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Surprisingly, Underworld: Evolution is about as good
as the first one. Of course, the first Underworld wasn't
so hot either and the same problems that plagued original,
pop up in the sequel. ***
Underworld: Evolution is convoluted. It's not convoluted
because it's smart, it's convoluted because director Len
Wiseman can't properly tell the story of how vampires and
lichens came to be embattled in war. The film kicks off,
smartly, with a mini recap of the events that transpired
in the first film. From there, things just get completely
muddled. ***
Watching this from the perspective of somebody who
hasn't seen Underworld since it open in theatres in 2003,
the first forty minutes were spent not admiring the dark
blue tint of the world that these vampires and lichen move
around in, but trying to figure out who was who. There isn't
a quick tutorial or even very many throw away lines of dialogue
that help a brother out. Right there, it spells doom for
the mainstream viability of the franchise. Do not bother
to buy this DVD if you haven't seen the first. It holds
nothing for you. ***
And while it should be a strength that the movie leaves
off literally minutes after Underworld expired, there isn't
much story to tell. Where Underworld, admittedly, is thick
with exposition, Underworld: Evolution has none. ***
For a reason that I can proudly say I fail to grasp,
Marcus, one of the original vampires is out to free his
brother, the original werewolf. Marcus, who we found entombed
in the first film, is freed by blood that dripped down into
his tomb during the first movie. See how connected the two
films are? It's not a bad thing for the cult fan but for
anybody else, count yourself out. You were done before the
menu came up. ***
The movie is simply a chase film, with Selene (Kate
Beckinsale) and her lover Michael (Scott Speedman) trying
to run from and then to kill Marcus. That's all there is
and nobody can even attempt to argue that the film has hidden
vampire lore or anything like that. It's a one act film
that goes on for 105 minutes. There is action, there is
resting, and then there is more action. There's also a couple
of deaths but then a couple of rebirths. The entire problem
that Underworld: Evolution suffers from is hardwired into
the original story - the fact the original story is played
out and the sequel is nothing more than a tacked on denouement.
A really long denouement. ***
Being such a similar movie, Underworld: Evolution suffers
from all the same problems. It might be beneficial to just
go read what I wrote in the first Underworld review. ***
A few other things have surfaced since that time though.
The over reliance on guns for the action scenes is mind
boggling. The gun fighting does nothing more than become
repetitious, especially considering these are vampires and
werewolves. Why bother with the guns when you are a wrecking
machine yourself? I guess this isn't the type of movie where
you ask questions, you just go along for the ride. ***
The ride, though, is pretty mundane. Beckinsale, Speedman
and the rest of the cast walk lifelessly through the material.
There doesn't even feel to be any sort of adrenaline behind
the action scenes, which are cut up so heavily by Wiseman
that they don't feel like fluid, energetic scenes anyway.
***
The sets look the same, from scene to scene. Yeah,
they're moving around the country side, but what county
are they in? Why are they in the mountains one minute and
then down by a pier, near a huge ship? They might be dumb
observations but they do effect the film, which tries to
breeze through from action scene to action scene to cover
up the complete lack of story that Underworld: Evolution
has to tie itself around. ***
Underworld and Underworld: Evolution might be film's
that worked if they were filmed simultaneously and chopped
in the middle. As it stands now, the first film has too
much exposition, the second not enough. Put them together
and there might be something worth extracting, if not for
the bad action scenes, and lifeless lead role from a smoking
hot Beckinsale. ***
Image and Sound:
The dark blue tint of the film looks great on DVD.
All the limb chopping and dripping blood looks quite awesome
on DVD. The sound, obviously, is bombastic, in your face
and complimentary towards the film. It sounds and looks
great, which is a major plus considering the poor effort
the movie puts forth. ***
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