User reviews

This movie was, at best, mediocre. The action was good, I suppose, but it simply wasn't as good as its three predecessors. The plot was underdeveloped and unsatisfying. Also, without Speedman, it was really just missing something.

The story was, quite simply, lacking. It's difficult to explain this film's shortcomings without spoiling it, but, to say the least, they ignored elements that could have made a good movie and skipped to rather simple, unsatisfying plot devices. This movie was also absurdly short, testifying to its lack of content.

In the end, it just didn't feel like Underworld. I would compare this to the way I felt about The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides - just an out of place fourth movie of a series. I really wanted it to be good, but it just wasn't.

I'm not sure why this film seems to be getting fantastic reviews. I mean it was a good enough action flick but it didn't blow my mind. In fact it was a case of the same old stuff just done better. Brilliant to watch but not refreshing at the same time. The story was lacking in depth and character development and just felt like a filler for another sequel.

I don't want to be all doom and gloom about it because Kate really did kick some ass and looked good doing it too so as far as action and eye candy goes its great. But any fan of the series knows that the Underworld saga isn't stupid. They always paid attention to script and story and that was lacking here unfortunately.

I'm sure if you go and see it you wont be disappointed but just leave your brains at the door and watch the action commence.

For those who came in late, the Underworld series is all about the eternal enmity between the non-human species of Vampires and Lycans, the latter being an evolved race of werewolves. So far, we learned all about the centuries of bloodshed, and the absolute necessity for the 2 groups never to reconcile.

At the heart of the narrative is Selene (Kate Beckinsale), who was once the pride and joy of the Vampire army, till she fell in love with a hybrid (part vampire part Lycan), and began to question the ethics of her tribe.

Underworld: Awakening begins with a new development in the world that Selene and Michael inhabit. Thus far, the inferior human species has remained unaware of the existence of the other species. Now that covens and nests have been unearthed, paranoia strikes, and annihilation of non-humans becomes military priority.

Selene and Michael try to leave the area by boat, but both are captured and frozen in a lab, for research. When Selene awakens, she manages to flee from her prison, only to find that it is now 12 years later. Lycans are almost extinct, there is a weapon that she has, and her enemies want it for their evil purpose.

This installment of the Underworld franchise has the flimsiest plot, the least talented actors (except, of course, for Stephen Rea), and the most unsatisfactory climax. In fact, this has to be the first movie of the series that leaves loyalists not clamoring for more. The premise is so incredulous (and not in a good way), that you will stop trying to comprehend the sequence of events that leads Selene to the end of the movie.

To make up for the lack of a credible story, the makers decided to intersperse every second conversation with visuals of ripped heads, severed body parts and plenty of blood. The gore in the movie is not only irrelevant, but also added for shock value, or so it seems.

The icing on the cake is the presence of constantly flickering lights. The lab has them, the parking lots have them, the corridors have them - the civilized world does not seem to believe in proper lighting. What the audience is left with is a semi-hypnotized sense of being after sitting through all those lights.

Kate Beckinsale goes through all the motions of being Selene with the ease of a professional. She has done this to perfection before, but this time, she seems complacent, and bored. To give her credit, she has maintained her figure, and looks no different than the Selene who first made an appearance almost a decade ago (in the first movie of the series).

The very talented Stephen Rea plays a villain of sorts in the movie. He does look confused at times, as if he wonders why he signed the film. There is no sign of effort from any other member of the cast.

The music is more like stock music, and production value is inconsequential (there's nothing in the film except walls and piers). The fight sequences are not engrossing enough, and the spurting blood and flying intestines are distracting.

In short, the entire movie is a disappointment. If, however, you insist on watching Underworld: Awakening, avoid the 3D version, and maybe your headache will not be as bad.

On a more positive note, there is always the hope that the next movie will manage to regain the lost glory of the series.

Having just watched Underworld Awakening and not being an avid fan of the previous films in the series (not watching them), my stance on this film may not be as accurate as to those whom have seen the entire films in chronological order. However then I am reviewing this film based on this one solely. I thoroughly enjoyed, found the action top notch, well directed and fast paced. I know some of the complaints are due to the thin story but I did not mind too much. Yes a better story could have made the film better but I enjoyed the mother-daughter relationship and how and what they had to do in order to save her, and her whole escape plan. Kate Beckinsale is great as Selene as well as the other supporting actors. The Lycans and vampires were an interesting take in this, as well as the final scene involving Selene having to fight the giant Lycan. The 3D was believable and so were the gimmicks. For an action movie, it delivers.

Most movies don't get to a fourth in the series these days. I loved the first one the best, and though the effects have gotten cheaper, this movie is still an enjoyable continuation, and Kate is still the best effect!

I have been a big fan of all the underworld movies. I believe the story is amazingly well played and its never a "you are left wanting more" film. I have read a few reviews of this film from people saying that it lacks story line/plot. Which I cannot believe. Every Underworld movie brings something new to the scene. One review said there was a 'dull' breakout intro kinda feeling like 'resident evil' style. First off, this is incredibly wrong. This movie (and all other underworlds) LACKED any dullness. Yes, Kate Beckinsale is incredibly gorgeous eye candy and the effects were amazing. But I'm not entirely sure where someone can come off and say this lacked story. In my opinion, the people saying this are people who think "Jessica's body" had a good story line. Underworld always leaves it off with such a twist or an ending that leaves so much room for whatever and has the potential to go in any direction. This movie was well played and directed. People saying they 'didn't get the little girl thing' obviously didn't pay attention to dialog or the EXPRESSION on Selenes face. Please, if you are a fan of underworld, or Kate Beckinsale, don't miss out on an amazing film because some people can't understand something that's not spelled out in perfect cliché. Cliché... something Underworld has yet to bring to the table. Awesome job everyone. Keep it up.

A solid addition to the underworld saga, the storyline was new and held interesting. The action kept up intensity and was well choreographed. The cgi was a bit hokey at times, but not bad. The exit of Scott speedman was handled well, not too hokey. Selene was just as badass as ever!

I LOVED the first three Underworld movies, but in all honesty "Underworld: Awakening" was for me a complete disaster. The first three movies were amazing because they made you think deeply about history, love, hatred, war, friendship, family, and other riveting themes; they encouraged critical thinking and connection making skills with all the powerful flashbacks and twists and turns that were within a strong plot-structure. But "Underworld: Awakening" failed to do any of these things.

The plot absolutely sucked; there's nothing original, and I don't even know what the point/theme was at all. Yes there are a few good twists in the movie, but they happen in like the last 30 minutes, and even here all we get to see is action and no real depth or explanation of the who, what, where, when, why, how? of the story. If humans are now the common enemy, then why on sam hill are vampires and werewolves still fighting? It doesn't make sense. Near the end, just as the story was getting good, I suddenly noticed the credits popping up. The movie was over. I thought, "Huh? It can't be over, it was just getting good!?" The film was also WAY too short. All of this taken together makes "Underworld: Awakening" more like an added TV episode than a major motion picture. I honestly can't believe 70 million was spent on this cop out. It would have been much better if they actually showed the fight between humans and vampires and focused on that instead of going back to a now pointless feud between vampires and lycans.

WHAT made "Underworld: Awakening" worse was the fact that the directors did not really connect this sequel to the other 3 Underworld movies: where are the flashbacks? Where's the dialogue? What exactly happened to the other characters in the earlier films, etc, etc? I know this will disappoint all of you die-hard fans like me who love the other movies, but truth hurts: the film was terrible.

The storyline was the worst part, I think. In the 1 hour and 30 minutes of the film, only about 20-30 minutes is spent actually talking. Selene only opens her mouth a few times, and nobody makes longer speeches which made the other movies great. If the film was really about Selene waging war against humans (which it wasn't) it would have been much better and an interesting story, but that wasn't the true plot at all.

To the Producers: "It was the STORY that made the Underworld series a success, not the action, but you failed to see that. Because there is VERY little dialogue in this one and A LOT of action, there is very little story here, which makes it very unlikely that ANYONE will remember this movie after watching it. If you want to make another Underworld movie, focus on the story, on speeches, on the intellect, on actual acting instead of crappy action I can see for free on a TV series." I hate to say this because I am such a huge fan of the series, but "Underworld: Awakening" is utterly forgettable. I was really disappointed, and if you're an Underworld fan you will be too. I don't think I'll watch it a second time.

My Objective Vote: 3/10

P.S. I think the people who rate this film more than a 5 either haven't watched the other Underworld films, were paid-off, or are insane. It just doesn't deserve anything more than a pass.

"Underworld: Awakening" is the fourth movie of the Underworld series and in this one we watch the battle between Vampire and Lycan clans against the humankind when humans discover the existence of them. We also watch how Selene who is the leader of them against the humans plans to win this battle and how this is going to happen.

I really liked this movie because of the plot and the storyline of it and because of the cast and their interpretation. For one more time Kate Beckinsale was outstanding, the interpretation of Theo James as David was really nice such Stephen Rea and Michael Ealy also were.

Finally I have to tell you that this movie is really unpredictable and if you have seen all the previous movies of Underworld you just have to watch this one, and I am sure that you will love it.

Lets be honest you do not go into a cinema billing "Underworld: Awakening" expecting "Silence of the Lamb" or "Elegy" this is fast food cinema. The rules of critique that might apply to Spike Lee are therefore not applicable here. So understand my rating of 7/10 is factoring in that. It is 6/10 for fast food cinema.

The action was tight, the objectives of the film were clear. Certain "chosen one" themes i found boring and the film really must find other incentives for Werewolves to hunt vamps. There is something cool about Kate, I don't know what cuz she just looks like a normal Brit, but she is def the kick ass chick of this era. I mean would you pick her or Ms. Weaver to protect you. Well Ms. Weaver cant bounce off walls so I am sticking with Kate.

Some parts could have been better but that is always the case. I was happy not to see certain actors but I miss that old dude, Man he was evil. I mean he was really the best. I don't know the future of the franchise and I hope it doesn't turn into the Dark Knight Cop villain relationship.

I just joined this site today purposely to write this review. This movie was incredible! I haven't seen so much action packed into a vampire movie ever. It's the best movie I have seen since HUGO and it was just great. I was at the edge of my seat in so many of the fight scenes. Selene is back and stronger, faster and more kick ass than ever. The movie is just great. I hope all fantasy, action and adventure directors take notice of what happened. I didn't think the script was all that great but the action sure made up for it and the story was decent too. I can't wait till the next one. By the way don't waste your money on the 3D. It is not that noticeable and the movie is a dark movie anyways so it was just a waste to see it in 3D but other than that the movie is so good. I had no idea how great it was. The smile on my face when I left the movie and even during the fight scenes was nuts. I can't wait to see this again and then own it on blue ray! Anyone who doesn't like the movie clearly wasn't seeing what I witnessed. Again I can't wait to see this again. I'm excited because not many movies make me want to buy the tickets again and throughout the whole movie I kept thinking this is a great start for 2012 movies should start. Oh and Kate Beckinsale looked even better in this movie than the rest!

My husband and I loved the previous "Underworld" movies and were really disappointed when we heard that "Kate" wasn't interested in doing another one. So, we had it in our minds that was the end of the franchise. As time went by I heard that there might be another movie. I had horrifying thoughts of the studio execs trying to fill the massive void with a ridiculous story and a different actress. Then I heard "Kate" decided to do it.

I usually approach any movie without ideas of what to expect and keep and open mind. I must admit that I was a bit nervous about this particular movie and could it/would it deliver? Would the storyline hold up?

WOW!! This movie delivers in all areas. Kate Beckinsale is amazing in the reprised role of Selene. She has lost none of her ability to capture the depth of this character. In true vampire form she portrays, she appears to be ageless, beautiful and forever young.

I have nothing bad to say about this movie at all. I felt nothing but entertained by the story and the characters. There are a few fresh faces that add amazing texture and thrill to this movie.

There are enough twists and turns to keep you wanting more. My husband and I left and we both agree that this might possibly be the best Underworld to date.

It is a must see!