Underworld Awakening

This past Friday marked the release of Underworld Awakening. The 4th installment of the franchise and the follow up to 2006's Underworld Evolution.

Breakdown:


Directors:
Mans Marlin & Bjorn Stein

Stars:
Kate Beckinsale (Selene)
Theo James (David)
Micheal Ealy (Detective Sebastian)
India Eisley (Eve)
Stephen Rea (Dr. Jacob Lane)
Charles Dance (Thomas)

Genre: Action
Rated: R
Run-time: 1hr 29mins
Released: 1/20/12

Plot:

The story picks up six months after the events of Evolution. The war between Vampire and Lycan has changed. Humans now know that these races exist and set to exterminate both of them. Realizing that there is little hope for them Selene and Michael attempt to flee however things go awry.

I like the idea of humans entering the war between Vampire and Lycan, but the movie didn't really do much to build on this. Throughout the course of the movie, this idea just seems to get lost. With this movie the focus here is on action. Awakening is the most action-packed of the series. The fight scenes are frequent, over the top and stylish. It will definitely keep you engaged.

Visuals & Sound:


Let me start by saying there is absolutely no reason to see this in 3D. The majority of the scenes in this movie are so dark, you might not even notice some of the effects, so save you money. The CG was good, but nothing spectacular. The Vampires' blue eyes give them a menacing and supernatural look. Some things looked a little awkward, especially the transformation of some of the Lycans. The sound is good and is well used throughout the movie. This was most noticeable in the scene between Selene and Quint. Overall Awakening has an ominous and dark feel that lasts through the entire movie.

Performances:


Kate Beckinsale reprises her role as Selene who is the focal point of this movie. Her performance was serviceable. She does bad-ass well enough, but when not punching their faces in, her interactions with most of the other characters come off a bit stiff.

I thought India Eisley did well as Eve. Although I never felt the deep connection that Selene and Eve are supposed to have, Eisley displays just enough range to make you care about her character.

Micheal Ealy's performance as Detective Sebastian is largely forgettable and empty. As the movie started, I was intrigued as to what part he plays, but by the end of the film I didn't care.

Theo James plays David, the prodigal son of Thomas. David is a young and brash vampire that aides Selene throughout the movie. James performs well enough to be believable but not truly memorable .

Rating:


Underworld Awakening is a good action film. Beyond that there isn't much else other than watching Kate Beckinsale jump around in a skin-tight rubber suit for an hour and a half, which I am a big fan of. This movie isn't going to win any type of awards for its story. The plot is predictable and plays more like an afterthought. Additionally there is such a focus on Selene and her actions that it stunts the growth the other characters in the film. The action scenes are great and ultimately make this movie worth seeing for action fans. I give this one 3 stars out of 5.