Rated
R (Strong Violence and Gore, and for some Language)
Running
Time: 1 Hour & 28 Minutes
Cast-
Kate
Beckinsale-Selene
India
Eisley-Eve
Theo
James-David
Michael
Ealy-Detective Sebastian
Stephen
Rea-Dr. Jacob Lane
Charles
Dance-Thomas
Kris
Holden-Ried-Quint
Sandrine
Holt-Lida
Directed
by Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein
 |
| Kate Beckinsale is back as vampire warrioress Selene in "Underworld: Awakening." |
Kate
Beckinsale will be hitting forty in two years’ time but she has nothing to
worry about if “Underworld Awakening” is anything to go by. Despite earning $10.17
billion in revenue in 2011, the
domestic box office was actually down
3.8% from 2010 with tickets sales falling to the lowest level since 1995. There are a number of reasons as to why
this is the case but the biggest ones are Hollywood’s continued reliance on
franchises and over-saturating the market with lazy 3D releases. Audience
attendance continues to shrink as many are just not compelled enough to leave their homes to see films with ridiculous
surcharges and sit with people who honestly cannot shut up. Even I sometimes feel
that going to the theater isn’t worth it anymore but my duty as an amateur film
critic keeps me motivated. A new year always brings a sense of optimism and it
did as 2012’s first new release, “The Devil Inside,” earned a whopping $34 million against a measly $1 million
production budget but unfortunately, the film was met with universal scorn from
both critics and audiences. Still, it’s already a success and when Paramount
releases a sequel, audiences will have no one to blame but themselves. January (and February) has been traditionally known to
be a ‘dead month’ for film releases but I was looking forward to “Underworld
Awakening,” the fourth installment in the “Underworld” franchise and the first
to be shot in native 3D. With the exception of a voiceover and the use of
archive footage from the first film, Beckinsale did not appear in “Rise of the
Lycans” and I was surprised she would return to the role of Selene given that
there wasn’t much left to explore after the mediocre “Evolution.” As sexy as
Kate Beckinsale is, “Underworld Awakening” amounts to a vapid and soulless
entry that ultimately adds nothing
new to the mythology. The 3D ends up being wasted but I must admit that I was never bored by the film even if all the
action is perfunctory. Granted, the series was never meant to be more than
above-average genre fare but I was honestly expecting more.
Taking place six
months after the events of “Underworld Evolution,” former Death Dealer Selene
(Kate Beckinsale) and her hybrid lover Michael Corvin (formerly Scott Speedman
but now replaced with a body double) find themselves on the run from humans,
who has discovered the existence of the Vampires and Lycans. The humans have
begun to systematically wipe out both species using weapons designed to exploit
their weaknesses to ultraviolet rays and silver. Selene and Michael find their
escape plans dashed when they are overwhelmed and captured for experimentation
by a biotech pharmaceutical company called Antigen,
led by a scientist named Jacob Lane (Stephen Rea). His goal is to develop a
vaccine to effectively ‘cure’ both species. Twelve years pass and Selene suddenly
finds herself freed from cryogenic suspension by an unknown benefactor. Dazed and
confused at the loss of time, she searches for Michael but instead finds a
strange young girl named Eve (India Eisley), who turns out to her daughter and
the first-born hybrid of her kind. Selene discovers that the remaining vampire
covens have retreated into the sewers with the remnants of the Lycan race
reduced to little more than feral emaciated beasts. Aided in her search by
fellow vampire David (Theo James) and a sympathetic human detective named
Sebastian (Michael Ealy), Selene discovers that Antigen has created a
monstrosity in their mad quest to eradicate both species.
No one will mistake
the “Underworld” series as film masterpieces but they remain entertaining
thanks to its well-developed mythology. However, much of it was presented in a
convoluted manner and the first two entries were often overstuffed with
expositional dialogue. “Underworld Awakening” has the opposite problem with too
little story to even sustain its short eighty-eight minute running time. If
one were to take out all the action scenes, what little is left would barely
fill three pages as the whole tale could be summed up in one sentence: Selene is searching for Michael and fights many
people along the way. Even more surprising is that the script is credited to four people and includes acclaimed
writer J. Michael Straczynski. I’m shocked that this is all they could come up with! Not content with being a lost
opportunity, “Awakening” only tells half
a story and ends on a cliffhanger. The premise of having humans discovering the
existence of Vampires and Lycans is intriguing but how this happened is left unexplained
despite the fact that both species has lived in secrecy for countless
millennia. Character development is virtually nil with only one scene where Selene and Eve actually sit down and talk but it all
comes off as contrived. Would it kill you to stop shooting and smile or even hug
your daughter after being frozen for the past twelve years? Story-telling was
never the “Underworld” series’ strongest suit but the writing here certainly
hits a new low.
The action scenes manage to keep the film from fully sinking
with its copious amounts of CG blood and Beckinsale doing all sorts of
acrobatics in slow motion. Not a minute goes by when there isn’t something fighting so thankfully, you
are never bored by what’s happening but that’s not exactly high praise.
“Awakening” maintains the same black-and-blue monochromatic color palette as
the previous films but the visual effects aren’t all that impressive
considering the bigger production budget the crew was utilizing. The appearance
of an ‘Uber-Lycan’ added a nice wrinkle to some of the fights but the creature
fails to illicit more than a shrug as he’s just another in a long line of
gimmicky CG effects. Following in the footsteps of 2010’s “Resident Evil
Afterlife,” another Screen Gems release, the film was shot in native 3D with
RED EPIC digital cameras but the end result is underwhelming. The 3D is only
apparent when objects are being thrown at the viewer and is barely noticeable
for much of its running time. However, it does not suffer from the lowered
brightness when wearing the glasses despite the film’s heavy use of shadows and
minimal lighting.
The performances leave much to be desired as the whole supporting
cast ends up being wasted in their respective roles. Kate Beckinsale still has
an amazing body at age 38 and it’s great to see her back as Selene kicking all
kinds of ass in a tight leather costume but sadly, that’s all her character
ever amounts to even when the film attempts to shoehorn in some weak ‘drama.’
This film is definitely more physically demanding compared to the previous
installments given the non-stop fighting taking place and Beckinsale proves
that she is up to the task. As for everyone else, Stephen Rea, Charles Dance,
and Michael Ealy sleepwalk their way to another paycheck while Theo James and India
Eisley run around hissing through their fangs. Then again, what were you
expecting from such a short film?
Released on January 20, 2012 in 2D, 3D, and
IMAX 3D, “Underworld Awakening” was not screened for critics in advance (never a good sign) so reviews have only
begun to trickle out today. The film currently has a low 24% on Rotten Tomatoes
with the consensus that the ‘whole affair [feels] inconsequential.’ Still,
it’ll likely top the weekend box office with $20 to $25 million, which is in
line with the previous entries but the production budget is estimated at $70
million so it’ll have to earn back twice
that amount to turn a profit, something I do not see happening even with 3D
surcharges and foreign grosses factored in. I am also very surprised that it has an A-
CinemaScore from audiences but then again, this is the masses we’re talking
about and they are not exactly known for having good taste in film. “Underworld
Awakening” is not a boring film but that’s the only praise I can give as the
whole experience feels rushed and sloppy. Fans should seek out the 2D version
and pay matinee price but if you have
some patience, I would advise just waiting three to four months for the DVD or
Blu-Ray. An even better idea is to just watch Steven Soderbergh's superior “Haywire,”
which also stars a female action heroine.
Final
Rating: 2 out of 5
“For
twelve years I was held captive by the humans. The world I once knew has
changed. Vampires and Lycans are now the hunted.”
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