Underworld: Rise of the Lycans

"Underworld: Rise of the Lycans" tells the origins story of the war that is seen in the other "Underworld" movies. Of how Lucian, the first Lycan (a werewolf can never change back to human, a lycan can) fell in love with Sonja, a vampire and daughter to Viktor (an elder with a heavy role in the first film). The story is told in flashbacks in "Underworld," but here we have an entire film (though a short one) that tells the tragic tale.

What makes this film a worthy prequel to the other films is that it stays true to the story. I rewatched the first film and almost everything told about the beginning of the war is exactly the same. A failure is that audiences who have seen the first movie (no doubt they have) will already know what happens.

Bill Nighy returns as does Michael Sheen, and both are great British actors that can play either dramatic roles or those of immortal creatures that kill people. Rhona Mitra ("Doomsday") plays Sonja, a tough vampire chick who is in love with Lucian,a Lycan, which Viktor sees as a betrayal. This is how the war starts.




The love is real (though the sex scene was kind of weird...beyond the point that it was vampire/lycan sex). And the anger is real. It is just hard to see. There is plenty of action, but the universal 'everything is blue' tone from the previous two films returns and it is even darker now. I feel the need to bring a flashlight to this movie just to see what is going on.

What special effects that can be seen are pretty nice, though there really aren't that many. A key point of this series has been using basic effects such as real men dressing up as the werewolves except when it is impossible to do so.

Is this movie a terrible addition to the "Underworld" franchise? No.
Would I rather see a film taking place after the very non-closure ending of "Underworld: Evolution?" Yes. Who knows what will come next for this series, but for any fan of vampires and werewolves, this is a good flick to pass an hour and a half.



And just so you know, Selene (Kate Beckinsale) provides a narration for the start of the film and is then seen at the end, though it is rehashed footage and dialogue from the first film (though it cements the similarities between Sonja and Selene).

6.5/10