Stylish, Gothic action thriller with depth

Rating: 7/10 (20 August 2006)

I'm a sucker for stylish action thrillers and Gothic horror flicks, and I love vampire and werewolf movies when done right, so I'm pretty much inclined to love this film based on concept alone. Luckily the execution nearly lives up to the hype. There are some plausibility issues (despite the fantastical setting), and the story, while intriguing, isn't explored well enough, but the film is so interesting and entertaining that it doesn't really matter. A perfect example of style over substance, though the substance isn't completely missing.
The story in itself is quite interesting, even if the plot is a bit disappointing. The original pitch, 'Romeo and Juliet with vampires and werewolves', isn't that accurate, and it would have been a bit better had it been. Instead of a vampire falling in love with a werewolf, she falls in love with a human who becomes a werewolf (and then, later, a hybrid, which kinda ruins it). A slight difference, but a noticeable one. The overall setting - an ongoing war between the two species - is very cool and quite original, and is made even more effective by the fact that the film begins right in the thick of it, without much exposition. The history is explored later (not nearly deeply enough, though - that's left for the sequel), which makes it much more interesting. A deeply ingrained mythology accompanies all the stylish action, making it more than just a B-grade action flick.
One of the main highlights is the entire style and tone of the film - it's always night, and it's always raining. Very dark and creepy, just adding to the horror element. In between all the gunfights, there are scenes set in a vampire manor or a werewolf den, which helps ground the film with some sort of realism. The special effects are fantastic, despite being on a pretty small budget, as the werewolf transformations - and, indeed, the beasts themselves - are nearly flawless. And the acting is as good as you can expect from an action/horror/thriller, with Beckinsale, Michael Sheen as Lucian, and Bill Nighy as Viktor all standing out. Overall, a very cool movie with an intriguing storyline and fantastic style.