Underworld 3: Rise of the Lycans - A Medieval Prequel
Written: Mar 17 '09 (Updated Mar 17 '09)
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Product Rating:
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| Bang For The Buck |
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Pros: It had a few cool parts
Cons: Style over substance
The Bottom Line: It's not completely awful, but it did not compare to the first two Underworld movies.
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| phungus's Full Review: Underworld: Rise of the Lycans |
I am a sucker for the Underworld movies. Vampires and werewolves together in a medieval setting - How could I pass that up? I knew going in that Underworld 3: Rise of the Lycans wasn't going to be anything great, but I still wanted to see it. As far as ‘part threes' go, this one is pretty average. Fans of the series will find something to like about it, but you probably won't buy the DVD unless it comes in some kind of bargained priced trilogy package.
Most of the people who did the first two Underworld movies weren't very involved with this one. They brought in a special effects guy named Patrick Tatopoulos to direct, and he clearly went for style over substance with this movie. Michael Sheen is back as Lucian, and this movie explains his origins and rise to power. He's a good actor, but still not that well known stateside. The biggest change is that instead of the lovely little Kate Beckinsale, this movie stars Rhona Mitra as the female lead. Now don't get me wrong - there's not a thing in the world wrong with Rhona Mitra and she kicked butt in Doomsday, but she's no Kate Beckinsale.
This movie is a prequel to the Underworld series, so it is all set in medieval times instead of present day. This means it all takes place in and around castles, so you'll get to see knights in armor and swinging swords and all that. I'm also a sucker for medieval type movies and anything to do with castles, just so you know. The story is about how Lucian (Michael Sheen) started out as a slave to the vampires, and that all changed when he saved the life and subsequently won the heart of the vampire lord's daughter, played by Rhona Mitra.
There's not a whole lot to the plot. It takes a little while to establish the setting and how werewolves are treated like dogs by vampires, and then they start breeding vampires and werewolves to create some kind of super race called Lycans. Sheen, as the main Lycan, gets stomped on one too many times and rallies the other Lycans with a ‘We are not dogs!' speech that results in a big prison break. After that, it's just a bunch of stylized violence.
Michael Sheen does pretty well in the lead role as Lucian, but he doesn't exactly look the part of the swashbuckling medieval warrior type. He kind of reminded me of Tom Cruise in Legend, but dirty and bearded. Rhona Mitra is basically there as eye candy and doesn't have a whole lot to do in the role, which was disappointing. The real standout here was Bill Nighy as the vampire lord. His bony facial features make him already look like a vampire without any need for prosthetic make-up, and he made for a great villain.
The action sequences in this movie vary between too much style and too much CGI. There are a few good fight scenes and a couple of nice chase sequences, but I thought the CGI for the werewolves didn't look all that great, especially their plastic faces. There is one really cool part where the Lycans are running down this hallway while guards pound the walls with heavy bolts to block the passageway. It's totally unrealistic, but still fun to watch. Other than that, I didn't find anything all that spectacular about this movie.
Believe it or not, this movie made a profit at the box office. It won't be as big a hit as the two previous movies, but it actually did OK. All of these movies were made on fairly low budgets and relied on both sex appeal and vampire/werewolf lore to draw in the audience. Hopefully, Underworld 3: Rise of the Lycans will be the last one to get a theatrical release. I wouldn't be surprised to see another trilogy of these movies go direct to video. I'd rent them, for sure, but I won't be going to the theater to see any more of them unless they bring back Kate Beckinsale.
Recommended:
Yes
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