Underworld on DVD

Vampires. Werewolves. Cool weapons. Kate Beckinsale in tight leather.

How could you go wrong?

Underworld has a great idea, and enough potential for ten movies. It delivers pretty much what you expect from it, too, but for some reason you still feel unsatisfied.

Selene (Beckinsale) is a bad-ass vampire whose job is pretty much to kick the crap out of the rival lycans (werewolves). When she notices they seem to be following a human, Michael (Scott Speedman), she goes deeper into the underworld to figure out why.

Most of us can probably figure out that the two begin to fall for each other, but their love is forbidden - not only because she’s a vampire, but also because Michael has been bitten by a werewolf, and will soon become one.

Together, the two have to figure out what started this centuries-old war between the species, while trying to protect themselves and the ones they care about.

Initially, you can’t imagine how Underworld could possibly not be a phenomenal action movie. But as it progresses, it all becomes unfortunately clear. Not to say that it isn’t still entertaining enough in its own right, but you expect so much more. It tries to be dark, but isn’t as dark as it should be (or tries to be), and most of the action scenes don’t deliver anything new at all.

Kate Beckinsale was an excellent choice to play Selene. She’s equal parts brash, naïve, vulnerable, and strong. She’s not bad to look at, either. Scott Speedman is just handsome enough to pull off his role, but he seems more of a way to keep the story hanging together than an actual major character.

Newcomer Len Wiseman has put together an impressive debut. He and screenwriter Danny McBride created a neat little world similar to that in Blade, but original enough to not get sued. Underworld is a fun little action movie that’s worth a rental, but get ready to be perpetually thinking: “This could be so much better!”

The movie was a moderate success at the box office, and a sequel was greenlit even before it was released in theatres. Columbia Tristar has thrown together a pretty good special edition, available in separate anamorphic widescreen and full screen transfers. Unfortunately, we were sent the full screen version, which is not what any self-respecting DVD reviewer wants.

Picture quality is excellent, nearly flawless, with very well done detail, even though there’s very little color other than black. Fleshtones are good, there is no halo effect, and not a single ounce of dust or grain. Audio, in Dolby Digital 5.1, is also excellent. There’s plenty of action to give all five speakers a good workout, with the surrounds doing almost as much work as the fronts. Gunshots, howls, growls, cars, subways, and a whole whack of other sound effects fill the room and engulf you in the action, while the subwoofer rumbles away. Many action movies suffer from volume fluctuations that can be irritating if you’re watching at night, but Underworld stays fairly consistent, which scores it a few extra points.

Len Wiseman, Danny McBride, and Kevin Grevioux (helped with the story and also plays Raze, the big, black lycan with a voice deeper than Michael Clarke Duncan’s) provide an audio commentary for the film. The trio discusses the origins of the story, development of the project, and their great admiration for Kate Beckinsale (and who can blame them?). The second, more technical track, features visual effects supervisor James McQuade, creature designer Patrick Tatopoulous, and sound designer Claude Letessier. It does get more technical and isn’t as entertaining, but it’s great for aspiring filmmakers.

With a total length of just over 45 minutes, the four featurettes are entitled “Creature Effects,” “Stunts,” “Sights & Sounds” and “The Making of Underworld.” All are fairly interesting and informative, the best being “Creature Effects,” which talks about the various methods to avoid CGI in order to keep the budget down. There is also a music video, storyboard comparisons, and a series of trailers.

Underworld, from Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment
121 minutes, full screen (1.33:1), Dolby Digital 5.1
Starring Kate Beckinsale, Scott Speedman, Michael Sheen, Shane Brolly and Bill Nighy
Produced by Tom Rosenberg, Gary Lucchesi, Richard Wright
Screenplay by Danny McBride, Directed by Len Wiseman 

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