| | |
Features: Widescreen, English, Subtitled, French, Italian, Dubbed
In the Underworld, Vampires are a secret clan of modern aristocratic sophisticates whose mortal enemies are the Lycans (werewolves), a shrewd gang of street thugs who prowl the city's underbelly. No one knows the origin of their bitter blood feud, but the balance of power between them turns even bloodier when a beautiful young Vampire warrior and a newly-turned Lycan with a mysterious past fall in love. Kate Beckinsaleand Scott Speedman star in this modern-day, action-packed tale of ruthless intrigue and forbidden passion--all set against the dazzling backdrop of a timeless, Gothic metropolis What is UMDTM?
UMD, Universal Media Disc, is a brand-new and groundbreaking optical storage medium, designed for the high speed and efficient delivery of digital entertainment content that can store up to 1.8 GB of digital data on a 60mm disc -- or an entire feature film on a single UMD video. All UMD DVDs are produced in Widescreen and encoded using advanced AVC compression. UMD for PSP will play on the new PlayStation Portable handheld entertainment system.
Specifications
Diameter: 60 mmMaximum Capacity: 1.8GB (Single-sided, dual layer)Laser wavelength: 660nm (Red laser)
"A well conceived, powerful movie, over the top for all the right reasons." Michael Booth, Denver Post
"The film works as an exhilarating celebration of the gothic style." 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 Dolby Digital Stereo | | DVD Quality Picture | | Full Length Movie | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English, French, Italian |
| Technical Info
|
Release Information
| | Studio: Sony Pictures |
| Release Date: 10/31/2006 |
| Running Time: 121 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2003 | | Catalog ID: 11840 | | UPC: 00043396118409 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English, French Dubbed, Italian Dubbed, Spanish Dubbed | | Available Subtitles: English | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1 |
| Cast & Crew | Kate Beckinsale | | Michael Sheen | | Scott Speedman | | Shane Brolly | | Bruton Jones - Production Designer | | Danny McBride - Screenplay | | David Bowie, et. al. - Original Music By | | Gary Lucchesi, et. al. - Producer | | Len Wiseman - Director | | Len Wiseman, et. al. - Story By | | Martin Hunter - Editor | | Robert Bernacchi, et. al. - Executive Producer | | Tony Pierce-Roberts - Cinematographer |
|
| | 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 James Berardinelli's ReelViews 8 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. And, as a bonus, not only do we have vampires, but werewolves as well. In fact, they're at war with each other, and have been for about 1000 years. You would think that even with a pathetically slow kill rate, they would have wiped each other out by now. - James Berardinelli
San Francisco Chronicle 7 of 10
The plot is pretty standard, with a twist at the end that is a pleasant surprise considering the plodding first hour. The design team for Underworld does some interesting things with the modern firepower that the vampires and werewolves possess (ultraviolet bullets are used--"daylight harnessed as a weapon"), but director Len Wiseman and the rest seem entombed by a restrictive budget.Vampire films by definition are going to be filled with darkness and shadow. - Peter Hartlaub
Chicago Sun-Times 8 of 10
Underworld is the directing debut of Len Wiseman, an art director for Stargate & Independence Day who can stage great-looking situations but has few ideas about characters and plots. It's so impossible to care about the characters in the movie that I didn't care if the vampires or werewolves won. I might not have cared in a better movie, either, but I might have been willing to pretend. - Roger Ebert
|
| |
|
|
|
