Van Helsing (english version)
 |
 |
 |
 |
Notez ce film |
États-Unis, 2004
De Stephen Sommers
Scénario : Stephen Sommers
Avec : Kate Beckinsale, Shuler Hensley, Hugh Jackman, Kevin J. O'Connor, Richard Roxburgh, Carl Wenham
Durée : 2h10
Sortie : 01/01/2004
The monsterhunter Van Helsing is called in Transylvannia to eliminate Count Dracula. He will also have to deal with werewolves, vampires and will meet Frankenstein’s creature.
I WILL TAKE THE 50/50
As the project Van Helsing was developing so were growing the expectations of the Stephen Sommers’ fans. Geek raised with serials, films with monsters, Steven Spielberg and the comic books, the filmmaker had just given birth to three consecutive masterpieces without complexes but rich of enjoyable second degree. From the already not serious Deep Rising to the parodical The Mummy Returns, the director (or should we say author) has created his own trademark for filmmaking, his personal way to entertain, sometimes lacking of lightness, sometimes funny but always reflecting a real love for the classical B Films. However, more than the Mummy movies, Van Helsing was predestined to be the climax in Sommers’ career so far. The Summer-blockbusters-cine-fans were already licking their chops over the casting of Hugh Jackman and this story gathering the most famous monsters of the Universal gallery. What has happened? We will probably never find out. Between the full powers given to the filmmaker and his ambition for something more serious the film is gone off-tracks. If the spectacular side of the film, and its (unofficial) 150-million $ budget, is constantly on the screen (the action scenes mainly successful und the magnificent special effects), the rest of the film is unfortunately fast altogether disappointing, giving the spectators a shaky film as ever.
DUDE, WHERE'S MY VAN?
On the one hand there is a good homage style introduction, followed by a stunning face-to-face between the hero and his first big adversary, on the other hand, a Dracula who keeps on being ridiculous, surrounded by his Dwergis (kind of Ewoks or Jawas), his hysterical girls, and an Igor whose make up looks incredibly cheap (like Frankenstein). In each and every scene enjoyable rhymes with ridiculous. For example, seeing the werewolf, bundle of energy, going wild raises the spectators’ hopes that something exciting is coming up… unfortunately it will be a supposedly dramatic scene but in fact flat as a pancake. Yet, the story in itself is not worse than any other (well not worse than the stories for the two Mummy films) but for each good idea, comes an involuntary funny scene with the Count and his girls. After that no wonder if anti-Richard Roxburgh groups are being set up! As for the rest of the casting, Hugh Jackman is the only one to get good marks. Super charismatic he is nevertheless underused (in a role similar to Wolverine), and has unfortunately as many bad lines to say as the other actors. In a word: Frustrating. So is unfortunately the whole film, like a bad funambulist constantly looking for his balance between superb scenes (saving the whole project) and wrong choices (actors, register, etc.).
