Not one for the comic books fans ...

Rating: 6/10 (8 April 2005)

This movie has been met with a lot of mixed opinions about its quality. There's certainly been a lot of aggro from dedicated fans of the comic book 'Hellblazer,' as they have discovered that their beloved Constantine is now an American living in Los Angeles with dark hair. Originally, he was from Liverpool and looked like Sting.
John Constantine (Keanu Reeves) is a chain-smoking, cynical exorcist who is gifted, or cursed as he sees it, with the ability to see things that are not of this world. Because he tried to commit suicide earlier in his life he is destined to go to Hell when he dies, which isn't too far off as he is dying of lung cancer. Wanting to avoid this fate, he goes round sending unruly demons back to Hell with the hope of buying his way into Heaven.
The story starts with the suicide of mental patient Isabel Dobson (Rachel Weisz). Isobel claimed to be psychic and could see things that others could not. Her twin sister, Angela (also played by Weisz) refuses to believe that her sister would take her own life and enlists the help of Constantine to investigate. Together they unravel a conspiracy that could bring an end to all life on Earth, as we know it.
Keanu Reeves plays the role of Constantine in pretty much the same way as he plays every other character he's ever played. His acting is lazy and void of emotion, but it suits the character of Constantine well, so it actually pays off this time round! Rachel Weisz was an excellent choice to play twins Angela and Isobel Dobson. The only downside with her performance is that her American accent isn't that good. Together Reeves and Weisz have great on screen chemistry. Anyone who has seen Chain Reaction, in which they previously starred together, will agree.
The film is almost stolen by two of the supporting characters. The archangel Gabriel (Tilda Swinton) is a bit of fruit and is not all s/he* appears to be. Satan (Peter Stormare) is slightly camp, but extremely sinister and utterly evil, which is what we would expect from the Prince of Darkness, wouldn't we? There are a lot of things that are left unexplained, and it is never made clear what Balthazar (Gavin Rossdale) has to do with the main plot. It's not even worth talking about the Bush front man's acting ability because he has absolutely none. There are also a lot of religious references in the movie that might make people want to switch off until the action starts, but unfortunately people need to pay attention to these as they are important to the story.
This is a movie that one would think consists of action, violence, etc. In truth, the movie is a thriller with little bits of action thrown in. There is a lot of violence, several suicide references, and even references to self-harm.
The special effects are quite good. There is good use of CGI, creating very real and quite horrifying looking demons. The depiction of Heaven and Hell is interesting to see.
If you're a fan of the comic book, this may probably anger you. If, like me, you've never read the comic book, you may find this to be an enjoyable film.
6/10 * Angels don't have genitalia; therefore they are neither male nor female.