I want to start off by saying that I am a huge fan of the Underworld franchise. When I seen the first movie back in 2003, I absolutely fell in love with it. The graphics were groundbreaking and the story was just amazing and something I had never seen before in a horror franchise. The movie itself became one of my favorites and I watched it over and over again until Underworld: Evolution came out 6 years later. It basically picked up right where the last movie had ended and I fell in love with this franchise all over again. It was another stellar movie that just had me wanting more. It became a thing of where if I watched Underworld I had to watch Underworld: Evolution. Three years later came the prequel to all of the Underworld movies, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans. This movie was also amazing as it told the story of what started the Vampire/Lycan war. I was happy with the three movies, but when Underworld: Awakening was released in 2012, I figured why not? Another movie wasn’t a bad thing, but I was wrong. Oh so wrong. This movie was seriously the worst Underworld movie in a franchise that didn’t have that. When I heard that another was being released, I barely remember Awakening as I’ve blocked it from my mind, I figured I would give it a chance. Was it worth it? Keep reading to find out.
Underworld: Blood Wars, brings back death dealer Selene, played to perfection (in the first two movies) by Kate Beckinsale, as she is being hunted by both vampires and lycans after the last movie. Both clans want her daughters blood and she has no idea where her daughter is. After being betrayed by the vampires, go figure, she teams up with the true vampire clan leader David, played by Theo James, to end all of the violence once and for all. Throughout the movie there will be several flashbacks to her time with Michael leading up to his death as well as the same shot of the moon showed over and over and over again as if the movie had to have a certain run time and adding this shot in extended the movie. You’ll also be introduced to a new vampire clan, you can think of them as the Targaryen’s of vampires because that’s how they look.
I thought they were bringing back badass killing machine Selene, but instead we got a version of Selene that was torn between wanting to die after living so long, finding her daughter, not finding her daughter, and living in the past. There was a lot of crying in this movie and I have no idea why. The overall plot of the movie was just as ridiculous as the last movie making this franchise lose its appeal for me. What was once a great movie has ventured into the territory of Halloween, Friday the 13th, and Nightmare on Elm street. It’s been done so many times that it’s just not good anymore. I really hate this because after the last movie, I thought at least this movie could rise up and be the movie that set this franchise back on course, but I was wrong. There is supposedly a 6th installment, but I really wish they would just stop.
I think that Kate Beckinsale is a great actress and Underworld is seriously my favorite movie that she’s been in. She’s been in a lot of movies, but Underworld is my all time favorite. It pains me to say though that it’s time for her to hang up her hat when it comes to this movie franchise. There’s nothing good about it anymore and it was like they did a complete 180 with her character who was once a badass and is now this weak and feeble thing. There’s this thing at the end that could bring her back up to badass status, but I would rather not stick around and see. As for her screen mate Theo James, he was a typically actor in a typical part. There was nothing really special about him or the rest of the cast. This movie franchise has always been about Kate Beckinsale and everyone else is just background fodder.
Overall I give this movie a 2 out of 5.
I felt like this movie was the final nail in the coffin of a once great franchise. It had it’s typical action sequences and transformation sequences that it’s known for, but I think that movies have evolved so much from just that not to mention the fact that the story just felt out of place for this one as did the last movie. I think if this franchise would have stopped with the three movies it would have been great. Instead they decided to drag it along and try to get more out of it and even ended this one with a cliffhanger. Seriously? My final suggestion is that if you’re an Underworld fan nothing I say will stop you from watching this movie, but be ready to be severely disappointed. If you’re new to the Underworld franchise, then welcome! I would suggest watching the first three movies and then immediately stop. You don’t need to see the fourth and fifth film and it’s better if we acted like they don’t even exist.
1 Broke Gamer Girl 