Underworld: Blood Wars (2017), R, ★1/2

The luminous Kate Beckinsale in an overblown series.

Ummm...well...it's the fifth movie of the Underworld franchise. Let's see...vampires, werewolves, blood, fighting, spawn but we still have Kate Beckinsale in that same tight outfit that we've seen her in throughout the series. You know what, let's jump to it, I followed with the movie for most of the time and then even though there were fun moments throughout the storyline, I did not seem to care in the end as to who will make it out alive from these "blood wars".

Ok...whew. Here we go. So, I don't remember this series too well and it has been a while watching one of these movies. So, Lycans and vampires are searching for Selene (Kate Beckinsale) as the vampires are trying to seek justice for a couple of important deaths and Marius (Tobias Menzies) and the Lycans are going to use her to locate Eve, whose blood is the key to build some hybrids of Lycans and vampires. Semira (Lara Pulver) wants Selene to train Death Dealers in exchange for clemency. However, Semira and Varga bertray Selene by killing the Death Dealers and they escape.

Vampires with guns.

The movie tries to be campy fun...again. But, the characters are too self-serious for their right because they are too involved into knowing which side will win: Lycans or vampires? The filmmakers think that we should care because it is an action movie but the action which is choppily edited and is also visually messy gets us more frazzled than engaged. It is a bit incomprehensible, stern for its own good and a bit boring since vampires only combat their enemies with gunfire. I thought it was supposed to be hokey fun like the first movie.

Kate Beckinsale still does what she can to be so involved and she is still strong and sensual in that she does not back down in her leather outfit. Again, her character is not as emotionally involved as in the first movie or a few others. I did kind of like Lara Pulver's performance as she is camping it up a bit. However, my basic conclusion is that it loses itself in its dark blue mystique and self-seriousness and does not try to have fun with itself and screenplay. And, I have to admit that I laughed at some moments that should not have been funny but it was all right. It is a typical January release that is basically actors sleepwalking through their performances shooting at people like there are stakes. There are no stakes. And, there is no reason to watch this movie.

*1/2

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