Underworld review. SPOILERS!!

[Drix D'Zanth]

REALIZE NOW THERE ARE SPOILERS ALL OVER THIS REVEIW. I DON?T WANT TO USE THE SPOILER FEATURE EVERY FEW SENTENCES IN THIS REVIEW, SO FOR THE SAKE OF COHERENCY, I?VE LEFT IT AS IT IS. DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO READ SPOILERS!




I recently watched the 12 o?clock showing of the movie Underworld, by Sony Entertainment/Screen Gem?s productions. I arrived with my group of friends, including Adahn, unable to expect much of anything. I had read the day?s earlier reviews claiming it as a "matrix rip-off" , etc. I decided to keep my expectations low in order to be as objective as possible and enjoy the experience.

The movie turned out to exceed my expectations. The plot, while not horribly original, was fairly complex. I enjoyed the slight love triangle between Selene, Michael, Craven, and that other girl vampire (who?s name escapes me). I did like how the plot built up bit by bit towards the end, finding loyalties switching one after another. I really was like "Go Selena! ? ****.. wait .. Go Viktor and Selena!? victor did WHAT?.. Go Lucian!? Go Lucian and Craven??? Go Michael.. no wait? Selena!" I thought the best moment of the movie was the hazy memory scene where Lucian observes his vampire wife perish. Very big plot twist there, I was very pleased. I must say, the plot was a bit lacking in motivation. I really don?t believe Selene was fighting for 600 years to find this one lucky SOB that can become half vampire half werewolf? it?s kind of sad, the motivation of these characters.

Good points:
Fighting- The fighting was , as expected, very good. It seemed that all the vampires, except Viktor, easily got their asses whipped by the werewolves. Even the whip guy who was so popular in the preview was taken out in a few seconds. Selene fought smart to a certain extent. Yes, her gun had unlimited ammo ;) , but she took cover and ran away from the Lycans instead of fighting them head on, for obvious reasons.

Slow Motion- No, this movie wasn?t a Matrix Rip-off. I loathe that stereotype. Why? Because slow-mo was in movies well before the Matrix, it just took it to a nearly essential level in it?s film and incorporated the "sweep around view in slow motion, time freeze, etc" scene. Now when a movie has Slow Motion, it?s automatically giving credit to the Matrix? Not in my book. The slow motion in this movie was done well, used when necessary, and wasn?t taken to extremes (I.e. the "follow the bullet ripples slow-mo of the matrix).

The severe badasses: Alright, this movie was almost a level upon level of new badass after another. First, Selene, who is a badass through the whole dang film, especially the finale. Secondly, the Lycans as a whole. They SLAUGHTER the vampires, they can take silver bullets much better than vampires can take the daylight bullets, and rip vamps to shreds? Then Viktor comes along, and he beats a Lycan without much effort at all? total badassedness. Apparently he?s the oldest vampire, so this makes complete sense. Then we have Michael who becomes the hybrid thing, he turns all black, and badass looking. I felt like gleeful little middle-schooler watching an episode of DBZ. More badassedness, new powers, and new levels at every turn. And one black Lycan guy.. his voice? it was ultimate badass, it?s like Darth Vader?s badass son?. Jeeze.

The Setting: The rainy, dark, and somehow exceedingly blue-tinted city (of who?s name we are not given..) definitely has style. Everything takes upon a definite gothic feel. They?ve got haunted mansions, ancient vampire tombs, subways, and every other dank location you could imagine a secretive war to take place in. The mad-doctor Lycan?s place has a very distinct flavor to it as well, plenty of rusty needles to go around, it appeared.

The Plot: I already touched on this. Next to Interview with a Vampire, this movie has the best plot of it?s genre (blade doesn?t compare, plot-wise).

Kate Beckinsdale: ?. Yeah like I really need to put a thing here. Within the first two minutes of the movie you see her nice sculpted? leather?.. pants.. *drools*

The Ending: Not the final slice of Selene?s sword, but the fact blood leaks into the other vampires coffin. I think this is actually a great place to end for a sequel. I?m all in favor of a sequel? after seeing That much tight leather? Hell yes, it kept me more awake than downing a bottle of caffeine pills.

Bad/Annoying points:

Michael- whoever chose this guy to act should get a pat on the back, then a ball pin hammer to his head. He?s like Keanu Reeves, except he talks less, and he looks even more pathetic. This guy has one emotion: desperate. A lot of plot holes hit this guy. There?s pictures of him with some lady? and no woman is brought up within the film. Nothing is explained, it seems his only friend is a hospital worker who has no trouble turning poor Michael here into the police.

The final blow: When Selene slices Viktor?s face?. He whips out his knifes, whips around, does a little jig?.. looks happy.. looks sad? then all of a sudden, his face falls off? A bit drawn out there.

Vampires are Lame?- I was sincerely pissed at this. Vampires didn?t get to do jack squat. Without cool silver Nitrate bullets, they were absolutely ineffective against Lycans. Their teeth were pathetic compared to Lycan jaws, and even their coolest whips couldn?t do next to anything in slowing down a Lycan. Really, how does someone who is dead DROWN, or BREATHE?. *shrug* Really, the only things Vampires had going for them, is that they had Viktor and Selene. They can jump from high places.. wow. Oh yeah, Selene jumps up in the air 50 feet and flips at the end of the movie.. for no reason. Why she didn?t employ this tactic earlier is beyond me. Oh yeah, their eyes turned blue when they were pissed or something. No explanation.. just blue eyes. Why blue? No idea, I guess that everyone with blue eyes must be vampires now. Sorry guys, your secret?s out. Hell, one of the 3 elders, that girl elder, is whooped in mere seconds by probably second-class Lycans. One of the 3 BEST vampires, by 2 or three Lycans?.

Isn?t Viktor the best?- Ok, the hybrid Michael almost beats the CRAP out of Viktor, and just barely loses.
At the end of the movie, it says that the last elder will awaken, Marius. I?m left with a feeling of "so what"? Why? Because Viktor is hyped up as being the oldest and most powerful vampire, and he almost loses. Marius doesn?t stand a freakin? chance!

Lack of Purpose- This movie really ends with no real purpose. Ok, Michael is a hybrid, he and selene are in love, and that?s it. Ok, Marius with hunt them down?. Great.. So what happens now? Are the vampires and Lycan?s still fighting. Are Selene and Michael against everyone?

Lycan stupidity- for being so powerful, they are pretty stupid creatures. Lycans knew where the vampire place was the whole movie, and they didn?t bother hunting the vampires during daylight times? pathetic waste of a HUGE advantage. Why didn?t they just light the mansion on fire? God?

Vampires are Pussies- According to this movies, vampires are all incredibly beautiful, and have to dress up in cocktail dresses every day, hang out in a mansion and talk. Or, they could fight the lycans, maybe hop off a few buildings, and get their asses handed to them. Vampires are pretty pansy-like, they just sit there and act beautiful. I saw 3 vampires in total fight until the last 8th of the movie, maybe.

Overall I?d give it a 7 out of 10. Nothing really all that groundbreaking, but it did improve upon other movies of this genre. And Kate Beckinsdale earns the movie a few points by herself. I always liked vampires, too. If you want the cream of the crop, rent Interview with a Vampire (as mentioned before). If you are content with a fairly mediocre plot, with a few cool twists, great action, and cool looking places; this movie will suit you fine.

Finally, please excuse the spelling/grammar/syntax errors, I wrote this at about 3 pm. *yawns*

[terra]

I hope you meant 3AM ... otherwise you are pretty darn lazy. :D

Anyway, I saw Underworld on Friday night, so I thought I'd add my comments.

[quote]Selene fought smart to a certain extent. Yes, her gun had unlimited ammo , but she took cover and ran away from the Lycans instead of fighting them head on, for obvious reasons.[/quote]
Selene's fight scenes tended towards the ridiculously impossible, in my opinion. She was a bit invincible, really. Werewolves could shoot entire clips off their machine guns at her, and she would be standing completely without cover and yet they would all miss. (Terrible aim, these lycans have.) Plus, she knocked out three of Viktor's guards without any trouble, not to mention her final attack on Viktor. I guess he was weakened from the fight with Michael, but still.

Also, I had an issue with the scene that's in the ad, where she shot a circle through the floor of the building so that she could fall to the floor below. It seemed in the time it took her to do that, the werewolves would've been upon her (I don't think she shot all of them down).

Overall, though, I agree that the fighting was pretty cool.


[quote]The rainy, dark, and somehow exceedingly blue-tinted city (of who?s name we are not given..) definitely has style. Everything takes upon a definite gothic feel. They?ve got haunted mansions, ancient vampire tombs, subways, and every other dank location you could imagine a secretive war to take place in.[/quote]
I agree, it definitely had a lot of style. Along with this, though, was one of the movie's problems -- the passage of time. Since they never showed anything in the daytime, it at times felt like one ... very ... long ... night.


[quote]Michael- whoever chose this guy to act should get a pat on the back, then a ball pin hammer to his head. He?s like Keanu Reeves, except he talks less, and he looks even more pathetic.[/quote]
I didn't think he was half as bad as CRAVEN. Worst. Casting. Ever. I'm okay with there being a random American among all the cool British vampires, whatever. But at least have someone who can act.


[quote]Lack of Purpose- This movie really ends with no real purpose. Ok, Michael is a hybrid, he and selene are in love, and that?s it. Ok, Marius with hunt them down?. Great.. So what happens now? Are the vampires and Lycan?s still fighting. Are Selene and Michael against everyone?[/quote]
I think that the movie did end with a decent amount of purpose to it. Selene and Michael aren't necessarily going to be against everyone, I think, because there may be other vampires and lycans who agree that a union and peace agreement can exist between the two races. In fact, the original war is the one that seems to lack purpose, since its origin was a mystery that was revealed in this movie. I think that lends more purpose to the war in the future movie. Hm, that was semi-incoherent.

[Krademon]

Ok well this movie does seem to contain quite a bit of undead dismemberment, always a high point.
But how much does it rip off other werewolf\vampire\undead movie? if any.

[Semjaza]

I don't understand why so many movies go one way or the other with the reflection issue. Yes, it depends on what myth you want to believe... but for me, it's very distracting to have to throw everything other movies use for vampires out the window for another movie.

I saw League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and that girl could go out in direct sunlight. Why? Who knows, they never even attempted to explain it. Why even make vampires if you're just going to remove one of their main weaknesses?

Honestly, I thought this movie was dull overall. The fight scenes were cool for the most part, but I had a very hard time even remotely caring about what happened to anyone in the film in the end. Even the ones with decent acting.

I'm going to have to agree with Craven. I'm not even sure where this guy was from. Most of the time he had no real accent, but earlier in the film (maybe more) he gave himself this really odd accent. Plus the guy was just a pansy. He was terrible in every regard and really gave off no menacing vibes whatsoever. I wanted to hit him every time he pretended to get upset. He can't even act a basic human emotion out properly?

The end of the movie basically said right out that Marius would awake and a new pact of sorts would be formed. Something to that effect. It closed itself well enough, I suppose.

As for the wuss vampires... Victor is obviously annoyed with Craven's decisions, as he led their kind into a decadent lifestyle as opposed to their origins. Obviously, considering there wasn't supposed to be a real threat against vampires thanks to Craven and Lucian's deals, they had no reason to all be truly vicious anyway. I still don't get why that one girl just went on the ceiling and hissed though.

Very, very average. I don't even think the style was all that impressive, mostly for the fact that it was generally very generic goth nonsense that I could have seen in Blade, or any other modern-setting movie like this for that matter, years ago. Her boots come to mind instantly.

[Harry]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Drix D'Zanth [/i]
[B]
Overall I?d give it a 7 out of 10. Nothing really all that groundbreaking, but it did improve upon other movies of this genre.
[/B][/QUOTE]
So I guess what I'm wondering is are there any stupid techno vampire scenes? Such as Queen as the Damned, and Blade.

[Semjaza]

No. There aren't, from what I remember (I might be wrong -- but if there was anything in it, it was very slight and of no importance). The vampires have parties, but they're debutant balls, more or less. There isn't even really any music involved. They kind of just sit there and drink. Werewolves do their own thing, but none of it approaches a rave or really even a party.

I don't even remember any techno in the film. A lot of the music was done by Danny Lohner (and other random bands on the soundtrack). They didn't really use much that was memorable though, and it was generally background music.

Queen of the Damned was awful. I'm going to say that this was better than that, but it's not remarkable in any way.

[Drix D'Zanth]

This movie tops queen of the dammned and Blade. I agree that it wasn't anything spectacular. I encourage anyone who wishes to see a GOOD vampire movie see Interview with a Vampire, Nosferatu (the really old one), or Bram Stoker's Dracula (trailing third, but it was ok in it's own right.). I've yet to see shadows of the vampire.. about the movie.. or something.


[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by terra [/i]
[B]I hope you meant 3AM ... otherwise you are pretty darn lazy. :D



Selene's fight scenes tended towards the ridiculously impossible, in my opinion. She was a bit invincible, really. Werewolves could shoot entire clips off their machine guns at her, and she would be standing completely without cover and yet they would all miss. (Terrible aim, these lycans have.) Plus, she knocked out three of Viktor's guards without any trouble, not to mention her final attack on Viktor. I guess he was weakened from the fight with Michael, but still.

Also, I had an issue with the scene that's in the ad, where she shot a circle through the floor of the building so that she could fall to the floor below. It seemed in the time it took her to do that, the werewolves would've been upon her (I don't think she shot all of them down).
I agree, it definitely had a lot of style. Along with this, though, was one of the movie's problems -- the passage of time. Since they never showed anything in the daytime, it at times felt like one ... very ... long ... night.

I didn't think he was half as bad as CRAVEN. Worst. Casting. Ever. I'm okay with there being a random American among all the cool British vampires, whatever. But at least have someone who can act.
[/B][/QUOTE]

Ahh I forgot to mention the [B]unlimited ammo![/B] Yeah, every side had about millions of clips to fire, full of silver nitrate or sunlight (how the hell do you capture sunlight? Is it some sort of UV emmitting bullet? Why didn't they just use UV lights?????). I hated the whole "lets stand here and shoot off more ammo than concievebly possible". I was referring to the fact that Selene sometimes DID use some sort of cover, and she ran away (wisely) from the Lycans.

And I forgot Craven, thankfully, he was absolutely drab. The vampires tended to lack personality in general, except for selene to a certain extent. Alot of the OK things they did was absolutely random (why did selene not jump earlier in the movie like she didn in the end? Why the hell don't other vampires cling to the wall when it's USEFUL?).

[Brasil]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Drix D'Zanth [/i]
[B]This movie tops queen of the dammned and Blade. I agree that it wasn't anything spectacular. I encourage anyone who wishes to see a GOOD vampire movie see Interview with a Vampire, Nosferatu (the really old one), [/B][/QUOTE]

Nosferatu!!! The All-Time greatest vampire film ever made. Max Schrek kicks the living piss out of any other cinematic vampire character in existence.

Granted, Interview was spectacular and took itself seriously, but Nosferatu is the definitive horror film.

F.W. Murnau...can't go wrong.

The Hollywood schema today is destroying any solid base that Nosferatu or Interview created.

Frankly, I don't see how people can flock to these mind-numbing action movies and never know of or never want to view the origins of the vampire film genre. Cinema is getting destroyed. If any of you want it to survive, you've got to start speaking up. Democracy is doomed when the public stays silent.

"The only way for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing." Loosely quoted from Castlevania: SOTN.

[Semjaza]

The only recent vampire movie that I've seen that was of any real interest was Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust. Excellent anime, I think.

I've always been partial to Near Dark too, although they are never refered to as vampires... and as such, take quite a few liberties.

[XxmagentaxX]

I personally thought that Underworld was terrible... they broke so many vampire rules... and the storyline wasnt that great and it was very predictable....
Why did the vampires have reflections?
and how could they capture ultra violet light in a bullet?

[Semjaza]

The reflection thing depends on a lot of factors. First of all, it depends on what you want to go with. I've read random things that say it depends on the vampire clan and so on.

Really, the no reflection thing has evolved from old folklore and the idea that reflections in mirrors and water are reflections of the soul and not of the flesh. Traditionally, vampires give up their soul when they take on their new form. They become a demon.

I'm sure most people interested are familiar with Anne Rice. He vampires have reflections. Rice's books humanized vampires, and you can't truly be human without a soul in such stories. Lestat is a good example (even if you've not read the book, you have that movie to look back on) as he specifically questions his reflection's existance. He knows that beings who lost their sous to hell supposedly don't have relfections.

So this means one of two things. Either Rice gave these characters souls (which would explain a lot of Lestat's comments in the book, which I feel imply that he has one) or she is totally ignoring that idea altogether... which isn't unheard of.

In any case, it is safe to say that ANY vampire movie to be made in recent time, or any time in the future, is going to be influenced a lot by Anne Rice's works. Underworld is no exception.

As for the UV bullet, I don't know... but I doubt it's something that needs to be explained because this movie is supposed to suspend belief. However, I wondered why they didn't just make some sort of gun that gave off the exact light temperature of sunlight. I'd assume it would do the same thing.

[Harry]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by XxmagentaxX [/i]
[B] they broke so many vampire rules... [/b][/quote]
I have to say that there are hardly any set in stone vampire rules besides some no-brainers (they drink blood and can't go in the sung).

[quote][b]
and how could they capture ultra violet light in a bullet? [/B][/QUOTE]
Yeah talk about being realistic. I would expect more from a vampire movie.

[Artemis]

I have to say, that overall, I liked the movie. The color scheme (lack of any warm tones or even greens) worked well. When I saw it, my friends and I really needed a bad-***, shoot-em-up action flick (one of us recently broke up w/ a long time bf), so the fact that the love story was rather faint helped a lot. Unlike a lot of people, I wasn't really disappointed with Michael. I think that if I were suddenly thrown into an epic war b/t creatures I didn't even know existed, I'd be extremely weirded out as well. :wigout:
As far as the vampire rules go, I really feel like the traditional ones should be in place: only daylight and wooden stakes through the heart kill them. Garlic and rosaries ward them off, and they don't have reflections. (Note the classic book "Dracula".) What I kept wondering, was why they never turned into bats!!:cross:
I also thought the werewolves looked sort of lizard-like. They didn't seem like they had any hair. That was kinda weird...:drunk:
I need to see some other vampire movies so I can really compare it. The only other I can think of that I've seen is "The Forsaken" (if I'm remembering the name properly...)
I guess, like Drix, I'd probably give this show about a 7 out of 10.

[NorykoAngelcry]

[SIZE=1][COLOR=darkred]I was a little let down by this movie. I was sort of expecting more of a Matrix feel. Why? you ask - well, I wanted more fist swinging, kick throwing action. . everything was done by guns, except at the end where they had some whips and some swords. . *sigh*

I really loved Viktor's character. He was bad, and he knew it, and he was ruthless at what he did. . He really wasn't scared of killing anyone, no matter what side you were on.

As for Selena - Well. . it was Kate Beckinsale, so I really wasn't expecting a whole lot. . However, I was pretty surprised, she looked really hot with her black hair.

The biggest thing is that at the end, the Vampires were just walking over the Lycan. . I mean, yes, a few Vampires (mainly the ones that got seperated) were taken out pretty fast, but for the most part, the Lycan were just mowed down. Now, I know that they were pretty much scattered, and just recently pulled together, and that the Vampires had a specific group that was led to kill them, but it was painful to just watch the Lycan taken out that fast *sigh* That's all. . I give the movie 7 out of 10 also. [/COLOR][/SIZE]

[Mitch]

[size=1] The main female actor I found quite attractive. I just have a thing for black hair. Don't ask lol.

Overall, it was a let down, but also an up down in some parts as well. It wasn't terrible, and it wasn't wonderful. I'd say it was a little tinsy winsy above average at most.

I thought they would incorporate more Matrixstyle into it, but I was mistaken in this observation. They barely even used it, let alone captured the essence and style of The Matrix.

The acting was decent, in some places a little ambulatory. The story itself was the prime thing of this movie, and by it was what made it so good as well as bad at once.

The plot twists were interesting enough, and kept you in the movie; although, I must admit, when it first started it was hard to get into it. You know, it kind of just...began. Started right off with action. I'm not into that type of stuff--I like dynamic, well-developed, intelligence-driven stories, a la The Matrix movies and such.

So over all, the ending was lackluster, the middle of it formed the meat, and was somewhat tasty. It was okay. I came in with too high of expectations, though.

Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust well tops this; what a great, amazing movie. It is so much better than the first D. [/size]

[Mei]

[color=green]Well, I just saw this movie, and, like most, I considered it fairly average. It wasn't a ground-breaking movie, but it wasn't terrible.

I liked the overall feel of the movie, but I agree that incoperating more of a Matrix idea was expected. Maybe it as all the black they wore than implied it?

Anyways, as stated, they broke their share of vampiric rules, but there are, at many legends, different clans and types of vampires. They could have been a mixture between a newtype, and the Carpathians. Who knows.

Onto the Lycans, I loved how they did these creatures. I've always loved werewolves, and I was actually very happy with the ones in this movie. Though it would have been nice to see more CG animation, the makeup costumes they used on occasion were exceptional and well done.

With the story-line, I felt a more Romeo-Juliet feel to it, just with less passion. They kind of jumped onto the "love" emotion a bit quickly, but if they had stretched out a whole relationship story, they movie would have over-exceeded an enjoyable time limit.

Anyways, overall this movie was fair, decent, and fun to watch, especially the battle scenes..I love the sight of blood personally, though I may not seem like the type of person to.[/color]

[Dragonettie]

First of all, you should all read the book. that answers so many questions(like Michael's mystery girl, UV bullets,etc)This book also covers more of the Lucia flsh back.I liked the movie alot.I loved the characters(except Kraven, who cast that half-wit?)I loved the story line(That whole vampires vs. werewolves thing was a story I was working on but they beat me to it.)and I love the action.I didn't like Victor that much, he looked way to wimpy to be the strongest vampire.I guess thats what I get for reading the book first.All in all, good plot , good action, and nice curves.I'd give it a 7 out of 10 as well.Nothing ground breaking(which is dissapointing, they could go a alot of places with that story line)but I recamend the book to anyone interested by the story.

@#Dragonettie%&
2003

[Guest angelfire]

i personally think that the movie was pretty good. the story behind it was sweet and the characters did a good job acting. the grafics were awesome (im talking about the lycans). the fight scenes werent that bad. accept for the unlimited bullets, the scenes were greatly formed. the last part of the movie was pretty cheasy though, when she was soaring through the air after she killed victor. i cant wait until the next movie comes out.

peace