| | | Unrated.
Features: Widescreen, Aspect Ratio 2.35:1, Dolby Digital (5.1), English, Subtitled, French, Italian, Dubbed & Subtitled
Beneath the city streets, feuding Vampire and Lycan clans battle for supremacy over the Underworld. Their war has raged for centuries, unseen by human eyes - until now.When the battle begins, which side will you choose?
"...an old-fashioned monster flick decked out with Hollywood's full battery of high-tech visual effects." David Sterritt, Christian Science Monitor
"...a well-constructed, convincingly scary world worth visiting." Lawrence Toppman, Charlotte Observer
"...closer to "Saving Private Ryan" and "Starship Troopers" than to "Dracula" or "The Howling."" William Arnold, Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Editor's Note
In UNDERWORLD, a dark and Gothic monster action movie, vampires and lycans--an ancient form of werewolf--are at war. While the vampires inhabit a gigantic castle that houses their ancestor's tombs, the lycans live underground in a dilapidated sewer cave. Both teams are equipped with big guns, and they are constantly innovating deadlier bullets to gain advantage over each other. On the vampire side, the leather-clad death agent Selene (Kate Beckinsale) delegates teams of vamps to attack the lycans. But when she discovers that the lycans have kidnapped a human medical student, Michael Corvin (Scott Speedman), she knows the worst is on its way. Against the orders of her superior, Kraven (Shane Brolly), who is obsessively in love with Selene, she awakens the most powerful vampire of all time, Viktor (Bill Nighy) and prepares for a massive feud against lycan leader Lucian (Michael Sheen). Director Len Wiseman offers a tough, fast, and gory addition to the horror-fantasy genre with UNDERWORLD. Impressive special effects show the lycans transforming from humans to werewolves, and the lycans' ability to squeeze silver bullets out of their skin is also rudely fascinating. Beckinsale is captivating in the role of the lead vamp, with her leather corset, pouty expressions, and double-fisted pistols perfectly communicating the glam-action mood of the film.
| Features | Audio: English PCM 5.1 Surround Sound, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound | | Audio: French, Italian Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound | | Dubbed: French, Italian | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English, French, Italian | | This Is A Blu-Ray DVD Made For Blue-Laser Format Players Which Produce Higher Quality Picture & Sound |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Sony Pictures |
| Release Date: 9/25/2007 |
| Running Time: 146 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2003 | | Catalog ID: 21614 | | UPC: 00043396216143 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Widescreen 2.35:1 |
| Cast & Crew | Bill Nighy | | Kate Beckinsale | | Scott Speedman | | Sophia Myles | | Billy Howerdel - Original Music By | | Bruton Jones - Production Designer | | Csaba Stork - Art Director | | Danny McBride - Screenplay | | Kevin Grevioux, et. al. - Based On Story By | | Kevin Phipps - Art Director | | Len Wiseman - Director | | Martin Hunter - Editor | | Paul Haslinger - Original Music By | | Terry McKay - Executive Producer | | Tom Rosenberg - Producer | | Tony Pierce-Roberts - Cinematographer |
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| | Professional Reviews | Movieline's Hollywood Life
"...The film debut of music video director Len Wiseman, looks deliciously apt..." 09/01/2003 p.114Total Film
"...Wiseman creates some neat comic-book visuals dipped in blue-grey hues. The climax is action-packed..." 11/01/2003 p.97 Premiere
"Leather-clad Kate Beckinsale steals the show..." 03/01/2004 p.96 ReelViews 7 of 10
Vampire movies aren't what they used to be. Gone are the days when a cape, fangs, a cocked eyebrow, and a menacing glare were enough. By today's standards, those things are quaint. Underworld, from first time director Len Wiseman, is an example of a vampire movie for the new century - stylish, gothic, gory, and loud. The plot may not be irrelevant (in fact, this movie requires too much exposition to clarify the situation), but character development is...Had Underworld been shorter, it would have been more fun. As it is, there are dead stretches in the middle where it seems to be spinning its wheels. The big battle at the end is fun, although I felt cheated by the final scene, which promises a sequel. Fans of Blade and other gloomy, bloodthirsty action movies will probably be entertained. Underworld captured my attention sporadically, but not consistently. - James Berardinelli
DVD Verdict 8 of 10
Everyone loves a good vampire yarn. And what self-respecting horror fan doesn't drool at the possibility of a gory werewolf flick? Columbia TriStar, smelling a hit, mashed these two monsters together and created the action horror thriller Underworld...a movie of high gloss and shine, but little else. The idea of taking werewolves and vampires and pitting them against each other seems like a novel idea. Hey, I can think of nothing more cinematically orgasmic than watching a hairy lycanthrope tearing apart a bloodsucker while guns blaze and bodies fall. Yet Underworld seems oddly flaccid in its execution--something is definitely missing...Underworld is entertaining in a very mindless sort of way, and that's about it. The most disappointing aspect of the film is that it really feels like it could have been so much better. - Patrick Naugle
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