Action films are often judged based on their third acts. We’ve come to expect blood, precision and grandiosity, and most are smart enough to deliver. The problem with the bad ones, more often than not, is that they don’t do quite enough to keep us invested before the proverbial castles are stormed.Underworld: Awakening isn’t a great movie by any measure. Its 3D is practically non-existent for long stretches, and most of its characters behave according to motivations shoehorned in quickly and without sincerity. But somehow, it recovers just enough from these lulls to offer well shot graphics and choreographed action that bridge the way to a successful, fast-paced final act. 

That climax, coupled with an interesting premise and a killer car chase scene, are enough to make Underworld: Awakening watchable, but because of one over-arching problem, I still can’t help wondering what-if. Arguably the best thing about the series prior to this movie has been its willingness to play both sides of the fence. Nothing was quite as it seemed, and no one single side was in the right. Like most wars, the Vampire/ Lycan feud was an escalating mess caused by two sides with fundamentally different wants and needs. The main issue with Underworld: Awakening is that it doesn’t spend enough time muddying the motivations of the opposition, which is utterly bizarre considering the film’s very plot adds two huge new wrinkles to the saga.  • Read full story…

Kate Beckinsale returns for the fourth installment of the series.

“Awakening” singles itself out from the rest of the films of the series by focusing less on the mythology that dominated the plot of the previous films. This installment is more action-packed, and with its fast-paced storyline and its cinematic shots and effects, it could be the best film of the franchise.

The film opens by rehashing the events of the first two films (the third one was a prequel). The war between the vampires and the lycans has been turned on its head. The existence of both has been discovered by the humans and they seek to eradicate them.

Vampire warrior Selene (Kate Beckinsale) and her hybrid lover Michael (Scott Speedman) are seeking to escape but fail. Selene is captured and remains frozen in a lab called Antigen.

Some time later she is mysteriously awakened and escapes venturing out into a world that is vastly different than the one she left behind. She returns to the pier where she was last with Michael and discovers that twelve years have passed since she was captured.

She begins seeing flashes of someone else’s vision, which leads her to lycans (who are thought to be extinct) who are hiding. There she meets a vampire named David (Theo James) and what ensues are action packed scenes of Selene dueling it out with the lycans. She discovers that the flashes are not coming from Michael but from her twelve year old hybrid daughter Eve (India Eisley).

The film begins to enter a fast-paced plot after this. It is soon discovered that the lycans have fooled the humans into believing they are extinct in hopes of carrying out their master plan, in which Eve is the key.The rest of the film features certain twists that were at times unpredictable. The ending wraps up in a way that leaves room for another installment in the series.

The film effortlessly steps away from its mythology to deliver a quick, action-packed plot, which delivers a fresh feel setting it apart from the rest of the other films.

Its one plot fault is not portraying the other side’s motive. Part of what made the other films strong was its ability to get the audience to sympathize with both the vampires and lycans. “Awakening” fails to do so. Instead, it focuses on Selene’s fight with the lycans for her daughter.

Directors Mans Marlind and Bjorn Stein do an excellent job in the effects and action shots of the film. The 3D on the other hand falls flat.

Despite those flaws the film manages to come together in a way that makes it one of the better films in the series.

Source: Neon Tommy