Third one's the charm

Movie Review

Underworld: Rise Of The Lycans

Certification: PG

Cast: Michael Sheen, Bill Nighy, Rhona Mitra, Steven Mackintosh, Kevin Grevioux

Director: Patrick Tatopoulos

Genre: Fantasy, Horror

IT IS really hard to see Michael Sheen half naked with uncombed hair and beard now after seeing him with uncanny resemblance as Tony Blair in 2006's "The Queen" and last year's "Frost/Nixon" as David Frost.

Even though Sheen was in both previous instalments of the series, the two movies were so bad that Sheen was lost amidst the remnants of the Underworld.

Finally, Sheen gets his time to shine in this bleak darkness. And whether it's the script with new writers Dirk Blackman and Howard McCain, or director and writer for the previous two movies, Len Wiseman, getting the boot; this third instalment is by far the most entertaining.

Sheen reprises his role as Lucian in this prequel; the first true Lycan born human to a werewolf mother and grew up in the castle as a pet to the leader of the Vampires, Viktor (Bill Nighy). The story dates back several centuries before the original "Underworld" storyline, where the Vampires have continuously bred Lycans using Lucian's blood and enslave them as protectors of their castle during daylight.

Even though Lucian is chained and banned from turning into a werewolf, Viktor still does allows him certain privileges and freedom around the castle; whereby even Viktor's guards have to allow him some leeway.

Little does Viktor know, Lucian has been seeing his daughter, Sonja (Rhona Mitra) behind his back while the two lovers put up a hate-filled charade for the rest of the castle to see.

Day by day, Lucian is torn between his love for Sonja and his loyalty for his brethren. As he plans for his and his brothers' escape, the events that followed inevitably leads to an all-out war between the two factions, with Sonja caught in the middle.

Without Wiseman's stylishly over-the-top execution, however misguided it was, as well as Kate Beckinsale's star power, the entire outlook of the movie was very much in limbo; especially with what happened to a Rachel Weisz-less "The Mummy 3".

Director Patrick Tatopoulos, who did the special effects for the previous two, comes in with more modest ideas in terms of direction without all the stylised effects that Wiseman had so freely flaunted.

And this has actually worked to his advantage because all that futuristic movements a la "The Matrix" would have been very out of place in the middle century. Also, due to a limited budget set by the producers, there are less special effects going on.

But by toning it down, Tatopoulos actually gives the movie a more genuine feel that goes well with the underlying theme above all.

However, the downside with said limited budget is that when there is any special effects (the werewolf transformation for example), it looks really old-school and trite. And the fight scenes are unimpressive and even confusing without proper choreography. The final fight scene is most disappointing to say the least at all.

Those who are unfamiliar with Sheen during his first two forays into many big-budget Hollywood-vehicle may not know he is actually a very good actor. All that should change as we finally see Sheen in the leading role, giving life to Lucian with brooding and compassionate complexity that is both feral and human.

Joining him at the forefront is Nighy, embodying a most electrifying Vampire with the appropriate air of royalty to him that is aloof, merciless and unforgiving. Nighy entertains his audience with his every word and gesture that is both amusingly juicy and solemn at the same time.

Rhona Mitra replaces latex-laden Beckinsale as the strong female Vampire. Virtually an unknown, she generates much less of expectation than Beckinsale and brings with her a fresh face and a fresh performance.

Though this instalment is not the smartest or the most exciting fantasy flick, it does give this franchise some hope about movies and is certainly the best of the series in all and every aspect. It is definitely what a vampire-versus-werewolf movie should be like, and never take it for granted.

Reviewer's Rating: 6 / 10

The Brunei Times