It's round two of the battle between vampires and werewolves in this sequel to Underworld, and though we won't reveal who wins, viewers definitely lose. The first movie was silly and nearly incomprehensible; the sequel—which returns erstwhile vampire warrior Selene (Kate Beckinsale in her tight leather suit) and lycan-human hybrid Michael (Scott Speedman) to the battlefield against the reborn vampire paterfamilias—matches it, and then some. Nothing makes a lick of sense in the story, which traces the past animosity between the two species and introduces a contingent of special ops troops directed by a coolly methodical leader (the distinguished Sir Derek Jacobi, looking suitably embarrassed) who turns out to be the sire of both sides. And it's all rendered even more incoherent by the frequent insertion of blurred footage from the first installment, audio-doctored overlapping dialogue and montages of prior exposition, and deliberately dark visuals. Underworld: Evolution could have fared better with a bit of tongue-in-cheek, but there isn't a glimmer of humor here: the picture plods on with a grim intensity, and despite all the slaughter on display, this is an oddly bloodless and very dull affair. Not recommended. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentary (by co-writer/director Len Wiseman, production designer Patrick Tatopoulos, second unit director Brad Martin, and editor Nicolas De Toth), the 14-minute “making-of” featurette “Bloodlines: From Script to Screen,” “The Hybrid Theory” on visual effects (13 min.), “Building a Saga” on production design (13 min.), “Music & Mayhem” on sound design (12 min.), “Making Monsters Roar” on creatures (12 min.), and “The War Rages On” on stunts (10 min.), the music video “Her Portrait in Black” by Atreyu, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a disappointing film.] (F. Swietek)
Underworld: Evolution
Sony, 106 min., R, DVD: $28.99, June 6 Volume 21, Issue 3
Underworld: Evolution
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As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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