Intriguing Ideas

Rating: 8/10 (9 March 2005)

I was mildly surprised at how much I liked this film. It moved quickly and an implausible as some of the scenarios were; they made for good digital effects and interesting moments of cinematic tension. (The mirror scene was quite good!) The movie centers on the personal battle of Constantine in his attempt to "win" his way into Heaven. He encounters some rather nasty demons and uncovers a sinister plot. Some of the rather odd ways the "good" is juxtapositioned with "evil" disturbed me. While we see evil in its many splendid forms, we never see good. Indeed God seems to be a rather apathetic being that is less concerned about humanity than the Devil is. There are numerous clichÃ©s in symbolism from Constantine's friend Beeman who is a kind of "Q", to the medium of water as a spiritual conduit. I think the best part of this film is the back-story. The Spear of Destiny, the hanging jars in Beeman's room, the origin of all the artifacts in Midnight's collection and the intriguing idea that we are really nothing more than tally marks in the battle of two supreme beings' contest.