Out of the blue, a hunky average-Joe hospital intern named Michael (Scott Speedman) is targeted by beings who turn out to be "Lycans", or werewolves. It turns out that there's been a war waging between Vampires and Lycans for centuries, and Michael's caught up in it because the Lycans have taken a keen interest in him. The Vampire who begins protecting Michael on a regular basis is the tough-as-nails Selene (a black leather clad, super sexy Kate Beckinsale). She also must deal with the traitorous Kraven (Shane Brolly) and Lycan head honcho Lucian (Michael Sheen).Admittedly, some of the gadgets here are cool. Each side has devised special bullets guaranteed to mess up opponents badly. Director Len Wiseman serves up a lot of fast and furious action, and the kind of rapid cutting common to so many modern films of this kind. Beckinsale looks exquisite while kicking ass, and Speedman is sure to get plenty of hearts fluttering himself. All of that said, it's hard to care very much about the characters for quite a while, until Wiseman starts giving the actors more dramatic moments. Even then, the film looks and feels drab, with characters struggling to keep their emotions in check. The heavy reliance on digital technology, unfortunately, turns too many of the effects into cartoons. (Not that this is surprising; "Underworld" was obviously done to have a comic book sort of approach.) The werewolves, in particular, look pretty bad. This is dark, rainy stuff with atmosphere to spare (this was filmed in Hungary), slick to a fault, but never very involving. Perhaps the most interesting aspect is the "things are not as they seem" plot twist, although some viewers may charge that they saw it coming well ahead of time.Beckinsale and Speedman are nicely supported by a talented bunch of actors. Sheen is charismatic, Bill Nighy has excellent screen presence as head Vampire Viktor, and Sophia Myles has plenty of sex appeal herself in the role of Erika. Brolly isn't so hot, however; his reaction to hearing some "shocking" news is priceless.Screenplay by actor Danny McBride, with story credit going to McBride, fellow actor Kevin Grevioux (both of them also have roles in the film), and director Wiseman.Followed by three more "Underworld" features.Six out of 10.

I saw this first in a theatre in 2003. Revisited it recently on a DVD. Seen all its sequels in theatre. The plot - Kate Beckinsale is a vampire looking incredibly hot in ridiculously tight leather matrix style clothes whose job it is to eliminate the werewolves as part of the centuries old war between the two species. Her acting is good too. Things change when Beckinsale tries to protect a human, Speedman who is targetted by the werewolves for some reasons. The movie has a distinctively Gothic look, with great attention given to the backdrop. Every inch of the cinematography is polished. The architecture and costumes are true fashion statements. This world is so dense with aggressiveness it is almost surreal. Borrowing from The Matrix and Blade, the director Len Wiseman made Underworld more of a goth action flick n less of a vampire/werewolf. Nonetheless pretty enjoyable action flick. Was happy that none of those hand held shaky cam stuff was added.

When Underworld was release in the theaters I didn't bother seeing it, because of the bad reviews. I recently rented it because the video store didn't have anything better to offer, that I had not already seen, and I must say that I was very much surprised. It was far better than expected. I especially liked the acting of Bill Nighy as the vampire lord Viktor, and Micheal Sheen as the werewolf leader Lucian. I think that the plot is quite strong, and it does not ruin the vampire or werewolf legend. What i didn't like as much was the werewolf costumes. I didn't find the convincing. But apart from that, it was very entertaining, and I am looking forward to see the sequel i the theaters.

What makes a good movie? In any story, especially in movies, characters and it's theme is crucial towards having a successful and well liked outcome. Underworld, a vampire and werewolf movie, compliments this criteria as it is used in an innovative way. We see this through character development and theme, "man vs man" that's apparent throughout the movie. Action, is recognized throughout Underworld. By meeting the criteria, Underworld captures my eye consistently throughout the movie. Some disagree with the idea that Underworld meets the criteria mentioned such as a critic, James Berardinelli (Berardinelli 2003). While his disagreements may be valid, other parts of the movie, such as the characters, do justice to this genre of movie. Characters and it's theme plays an engaging role in Underworld. Examples of meeting this criteria, is depicted when it shows their characters grow into more than just a person on a screen. When Selene says, "...Two vampire elders have been slain… With differences will be set aside. Allegiances will be made. And soon, I will become the hunted"(Wiseman 2003). It accomplishes these things because it conveys you can't trust your own—it symbolizes the idea "family" can really be your enemy. It's theme, man verses man, meets the criteria because it illustrates what a person is capable of: this inspires many including myself. The third piece of criteria, action is met throughout Underworld because it's intense and realistic. Overall, Underworld is a rejuvenating movie that meets my standards. Five out of five stars.