Product: Constantine [Blu-ray] (2012)
Rating: 4.0
Not Hellblazer but pretty entertaining nonetheless
As has been said many times and in many places, this is not a Hellblazer movie. This John Constantine is excruciatingly grave instead of charmingly smarmy. He's not British, a crucial aspect of his character. And he doesn't smoke anywhere near enough. But if you can ignore all that, this actually is a pretty decent movie. The visual effects are sharp and the stylized look and colors make everything seem a little otherwordly, which adds to the ambience nicely. It was also interesting as a fan of the comic to see aspects of many different story lines in there. There were even some scenes and dialogue lifted right off the page, the camera framing it into a moving comic panel.Could the acting be better in some instances? Sure but most genre films have a couple cringe worthy part. Is the movie laughably melodramatic and cliched at times? Ibid, see above. Do they completely change some characters? Just look at Chas for your answer. But I think it will surprise you if you give it half a chance. At the very least, it will be fun for fans of the comic to pick out all the little Hellblazer details.