Not a perfect balance, but entertaining nonetheless

Rating: 5/10 (23 March 2006)

Constantine tells the story of John Constantine (Reeves), an anti-hero who plays the role of some sort of guardian, maintaining "the balance" between the angels of Heaven and the demons of Hell in an action movie that is guilty of trying too hard to be stylish, slowing down what is otherwise an enjoyable action flick.
The acting in Constantine is one thing that can't be faulted. Reeves, with his his hushed tones and anti-heroic mannerisms, puts in a decent performance, with his cruel but amusing character endearing the audience just enough to carry the film along. Weisz is similarly effective, as are the rest of the solid yet unspectacular supporting cast.
For the most part, the CGI is pretty smooth too; it isn't exactly understated but it's not overused. However, I do have a problem with the needless art school camera angles and turns of pace. The introduction of Keanu is shot with such needless...lack of style. We get a slow motion shot of a cigarette dropped from the window, to the floor, we get a birds eye view of him exit a cab, and we are treated to an exorcism from the point of view of his cigarette, for no real reason. The overuse of the slow motion irritates me the most. Keanu's first descent into hell is a prime example of this; it takes poor Rachel something like thirty seconds to close the door, and this cheap attempt to play off the success of bullet-time sucks the pace out of what would otherwise be an enjoyable action movie.
The plot isn't overly confusing, and it explains everything neatly enough. It could have perhaps played up the theology a bit more, but then it wouldn't really have been an action film anymore. Overall, it's good enough to be worth a look but sometimes feels a bit slow. Don't expect a classic and you shouldn't be too disappointed.