Top quality big budget monster bashing action packed entertainment.

Rating: 8/10 (25 December 2006)

Van Helsing starts in 'Transylvania 1887' where Dr. Victor Frankenstein (Samuel West) succeeds in bring his creation (Shuler Hensley) to life, however the evil Count Vladislaus Dracula (Richard Roxburgh) wants it & the secret of Frankenstein's experiments to help him give life to his young... Jump forward 'One Year Later' to 'Vatican City Rome' where Cardinal Jinette (Alun Armstrong) orders monster killer Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman) to Transylvania to destroy Count Dracula, Van Helsing has little choice. Once there Van Helsing meets up with Anna Valerious (Kate Beckinsale) who is also trying to kill Count Dracula, they team up together to achieve this goal but they quickly discover it's not as easy as they had hoped...
This American Czech Republic co-production was written, co-produced & directed by Stephen Sommers & I have to say I have now seen Van Helsing twice & enjoyed it immensely both times. The script is set in a fictional Victorian world which lots of familiar monsters & character's inhabit & it has them all meet up, in this sense it's very similar to The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003) although I think Van Helsing is a better film. Anyway, the film moves along like an absolute rocket, you can't take your eyes off it for a second or you'll miss a fight, a monster, a great set, a ridiculously extravagant set-piece or just Kate Beckinsale in that super sexy outfit complete with ultra tight corset & thigh boots. The entire film is littered with references to other classic horror/action films, in fact I'd say maybe it relies too much on paying homage & not quite enough time on being original but when a films this much fun I'll cut it some slack. The character's are not that well developed but since most will already be familiar with them who cares? On a negative side perhaps the pace is too fast, no-one ever seems to stop to catch a breathe & as a result as I've mentioned the character's & plot are given little to develop & suffer plus there is some truly awful dialogue that at times is quite embarrassing & then there's the fact it lasts for over 2 hours, on a personal level I dislike films which are too long & I'd have preferred Van Helsing to be a bit shorter although I can't think of anything I'd like to see less of. Overall though I thought it was a cracker & provides terrific non-stop entertainment as long as your not after something serious or deep, which I'm not because for me films are ALL about entertainment, it's as simple & straight forward as that.
Director Sommers does OK, having said that he seems intent on bombarding us with non stop CGI special effects, fights, action set-pieces & monsters, while for the most part they're spectacular it does get a bit repetitive after a solid two hours of the stuff. To be honest in a weird way I feel like I'm criticising a Lottery win because I won too much money, strange eh? With so much overblown CGI on show there's no subtlety in Van Helsing at all, forget about much suspense or any of the scares which the original films Van Helsing was based on were all about. To keep the rating down the violence in Van Helsing isn't explicit & forget about any blood as it's not that sort of horror film.
With a mind boggling supposed budget of about $160,000,000 (!) Van Helsing looks brilliant, everything is so extravagant, the special effects are top-notch, the set-pieces are as big as they come & the whole thing looks fabulous with some cool sets from the Transylvanian village to the interior (& exterior for that matter) of Count Dracula's Gothic castle to Dr. Frankenstein's lab & I love the story in the IMDb's 'Trivia' section for Van Helsing which claims that the lab was equipped with antique medical equipment purchased on eBay! The acting isn't up to much but then did you expect it to be? You know I really do think it was a great decision to cast Beckinsale who is a real hot looking bird & have her kicking the hell out of people in that outfit, good work all round I reckon. Roxburgh complete with earrings makes for a slightly campy but still quite cool Dracula.
Van Helsing isn't for everyone that's for sure, the purists & those looking for something a little quieter & a bit more serious should avoid it. Those looking for top big budget mindless entertainment to pass a couple of hours, don't mind the odd lapse in logic & like hot women in tight corsets & thigh boots then Van Helsing could very well be the film for you. I loved pretty much every overblown, over-the-top second of it & if you have a problem with that sue me...