantined, and all significant witnesses have been detained. Sutler: Good. Mr Etheridge? Brian Etheridge: A recording device was found wired into the central emergency broadcast system. The DCD was Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture. Sutler: Add it to the blacklist. I never want to hear that music again. Etheridge: Yes, sir. We also doubled our random sweeps and are monitoring a lot of phone surveillance, indicating a high percentage of conversation concerned with the explosion. Sutler: Mr Dascombe, what are we doing about that? Roger Dascombe: We're calling it an "emergency demolition". We have spin coverage on the network and throughout the InterLink, and several experts have been lined up to testify against the Bailey's structural integrity. Sutler: I want Prothero to speak tonight on the dangers of these old buildings and how we must avoid clinging to the edifice of a dec

Dialogue

Patricia: You think people will buy this? Dascombe: Well, why not? This is the BTN. Our job is to report the news, not fabricate it. That's the government's job.

Dialogue

Finch: This looks serious. Her parents were political activists. They were detained when she was 12. Dominic: What happened to her? Finch: Juvenile reclamation project. For five years. We're going to need back-up, but keep it minimal. Dominic: You sure about that, sir? Finch: I just want a chance to talk to her before she disappears into one of Creedy's black bags.

Dialogue

News reporter: We're interrupting your regularly scheduled program to bring you this terrifying report of a terrorist takeover of Jordan Tower, which ended only moments ago. A psychotic terrorist, identified only as the letter V, attacked the control booth with high-powered explosives and other weapons, that he used against unarmed civilians in order to broadcast a message of hate. We've just received this footage of a daring police raid. Police officer: Stop!! Stop! Stay where you are or we'll shoot! Stay where you are!! News reporter: Now this is only an initial report. But at this time, it's believed that during this heroic raid, the terrorist was shot and killed. Girl with Spectacles: Bollox! News reporter: Again, from what we've been told by authorities, the danger is now over. The terrorist is dead.

Dialogue

Evey: What is this place? V: It's my home. I call it the Shadow Gallery. Evey: It's beautiful... where did you get all this stuff? V: Oh, here and there. Most of it from the vaults of the Ministry of Objectionable Materials. Evey: You stole them? V: Oh, heavens, no. Stealing implies ownership. You can't steal from the censor; I merely reclaimed them. Evey: God, if they ever find this place... V: I suspect if they do find this place, a few bits of art will be the least of my worries. Evey: You mean, after what you've done? God, what have I done? I Maced that detective. Why did I do that? V: You did what you thought was right. Evey: No. I shouldn't have done that. I must have been out of my mind. V: Is that what you really think, or what they would want you to think? Evey: I think I should go. V: May I ask where? Evey: Home. I have to go home. V: You said they were looking for you. If they know where you work, they certainly know where you live. Evey: I have friends. I could stay with th

Dialogue

Evey: V? V: Ah. Bonjour, mademoiselle. Evey: I just wanted to apologise for my reaction last night. [V just nods] I understand what you did for me, and I wanted you to know I am grateful. [turns attention to V's scarred hands] Your hands! V: [notices his hands, which were un-gloved] Yes. [puts gloves back on] There. That's better. I hope I didn't put you off your appetite. Evey: No, please. It's just — are you all right? V: Oh, yes, yes. Yes, I'm fine. Evey: Can I ask what happened? V: [hesitates for a moment] There was a fire. A long time ago. Ancient history for some. Not really very good table conversation. Now, would you care for a cup of tea with your egg? Evey: Yes, thank you. I'm starving, actually. V: Have a seat. Evey: Mmm. It's delicious! V: Mmm. Good. Evey: God, I haven't had real butter since I was a little girl. Where did you get it? V: A government supply train on its way to Chancellor Sutler. Evey: [chokes] You stole this from Chancellor Sutler!? V: [nonchalantly] Yes. E

Dialogue

Evey: Can I ask about what you said on the telly? V: Yes. Evey: Did you mean it? V: Every word. Evey: You really think that blowing up parliament is going to make this country a better place? V: There's no certainty, only opportunity. Evey: I think you can be pretty certain that if anyone does show up, Creedy will black-bag everyone of them. V: People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people. Evey: And you are going to make that happen by blowing up a building? V: The building is a symbol, as is the act of destroying it. Symbols are given power by the people. Alone, a symbol is meaningless, but with enough people, blowing up a building can change the world. Evey: I wish I believed that was possible, but every time I've seen the world change it's always been for the worse.

Dialogue

Prothero: Holy Christ! Jesus--! [slips and falls to the floor] V: Good evening, Commander Prothero. Prothero: Oh God! How did you get in here?! V: Don't worry; I've made sure our reunion won't be disturbed by any pesky late-night phone calls, Commander. Prothero: Stop that! Why do you keep calling me that? V: That was your title, remember? When we first met, all those years ago. You wore a uniform in those days. Prothero: [After some flashbacks of his time at Larkhill, including the fire, he figures out V as the man from Room 5] You. It is you! V: The Ghost of Christmas Past.

Dialogue

Evey: V, yesterday I couldn't find my ID. You didn't take it, did you? V: Would you prefer a lie or the truth? Evey: [stands, gesturing toward the TV, which has just finished an announcement of Lewis Prothero's death] Did you have anything to do with that? V: Yes, I killed him. Evey: You? Oh, God! V: You're upset. Evey: I'm upset? You just said you killed Lewis Prothero! V: I might have killed the Fingermen who attacked you, but I heard no objection then. Evey: What? V: Violence can be used for good. Evey: What are you talking about? V: Justice. Evey: Oh... I see. V: There's no courtroom in this country for men like Prothero. Evey: And are you going to kill more people? V: [nonchalantly] Yes.

Dialogue

Evey: My father was a writer. You would've liked him. He used to say that artists use lies to tell the truth, while politicians use them to cover the truth up. V: A man after my own heart.

Dialogue

Evey: [reading inscription on mirror] Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici... V: "By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe". Evey: Personal motto? V: From Faust. Evey: That's about trying to cheat the devil, isn't it? V: It is.

Dialogue

Delia: [wakes in an apparently empty room] It's you, isn't it? You've come to kill me. V: [from the shadows] Yes. Delia: [lets out a sob] Thank God...

Dialogue

Delia: After what happened, after what they did, I thought about killing myself. But I knew that one day you'd come for me. I didn't know what they were going to do. I swear to you. Read my journal. V: What they did was only possible because of you. Delia: Oppenheimer was able to change more than the course of a war. He changed the entire course of human history. Is it wrong to hold on to that kind of hope? V: I've not come for what you hoped to do. I've come for what you did. Delia: It's funny. I was given one of your roses today. I wasn't sure you were the terrorist until I saw it. What a strange coincidence that I should be given one today. V: There are no coincidences, Delia. Only the illusion of coincidence. I have another rose [takes one out], and this one is for you. [hands it to her] Delia: Are you going to kill me now? V: I killed you ten minutes ago. [holds up a small hypodermic needle] While you slept. Delia: [frightened] Is there any pain? V: No. Delia: Thank you. [pauses b

Dialogue

Finch: The terrorist obviously wanted us to have it. He wanted us to know the whole story or at least a part of it. Sutler: Am I to understand that you have read this document, inspector? Finch: Yes, sir. Sutler: Has anyone else read it? Finch: No, sir. Sutler: Then let me make this perfectly clear to you. The contents of this document are a matter of national security, constituting an assault on the character of several important party members as well as a blatant violation of the Articles of Allegiance. As the authenticity of this document cannot be verified, it could be an elaborate forgery created by the terrorist, as easily as it could be the deranged fantasy of a former party member who resigned for psychological reasons. Any discussion of this document or its contents will be regarded, at the very least, as an act of sedition, if not a willful act of treason. Is that understood, Mr Finch? Finch: Yes, sir. Sutler: You would do well, inspector, to put it out of your mind.

Dialogue

Gordon: Bonjour, mademoiselle. Evey: [puzzled] What is that you're making? Gordon: We call it "Eggie in the Basket". My mum used to make them. Evey: This is weird. Gordon: What? Evey: The first morning I was with him, he made me eggs just like this. Gordon: Really? Evey: I swear! Gordon: That is a strange coincidence. Although there's an obvious explanation. Evey: There is? Gordon: Yes, Evey. I am V. At last, you know the truth. [Evey looks incredulously at Gordon] You're stunned, I know. It's hard to believe, isn't it? That beneath this wrinkled, well-fed exterior, there lies a dangerous killing machine with a fetish for Fawkesian masks. ¡Viva la revolución! Evey: That is not funny, Gordon. Gordon: [sighs] Yes, I know. I'm useless without a studio audience. Evey: I've seen people go to jail for less than that. Gordon: Of course. He was right, wasn't he? There is something wrong with this country.

Dialogue

Finch: I want to ask a question, Dominic. I don't care if you answer me or not. I just want to say this aloud... The question I want to ask is about St Mary's and Three Waters. The question that's kept me up for the last 24 hours, the question I have to ask, is: What if the worst, the most horrifying, biological attack in this country's history was not the work of religious extremists? Dominic: Well, I don't understand. We know it was. They were caught. They confessed. Finch: And they were executed, I know. And maybe that's really what happened. But I see this chain of events, these coincidences... and I have to ask: What if that isn't what happened? What if someone else unleashed that virus? What if someone else killed all those people? Would you really want to know who it was? Dominic: Sure. Finch: Even if it was someone working for this government? That's my question. If our own government was responsible for what happened at St Mary's and Three Waters... if our own government was r

Dialogue

Evey: What is this all about? Gordon: I'm celebrating. Evey: Celebrating what? Gordon: I think this could be the best show we've ever done. Gordon: [on the television] Very good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Listen. We've got an extraordinary show for you tonight. You're not going to believe it. As a matter of fact, I don't think I do. Would you please give a warm welcome to our own Chancellor Adam Sutler! Mother: No way! Girl with Spectacles: It can't be! Gordon: We threw out the censor-approved script, and shot a new one I wrote this morning. Evey: Oh, my god. Gordon: Chancellor, Chancellor, Chancellor. I understand you've been under tremendous strain lately since the beginning of this whole terrorism business, and we thought it would be a nice idea to try and help you relax. Girls? Fake Sutler: Ah! Warm milk. There's nothing better. Gordon: I understand you enjoy a glass every night, Chancellor. Fake Sutler: Since I was a boy. [The real Sutler is shown sitting in his bunker while w

Dialogue

Gordon: What are they going to do, fine us? Big deal. We've got the most-watched show on air! Well, you're my agent, that's what I pay you for. Protect me! [hangs up] I should have hired him years ago to be my mother. Evey: You're mad! Gordon: Either that or I wasn't breast-fed. Evey: Is everything a joke to you, Gordon? Gordon: Only the things that matter. Evey: What if they come after you? Gordon: I'll tell you what's going to happen. I'll have to make some kind of apology and do some boring fund-raiser, but in the meantime, our ratings will go through the roof. It'll be fine! Trust me.

Dialogue

Interrogator: Do you know why you're here, Evey Hammond? Evey: No. Please... Interrogator: You've been formally charged with three counts of murder, the bombing of government property, conspiracy to commit terrorism, treason, and sedition — the penalty for which is death by firing squad. You have one chance, and only one chance, to save your life. You must tell us the identity or whereabouts of code name V. If your information leads to his capture, you will be released from this facility immediately. Do you understand what I'm telling you? You can return to your life, Ms Hammond. All you have to do is co-operate. Process her.

Dialogue

Interrogator: I am instructed to inform you that you have been convicted by special tribunal and that unless you are ready to offer your co-operation, you are to be executed. Do you understand what I'm telling you? Evey: Yes. Interrogator: Are you ready to co-operate? Evey: No. Interrogator: Very well. Escort Ms Hammond back to her cell. Arrange a detail of six men and take her out behind the chemical sheds and shoot her. Guard: It's time. Evey: I'm ready. Guard: [hesitates] Look, all they want is one little piece of information. Just give them something, anything. Evey: Thank you, but I'd rather die behind the chemical sheds. Guard: Then you have no fear anymore. You're completely free.

Dialogue

V: [entering] Hello, Evey. Evey: ..You...it was you... V: [quietly] Yeah. Evey: [gestures behind her] That wasn't real... Is Gordon — ? V: I'm sorry, but Mr Deitrich's dead. I thought they'd arrest him, but when they found a Qur'an in his house, they had him executed. Evey: [whispers] Oh, God. V: Fortunately, I got to you before they did. Evey: You got to me? You did this to me... You cut my hair... You tortured me... You tortured me! Why? V: You said you wanted to live without fear. I wish there would have been an easier way, but there wasn't. Evey: [whispers] Oh, my God! V: I know you may never forgive me, but nor will you ever understand how hard it was for me to do what I did. Every day, I saw in myself everything you see in me now. Every day, I wanted to end it. But each time you refused to give in, I knew I couldn't. Evey: [shouting angrily] You're sick! You're evil! V: You could have ended it, Evey. You could have given in, but you didn't. Why? Evey: Leave me alone! I HATE YOU!

Dialogue

V: What was done to me was monstrous! Evey: Then they created a monster.

Dialogue

Heyer: Chancellor, I know no-one seems to want to discuss this, but if we're to be prepared for any eventuality, then it can't be ignored any longer. The red report in front of you has been vetted by several demolition specialists. Now, it concludes that the most logical delivery system for the terrorist to use would be an airborne attack. A separate report has been filed suggesting a train, despite the fact that the tunnels surrounding Parliament have been sealed shut. Sutler: Who filed that report? Heyer: Chief Inspector Finch. Sutler: Do you have any evidence to support this conclusion, Mr Finch? Finch: No, sir, just a feeling. Sutler: If I am sure of anything, Inspector Finch, it is that this government will not survive if it is to be subject to your feelings. Mr Dascombe, what we need right now is a clear message to the people of this country. This message must be read in every newspaper, heard on every radio, seen on every television. This message must resound throughout the enti

Dialogue

V: [puts out a hand] That's close enough, inspector. [activates a debugger] Finch: We're not wired. V: I'm sorry, but a man in my position survives by taking every precaution. Finch: You've information for us? V: No, you already have the information. All the names and dates are inside your head. What you want, what you really need, is a story. Finch: A story can be true or false. V: I leave such judgments to you, inspector. Finch: Can you prove any of this? V: Why do you think I'm still alive? Finch: Right. We'd like to take you into protective custody, Mr Rookwood. V: Oh, I'm sure you would. But if you want that recording, you'll do what I tell you to do. Put Creedy under 24-hour surveillance. When I feel safe that he can't pick his nose without you knowing, I'll contact you again. Until then, cheerio. Finch: Rookwood. Why didn't you come forward before? What were you waiting for? V: Well, for you, inspector. I needed you.

Dialogue

Guard #1: What's he doing in the dark there? Guard #2: Creepy Creedy. Not sure I want to know. V: Sutler can no longer trust you, can he, Mr Creedy? And we both know why. After I destroy Parliament, his only chance will be to offer them someone else, some other piece of meat. And who will that be? You, Mr Creedy. A man as smart as you has probably considered this. A man as smart as you probably has a plan. That plan is the reason Sutler no longer trusts you. It's the reason you're being watched right now, why there are eyes and ears in every room of this house and a tap on every phone. Creedy: Bollocks. V: Oh, a man as smart as you, I think, knows otherwise. Creedy: What do you want? V: Sutler. Come now, Mr Creedy, you knew this was coming. You knew that one day, it'd be you or him. That's why Sutler's been kept underground for "security purposes". That's why there are several of your men close to Sutler. Men that can be counted on. All you have to do is say the word. Creedy: What do I

Dialogue

Dominic: We've got Creedy pinned like a butterfly for weeks. Still no word; what's he waiting for? Dominic: Yeah? Inspector, it's for you. Finch: [takes the phone] Yeah? Captain Clark: Is that Chief Inspector Finch? Finch: It is. Captain Clark: This is Captain Clark of the 137th ward at Southend. We found him. Finch: Found who? Captain Clark: William Rookwood, the one you've been looking for. I saw your report a couple of weeks ago, thought I'd run it through our John Does. Sure enough, I hooked him; perfect dental match. He was a floater, a couple of fishermen picked him up. No ID, never solved. Until now, that is. Finch: William Rookwood is dead? Captain Clark: I'd say so. 20 years now. Finch: GOD DAMMIT!! That son of a bitch sat there and spoon-fed me that bullshit, and I ate it up!! Dominic: So what do we do now, Inspector? Finch: We do what we should've been doing. We find him!

Dialogue

Sutler: Every day, gentlemen. Every day that brings us closer to November. Every day that man remains free is one more failure! 347 days, gentlemen! 347 failures! Creedy: Chancellor, we do not have the adequate force to... Sutler: WE ARE BEING BURIED BENEATH THE AVALANCHE OF YOUR INADEQUACIES, MR. CREEDY!

Dialogue

Sutler: I want anyone caught with one of those masks arrested! Convenience Store V: Give me the money! Give me the fucking money! Dominic: We're under siege here. The whole city's gone mad. Finch: That's exactly what he wants. Dominic: What? Convenience Store V: Anarchy in the UK! [fires shots into the air, then escapes with the money] Finch: Chaos. Sutler: Mr Creedy, I am holding you personally responsible for this situation. Finch: The problem is that he knows us better than we know ourselves. That's why I went to Larkhill last night. Dominic: That's outside quarantine. Finch: I had to see it. There wasn't much left. But when I was there it was strange – I suddenly had this feeling that everything was connected. It was like I could see the whole thing; one long chain of events that stretched back to before Larkhill. I felt like I could see everything that had happened, and everything that was going to happen. It was like a perfect pattern, laid out in front of me, and I realised that

Dialogue

Sutler: Tonight, I will speak directly to these people and make the situation perfectly clear to them. The security of this nation depends on complete and total compliance! Tonight, any protester, any instigator or agitator, WILL BE MADE EXAMPLE OF! Dascombe: [clears throat] Chancellor, there is a contingency that has not been addressed. Sutler: And what is that, Mr. Dascombe? Dascombe: Should the terrorist succeed...? Sutler: He won't. Dascombe: I understand that it is highly unlikely, but if he does...? Sutler: If he does, and something happens to that building, the only thing that will change, the only difference that it will make, is that tomorrow morning, instead of a newspaper, I will be reading MR. CREEDY'S RESIGNATION!

Dialogue

Dominic: I went by Parliament. Never seen anything like it — tanks, anti-aircraft, infantry — it makes you wish that no-one would show up tonight. But if they do, what do you think will happen? Finch: What usually happens when people without guns stand up to people with guns. Pull over here. Dominic: We've been searching these tunnels for weeks. You really think we're going to find him now? [they pull up outside Charing Cross station. Finch gets out of the car.] Inspector? It's all gone wrong, hasn't it?

Dialogue

V: [confronting a helpless Sutler] At last, we finally meet. I have something for you, Chancellor. A farewell gift. For all the things you've done, for the things you might have done, and for the only thing you have left. [places a rose in Sutler's coat] Goodbye, Chancellor. Mr Creedy? Creedy: [as Sutler whimpers and blubbers in terror] Disgusting. [executes Sutler with his revolver] Now that's done with. It's time to have a look at your face. Take off your mask. V: No. Creedy: Defiant to the end, huh? Oh, you won't cry like him, will you? You're not afraid of death. You're like me. V: The only thing that you and I have in common, Mr Creedy, is we're both about to die. Creedy: [scoffs] How do you imagine that's going to happen? V: With my hands around your neck. Creedy: Bollocks. What are you going to do, huh? We've swept this place. You've got nothing. Nothing but your bloody knives and your fancy karate gimmicks. We have guns! V: No, what you have are bullets, and the hopes that when

Dialogue

Finch: Who was he? Evey: He was Edmond Dantès. And he was my father. And my mother... my brother... my friend. He was you, and me. He was all of us.