Run-of-the-mill Hollywood horror

Rating: 5/10 (1 March 2005)

Prior to seeing Constantine I had heard both good and bad things about it. I'd heard that those who've read the comic didn't like the movie, and those who hadn't, did. Now, despite being a comics collector, Hellblazer is one comic I've never read. However, I did know the premise, so I was kind of standing with one leg in each camp.
I went to see it with eight other people. Half of them thought it was really cool, the other half thought it was pretty boring. The latter half, which included me, were the ones more thoroughly grounded in both comics and movies. Constantine offered nothing new or surprising for me, and I thought far more could have been done with the concept. The story was predictable; I knew where it was going and it just kept on going there. The effects did not impress me.
Although, there was one thing (well, two) I did like. Tilda Swinton as the arch-angel Gabriel was absolute androgynous perfection, and worth watching the movie for. Just about the only part of the story I liked was Gabriel's reason for unleashing Mammon: To make people worthy of God's love. As if we have it far too easy, just being allowed to have our sins forgiven if we repent. I liked that. Secondly, Peter Stormare as Lucifer was also an excellent choice for the part. But other than these, I thought Constantine was a lack-luster, typical, pedestrian Hollywood project with no real bite whatsoever. A cleaned-up, watered-down version of the comic, entirely lacking that necessary bit of edge.
I rate Constantine a 5 out of 10.