Underworld: Evolution (2006)

Director:

Len Wiseman

Writers (WGA):

Danny McBride (screenplay)
Len Wiseman (story) ...

Release Date:

20 January 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Fantasy | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

Underworld: Evolution continues the saga of war between the vampires and the Lycans. The film goes back...

Plot Keywords:

Vampire | Death | Hybrid | Forbidden Love | Evolution

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Kate Beckinsale	...	Selene
Scott Speedman	...	Michael
Tony Curran	...	Marcus
Derek Jacobi	...	Corvinus (as Sir Derek Jacobi)
Bill Nighy	...	Viktor
Steven Mackintosh	...	Tanis
Shane Brolly	...	Kraven
Brian Steele	...	William
Zita Görög	...	Amelia (as Zita Gorog)
Scott McElroy	...	Soren
John Mann	...	Samuel
Michael Sheen	...	Lucian
Sophia Myles	...	Erika (as Sophia Miles)
Richard Cetrone	...	Pierce (as Rich Cetrone)
Mike Mukatis	...	Taylor

Also Known As:

Underworld 2 (USA) (working title)
Untitled Underworld Sequel (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for pervasive strong violence and gore, some sexuality/nudity and language.

Runtime:

106 min | Philippines:102 min (cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

Hungarian | French | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

USA:R | Australia:MA | Ireland:15A | UK:18 | Singapore:M18 | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | Malaysia:18SG | Norway:15 | Hong Kong:IIB | France:-12 | Portugal:M/16 | Germany:16 (nf) | Brazil:16 | Argentina:16 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Hungary:18 | Finland:K-15 | Italy:T | Italy:VM14 | Iceland:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Canada:18A (Ontario) | South Korea:18 | Japan:R-15 | South Africa:16LV | South Korea:15 (cable rating) | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Canada:18+ (TV rating)

Filming Locations:

Britannia Beach, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

Screen Gems

Trivia:

Zita Görög, who plays Amelia, had to have her lines dubbed over because the microphones didn't pick up her voice.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Michael tears the paint cans to throw them at the windows, so that sunlight would not enter and damage Selene, you can clearly see his hands full of paint, but in the next shot, his hands are clean.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Marcus: My God. Brother, what have you done?

Movie Connections:

References Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

Soundtrack:

Morning After

A Nutshell Review: Underworld: Evolution

After Kate Beckinsale's Seline character got around kicking massive rear in slinky black Lycra, we had Charlize Theron doing the same in Aeon Flux, and coming soon, Milla Jovovich in Ultraviolet. Sexy costumes, menacing weapons and killer moves seem to be the order of the day. It's no doubt that Underworld would have a sequel, since it was obviously hinted at after the end credits of the original, though it would be three years before it materialized.

And Kate Beckinsale still looked as hot as the pasty-white faced, black and blue eyed vampire known as a Death Dealer. Actually, that's one of the extremely few good things about this movie. We get to see her more, see her in action more (*ahem* love scene some more to keep the fan boys happy) with her twin rapid firing handguns, and flitting around action sequences without tearing her outfit.

The other good thing about this movie, is if you're a fan of blood and gore, you'll be kept happy with the many decapitations in various creative ways, piercings, shootings (at point blank), and endless gunfire.

Unfortunately, these good points were thin after a while, and seriously, you'll be clock watching for it to end. The movie starts off by going back to the early beginnings of the feud and tries to explain blood ties and brotherly love, in the times when the Death Dealers were wearing hand-me-down armor from the elves in Lord of the Rings. For those who are unfamiliar with the first movie, fret not, this movie does spend some time to try and explain the convoluted plot to you in a series of quick flashbacks. Sometimes so much that I think the entire first movie had been told here in fast forward.

And what a convoluted plot it is! Somehow you know that our heroes can't die - one's a superhuman hybrid never seen before, while the other is Seline the invincible who defied all odds to survive past the first film. But invulnerability makes a character weak, as it takes away the fun. Injuries heal in record time (ok, so they're vampires who recuperate in the darkness), and you'll really wonder if the Highlander way is the only way for a character to perish. The central plot about brotherhood, and the quest to unleash the very first Lycan was pretty boring stuff.

Somehow the production seemed a little lazy too. In the first movie, we had sets which are more in tuned to the present world, with the city and all. But this movie seemed to like darkness and worn out locations, and even the finale set looked suspiciously similar to the original's. And I learnt too that vampires can transfer abilities and skills by letting another suck its blood, much like Chinese Martial Arts films where the kungfu master imparts his skills to his disciples using internal strength - you'll become stronger overnight.

I had great hopes that the sequel would present itself as superior to the original, especially if it could develop a strong back story. However I was proved wrong, and this sequel, like many others, pale when compared to the original. I don't think there'll be another sequel given the characters becoming who they are at the end (almost a copy of X-Men 2's camera moving across a body of water shot with voice over), but then again, you'll never know.