Issue date: 2/6/09 Section: The Verge

(movies.yahoo.com)

I have never been a huge fan of the Underworld series, so I was less than ready to go see "Underworld: Rise of the Lycans."

Sitting in the not-so-comfortable seat, gripping the arm rests, readying myself for what I thought was to be a barrage of cliche' vampire romance and unnecessary violence. What I found, however, was an OK film that exceeded my expectations.

"Underworld: Rise of the Lycans," directed by Patrick Tatopoulos, is the prequel to the popular film series "Underworld."

Instead of being in a modern setting as all of the last were, it is instead set in the Dark Ages.

The plot follows a lycanthrope (werewolf) named Lucian (Michael Sheen) who is saved by the vampire king Viktor (Bill Nighy). Lucian falls in love with the king's daughter, Sojna (Rhona Mitra), and he attempts to free her and his fellow lycans from Viktor's rule.

The acting, as in all the "Underworld" movies, tends to hit the over-dramatic side a little.

Bill Nighy steals the show as Viktor, his deep voice and dark atire make for a truly scary vampire.

The love between Sojna and Lucian makes for a rather cliche` "forbidden love" romance. However, the clash between the lycans and the vampires make for an excellent premise and some exciting fight scenes.

As is traditional for the "Underworld" series, almost everything is laid out under a nighttime sky.

Effects abound as every explosion, flying arrow and lycan transformation look phenomenal. The soundtrack is equally epic, with plenty of low-end bass booms to keep the 5.1 systems shaking your entire house.

The action scenes are better in this movie than the previous ones, there is a lot more variety and hand-to-hand combat which I love.

Unfortunately, the dips between the scenes can get long, leaving the audience aching for more fights.

Being a prequel, the character development is more in-depth than the others, which is part of what makes the movie watchable.

I found myself associating with Lucian as opposed to the gun slinging detachedness of the characters in the previous films.

One very notable aspect of the movie is the scenery. The castle setting is amazing and makes the film seem very epic. The armor of the vampires, the swords, even the eyes of the vampires make it very easy to become absorbed with the movie.

All-in-all, "Underworld: Rise of the Lycans" was a good movie. I would definitely recommend that anyone who was a fan of the previous should go and see this. If you're not, then at least give it a rent when it rolls out on DVD.

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