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Underworld
With
the success of Buffy
the Vampire Slayer and Angel,
its not surprising that flicks like Underworld, which
dredge up classic monsters and spin them into modern context,
are being chucked at us.
The basic
premise has potential; vampires and werewolves are entrenched
in a centuries old war, which the vampires seem on the verge
of winning. The leather and vinyl clad vampires are eradicating
the last of the werewolves, or Lycans as they're called, one
by one.
Our heroine
is Selene, played by Kate Beckinsdale, a vampire warrior and
werewolf hunter, who lives (so to speak) for the thrill of
the chase. Till now an unquestioning soldier, Selene rescues
a human named Michael from the Lycans, and uncovers a plot
affecting vampires and werewolves alike.
Fledgling
director Len Wiseman, along with writers Kevin Grevioux and
Danny McBride have sown the wind, but failed to cultivate
a whirlwind. Though there are several well-choreographed action
scenes, the dialog and the performances are pretty much crap.
The story moves well enough, with well-placed and for the
most part relevant action sequences, but the characters are
underwritten and over-acted, straining their credibility.
Beckinsdale's
Selene is a driven single-minded hunter whose outlook on her
place in the war is clear. She hunts, she kills, she wears
black leather corsets. In the course of a routine Lycan-slay,
Selene discovers the double whammy of improved weapons, and
increased numbers, neither of which the Lycans are supposed
to have. She takes this information back to the vampire's
stately manor, where she's promptly told to change into a
filmy black evening dress and decorate the arm of Kraven,
the vamp-in-charge.
 Deducing
that the Lycans she had stalked were in fact stalking prey
of their own, she skips the sexy gown (much to the collective
dismay of the manly types in the audience) and goes off in
search of their target, a hospital intern named Michael. The
trailers play up the romance between these two, but I failed
to see any real chemistry. Beckinsdale is so cold, not even
tasty Scott Speedman can warm her up.
Back at
the castle, Kraven, nursing an obsession with Selene, is clearly
up to no good. It's obvious by the way he struts and frets
and generally chews scenery, that he's a "bad guy."
However, it's impossible to take him seriously because he's
clearly an incompetent leader. It makes no sense for him to
be in charge.
The movie
presents a world where vampires are the moneyed upper class,
and werewolves are the oppressed rebels fighting for survival.
There are themes of racism and classism running through, and
love caught in the middle. Standard Romeo and Juliet stuff,
but it's hard for the audience to choose sides.
Both are
monsters and killers, and neither seem to show any concern
for human life. In the first shoot out between vamps and Lycans,
bullets hit walls and bystanders more often than their intended
targets. I would have liked to see more involvement from the
human world, if only to provide a contrast. Yes, vampires
are decadent and Lycans earthy, but where's the moral division?
 The
acting in Underworld is flat out dreadful. With the
exception of overly calm Beckinsdale, the cast snarls, pants,
and slinks its way through scene after scene. I can't really
blame them though. It's clear from the uniformity of the performances
that they were guided by an inexperienced director. Even veteran
actor Bill Nighy, as Selene's vampire mentor Viktor, delivers
lines meant to be poignant in a manner that elicits giggles.
I will
say, though, that the flick looks pretty cool. Shot in Prague
and the subways of Budapest, it has a cold, colorless atmosphere,
which gives it the same noir-ish feel of Dark City.
The vampires, as the well-dressed (if monochrome) elite, live
in a sinister castle with high towers and velvet-draped rooms.
The hunted Lycans roam through sewers and subway tunnels,
their headquarters an old WWII bunker.
The action
sequences are also nifty, though it gets tiresome that whenever
a character does something acrobatic, it gets put into slow
motion. They're supernatural, they do cool flippy things,
we get it! Their take on the werewolf transformation is refreshing,
and the CGI Lycans are actually kinda scary.
It's telling
that the two strongest points of the film are the art direction
and the action sequences. The director's only previous movie
credits are as a property assistant, and the screenwriter
is a stunt coordinator. Underworld very clearly sets
up both a prequel and a sequel, and I don't doubt at least
one will get made. Let's just hope that the production team
learns that it takes more than action and scenery to tell
a story.
Rating:
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