Van Helsing (2004)
The unofficial start to the summer box office season began on May 7th with Universal's Van Helsing which opens ultra wide across North America. One thing for sure is that audiences will be flocking in droves to the local multiplexes to see box office hits such as Troy, Shrek 2, The Day After Tommorow, Harry Potter, and Spider-Man 2 and there is no doubt that these films will make money. More importantly is whether or not these films are worthy of sitting in the theater for two hours and Van Helsing kicks of my summer reviews.
Van Helsing is the latest film from director Stephen Summers (The Mummy, The Mummy Returns) and stars Hugh Jackson (X-Men) along with Kate Beckinsale (Underworld) and the story of Van Helsing (Jackman) who is a legendary monster hunter who heads to Europe with Anna Valerious (Kate Beckinsale) to do battle with Dracula, the Wolf-Man, and Frakenstein. The premise to Van Helsing sure seemed interesting a few months ago when I first saw the first marketing ads but after sitting through Van Helsing it is safe to say that there is not much of a movie here. Jackman fails to stir up any interesting character development behind Van Helsing as all we really find out about our lead character is that he is a legendary monster hunter with a secret past. As for Beckinsale, her latest choices in roles in films such as Pearl Harbor, and Underworld are mediocre as Van Helsing is not much better.
The direction by Stephen Summers resembles a Bruckheimer film (Gone in 60 Seconds) with fast editing, cheesy one liners and extensive special effects. There is probably not one scene in Van Helsing that does not include type of special effect shot in the movie. Summers goes quickly from action to what little story there is back to action again as it all feels tiresome and repetitive. It was a good move on Universal's part to get Van Helsing out in theaters quickly as Van Helsing will quickly fade from theaters real quick in the upcoming weeks.
The score by Alan Silvestri (Back to the Future Trilogy, Forrest Gump) was something I did enjoy abut Van Helsing and the opening 10 minutes that was shot in black and white as it was somewhat interesting. The entire film is very dark which resembles films such as Batman and Dark City as I often wondered whether there was something wrong with the projection equipment. The scene that has the horse carriage jumping across the canyon was visually full of contrast when I viewed it on television but the film version was dull and lacked contrast.
In conclusion, Van Helsing should be avoided as it provides nothing in entertainment value. There are much better alternatives in cinemas right now such as 13 Going on 30 and Mean Girls even though they appeal to a different audiences. The bottom line behind Van Helsing is that it is a big flop that does not deliver as a popcorn summer movie, it should not of been made and must be avoided. As for a sequel, well lets just say I really wasn't paying attention during the final 30 seconds.
Runtime: 132 minutes, 7 reels.
Aspect Ratio: 1:85.1
Universal Pictures
Rated PG-13
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Reviewed May 7th 2004
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