Underworld: Invention of the Lycra Chain Mail

To be fair, I was unfamiliar with the Underworld series before going to see the prequel, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans.  But thanks to my friends at Wikipedia, the basics are these: there is a race of Vampires–created from man by a virus–and there is the race of Lycans who are part man and part wolf (a/k/a Werewolves).  In this prequel, we learn the story of Lucian’s birth, escape from bondage, and rise as the leader of the Lycan race against the Vampires, who are led by Viktor.

In Lucian, we have a Sparticus-type figure who, while only part man, desires like all men to be in his natural state: a free person.  At the same time he is enslaved by Viktor, he is Viktor’s favorite.  He is also Viktor’s daughter’s favorite and the two routinely sneak off for the love that dare not speak it’s name but the recipie is one part bestial, two parts necrophilia, one part vanilla.  Once Lucian can take no more of being treated like an animal, he rallies his lupine brethren into rebellion, and that, boys and girls, is why many years later, Remus was allowed to teach at Hogwarts.  But I digress…

How interesting that this would be the first film I’d see in 2009, after ending 2008 with Valkyrie and Frost/Nixon, considering those two films also starred Bill Nighy and Michael Sheen, respectively.  That they could pull off these very different roles so effectively speaks to the range of their acting abilities, for in the two title roles they are effective.  The rest of the cast is incidental and forgettable.  The female lead, Rhona Mitra, reminded me of the usual unremarkable females in fantasy films, and the only other person I remember is Kevin Grevioux, who’s moving in on Michael Clarke Duncan‘s turf as the friendly/disturbed, jacked black guy.

Even though this movie will not push me to see the rest of the series, it had its redeemable moments.  For those who want to see what Tony Blair, or at least his main portrayer, looks like under his suit (not me!), Sheen is barely clothed for most of the movie.  The sets and architecture of the medieval fortress puts the design of Helm’s Deep to shame but still pales in comparison to Minas Tirith.  The big battle scene at the end is also nothing special but the ample demonstration of the ballista makes up for it (at least if you’re into military history, like me).  But again, all comparisons of anything medieval looking always take me back to The Lord of Rings and, as I say with every similar fantasy battle since the, I am always disappointed.

Photographs courtesy of IMDB Pro.

For another viewpoint of this movie, read When Vampires & Werewovles Fight, Everyone Wins by Paul Secrest.