The Underworld movies are one of those franchises whose existence is a tad inexplicable. Even though the quality of each entry continually teeters between “good” and “passable,” we’re always eagerly awaiting the next installment. Thanks to the perfect balance of guns, good looking ladies and over-the-top action, the Underworld movies don’t have to be particularly innovative or inspired—they just have to deliver.
Sony/Screen Gems gave us a sneak peak at the next chapter, Underworld Awakening, which sees the return of Kate Beckinsale’s character Selene entering a future in which humans are hunting both vampires and lycans. We got our first taste for the movie at San Diego Comic-Con, but we had a chance to preview the upcoming 3D trailer that should start running in theaters soon!
The expansive spot reveals a very Children of Men-esque dystopian landscape, where the humans are experimenting on vampires and werewolves in order to discover better ways to destroy them. Selene bursts out of a liquid-filled hibernation chamber visibly perturbed—which doesn’t not mean good things for the many armored cronies standing in her way. She slices and dices with blades and ninja stars, taking down humans, lycans and anything that tries to kill her first.
Here’s a strange comparison: The crux of the story looks similar to Transporter 2, Selene tasked with the protection of a young girl test subject everyone’s looking to kill. The girl has incomparable powers, capable of ripping a guy’s head in two and growling really, really loud (OK, maybe that last one’s not that big a deal, but still, scary). Keeping her alive is no easy task, as Selene encounters another of the human’s experiments in the finale of the trailer. A giant wolfbeast (Selene’s words: “twice the size of any Lycan!”) attacks in a confined space and our vampire heroine uses every acrobatic move in the book to escape death.
The action looks faithful to previous entries while utilizing 3D much like Resident Evil: Afterlife—lots of jumping towards camera, throwing objects at the audience and evolving the hokey aspects of stereoscopic imagery into a thrilling experience. Underworld knows it can get away with pretty much anything (it’s about vampires fighting werewolves for Pete’s sake!) and throws even more insanity into the fourth entry. I imagine it won’t make a lick of sense, but I’m fully prepared (and pumped) to spend 90 minutes this January indulging on some slick, silly popcorn cinema.
