Rated
R (Bloody Violence and some Sexuality)
Running
Time: 1 Hour & 32 Minutes
Cast-
Michael
Sheen-Lucian
Rhona
Mitra-Sonja
Bill
Nighy-Viktor
Steven
Mackintosh-Andreas Tannis
Kevin
Grevioux-Raze
David
Aston-Coloman
Elizabeth
Hawthorne-Orsova
Tania
Nolan-Luka
Shane
Brolly (voice)-Kraven
Kate
Beckinsale (voice/archive footage only)-Selene
Directed
by Patrick Tatopoulos
 |
| Bill Nighy's Viktor prepares for war in "Underword: Rise of the Lycans." |
Note: Part of the "Underworld Trilogy: The Essential Collection" Blu-Ray set.
As
far as genre films go, 2003’s “Underworld” proved to be an entertaining
action-horror affair and while it suffered from a lack of originality, the
intriguing mythology made up for it even if it was at times too convoluted for
its own good. Having the sexy Kate Beckinsale battling werewolves and other
nasty monsters in a skintight leather outfit was a plus as well but color me
surprised when the film led to the formation of a new franchise. The relatively
low production budgets allowed the films to make enough profit from both
worldwide box office receipts and DVD
sales to warrant new installments despite the harsh drubbing it receives from
film critics. After the disappointing “Underworld Evolution,” it seemed as
though director Len Wiseman had taken the vampires vs. werewolves concept as
far as it could go but lo and behold, a third film was announced back in
October 2007 and would serve as a prequel to the previous two entries. The project
held promise but having the designer of the creature
effects direct the film did not exactly inspire confidence. Thankfully Patrick
Tatopoulos does an adequate job emulating Wiseman’s style and while “Underworld
Rise of the Lycans” has its fair share of overacting (especially from Bill
Nighy) and hammy dialogue, it nonetheless proves to be an entertaining film and
accomplishes what a prequel should by illuminating what was only hinted at in
the previous installments.
Taking place hundreds of years before the events of
“Underworld” and its sequel in what is assumed to be the Medieval Era, Vampire
Elder Viktor (Bill Nighy) discovers a human child born of a feral werewolf. He
contemplates killing the baby but hesitates and decides not to. Given the name Lucien
(Michael Sheen), this child is the first of a new race of werewolves called Lycans, who can freely transform
back-and-forth between their beast and human forms without the aid of the full
moon. Viktor uses the Lycans to his advantage to create a new slave race to
toil for the vampires, forcing them to wear a special collar with protruding
spikes to prevent them from transforming at will. As Lucien grows into an
adult, he becomes attracted to Viktor’s only daughter Sonja (Rhona Mitra) and
the two eventually fall deeply in love, keeping their relationship a secret for
fear of persecution and death. Viktor has a deal with the humans living in the
area as he and his Death Dealers protect them from the werewolves roaming the
countryside in exchange for slaves (which he uses to create more Lycans) and a
tithe. While guarding a group of human nobles on their way to meet with the
vampire council, Sonja and the Death Dealers following her are attacked by an
unusually large wave of werewolves. Hearing their howls and knowing that Sonja
cannot fight them all off, Lucien risks punishment and leaves the confines of
the castle to rescue his beloved. He removes his collar using the crude key he
made and transforms into his werewolf form with a deafening roar. The feral werewolves
immediately stop attacking and retreat back into the forest. Viktor is furious
at what has happened and feeling betrayed, punishes Lucien by having him
whipped thirty times but this instead unites the enslaved Lycans and inspires
them to fight back against their masters. Freeing his brothers, Lucien leads a
rebellion against Viktor and escapes the castle but is forced to return upon
learning that Sonja has been imprisoned for carrying on a secret affair with
him. This sparks the Vampire-Lycan War that lasts the better part of six
centuries.
No one will mistake “Underworld Rise of the Lycans” as Academy
Awards material but the film is one
of the better prequels I have seen as it fleshes out the back-stories of several
supporting characters and avoids the drawn-out scenes of exposition that
plagued the previous entries. Its tale of doomed star-crossed lovers and a
lowly slave inspiring his brethren to fight for freedom recalls William
Shakespeare’s famous play Romeo &
Juliet and Stanley Kubrick’s 1960 historical epic-drama “Spartacus”.
There’s even a bit of a religious subtext as Lucien is made to resemble Jesus
and suffers through several bloody whippings. The fact that he is the first
Lycan to be born lends him a sort of messiah-like status. The themes of
forbidden love and racial/social segregation are also revisited and while the
film does not exactly do anything new
with them per se, it still makes for a reasonably compelling watch by putting a
new spin on what was a second-rate villain in the first film and turning him into something of
a tragic figure. “Underworld” did little to explain why Lucien was so obsessed
with mixing the Corvinus bloodlines but the prequel sheds light on his true
motivations and that his intent was never as malevolent as audiences were led
to believe. “Rise of the Lycans” is by and large still a derivative film but it
contains a competent enough script to put it a step above other genre flicks
that could care less about its story and characters.
Unlike the more
action-oriented “Underworld Evolution,” the prequel follows in the footsteps of
the original and is more dialogue-driven but that does not mean there is no
action. Cinematographer Ross Emery retains the stylistic black-and-blue
monochromatic look that has come to define the series but newbie director Patrick
Tatopoulos seems to have trouble shooting the action scenes as it ends up being
a victim of fast blurs and quick edits. The CG is a mixed bag as it does not
hold up to close scrutiny and while it is certainly no “Lord of the Rings,” I
was impressed at the scale of the final battle considering the crew was working
with a low $35 million production budget. Several nicely choreographed sword
fights occur but they happen too infrequently to make much of an impression.
The
acting ranges from two extremes with Michael Sheen taking his role as Lucien
seriously while Bill Nighy reaches new heights of overacting as the tyrannical
Vampire Elder Viktor. Sheen’s sympathetic and tragic portrayal of Lucien is
admirable because it shows that even if the film ends up flopping critically,
he still puts in his best work possible. However, he is overshadowed by Nighy
with his exaggerated mannerisms and dialogue delivery. He knows what type of
film he’s in and has fun with the role. Rhona Mitra is attractive but she’s
definitely no replacement for Kate Beckinsale. Still, the chemistry she has
with Sheen is miles better compared to Selene and Michael. Steven Mackintosh
reprises his role as Andreas Tanis who once again does little besides show that
he is nothing but a conniving bastard.
“Underworld Rise of the Lycans” was
released as a stand-alone Blu-Ray and as part of a trilogy box set in May 2009.
This box set has been re-released with an ornate slipcover under the label “The
Essential Collection” as a way to promote the upcoming fourth installment,
“Underworld Awakening.” Unless you own none of these films, there is no sense
in double-dipping as the set includes the same
video/audio transfers as the previous release with the only addition being a
series of throwaway anime shorts titled “Underworld Endless War” and the
removal of the prequel’s digital copy. Thankfully, “Rise of the Lycans”
requires no new encode because it still looks astonishing despite its use of
heavy shadows and minimal lighting. Blacks once again have a solid inky depth
and textures such as the vampire’s armor look intricate but the
heavily-processed image does obscure fine detail in the background. This is a
minor gripe and does not keep the video from reaching near-reference quality
heights. Things are more subdued on the audio front given the film’s
dialogue-heavy nature but the final battle is an aural treat as Lycans
roar so loud, your hairs will stand on end. There’s also some nice ambiance with the clinking of armor and sharpening of swords. Special features
are presented in high-definition this time and include a picture-in-picture
commentary in addition to a traditional audio commentary with director Patrick
Tatopoulos, series creator Len Wiseman, executive producer James McQuaide, and
producers Richard Wright and Gary Lucchesi. Various featurettes detailing the
production design and characters are also included.
Released on January 23,
2009, “Underworld Rise of the Lycans” unsurprisingly received largely negative
reviews with 30% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics found it to be ‘an indistinguishable
and unnecessary prequel…despite the best efforts of its competent cast.’ I am
in the minority as I highly disagree and honestly feel it is a well-made
prequel that finally structures the convoluted mythology into a coherent
manner. Box office wise, the film failed to make much of an impression
domestically and was surpassed by Kevin James’ comedy “Paul Blart: Mall Cop”
during opening weekend. The worldwide total stands at $91 million, which is
solid considering the cheap $35 million production budget. “Underworld Rise of
the Lycans” is strictly for the fans only as it assumes viewers will have some
rudimentary knowledge of the previous films but it is certainly a step-up from
its mediocre predecessor. The story and themes may not be original but the
world remains as fascinating as ever and I look forward to seeing what happens
in the soon-to-be released fourth film.
Final
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Raze:
Lucian, it is finished!
Lucian:
No, this is just the beginning.
+Poster.jpg)
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