Product: Constantine [Blu-ray] (2012)
Rating: 3.0
Exciting film and acting until the very end when it peters out
Keanu Reeves will undoubtedly never win an Academy Award for acting. That is actually a shame, because I think he delivers some really great performances. He's not as annoyingly flashy as Tom Cruise, as oddly lovable as Tom Hanks, or as physically expressive as Brad Pitt, but Reeves plays his characters as extensions of himself (which, by the way, as an actor myself, is the only way any human being can actually play a role) and his own internalization of his emotions. Reeves' eyes tell the story, not his face. The way he might hold his head provides you insight that another actor might display on his face.All that said, Reeves' portrayal of John Constantine is as unique as his character of Jack Traven (Speed) was. (While I love the first Matrix, I was sorely disappointed by the director's vision and delivery of the sequels). Reeves delivers a great performance in Constantine.John Constantine has always been tortured by the gift of seeing the evil that lurks just outside of the vision of most all other humans. When it became too much for him as a teenager, he committed suicide. He was brought back 2 minutes later, empowered with the ability to return "halfbreed" demons to Hell when they overstepped their boundaries. Unfortunately, he was also damned to hell for having committed suicide. Constantine continues to protect humans from the half breed demons in an effort to save his own soul.With really cool sets and a script that keeps you guessing (with the exception of the ending), Constantine delivers a moody and surreal landscape for this world and that of hell. The demons are unique but not particularly scary. The scary stuff is the Biblical references.This is based on a comic from Vertigo (DC) Comics. It's a dark film and I can only suppose that the comic was equally so.I think the script was very engaging and tight up until the end. The ending of the film seems to take the easy way out. Whereas we see Constantine perform a painful and drawn outexorcism early on, the final exorcism - with ostensibly a far more powerful demon - takes place relatively quickly and easily.I love Tilda Swinton (wonderful as usual) as the angel Gabriel and Peter Stormare as Lucifer (though his performance was not so much evil as it was weirdly silly). Rachel Weitz was really interesting as the female lead. She made me completely forget her forgettable performance in The Mummy.I also particularly loved the "move ins" to Weitz's character that Reeves does on several occasions. Watch the film and you'll see what i'm talking about.This is not your standard fare - but it is not a rip off of The Exorcist or any other film (though it may share some similarity with Prophecy). Far more engaging than the Order or any other film of that nature, Constantine is leaps and bounds above those other films. It is due to a decent director, but really good performances by Reeves, Weitz and Swinton and an awesome set designer and cinematographer.May not be everyone's cup of tea - but if you give it a chance you'll like it.