Overall Rating
  Awesome: 19.14%
Worth A Look: 41.36%
Average: 17.28%
Pretty Bad: 11.73%
Total Crap: 10.49%
10 reviews, 102 user ratings
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| Constantine |
by U.J. Lessing
"Constan-tastic!"
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When I heard that Keanu Reeves would be battling the devil again in Constantine, I was bewildered. Memories of The Devil’s Advocate and phrases like: “Oh dear God, No!” “Please spare us” and “Cripes!” drifted through my mind like smoke. My expectations were not high. I even had a great headline ready for my negative review, (Forgive Hollywood, Lord. They no not what they do!) but I shouldn’t have been so jaded. Perhaps Keanu Reeves has to try a concept twice before it works. After all, before The Matrix there was Johnny Mnemonic, the cyberpunk equivalent of Plan 9 From Outer Space.Keanu Reeves is effective as the chain-smoking John Constantine, a cancer-ridden exorcist, who is blessed (or cursed) with the ability to see demons. It seems that when he was a kid, seeing screaming, rotting demons everywhere messed him up a little. Constantine was drugged and given electroconvulsive therapy to stop his “hallucinations.” Finally, when it all became too much for him, he committed suicide.
The good news is that by being dead, Constantine learned hell is real (by visiting), and that his visions were not psychotic. The bad news is that, despite being resuscitated by doctors, John technically killed himself-- a mortal sin. In other words, John has gathered enough frequent flyer miles for a trip straight back to hell, and when he dies, his satanic time-share condo is waiting for him.
Nevertheless, Constantine refuses to go gentle into that good night and attempts to redeem his cursed soul by hunting down demons in Los Angeles and sending them back to the inferno. When he helps a bereaved policewoman (Rachel Weisz) solve the mystery of her twin sister’s suicide, things really heat up. He must figure out how to put a stop to the apocalypse.
Keanu Reeves’ Constantine may be a one-note character, but this is not necessarily an encumbrance. Despite all the bad acting jokes made at poor Reeves’ expense, his slightly wooden, straightforward delivery has a powerful charm backing it. (Disagree with me? Add up the enormous amount of money you’ve spent on his movies, and ask yourself what you were thinking.)
With supernatural action films, pacing is essential. Too fast and one ends up with a headache-inducing blur like Van Helseng. Too slow and one ends up with a boring, dreary mess like Suspect Zero. First time director Frances Lawrence keeps the film swift and fun while keeping Constantine tense and intimidating. A film based on a horror-comic that’s fun to watch is as rare as a Lorax in Bush’s White House.
There are no fancy computer-animated combat sequences, and I’m blending genres here, but in many ways, Constantine’s Los Angeles shares a lot with the Chicago presented in The Matrix. Humans bustle about, completely oblivious to the apocalyptic struggle that is occurring. The main characters live on the fringe, hyper-aware of the beauty and horror of their environment.Constantine is not without it’s defects. I still am having trouble figuring out what the villain’s master plan was, and what the difference is between a demon and a half-demon. Also, the excessive number of shots that give the audience a peek down Rachel Weisz’s blouse was a bit perturbing; however, Constantine provides some good old-fashioned monster hunting that is both fun and thrilling.
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link directly to this review at http://efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=11745&reviewer=396
originally posted: 02/19/05 02:23:47
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DC Characters: For more in the DC Characters series, click here.
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USA
18-Feb-2005 (R)
DVD: 19-Jul-2005
UK
N/A
Australia
24-Feb-2005
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