An engrossing gothic flick

Rating: Null/10 (22 September 2003)

I heard about this movie sometime last year, while it was still in production, and I was really looking forward to seeing it. The whole concept of a movie featuring a group of black-clad gothic characters appealed to me. Well, I went to see this movie on opening day, and it did not disappoint me at all. This is a movie about a centuries-old feud between two mythical creatures of gothic lore: vampires and werewolves. It stars the alluring Kate Beckinsale as a vampire that hunts werewolves with the intention of exterminating them. It also stars Scott Speedman as a human who happens to provide a link between the feuding vampires and werewolves. Michael Sheen plays the leader of the Lycans--the werewolf clan which lives in the bowels of the city. Sheen's performance is clearly the best performance in the movie, and his appearance (long hair, goatee, and alabaster complexion) suits his werewolf ringleader character perfectly. The werewolves' meager existence among the city's "underworld" is contrasted by the aristocratic vampires and their opulent Victorian trappings. The movie's dark and mysterious sets are top-notch, and the movie itself was filmed in the beautiful European cities of Budapest and Prague, adding more of a gothic atmosphere to the film. The action sequences are amazing--in particular, the opening sequence is astonishing. This movie is everything that a gothic movie should be like, especially since it combines fantasy, action, suspense, and horror. I actually felt scared during some parts of the movie. The only thing that I disliked about the movie is that some of the actors who play vampires had to wear a pair of cheap-looking blue contact lenses. Other than that, everything else in the movie is wonderful. The movie turned out to be much better than I expected it to be, and I'm thinking of seeing it again. The ending of this movie serves to indicate that there will be a sequel...and I will definitely go to see the sequel.