Comic-fun coolness, gothic world goodness, with wham bam action sequences and dark interesting storyline - that was the first Underworld movie, three years ago. Underworld: Evolution however seemed to not have been reached the statuette that I was expecting for. It's not a disappointment, I mean, technically, it still looks cool and pretty gothic, but its own storyling made the movie more convoluted than it already was.Alright, sequels rarely work. Look at Hollywood franchises, you just have to be as tough as Johnny Depp or adventurous as Jerry Bruckheimer to make sequels work and well, cash in some gazzing! But although Underworld 2 is full of blood gushing, sword slashing, butt kicking action sequences, it doesn't seem to fill up that empty space that the first Underworld film left, in which the sequel is supposed to suffice.
The plot, my God, I did get the whole story as I am not daft, but it seems to me that they made everything so complex that the whole plot did became somehow too intricate, too confusing for an ordinary moviegoer. The first scene was a bit effective though, trying to go way back centuries and trace the war between vampires and lycans (werewolves) and that two brothers were warring alongside with each other. As the movie developed, the character of Markus, the first vampire to have ruled the world, was left underdeveloped. The filmmakers apparently didn't know what to do with him, and his character felt too sympathetic for a king vampire, for his own brother which was also the grand master lycan. The character of Alexander Corvinus was poorly done. I though he was this powerful a la Godfather Don Vampire but he disappointingly weak.
Without the uber compelling Kate Beckinsale, I don't think this movie would have worked. Laden with supercool gadgets in a very tight black outfit, she surely kicks more asses. I could even imagine her in the role of Diana, the Wonder Woman (yes, she's been chosen to fit in the role). She maintains the character very well and she gives intense command every single second she's on the screen. Scott Speedman was alright, acceptable in fact. But anyway, what do the stars have to boast when their own movie that revolves around them seemed to be confused which way to go to? I think some people would like it, especially those who crave for cinematic fake blood. But for me, I don't know how to do with it. I even wanted to scream at the filmmakers, the director (which was Kate Beckinsale's husband, Len Wiseman) what they have done at the film. I love the first Underworld film, and I wish they had better on the second.
Rating: C
The plot, my God, I did get the whole story as I am not daft, but it seems to me that they made everything so complex that the whole plot did became somehow too intricate, too confusing for an ordinary moviegoer. The first scene was a bit effective though, trying to go way back centuries and trace the war between vampires and lycans (werewolves) and that two brothers were warring alongside with each other. As the movie developed, the character of Markus, the first vampire to have ruled the world, was left underdeveloped. The filmmakers apparently didn't know what to do with him, and his character felt too sympathetic for a king vampire, for his own brother which was also the grand master lycan. The character of Alexander Corvinus was poorly done. I though he was this powerful a la Godfather Don Vampire but he disappointingly weak.
Without the uber compelling Kate Beckinsale, I don't think this movie would have worked. Laden with supercool gadgets in a very tight black outfit, she surely kicks more asses. I could even imagine her in the role of Diana, the Wonder Woman (yes, she's been chosen to fit in the role). She maintains the character very well and she gives intense command every single second she's on the screen. Scott Speedman was alright, acceptable in fact. But anyway, what do the stars have to boast when their own movie that revolves around them seemed to be confused which way to go to? I think some people would like it, especially those who crave for cinematic fake blood. But for me, I don't know how to do with it. I even wanted to scream at the filmmakers, the director (which was Kate Beckinsale's husband, Len Wiseman) what they have done at the film. I love the first Underworld film, and I wish they had better on the second.
Rating: C
