The Last Witch Hunter (2015)

The last witch hunter is all that stands between humanity and the combined forces of the most horrifying witches in history.

Director:

Breck Eisner

Writers:

Cory Goodman, Matt Sazama

Stars:

Vin Diesel, Rose Leslie, Elijah Wood

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Vin Diesel	...	Kaulder
Rose Leslie	...	Chloe
Elijah Wood	...	Dolan 37th
Ólafur Darri Ólafsson	...	Belial
Rena Owen	...	Glaeser
Julie Engelbrecht	...	The Witch Queen
Michael Caine	...	Dolan 36th
Joe Gilgun	...	Ellic
Isaach De Bankolé	...	Max Schlesinger
Michael Halsey	...	Grosette
Sloane Coombs	...	Elizabeth
Lotte Verbeek	...	Helena
Dawn Olivieri	...	Danique
Inbar Lavi	...	Sonia
Armani Jackson	...	Armani

Storyline

The modern world holds many secrets, but the most astounding secret of all is that witches still live amongst us; vicious supernatural creatures intent on unleashing the Black Death upon the world. Armies of witch hunters battled the unnatural enemy across the globe for centuries, including Kaulder, a valiant warrior who managed to slay the all-powerful Queen Witch, decimating her followers in the process. In the moments right before her death, the Queen curses Kaulder with her own immortality, forever separating him from his beloved wife and daughter in the afterlife. Today Kaulder is the only one of his kind remaining, and has spent centuries hunting down rogue witches, all the while yearning for his long-lost loved ones. However, unbeknownst to Kaulder, the Queen Witch is resurrected and seeks revenge on her killer causing an epic battle that will determine the survival of the human race.

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Plot Keywords:

witch hunter | witch | magic | black magic | human branding | 

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Taglines:

All Will Be Tried.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sequences of fantasy violence and frightening images

Did You Know?

Trivia

From the cast in this movie, Vin Diesel worked in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Sir Michael Caine worked on DC Comics' "The Dark Knight" trilogy and the Marvel movie Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014), and Elijah Wood worked on Sin City (2005), which was an adaptation of an independent comic.

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Goofs

At the beginning of the movie, the witch hunters enter the magic tree. Once they have entered and climbed the tree and start looking around, it is pretty obvious that the characters are walking on top of a floor.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Belial: I swear to you, every single mother and daughter, father and son taken from us by the Black Plague will be avenged. It is their Witch Queen who brought this curse upon our lands. And in her death lies our salvation. Be warned, brothers. She will never truly perish until her heart beats its last. Let fear be dead to us. There is no going back, for there is nothing to go back to.

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Crazy Credits

The Summit Entertainment logo appears on a parchment in ink, with the text is written in runic script before morphing into normal letters.

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Alternate Versions

The UK version theatrical release is cut in order to secure a 12A rating. During post-production, the distributor was informed by the BBFC that the film was likely to be passed 15 but that their preferred (and more profitable) 12A could be achieved by making a number of reductions to moments of violence and horror. When the film was submitted for formal classification, acceptable reductions had been made and the film was classified 12A. The subsequent video release is uncut with a 15 classification.

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Connections

Featured in The Blockbuster Buster: The Last Witch Hunter (2016)

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Soundtracks

Far from the Tree
Written by Thomas Howie and Jimmy Vallance
Performed by Bob Moses
Published by Domino Publishing Company of America, Inc.
Courtesy of Domino Recording Company

User Reviews

The Last Witch Hunter casts many mismatched fantasy gimmicks like a desperate magician, lacking identity and any real magic.

Say what you will about Vin Diesel, the guy has performed a variety of roles. From the famous furious action series, sci-fi, family comedy and even the lesser known crime drama, he's a legitimate blockbuster draw. However, in his recent fantasy escapade, he's bogged down by the same flaws from Constantine and even Van Helsing; far too much stylish fireworks and lacking any real focus on narrative.

The Last Witch Hunter tells the story of Kaulder, an immortal who hunts witches for centuries. Straight from the first act, the movie tries to jam as many expositions as possible while panning through myriad of hidden exotic locations practically every five minutes. It feels like a rushed tour of New York and none of CGI view made lasting impression.

This is a missed opportunity since the occult version of modern city is teeming with potential. Other movies, even comic books and video games have used this premise to captivate audience effectively. The screenplay could've showcased the mythology with calm pace and imaginative scenery, yet the movie abruptly shifts between uninspiring random clubs, which makes the entire environment seems generic.

It doesn't have to be Hellboy 2 level of sophistication, but the lore available feels terribly underutilized. Visual is mostly crafted with CG, and the action is mediocre with crude choreography. Underneath the cosmetic spells, the production value feels simply average, far too similar to Constantine from last decade.

This rushed pace is also translated to the characters, which appear like random strangers meshed together and suddenly given strange development. This is not on Vin Diesel alone, the movie has good acting prowess with Elijah Wood and Michael Caine, among others, however the characters are nothing more than stereotypical eccentric magicians or familiar villain. At some points it even looks like some cop procedural series with awkward buddy gimmick.

Lastly, Vin Diesel himself isn't that convincing even though he's groomed for superhero epic. In fact, he fared much better as Riddick, at least he had an identity as the stealthy assassin. While as Kaulder he's just another grunting protagonist despite the presentable physique or the grand attire.

The Last Witch Hunter is a fantasy foray filled with shallow parlor tricks and incompatible hero in Vin Diesel. It had potential to be spectacular, but the shoddy presentation only offers pedestrian exhibition.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA China Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 October 2015 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Last Witch Hunter

Filming Locations:

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$90,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$10,812,861, 25 October 2015

Gross USA:

$27,367,660

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$146,936,910

Company Credits

Production Co:

Summit Entertainment, TIK Films, Mark Canton Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Auro 11.1 Dolby Digital Datasat Dolby Atmos

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1