"Underworld"

Post by **Zahir** » Sat Sep 20, 2003 3:08 pm

Okay, I saw it.

Lets start with an admission that I really like vampire flicks.
Really. Quite a lot. I mean it. Collect'em. On the other hand, I'm
not really enamoured of (for example) BLADE or some other
vampiric-type movies that are nothing but shoot-em-ups (no
judgement--just not my cuppa tea).

I liked UNDERWORLD. This might have something to do with the fact
that every single review I read was scathing. Me a bit of a rebel.
Also, that kind of thing lowers expectations. Nevertheless, my
enjoyment was real. The story flows, has a remarkably consistent
background, didn't get bogged down with gee-whiz special effects
(though that was a close thing, almost), actually surprised me a
couple of times and hardly ever snapped me out of the film with a "Huh???"

The hardly-evers come down to two, really--the bad guy vampire is such
an obvious creep (his name is even "Kraven") one wonders why anyone
with more than a few dozen brain cells listens to, much less trusts
him. And there's a moment--a kiss. Didn't see why it happened.
Which brings up the single greatest weakness in the script--the male
hero remains pretty much a cypher. I end up liking him, but I can't
say he ever becomes knowable. His likability, imo, stems from some
canny casting and direction, building on a single incident at the very
start of the story.

I'll explain. For six centuries, a terrible war has been waged
between Lycans (werewolves) and vampires. This is explicitly stated
in a voiceover up front--not a device I'm usually too fond of, but
this one works. Selene is a vampire who lives to kill werewolves.
Interestingly, she goes into battle and never seems to be enjoying
herself. Nice touch, and a cool bit of foreshadowing. In the middle
of a firefight in the subway--very MATRIX style--an innocent bystander
is shot. Michael (our male hero) immediately grabs her and pulls the
wounded girl to safety, examining her wound. Something about the way
he did it instantly registered Doctor, and sure enough that's what he
is. Most impressive was how Selene stared at this moment, captivated
for a moment.

Here is also my biggest praise--Kate Beckinsale does a magnificent
job. Not once did I stop thinking of her as Selene. Nor did I
question her actions--the laser-like intensity with which she
approached everything, the brittle tension as she tried to handle
problems, the smoothness with which she reacted. Very impressive.
Her waifish build--mentioned as a criticism by some--didn't bother me
at all. Yeah, she's slender. But her body language screamed Hunter,
a human-shaped feline sheathed in black leather/rubber!

Pardom me while I recall that image. Mmmmmmmmm.

Okay, I'm back! Now, don't go on thinking this is some great piece of
dramatic cinema. It ain't. What UNDERWORLD tries to be is an
exciting blend of drama and action with a cool, techno-goth feel. And
on that level, it succeeds. Got some flaws, but I liked it. And for
Kate Beckinsale's performance alone, I'm hoping for sequels.

Post by **Fist and Faith** » Sat Sep 20, 2003 4:26 pm

Thanks for the info. I was wondering about it. I never heard of it at all until yesterday, when I saw an ad on TV. It looked decent. Of course, my local paper gave it a nasty review. But they hate all movies.

Post by **Worm of Despite** » Sat Sep 20, 2003 4:51 pm

www.rottentomatoes.com/m/Underworld-1125642/

Post by **danlo** » Sun Sep 21, 2003 8:49 am

So she's not The Crow's little sister?

Post by **Skyweir** » Sun Sep 21, 2003 9:36 am

mmm .. so Underworld is a vampire flick?? sounds cool ..

Have you seen resident evil .. not a vampire flick but it does have cannibals

lol

and if you've ever played the comp.game .. you'd know it ..

it was excellent!! and Milla Jovavich was brilliant!! real kick ass!

I will definately go see this one .. anyway .. cos I love vampire flicks too

Post by **Zahir** » Sun Sep 21, 2003 10:00 am

She's an avenger (her family was killed by werewolves), which puts her in the same general category as The Crow, I suppose, and Hamlet and Robin Hood and Inigo Montoya, etc. Again, mucho praise to Kate Beckinsales' performance. Her Selene comes across as someone who has tried sooooo hard to be nothing more than a killing machine--and failed. Very interesting.

I saw a trailer as well for the next Resident Evil flick (silly, imo, but fun). Started off as a commercial for skin cream ("That actually brings dead cells back to life! There may be side effects...").

Have a bit of a crush on Milla Jovovich. Found out she's playing a vampire in a flick to be filmed next year titled Ultraviolet (no relation to the British tv series of the same name, alas).

Post by **Tulizar** » Sun Sep 21, 2003 12:33 pm

Haven't heard much about Underworld other than the lukewarm reviews I read online. The clips on tv look pretty cool though. Aside from, well, looking really good in that black leather costume thing, Kate Beckinsale pulls off the vampire look rather well. I'm easy to please--I'll watch just about any vampire/horror/suspense/sci-fi/fantasy movie out there.

You're right skyweir, Mila J was pretty good in Res evil. I wasn't expecting much from that one, but was pleasantly surprised!

Post by **Skyweir** » Sun Sep 21, 2003 9:46 pm

yeah I loved it!! and I cant wait to see 'THE NEXT LEVEL' of the movie

Post by **CovenantJr** » Mon Sep 22, 2003 10:32 am

Zahir wrote:and Hamlet and Robin Hood and Inigo Montoya, etc.

Hee hee, he's going in my sig now...

Zahir wrote: Found out she's playing a vampire in a flick to be filmed next year titled Ultraviolet (no relation to the British tv series of the same name, alas).

Hey, I remember that! It was ace! Til it finished after one measly series

Sat Mar 21, 2009 7:17 am

I saw this a couple months ago at a friend's house...I heard it was okay back in the day...never bothered to see it cause I thought it would suck...was actually pretty decent film...

Post by **Avatar** » Sat Mar 21, 2009 8:02 am

Wow, I'm guessing that back in 2003, there was no flicks forum.

--A

Post by **CovenantJr** » Sat Mar 21, 2009 10:32 am

I don't remember when Flicks was created, but it could well have been after 2003.

What's with all the thread resurrections at the moment?

Post by **dANdeLION** » Sat Mar 21, 2009 12:58 pm

There's nothing wrong with thread resurrections IMO; it makes sense that newer members want a chance to comment on things that we older members hashed over a few years back. Besides, it keeps the mods from having to merge threads.

Sat Mar 21, 2009 4:00 pm

CovenantJr wrote: I don't remember when Flicks was created, but it could well have been after 2003.

What's with all the thread resurrections at the moment?

Why start a new ones for the same thing?

Post by **Rigel** » Sun Mar 22, 2009 1:41 am

For the record:

As a direct result of Underworld, I will now pay to watch ANYTHING with Kate Beckinsale in it

Sun Mar 22, 2009 1:42 am

Rigel wrote:For the record:

As a direct result of Underworld, I will now pay to watch ANYTHING with Kate Beckinsale in it

You must have had an expectation of this film going in...

Kevin's Watch

Kevin's Watch

"Underworld"

"Underworld"

This is where I meant to put this....

Re: This is where I meant to put this....