Underworld [Blu-ray]

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

A young man who has pledged his life to helping others finds himself in a pitched battle between two gangs of supernatural villains in this blend of horror story and action thriller. Michael Corvin (Scott Speedman) is a medical student who is heading home after a long day of school and work when he unexpectedly finds himself in the middle of what appears to be a rumble between two well turned-out street gangs. What Michael doesn't know is he has witnessed a skirmish between two deadly underground communities, unknown to the mortal world, who are battling for supremacy -- the Death Dealers, a tribe of vampires, and the Lycans, a band of werewolves. Selene (Kate Beckinsale) is a leading member of the Death Dealers who hears through the grapevine that the Lycans have plans to capture the aspiring doctor who witnessed their battle. Certain something is in the air, Selene begins following Michael around the city, and she finds herself growing emotionally attached to him. As Selene becomes more attracted to Michael, she becomes more convinced that the Lycans are planning a major attack against the Death Dealers, although vampire kingpin Kraven (Shane Brolly) is certain she's crediting the Lycans with more intelligence than they can muster. As Selene shadows Michael, she finds herself wanting to protect him, but her longing becomes a handicap when he's attacked by Lucian (Michael Sheen), the leader of the werewolf community, and the man she wants to save has now become a sworn enemy. Underworld was the first feature film from music video director Len Wiseman. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: ABC
• Number of Discs: 1
• Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1
• Screen: Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 (Cinemascope)
• Features:
  • Director and cast commentary
  • Outtakes
  • Fang vs. Fiction - documentary
  • Storyboard comparison
  • Music video: Finch: "Worms of the Earth"
  • 7 featurettes:
  • -Making of Underworld
  • -Visual Effects of Underworld
  • -Creature Effects
  • -Stunts
  • -Designing Underworld
  • -The Look of Underworld
  • -Sights + Sounds of Underworld

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Kate Beckinsale - Selene
       Scott Speedman - Michael
       Michael Sheen - Lucian
       Shane Brolly - Kraven
       Bill Nighy - Viktor
       Erwin Leder - Singe
       Sophia Myles - Erika
       Robby Gee - Kahn
       Wentworth Miller - Dr. Adam Lockwood
       Kevin Grevioux - Raze

• Director:

  Len Wiseman

• Producer:

  Tom Rosenberg, Gary Lucchesi, Richard S. Wright

• Screenwriter:

  Danny McBride, Len Wiseman

• Cinematographer:

  Tony Pierce-Roberts

• Composer (Music Score):

  Paul Haslinger

• Musical Direction/Supervision:

  Danny Lohner

• Editor:

  Martin Hunter

• Production Designer:

  Bruton Jones

• Art Director:

  Kevin Phipps

• Supervising Art Director:

  Kevin Phipps

• Art Director:

  Csaba Stork

• Associate Producer:

  Jon Sidel, Kevin Grevioux, Danny McBride

• Executive Producer:

  Terry McKay, James McQuaide, Robert Bernacchi, Skip Williamson, Henry Winterstern

• Set Designer:

  Malcolm Stone

• Costume Designer:

  Wendy Partridge

• Sound/Sound Designer:

  Claude Letessier

• First Assistant Director:

  Mark Egerton

• Casting:

  Celestia Fox, Deborah Aquila, Tricia Wood

• Special Effects Supervisor:

  Nick Allder

• Creature Design:

  Patrick Tatopoulos

• Visual Effects:

  Framestore

• Visual Effects Supervisor:

  James McQuaide

• Line Producer:

  Kornel Sipos

• Second Unit Director:

  Brad Martin

• Stunts Coordinator:

  Brad Martin

• Second Unit Director:

  Danny McBride

• Additional Cinematography:

  Laszlo Bille

• Location Manager:

  Sandor Szabo, Jr.

REVIEW:

• Pitting werewolves and vampires against each other is something that every movie monster-lover can appreciate any day of the week. In Len Wiseman's stylish, but flawed directorial debut Underworld, this concept is explored and fleshed out with epic intentions, but not so epic results. First off, anyone expecting monumental battle scenes between the two creatures better stop where they are, because there will only be a full plate of disappointment here. Moments of bloody hand-to-hand monster brawling are fleeting, with all of the action relegated to quickly cut, lame John Woo-style gunfights. It's a problem that lies at the heart of the film -- instead of embracing the horror elements of these two iconic creatures, the filmmakers opt to sweep it under the rug and dress the modestly-budgeted 23-million dollar flick up as an action-fest whose explosive elements and style are as derivative as they come. Unfortunately, it seems that most of the money went straight into the gothic production design, while other sections were greatly hindered by the budget restraints -- namely, the creature effects. Created and crafted by Patrick Tatopoulos (the same hack behind 1998's Godzilla redesign), the werewolves (aka: lycans) are a lame bore, with huge muscular necks and little hyena heads with no fur to be seen, the design is awkward and unapologetically ugly, save for the few imaginative transformation scenes. Surprisingly, the film shines in the one place no one would expect -- the script. With the endless amounts of vampire lore floating around, Underworld's inventive approach is refreshing and far more interesting than the bullet-ridden shoot-'em-up scenes -- though the style of the flashbacks leaves much to be desired. In contrast, the acting is strictly a mixed bag, with lithe star Kate Beckinsale and clan heads Lucian (Michael Sheen) and Viktor (Bill Nighy) bringing class and freshness to the piece, while others like Shane Brolly as Kraven stink up the screen with their semi-Euro trash accents and laughable diction. There is a well-developed base here that will serve the sequel Underworld: Evolution well -- but as it is, this one will forever fail to live up to the concept it built for itself. Too bad too, because the world needs more werewolf vs. vampire films! ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi