Review: Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (2009)

Director: Patrick Tatopoulos

Cast: Michael Sheen (Frost/Nixon, Blood Diamond), Bill Nighy (Pirates of the Caribbean, Valkyrie), Rhona Mitra (Boston legal, The Practice), Steven Mackintosh (Underworld: Evolution), Kevin Grevioux (Underworld)

The Deal: Traces the origin of the centuries-old feud between vampires and lycans. Lucian (Sheen) was found as a baby and raised by the vampire Victor (Nighy) despite being a lycan. Matured and unhappy with the slave treatment of lycans, Lucian rises up to overthrow the vampires. Upon learning that Lucian had a relationship with his daughter Sonja (Mitra), Victor sets out on a vendetta to kill Lucian, but Lucian has amassed a massive army of lycans to fight the vampires.

Thoughts: In some ways, this is better than the previous Underworld films, and in others, it falls short. It's great to see why the vampires and lycans have been at war for so long, and the blood and gore is amped up from the first two films. It's also nice having familiar characters (and their actors) weaved into the story. Despite the events of the film occurring before those of the last two, many of the story elements feel too familiar and worn out after being addressed already. In the end, it is entertaining, and surprisingly better than I expected despite the loss of Kate Beckinsale.

The acting is passable, and about what you'd expect from the Underworld franchise. The enjoyment comes more from the visuals and action than from the story or acting. Sheen does a decent job as Lucian, but after seeing him in Frost/Nixon, I wish he could have brought more to the table here. Nighy continues his solid portrayal of Victor, and his performance is fairly believable. Rhona Mitra has the unfortunate task of replacing Kate Beckinsale in the female lead department. They play different characters, and Mitra does admirably, but her character just doesn't have the same appeal.

I liked that the blood and guts were amped up in the film, as there was a large emphasis on the war and its action. There was a chillingly awesome scene involving giant wooden spears and hallway full of lycans that remains my favorite moment in the film. They didn't spare any visuals for that scene. My biggest problem is that the blood looked terribly fake. It is a visually dark film, which works fine, but in order to make the blood more visible, they dialed up the red coloring. It's nothing like the style Frank Miller tends to use in his films, but instead a funny looking vibrant red.

Verdict: A surprisingly decent prequel in the Underworld franchise. It's action-packed, entertaining, and doesn't hold back on the blood. ☆☆☆