Title: Underworld: Blood Wars
Release Date: January 6, 2017
Studio: Screen Gems / Lakeshore Entertainment
Director: Anna Foerster
Release Format: Theatrical
I guess after an Evolution, aย Rise, and an Awakening, there are now Blood Wars becauseโฆ Kate Beckinsale needs work.
And no, Scott Speedman is STILL nowhere to be found. I wonder if that was his punishment for XXX: State Of The Union. Hmm…
Today we are looking over Underworld: Blood Wars and, for the record, this will be more of a statement about this film’s existence rather than a simple review.ย This marksย the fifth entry in the popular series of Kate Beckinsale killingย werewolves as a vampire in tight leather. Iโll be the first to admit, Iโm not the biggest fan of this series as a whole. However, I donโt think all of them are bad. I think the first Underworld is a legitimately greatย film. It had a strong mythos, fun characters, interesting cinematography and some cool action. Underworld: Evolution was a letdown sequel that didnโt live up to its predecessor in the slightest. Underworld: Rise Of The Lycans was a rather fun prequel to the series, despite the laundry list of inconsistencies with the first film.
Finally, Underworld: Awakening was a steaming pile of garbage that did nothing but ruin the mythos set forth by the original film and had Evolutionโs ending not make any sense. Why? Because they needed to continue this series. There was no other explanation for it. Now, for whatever reason, we actually have a fifth installment in this series with yet another generic name. Evolution, Awakening, now Blood Wars, my god, why do they keep making these? I mean, I canโt even make the argument that itโs to keep Kate Beckinsale relevant. Beckinsaleย just starred in an incredibly well received Jane Austin adaptation of Love & Friendship. Sheโs certainly better than this.
I mean, Kate thereโs a reason Rachel Weisz didnโt come back for the third Mummy movie. You donโt need to keep coming back. Now, Kate Beckinsale in skin tight leather is never really a bad thing in itself. However, thatย doesnโt mean that a good thing canโt be in a bad movie and Underworld: Blood Wars is a prettyย bad movie. In terms of story, itโs the same generic tripeย weโve seen from these underworld sequels time and time again. Muchย of the dialogue in Underworld: Blood Wars just consists of vampires and werewolves screaming at one another. When thatโs not happening we need to have a ton of exposition and flashbacks because this movie apparently sees its fans as complete idiots. If Iโm watching a film called Underworld: Blood Wars, itโs for two reasons.
One, I have to review it for you people… thanks, by the way, youโre all a delight. Or two, because Iโm a die-hard fan, which weโve established Iโm not. However,ย if I was, I already know everything being said. Who wouldย actually use Underworld: Blood Wars as the jumping on point for this series? And even if someone did use this as the starting point, youโre giving away half of whatย happens in the other films. So, as a result, why would they even want to seek out the rest of them? Iโm sorry, Awakening pulled this too and it was annoying there. I donโt like it when The Resident Evil Movies do it either but those have always been awful. You have had ONEย great film and ONE good prequel. Now, no one is going to want to see themย because youโve ruined what happens with flashbacks.
Okay, so letโs talk about the actual filmmaking side of this movie. This film has the blue hues that youโd expect from a movie like this. It has the effects and the stuntwork but, much like Underworld: Awakening, the editing is badย and, most of the time, itโs edited quickly to try and cover up bad effects work. Thereโs no proper care taken for any of it and a lot of the action isnโt even entertaining as a result. In Underworld: Blood Wars, Seline goes allโฆ well, thereโs no other way to say it, “Super Saiyan Vampire” and this could have actually been awesome. Instead, they just show this little blur zipping around, killing characters instead of showing Kate Beckinsale doing it. They just turned her into The Flash. Why would they do this?ย Survey says it was easier to edit in post.
Now after all of that, is the entire movie awful? Depends on what youโre looking for really. Didย you enjoyย Underworld: Awakening?ย If that’s the case, youโll probably enjoy Underworld: Blood Wars. If youโre not a fan of this series, this film will not win you over. Kate Beckinsale is good in the role of Seline and she looks amazing as always. But Iโd rather see her give a good performance while looking wonderful, in a good movie. From where I’m sitting, Underworld: Blood Wars is a badย movie. I want to pop in the first Underworld so I can watch a good movie. I like Kate Beckinsale, I think sheโs a great talent. It just breaks my heart to see her coming back to this all but deadย franchise when she clearly doesnโt have to.
Maybe she just loves playing the character and I canโt fault her for that. However, if thatโs the case, they need to get writers and a director who respects that. Itโs not quite a one-star territory. I donโt like it, but nothing about it had me fuming leaving the theater either. It was just kind of an underwhelming experience all around and thatโs what I was kind of expecting going in. Is it watchable? Yeah, it’s watchable action fluff. It’s bad but there’s nothing about it that pissed me off to my breaking point. Underworld: Awakening was certainly worse so I guess I can take that and call it a win.
So what did you think of Underworld: Blood Wars? What is your favorite of the series? Please let me know in the comments below and subscribe if youโd like to see more.
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