BethanyApparently I'm the Only One Who Enjoyed this Movie (LINK)
June 21st 2008 22:48
Constantine is a movie that a lot of people don't like. I understand the people who don't like it from the POV of having read the comic and don't like the film adaptation there of, but I thought it was a neat little movie about a girl, demons, and snarky comments.
To catch people up who haven't seen it yet: John Constantine (played by Keanu Reeves) is a chain-smoking demon hunter. Cursed with the ability to see the half human, half otherworldly that walk among us, he rids the Earth of half-demons who stray across the line. He also happens to be dying of lung cancer, which doesn't prevent him from lighting up every time the camera happens upon him. Worse, though, is that he's condemned to hell. He is solicited for help by Detective Angela Dodson (Rachel Weisz) who is suspicious of her twin sister's apparent suicide and believes that it might be... something in Constantine's realm of knowledge. Turns out that it is, big shock, and the plot leads from there to the climax at the end which I consider a mild twist.
I found this movie visually interesting- especially the Hell sequences- I liked Constantine as a character. It's hard to be that much of a dick and still likable, but I suppose anybody's willing to forgive someone who's dying of cancer- I like Angela as his foil, too. And I'm going to say this: I have a hard time with how underrated Keanu Reeves is as an actor. I don't think he's the BEST ACTOR EVER or anything like that, I think he acts about as well as Tom Cruise (who is way over-rated in my opinion). Yeah, Cruise isn't doing too well anymore, but that's because he's got a touch of the crazy and it shows. But for God's sake, people, Bill and Ted was over 15 years ago- let it go.
In Ebert's not very favorable review he wonders why it's so common for Catholicism to be associated with movies about Satan (in this movie the Beast is played by Peter Stormare), and I think it's because there's a lot of Catholic mysticism- holy rites and stuff- that make it better suited for movies like this.
Anyway, I don't think this is a hugely great movie, or the best one ever, but I think it's very underrated and I think you should always give movies like this at least one shot. But maybe I'm too generous.
To catch people up who haven't seen it yet: John Constantine (played by Keanu Reeves) is a chain-smoking demon hunter. Cursed with the ability to see the half human, half otherworldly that walk among us, he rids the Earth of half-demons who stray across the line. He also happens to be dying of lung cancer, which doesn't prevent him from lighting up every time the camera happens upon him. Worse, though, is that he's condemned to hell. He is solicited for help by Detective Angela Dodson (Rachel Weisz) who is suspicious of her twin sister's apparent suicide and believes that it might be... something in Constantine's realm of knowledge. Turns out that it is, big shock, and the plot leads from there to the climax at the end which I consider a mild twist.
I found this movie visually interesting- especially the Hell sequences- I liked Constantine as a character. It's hard to be that much of a dick and still likable, but I suppose anybody's willing to forgive someone who's dying of cancer- I like Angela as his foil, too. And I'm going to say this: I have a hard time with how underrated Keanu Reeves is as an actor. I don't think he's the BEST ACTOR EVER or anything like that, I think he acts about as well as Tom Cruise (who is way over-rated in my opinion). Yeah, Cruise isn't doing too well anymore, but that's because he's got a touch of the crazy and it shows. But for God's sake, people, Bill and Ted was over 15 years ago- let it go.
In Ebert's not very favorable review he wonders why it's so common for Catholicism to be associated with movies about Satan (in this movie the Beast is played by Peter Stormare), and I think it's because there's a lot of Catholic mysticism- holy rites and stuff- that make it better suited for movies like this.
Anyway, I don't think this is a hugely great movie, or the best one ever, but I think it's very underrated and I think you should always give movies like this at least one shot. But maybe I'm too generous.
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