A poor example of "homage"

Rating: 5/10 (8 May 2008)

What I expected to be a classic take on the monsters of the Universal Studios hey-day in the 30's and 40's, instead was a mishmash of dismal performances, and terrible writing. Great premise, if not slightly overused. The Vatican employs shady characters to do it's dirty work. Here, a man named Van Helsing is a monster hunter. Destroying the demonic hordes that threaten man kind. Great opening with him confronting Dr. Jeckyll and Mr Hyde, but it just goes downhill from there. Dracula is over-the-top in his ridiculous Bela Legosi impersonation. The Frankenstein is too melodramatic, and Igor is just a wise cracking smarta**. Then there's the silly plot of Dracula needing a wolfman to somehow harness a life giving power that isn't really needed, cause he's gonna get it from Frankenstein instead. Then there's the conflicting imaginings of the film itself. Part classic horror homage setting, and part techno futuristic, cgi nonsense. It just doesn't go together. It would be like combining Whoopi Goldberg and Playboy magazine. Never the twain shall meet, I pray.