A Hell of a Film!

Rating: 8/10 (27 March 2005)

A fun-filled and exciting adaptation of the comic. If you're a purist, you'll hate it - but for those of us who can appreciate something without it having to be an exact replica down to the letter, it is a film worth exploring.
This is not the first film that seemed doomed when it was relocated from England to the States. High Fidelity is one of my all-time favourite novels. When I heard that they set it in Chicago, I nearly flipped - I mean, being in England is central to the book! I sensed that the relocation would completely ruin the novel. Then I saw the film. I should have known that any film Stephen Frears directs and John Cusack stars in would have a hard time being awful. High Fidelity is one of my absolute favourite films.
Constantine isn't directed by Frears, and Reeves is no Cusack, but when I heard it was relocated from England to LA and that Reeves was J.C., who had become a cop along the way, I kept an open mind. I knew from experience that change could be good. You have to remember that the average film-goer is not a comic fan, and few of them have read the comic. While purists will curse and moan about the changes, those making the film have to keep the film interesting to a mass audience while trying to retain as much of the essence of the comic as possible. They did a damn good job here. It's not the best film I've seen, but it was a fair adaptation, it was exciting to watch, and it had a tight script which was well-shot and well-adapted. Considering the director is a first-timer who had previously only shot videos, it's actually quite impressive. Only David Fincher and Spike Jonze have ever really made the crossover successfully (and with talent for film-making), so it's not often we see a film as well constructed as this by a video director.
Keanu Reeves is exciting to watch - especially in films where he really enjoys himself. You can tell that he really likes playing this character. Unfortunately. he is stuck with a voice that simply cannot change - like Sly Stallone and Vin Diesel, Keanu has the voice that will forever sound the same. In Dangerous Liaisons everyone complained that he sounded like Ted, here everyone complains he sounds like Neo. But once you get past the surface, you'll see a rich character portrayal, with an intensity and discomfort that Neo never really had. He can't shake his voice - which will always be that of Ted Theodore Logan - and now will always have pieces of Neo in it. But those who know the comic should be impressed with the way he carried himself - his poses, his body language, they really reflected the J.C. we know and love.
Rachel Weisz is as sultry as ever, and what an interesting performance by Tilda Swinton - who opens up all forms of questions with her androgynous characterization of Gabriel. The sexless angel - or multi-sexual angel - brings an interesting level of interpretation of heaven and divine intention to the film.
Djimon Hounsou and Pruitt Taylor Vince each performed fantastically, as is expected of actors of their calibre. If Keanu had intensity, they blew intensity off the map.
But not as far as Peter Stormare did, as a perfect Satan. Part playboy, part psychopath - his eyes had that same look they did in Fargo...something in them that says 'you don't want to look here, go away. NOW!'
And was that Gavin Rossdale I saw as Balthazar?? If he only sang as well as he acts, Bush might have been a half-decent band...
All in all, this is not the best film of the year, but it certainly beats most of the other films out there at the moment. With a plethora of second-rate horror films and really awful video game movies, it's nice to have a seat-of-your-pants horror/suspense/ adventure film to fall back on. Slow at times, when it's on, it's ON - and it's very impressive to look at. Not for the stubbornly purist, but for anyone looking for an entertaining, quality film, I recommend it, 7.5/10