Product: Constantine [Blu-ray] (2012)
Rating: 2.0
Predictable F/X Fare
Not only is it predictable, but the Catholic "theology" that constitutes a major plot point in this movie is all wrong. We hear throughout how suicide is a mortal sin, and suicides go straight to hell. Newsflash, scriptwriters: The Catholic church has not considered suicide a mortal sin for decades, so to have bishops and other people in-the-know in this film spouting that nonsense is pretty ridiculous.This is a pretty typical special-effects action movie, only with demons. It's entertaining enough, but hardly the sort of movie you'll watch twice, unless you have extremely low standards, or your only other choice is a made-for-t.v. movie on the Lifetime Channel.Much of what goes on in the movie isn't fully explained. We never find out, for instance, why the demons that "can't" inhabit our world are suddenly able to...is it just because the Antichrist (or whatever he is in this movie), is coming? He needs a reception party? Are they on recon? What?These demon flicks are usually much better done with understatement. Think Rosemary's Baby. Think Fallen. Rosemary was creepy. Fallen was suspensful. They both accomplished their objectives without a tedious over-reliance on computer effects. Why? Because they had good stories and interesting characters. Someone ought to remind the suits in Hollywood that what we don't see is usually far scarier than what we do see. And a good actor is worth a thousand computer-generated images.Peter Stormare makes a wonderful appearance as Satan. It is, sadly, much to brief.