Underworld: Evolution
directed by Len Wiseman
written by Danny McBride
story by Len Wiseman, Danny McBride
based on characters by Kevin Grevioux, Len Wiseman and Danny McBride
starring Kate Beckinsale, Bill Nighy, Scott Speedman, Tony Curran, Derek Jacobi, Steven Mackintosh, Shane Brolly, Brian Steele, Zita Görög
This film takes off where the first one ended after a brief back story in the early 13the century that introduces the characters of Markus (Curran) and his brother William (Steele) who were the first vampire and lycan respectively. William is imprisoned for “all time” by Viktor (Nighy) who is revealed to be a powerful leader before Markus turns him and his legions into a willing vampire.
The story moves to the present day and Markus has been awoken after a six century slumber. He quickly eliminates Kraven (Brolly) and numerous associates. He then tracks Selene (Beckingsale) and Michael (Speedman) to a warehouse but they escape.
The film has a decisively moody tone which is a continuation of the first film in the series. It doesn’t necessarily stand out amidst the glut of similarly themed films but the aesthetic does accentuate the decrepit quality the film is attempting to convey. It seems dirty and foul to a degree and this allows the great Lycan-Vampire battles to emanate with coarse vitality as necessary.
The creatures are even more persistently menacing in this chapter. The Lycans seem larger, fiercer and more relentless. There are also more scenes with full on Lycan wolves in attack mode which increases the horror quotient of the film. The Lycans simply look ghastly and very scary when they are fully engaged in their savage pastimes.
The back story introduces the audience to a further exploration of central characters. We learn that Markus and William are the twin sons of Alexander Corvinius; Markus was bitten by a bat and became a Vampire while William was bitten by a wolf and became a Lycan. Lycans were originally terribly vicious and unable to return to human form. William was out of control and Markus convinced Viktor to allow him to turn him and his legions into vampires in exchange for help corralling William. Markus planned of softening William but Viktor betrayed him and locked William up instead. Awakened by the blood of the Lycan scientist Singe in the first film, Markus is determined to unleash William from captivity.
Selene and Michael intensify their sexual bond by engaging in some softcore body action. There is one scene between them that encapsulates much of what the vampire legend is about. Michael is dying and needs to feed. Selene cuts her wrists and as he is sucking the blood a look of sexual bliss comes over Selene’s face. Bloodletting is for her a deeply erotic act and giving her blood to a lover as a type of sacrament is exceedingly sexual and gratifying. There is another feeding where Selene leisurely drinks from the wrist of Alexander Corvinius’s original bloodline, which is the only way she can track and kill Markus.
The decadence of the first film has been replaced with much more action. The vaguely sexy and terminally bored aristocrats have all perished and the coven completely wiped from the face of the earth. Indeed, both covens have been eliminated as well as all three Vampire elders. The chaos is well rendered here leaving no other option but to focus on much shedding of Lycan blood.
Selene maintains her tough, steely exterior but has developed a softer, more vulnerable side which only manages to add to her mystique. She’s a brutal killer and seemingly an amazing lover and one can only wonder what sex is like for a vampire. If all senses are made acute then sex must be an utterly shattering experience. Mere mortals would probably be unable to handle such sensations and would probably be rendered insane if their bodies didn’t explode from the intensity of the experience.
A key element to this story is the existence of hybrids who essentially take the best aspects of each source without having to suffer any of the weaknesses. Michael is the first Lycan-dominant hybrid and his power and strength is even more impressive than the Elders. In many ways the existence of hybrids points to the future and this is what Viktor in the first film is so afraid of. Michael represents something entirely strange and foreign into the world populated by Vampires and Lycans. The same can be said about Marcus who is the first and only Vampire dominant hybrid.
The film has a glossy visual code that is maintained throughout. It simply looks like what one imagines an Underworld to be. It’s all slippery angles and a real sense of despair. There is a hopelessness to the order of things as these two mythological creatures do hard battle in a war that nobody understands any more. There is a very real sense of futility that is a permanent fixture of the film. Nothing comes off that isn’t drenched in blood and each character projects a feverish necessity that provides the film with a permanence that is played out in the battle sequences. This is a war that seems will last for another millennium with no direct end in sight. The hatred rages and all hope seems to be lost until the very end when the atmosphere that is meticulously created becomes still and calm. But at the core of the war is a terrible treachery that can never be undone. A mean trick leaves the Lycans without their progenitor and confusion rightly reigns from that point on.
The Lycans are a heartbroken lot who have emerged after centuries of slavery and find themselves the target of a terrible onslaught directed at the goal of removing every last one of them from corporal existence. Thus their rage is understandable and they prove to be sympathetic creatures who have been brought so low only to show themselves to be a resilient lot of beasts albeit a sorely misguided one. They have no real leadership and have been pinned up against a wall forced into a position that renders them succinctly demoralized in their noble quest for survival. They are on the defensive for most of the film and their lashing out is the product of many years of psychological torment. The Vampires have a squad of Death Dealers who have organized for the sole purpose of obliterating the Lycan race. In this film, one gets a sense that the Lycans are starting to fade out. The hybrid Markus beckons the future, something so vitally terrifying to both Lycans and Vampires for the sole reason that he is something more powerful than either race and can subsequently create more like him.
The performances in this film all play the mythologies for what they are worth. Kate Beckinsale again looks like a grievous angel of death coupled with a sensuous humanity which her character does not demonstrate in the first film. Selene is still icy cold whenever she is blasting away at her adversaries but there is a new found warmth to her that is hungrily welcomed as she becomes more acutely sexualized. She’s more than a mere killing machine although she doesn’t much smile or show any emotion besides sexual gratification when she is fucking Michael. Scott Speedman makes for a fine Hybrid as his character grows into his new form. Michael is as tenacious a creature as one can hope for in a film such as this. He is virtually unstoppable which makes him a heroic figure although it’s not altogether clear that he is fighting on the side of good. He’s a wholly new animal and one wonders if he is torn between allegiances to the two races or if he might eventually rise above the conflict to create a new race of Hybrids who could create a council that would ultimately take full control of both Vampires and Lycans. Derek Jacobi plays Corvinus as a solid, grounded character who possesses a tremendous amount of weight and legitimacy. Jacobi simply looks like the forefather who is the source of all Vampires and all Lycans. It’s an uncanny thing to witness an actor who is so dramatically solvent and permanent and who brings an intensity that is requisite for the character. Tony Curran has a diabolical charm that he maintains for the duration of the film. One never forgets Markus’s mission as he gives everything to free his brother in an effort to solve the war once and for all.
Overall, this film captures a mood that supercedes most films in this genre. Nothing is obvious and the characters all make sense. There is a coldness to much of the film that is eased by the transformation of Selene into a woman with appetites that can only be satisfied through strict carnal necessity. Her sexuality is perhaps going to be a key in the fourth installment because she will have realized a peculiar potency that has gone unexplored in previous installments in the franchise. The back story is introduced with precision and each character’s place in the narrative firmly set. This is a series that is worth tearing into in order to fully understand the myriad relationships and how the various characters play off of one another. These characters live long after the film has come to an end and it’s fascinating to pick them apart. Ultimately this story has a vitality that renders it significant with a lasting purpose.
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