The term "double dip" will certainly instill fear in any DVD collector. For those who are unsure of what the term refers to, let me briefly explain. Underworld was released on DVD in January in a single disc edition. Now, a mere five months have passed and we are now "treated" to a two disc unrated edition. Tri-Star has "double dipped" the disc and can now possibly sucker in fans of the film to buy this new edition. Sometimes a double dip can be a good thing, especially when an outdated disc is improved greatly. Sadly, that's not the case with Underworld.
There is a war brewing that humans have been unaware of for hundreds of years. Beneath the city streets, werewolves (called Lycans) and vampires have been fighting, but with the possible resurrection of the werewolf leader Lucian at hand, things begin to pick up. Kate Beckinsale stars as Selene, a vampire who has the simple mission of destroying every last werewolf still alive. But, when the war begins and she falls for a human who was recently bitten by a Lycan, things get even more out of control. The war escalates into a spectacle of action, fight sequences, and gun fights.
This is far from a bad movie, but the light plot only serves to give purpose to the action. Oh, and forget what you used to know about vampires. Might as well forget everything you ever knew about werewolves too. Though there are some of the classic myths to the characters, but now vampires are sophisticated creatures living a lavish life. The werewolves are thugs; simply trying to survive and one day become the dominant species of the two.
It's a nice take on the mythological creatures and gives the movie its own sense of style. Of course, with some of the insane camera movements, dark colors, and over the top action, it has plenty of style before you even know all of this. The movie runs over two hours long, made even longer thanks to this new unrated edition. It drags in quite a few places and now with an extra 13 minutes of footage, it's even worse. The special effects are spotty as well occasionally using some painfully obvious CG. Still, there is some great action here, all filmed in a superb style this movie can call its own. (*** out of *****)
This extended edition is only available in 2.35:1 widescreen. The transfer here is actually worse than the previous edition. Featuring excessive grain and more noticeable compression issues, this one is a major disappointment. The movie features various shades of two different colors, red and blue. This is a nightmare for a DVD transfer and this disc is the example. It's not terrible, but the first disc was simply a lot better. The reason for this is most likely the space used to cram a nearly hour long documentary onto disc one along with some other features. It's a stupid decision that cost the viewers in the long run. (***)
Article comments
1 - Eric Olsen
Thanks Matt, a very lucid and informative review, carefully distinguishing between the movie and this particular iteration of DVD.
2 - visualsimplicity
Thanks for the review. Here's what I want to know though. How much more Kate Beckinsale is in the extended version compared to the previous version?
3 - Matt Paprocki
Absolutely nothing. What I forgot to put in the review is that there is nothing either on the disc or in the case telling you exactly what the extra fotage is. I seen no extra gore no did I see anything more of Kate. I didn't remember the first edition exactly, but there was little new here that was a major addition..
4 - Maura
Matt, thanks for a professional and thorough review! You told me exactly what I'd want to know about the new edition.
5 - visualsimplicity
Darn, oh well. I was hoping for more Kate. I'll have to agree with everyone here, great information. Saves me the trouble (and the monetary funds).
6 - Matt Paprocki
Sadly, it didn't save me the monentary funds....donations to the "I got suckered into the crappy new Underworld DVD release" can be sent to me at anytime. =:)