These movies are also great selections for Halloween month. Vampires and lycan (aka werewolves) are just as easily fantasy as they are horror. April snuck up on me fast so I had to make a quick decision as to the theme for Fantasy month. I hadn’t watched the Underworld movies in a while so it felt like a good time for a refresher.
There are five movies in the Underworld franchise. As I did for the Lethal Weapon movies, instead of doing them all individually, I am going to discuss them in a couple of groups. I will explain in a bit.
Before I go into each film, one of the things I like most about all of them is the pacing. They don’t stretch out the slower moments needed to move the plot along. The action almost feels non-stop which helps keep my attention.
Underworld Films 1 & 2
Directed By: Len Wiseman
Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Scott Speedman, Michael Sheen
My Rating:
The first two films are the best, with the possible inclusion of the third, which I will get to in a bit. Selene is a “Death Dealer”, an elite soldier trained to kill all remaining werewolves. The werewolves have a particular interest in a specific human (Scott Speedman). When Selene becomes emotionally involved with the human, she does what she must to protect him, even if it means betraying her coven.
Underworld: Rise of the Lycans
Directed By: Patrick Tatopoulos
Starring: Rhona Mitra, Michael Sheen, Bill Nighy
My Rating:
This is a prequel movie. Therefore, it does not have Kate Beckinsale, although she does provide a voice-over at the beginning and the end. Some folks suggest watching this movie first. It provides more details about the past of Michael Sheen’s character and what started the war between the vampires and the lycan.
Underworld Films 4 & 5
Directed By: Måns Mårlind, Björn Stein and Anna Foerster
Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Theo James
My Rating:
The final installments of the Underworld series were OK. They felt a little disjointed from the first two. I’m confused about why they completely removed Michael Corvin (Scott Speedman) from the story. While I do like that the movies progress quickly, I felt like that did affect establishing a convincing bond between Selene and her daughter.
My recommendation is to stick with the first three films, in whichever order you want. While I do really like the final state of Selene by the end of Blood Wars, you don’t necessarily need to watch the last two unless you are also curious.
“The screen is a magic medium. It has such power that it can retain interest as it conveys emotions and moods that no other art form can hope to tackle.”
– Stanley Kubrick