There is the rumor/theory that the Wachowski’s did ghost direct much of V so there is that possibility.
As for SR I do recommend giving it another try. It is an adaptation and not a direct remake of the original anime so some leeway should be considered. If nothing else, give this little video a watch and see what you think.
As I said above SR is a masterpiece to me and should be deeply appreciated for the depth they put into this film stretching what one actually defines cinema as and what larger potential it can be. It’s a shame it went up against Iron Man and The Dark Knight in 2008 so it really didn’t have a chance to find an audience then.
In some parallel universe they never got that Wild Wild West movie out of pre-production and there are still a bunch of nerds bemoaning how it would have been the most amazing steampunk action film ever if only those Hollywood suits had the vision to make it happen.
It has some very good stuff on it - Doom Patrol is fantastic, and the animated Harley Quinn is the best version of that character since Batman the Animated Series. There is other good stuff too, like Search Party, At Home with Amy Sedaris, and more.
