REVIEW: Underworld: Evolution

Director: Len Wiseman



Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Scott Speedman, Tony Curran and... yea, they're the only main ones really, everyone else died before you even knew who they were.



Plot: A word of advice, watch the first one before you see this film. It's not one of those sequels where it has the same characters but takes you into a different adventure. No, this film has the same characters and just ADDS to the original story, which is pretty cool actually. You don't find too many sequels like that anymore. Let me try and explain this complex story without a.) overloading non-prequel watcher's minds and b.) sounding insane. Ok, it's vampires versus werewolves (aka lykins) in the mordern world... Selene (Beckinsale) is the coolest one of them all because she wears a full body leather suit and can make a really good wide-eyed "I'm a vampire so don't mess" face. Also, her recently acquired boyfriend Micheal (Speedman), has been transformed into a "hybrid", aka half vampire half werewolf. He's got all these cool powers now like, bashing demons into walls and... jumping really far... you know all that cool stuff. Anyway, there's been some deception in the vampire clan, and Selene wants to get to the bottom of it. She kills Viktor, one of the oldest and higher ranking vampires, after finding out his betrayal. Soon she'll have others tracking her and Michael down, but she's still determined to find the truth of all the deception, and she'll go to any lengths to get to it.




Alright, I have to apologize. That is the best plot I can come up with without it being two pages long. Like I mentioned before, this was quite a complex story and would be difficult to include EVERYTHING. So, sorry to Underworld fans for only involving about 1/4 of the plot.
Now, for the critiques. Although none of the acting seemed to bother me, I've seen better. Some of these guys seemed like they belonged on a Shakespearian theather stage with the way they spoke and set their posture. Not a bad thing... but this movie definitley wasn't Shakespeare. This movie was extremely dark and evil that at times, my mind would be telling me, "What on Earth are you putting into your brain, Stephanie?" The look of some of these... villians, gave me such a creeped out feeling that it reminded me of when I saw a scene from the Exorcist andI felt my stomach do a nausiating somersault. But we'll get to that stuff in a minute. The acting... like I said, not bad. They all did their best, and I'd forget that I was watching people that knew they had a camera on them. Kate, oh Kate. You truly are smoking hot. Apparently everyone thinks so and I'm certainly not going to deny it. This role was good for her. Her character was determined, strong and ok let's face it, vampires are pretty cool sometimes, and she nailed it. I'm wondering if she knows any other emotion besides "pissed off" though. Ok, now on to Mr. Speedman. I'd hate to say it ladies, but there's really nothing special here. I'm not sure what else he's worked on but apparently he's pretty well known. Why haven't I heard of him? Regard two sentences ago, nothing special. Cute, yes. Low jeans and great abs? Check. But I can picture a hundred other guys that could've played his role just as well.
Direction, photography, art direction... all that stuff. Actually pretty well done. Altough this type of movie really wasn't my type, I found it's style very attractive. Very dark. Literally dark, I mean there were no colors other than black, blue and red. The look was very gothic. Huge chandeliers, red velvet drapes and all the leather they could find. (Most of it was worn by Ms. Beckinsale. I'm wondering though, is she really that skinny, or do you think that leather cat suit is just squeezing it all in? Oh, who am I kidding, she's really that skinny...)
Special Effects, very very good. Here's how I've come to that conclusion. There were images that made me want to hurl, like when that hideous winged-vampire came into the scene. Or everytime some creature got one of their limbs "removed" or face chewed off. Sick, graphic stuff I'm talking about here people, but these guys had no fear working on this movie. They really took the time to make these fictionous characters seem as real as possible and it shows through in their work. Although, I find it a little strange in the first place that there are people who would enjoy watching such gruesome images... but you know whatever works I guess.
Music coordination was also very well done. They chose a hard-rock approach, and it definitley fit well with the movie's theme. It really set the tone for the film, giving it the perfect distinction of evil and mischief.
Ok, next subject, cameramen or whoever was in charge of all those angles. Look, not everyone has A.D.D., so can s-l-o-w down the action a little bit here. Here, I'll give you an example of what I'm talking about. During those fighting scenes, all I could see were a bunch of elbows and feet flinging around (ahem, Bourne Supremecy). Oh, or I'll look at the screen and think, "What is that? Is that a bush? No wait... maybe it's a balloon, defnitley a balloon... ohhh hang on wait, it's just someone's shoulder..." Two words people, ZOOM OUT! I couldn't tell what was going on at times! And that's all I have to say about that.
Alright, time for the rating. Honestly, this movie didn't impress me. Although the style was exceptionally creative, there was nothing extraordinary about the actual film. Truthfully, I became bored at times. Yea, not a good sign when my mind drifts off to different things during the film like "Ooo love that lipgloss she's wearing...is that frost?" or "I bet she squeaks when she walks...". Something was missing, I'm not sure what it was. Maybe it was the so-so acting. Or perhaps the intricate plot that grew too predictable towards the end, I don't know. But for the most part, just a little too creepy for me, so I think for now, I'll just stick with Buffy for my vampire watching. (Grrr, ARG!)




Rating: 3/5