Van Helsing
My father is a huge fan of the Universal Studios monsters. He really enjoyed the remake of The Mummy, so the return of several onscreen monster staples simultaneously (the Wolfman, Frankenstein's Monster, and Dracula) was a must-see. We were not disappointed.
Van Helsing is not by any means a GOOD movie. It is pulp action fun, in the same vein as League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, The Shadow, and the Indiana Jones series. Too many people confuse pulp-action movies for poorly directed films - one is on purpose, the other is unintentional.
The term "pulp" is derived from the paperback books that were made of pulpy paper. Cheap and filled with lurid tales of sex and violence, pulp was sort of porn for the action-minded: not much talk, lots of fighting. In fact, it's not unusual for the fights to actually string together so that the hero doesn't get to say or do much of anything. A lot of reviews emphasize, "Van Helsing never lets up." Yep, that's pulp.
Another surefire way to identify a pulp-type style is the hero. Heroes in pulp stories are ridiculously well rounded. Pulp heroes are scientists and master pugilists, excellent pilots and crack shots. While modern heroes pride themselves on their flaws, pulp heroes have none. Van Helsing displays all signs of being nearly indestructible.
Now that we've gotten the definition of pulp out of the way and established that the director's (Sommers) intent was to create a pulp film, we can ignore many of the basic weaknesses inherent to a film of this genre and focus on the other aspects.
This is one, gigantic homage. The film makes that homage very overt by filming the opening sequence in black-and-white. Dr. Frankenstein and Dracula talk, act, and ultimately get attacked by villagers with pitchforks and torches. The sequence ends with the appearance of Frankenstein's Monster, who goes out with a bang.
Flash forward to the Victorian age. Van Helsing is tracking none other than Mr. Hyde. Yes, THAT Hyde. Curiously, Mr. Hyde looks very similar to the heroic Hyde of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, including the fact that he's all CGI and rather ape-like. No matter, here it works - Hyde is rendered beautifully in Gollum-like detail, and he is a frightening sight to behold. We get to see Van Helsing in action without being distracted by all the movie monster hoopla.
What we learn about Van Helsing is that he is a combination of several characters. He dresses like Vampire Hunter D (Sommers knows his anime). He swings along rooftops from his grappling hook like Batman. He is backed by a super-secret organization dedicated to monster hunting that supplies him with bleeding edge gadgets, just like James Bond. In fact, he even has his own Q (David Wenham, playing a friar named Carl). If Van Helsing sounds like he's a superhero, see my comments about pulp heroes above.
Oh yeah, the plot. The movie revolves around Dracula's quest to bring his undead progeny (the union of Dracula and his three brides) to life. "Vampires are the walking undead. It only makes sense that their children would be born dead." I'll let that sink in for a bit...got it? Sure you do. Throw in some nonsense about werewolves being controlled by Dracula and Frankenstein's Monster being key to said progeny's resurrection, and you've pretty much got the plot down.
The special effects are amazing. Dracula's brides get far more screen time than any other version of the movie and here they can transform into bat-winged harpies as well as their typically attractive forms. The werewolves are very much the werewolves of Underworld, including the ape-like ability to scale walls. Surprisingly, Frankenstein's Monster is not the shambling moron so many people are accustomed to. In physical form, he is a true monster, complete with flapping braincase and steam-powered leg. He's also a well-spoken person with a heart. Frankenstein's Monster has the best dialogue, and that's saying something.
The parallels to Underworld continue with Kate Bekinsale who is in both films. Kate plays the gypsy Anna Valerious, dedicated to destroying Dracula. Kate looks great in this film but doesn't have a whole lot to do but be the love interest. She also apparently sleeps in her corset, which must be awfully uncomfortable.
The movie plays fast and loose with its own logic, something that the pulp-theme cannot justify. Werewolves shift in and out of human form when the full moon is VISIBLE. The definition of visible is rather flexible. In fact, the full moon seems to be in effect for an entire week. Transylvanian horses can really leap tall bridges in a single bound. And apparently silver stakes work on everybody, including Dracula.
On the other hand, the movie makes some winking allusions to history. Van Helsing "fought against the Romans at Masada." The monster hunter's background, which I won't give away here, owes as much to biblical history as it does to Vampire Hunter D. And Mr. Faramir is hysterical as the funny man.
My dad really enjoyed Van Helsing. My wife thought it was stupid. I thought the movie was intentionally stupid and thus enjoyed it. And oh yeah, it had Kate Beckinsale.
Just one question: Where's the Creature from the Black Lagoon?
Van Helsing is not by any means a GOOD movie. It is pulp action fun, in the same vein as League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, The Shadow, and the Indiana Jones series. Too many people confuse pulp-action movies for poorly directed films - one is on purpose, the other is unintentional.
The term "pulp" is derived from the paperback books that were made of pulpy paper. Cheap and filled with lurid tales of sex and violence, pulp was sort of porn for the action-minded: not much talk, lots of fighting. In fact, it's not unusual for the fights to actually string together so that the hero doesn't get to say or do much of anything. A lot of reviews emphasize, "Van Helsing never lets up." Yep, that's pulp.
Another surefire way to identify a pulp-type style is the hero. Heroes in pulp stories are ridiculously well rounded. Pulp heroes are scientists and master pugilists, excellent pilots and crack shots. While modern heroes pride themselves on their flaws, pulp heroes have none. Van Helsing displays all signs of being nearly indestructible.
Now that we've gotten the definition of pulp out of the way and established that the director's (Sommers) intent was to create a pulp film, we can ignore many of the basic weaknesses inherent to a film of this genre and focus on the other aspects.
This is one, gigantic homage. The film makes that homage very overt by filming the opening sequence in black-and-white. Dr. Frankenstein and Dracula talk, act, and ultimately get attacked by villagers with pitchforks and torches. The sequence ends with the appearance of Frankenstein's Monster, who goes out with a bang.
Flash forward to the Victorian age. Van Helsing is tracking none other than Mr. Hyde. Yes, THAT Hyde. Curiously, Mr. Hyde looks very similar to the heroic Hyde of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, including the fact that he's all CGI and rather ape-like. No matter, here it works - Hyde is rendered beautifully in Gollum-like detail, and he is a frightening sight to behold. We get to see Van Helsing in action without being distracted by all the movie monster hoopla.
What we learn about Van Helsing is that he is a combination of several characters. He dresses like Vampire Hunter D (Sommers knows his anime). He swings along rooftops from his grappling hook like Batman. He is backed by a super-secret organization dedicated to monster hunting that supplies him with bleeding edge gadgets, just like James Bond. In fact, he even has his own Q (David Wenham, playing a friar named Carl). If Van Helsing sounds like he's a superhero, see my comments about pulp heroes above.
Oh yeah, the plot. The movie revolves around Dracula's quest to bring his undead progeny (the union of Dracula and his three brides) to life. "Vampires are the walking undead. It only makes sense that their children would be born dead." I'll let that sink in for a bit...got it? Sure you do. Throw in some nonsense about werewolves being controlled by Dracula and Frankenstein's Monster being key to said progeny's resurrection, and you've pretty much got the plot down.
The special effects are amazing. Dracula's brides get far more screen time than any other version of the movie and here they can transform into bat-winged harpies as well as their typically attractive forms. The werewolves are very much the werewolves of Underworld, including the ape-like ability to scale walls. Surprisingly, Frankenstein's Monster is not the shambling moron so many people are accustomed to. In physical form, he is a true monster, complete with flapping braincase and steam-powered leg. He's also a well-spoken person with a heart. Frankenstein's Monster has the best dialogue, and that's saying something.
The parallels to Underworld continue with Kate Bekinsale who is in both films. Kate plays the gypsy Anna Valerious, dedicated to destroying Dracula. Kate looks great in this film but doesn't have a whole lot to do but be the love interest. She also apparently sleeps in her corset, which must be awfully uncomfortable.
The movie plays fast and loose with its own logic, something that the pulp-theme cannot justify. Werewolves shift in and out of human form when the full moon is VISIBLE. The definition of visible is rather flexible. In fact, the full moon seems to be in effect for an entire week. Transylvanian horses can really leap tall bridges in a single bound. And apparently silver stakes work on everybody, including Dracula.
On the other hand, the movie makes some winking allusions to history. Van Helsing "fought against the Romans at Masada." The monster hunter's background, which I won't give away here, owes as much to biblical history as it does to Vampire Hunter D. And Mr. Faramir is hysterical as the funny man.
My dad really enjoyed Van Helsing. My wife thought it was stupid. I thought the movie was intentionally stupid and thus enjoyed it. And oh yeah, it had Kate Beckinsale.
Just one question: Where's the Creature from the Black Lagoon?
posted by talien | 9:02 AM
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