Too Much of CGI, Too Less of Everything !

Rating: Null/10 (19 October 2008)

Unlike good nonsense like (Speed - 1994), and bad nonsense like (Armageddon - 1998), this is the average of the popular trend that we used to receive from the American cinema since the start of the 1990s.
Since James Cameron's (Terminator 2: Judgment Day - 1991), then Steven Spielberg's (Jurassic Park - 1993), the CGI, as the latest revolution in the cinematic special effects, established a unique personality in the action movie making. It became common to have movies with CGI that could make it or overkill it. (Stephen Sommers), as a writer and director, used to dazzle us by unbelievable unstoppable action all the time with the powers of that new magic. But, here, simply something had prevailed in some things.
(Sommers) was determined to beat the record of the CGI's shots in films, watch (The Mummy Returns - 2001) to catch on that, and marvelously after 2 years of hard working, he did it. Undeniably, (Van Helsing) exceeded all its antecedents, and reached to nearly 2000 shots of CGI. Is it good? Yes, if you're a historian of special effects, or a die hard fan of CGI, because after watching this movie you might not love this fact that much!
Actually, not the "too much of something is bad enough" matter only that has to bother you while watching, there are another matters: the script just lacks and lacks and lacks. Expressly it could've been fine for any of (Sommers)'s movies, but the overabundance of CGI made it totally unbalanced, unlike the way it was in his more perfect work (The Mummy - 1999). Yes, he accumulated the exposition scenes, all in small detached pieces, as he and all the action's makers now usually do, but in front of this choppy ocean of visual and sonic clamor; the plot, any plot, must look too thin and too weak, or let's say invisible. As if every scene, that has one event and couple of lines, is thrown into comic book in the size of playground!
I hate to watch a respectable star such as (Hugh Jackman), who CAN act, in this empty role, where all what he has to do is: jumping, looking mean to the evil guys, and transforming into cartoonish generated graphic occasionally. Ironically, (Sommers) was so lucky this time to work with a star else the kind of his previous heroes like (Treat Williams) or (Brendan Fraser), however (Sommers) imprisoned (Jackman) unproductively in this mammoth hubbub. The lesion is deeper when (Sommers) even wrote less funny lines, or any lines, for (Jackman) also, to be finally just unexciting image.
Even (Kevin J. O'Connor) in the role "that had been written especially for him" looks utterly miscast. The role gave him nothing. In fact, this is not a role or a cameo in the first place. And you'll be more provoked when his very much role, (Carl the sidekick), goes to the unfunny (David Wenham). So the sad result: there is no relief in here. It assured that something was wrong with the whole formula this time.
(Richard Roxburgh) was too hysterical like the movie at times. But who can blame him? Nobody paid heed to performance here, plus he was doing his scenes in a green studio; now how atmospheric!
Aside from (Kate Beckinsale) being so silly, or how they forgot that she got the same hair color of her co-star, why she had to die at the end?! That was teary in unnecessary and fabricated way. Most likely (Sommers) was preparing something for the sequel, where (Anna Valerious) comes back as a rescuer ghost or something. But I'm still asking myself: how (Sommers) forgot to make us feel any bound with the characters just to be worry about them through the huge climax which was nearly the last half hour of the movie?! Not to mention, how the main goods, namely the CGI, looked phony and headlong at places; like the jump at the ballroom scene, or Mr. (Hyde)'s fight.
You have to sense a pity for all of this money, time, and effort, to be in this disappointing blockbuster. I liked the enjoyable idea to gather all the star monsters of the cinematic horror's history, through clever plot, where the unborn children of (Dracula) will come to life by Dr. (Frankenstein)'s beast, with appearances by (The Wolf Man), and Mr. (Hyde). So the Holy Order organization that's MI6 to (James Bond) old times, or the idea of angry young advanced (Van Helsing). Really what a party, and regrettably what a lousy one in the same time. As (Sommers) got the CGI in his mind more than anything, caring for the way (Dracula) walks on walls more than the way he talks!
Despite the record it hit, and points it mastered like the scary sound effects, and the village sets--this movie is average. (Sommers) seemed so joyful about the toys that he was playing with, being the only one who had fun out of them. He wanted to make the biggest eye candy ever, and he delivered it, however semi-pure. He made his own statement in the Horror genre, and left his generation's technique-eats-up-drama kind of stamp too. The only thing to not cry about is that it's not that BAD, UGLY BAD. But it was so close to be a monster itself to tell you the truth!
It has the feeling of video game all over it, and no wonder since they launched it indeed as one, in the same year of its release. Hmmm, makes you think; maybe they erred and made the movie as the video game!