Save your money and rent later...

Rating: Null/10 (27 May 2004)

I was very disappointed with this flick. Hugh Jackman and Kate Beckinsale, both of whom are capable of riveting performances, were flat and uninteresting. They let the clothes, accents, and weapons do the acting for them. Richard Roxburgh, as Dracula, could be menacing and seductive in quiet moments, but all too easily his performance turns over-the-top. Dracula's brides are shrill and much too annoying to be scary. Igor seems to have inherited the lines of Mr. Freeze from the fourth "Batman" movie.
However, there are reasons that makes this movie a rentable rather than a film to ignore. (1) The flatness of the story and performances of the above-mentioned should diminish a bit on the smaller screen. (2) David Wenham, as Van Helsing's jittery but spunky sidekick Carl, puts more personality into one line than most of the others can put into an entire performance. He's the everyman and the story's humor. (3) Shuler Hensley brings in the heart and soul of the flick as Frankenstein's Monster. He, more than anyone else, captures the humanity of a character. All in all, this is a flick to rent when you don't want to think too hard, not something you shell out movie-ticket money on.