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For centuries, vampires and Lycans (werewolves) have been at
war in the Underworld. Selene (Kate Beckinsale) is a
powerful vampire Death Dealer, one who hunts and kills
Lycans. Selene senses something is brewing with the Lycans
when on a hunt she realizes the Lycans are after a human named Michael Corvin
(Scott Speedman). Selene goes after Michael to unravel the
mystery of why the Lycans are hunting him. Turns out that
the Lycans, long on the losing side of the vampire/Lycan battle,
need Michael in order to create a hybrid vampire/Lycan who would
have the strength and powers of both species and the weaknesses
of neither, tilting the battle scale in favor of the
Lycans.
I had trouble determining whether I liked this movie or not,
and then I realized why I was so indecisive: The movie is more
like one fight scene after another stung together with a smidgen
of plot. So while it held my attention because of the
battle scenes and music, I really didn't have a lot to sink my teeth
into (pardon the pun).
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The problem is that instead of building the plot to its
climax, there are too many unanswered questions that need to be
answered more quickly instead of hitting the viewer with it all at
the end. Instead of serving to build suspense and tension,
the plot delay just served to confuse. The beginning was a
little chaotic and I didn't know who was good or bad, where they
were going, or what they were doing. And again, this was
just confusing, not suspenseful.
Having said that, I must admit I'm a sucker for a good battle
scene and this movie was chock full of 'em. The cinematography,
thundering sound of gunfire, and and the pulsating music were
quite impressive. It reminded me of The Matrix with
its slow-motion action scenes, tight leather outfits, and flowing
leather trench coats. And just like in The Matrix,
all the bad guys need to spend more time on the shooting range
because they can't hit the broad side of a horse from six feet
away.
I was equally impressed with the way Beckinsale reinvented
herself in this movie. Having only seen her in Pearl
Harbor, I was captivated by her performance as a tough and
sexy vampire warrior. She played her action scenes to
perfection, but there wasn't a lot of lines for her to memorize!
The make-up and special effects were also very well-done.
I would have like to have seen more of the scenes of
transformation of the Lycans into werewolves, as the make-up and
special effects were exceptional in turning a normal looking
person into a werewolf.
As the leader of the vampires, Viktor (Bill Nighy) needed some
work. When he first awakens, he has this strange Texan
accent that fades in and out during the movie. It was not
fitting with his character and was rather baffling. He also
did this weird facial tick/snort thing that just didn't
work.
I can't really comment on the acting of the others in the
movie, because there really wasn't enough acting to comment
on. But they fought very well!
All in all, I would recommend this movie if you're looking for
a little action (again, no pun intended) and not substance.
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Selene (Beckinsale)
Mighty Viktor (Nighy)
Selene (Beckinsale) greets Michael (Speedman)
Selene (Beckinsale) ready for action
Selene (Beckinsale) confronts Viktor (Nighy)
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