TicklingIsLife
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It had a good weekend too (at the box office)
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Van Helsing
- Thread starter phatteus
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Dave2112
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I was so utterly dissapointed by this film. First off, they started teasing you with it during the Super Bowl, so NO film is going to live up to four months of hype.
I agree with most points against this film already mentioned. There's no conclusion to Van Helsing's backstory, the love interest is weak at best, (as if they made the two kiss at the end just because it made a good shot) and it is so OVERDONE! Much like the Battle of Geonosis in Attack of the Clones, less would have been more. They spent so much effort cramming every scene with visual effects that, individually, they looked like CGI creations...not like Gollum or Yoda that were infused with personality enough to distract you from thier non-reality.
One thing that really bugged me about this, and it ties in with what folks have been saying about LXG. Ever since "League", we've had this rash of films set in the 19th century that suffer no loss of modern technology. We are expected to believe that all of the ammenities we have today could be had in 1874 or so...they were just bigger and with lots of bronze gears. Van Helsing's repeater crossbow was just flat-out ridiculous. Advanced secret technology worked in "League", but was just stupid here.
I almost fell asleep halfway through this film, and really wanted my money back. It's one of those movies that's going to make a better XBox game than a film.
I agree with most points against this film already mentioned. There's no conclusion to Van Helsing's backstory, the love interest is weak at best, (as if they made the two kiss at the end just because it made a good shot) and it is so OVERDONE! Much like the Battle of Geonosis in Attack of the Clones, less would have been more. They spent so much effort cramming every scene with visual effects that, individually, they looked like CGI creations...not like Gollum or Yoda that were infused with personality enough to distract you from thier non-reality.
One thing that really bugged me about this, and it ties in with what folks have been saying about LXG. Ever since "League", we've had this rash of films set in the 19th century that suffer no loss of modern technology. We are expected to believe that all of the ammenities we have today could be had in 1874 or so...they were just bigger and with lots of bronze gears. Van Helsing's repeater crossbow was just flat-out ridiculous. Advanced secret technology worked in "League", but was just stupid here.
I almost fell asleep halfway through this film, and really wanted my money back. It's one of those movies that's going to make a better XBox game than a film.
D
Deleted member 2452
Guest
saw it last night, at last!
i'll only say, what's wrong with you people?!?!
it was great. i think you guys took it too seriously. it was ment as a spoof, not to be taken as a serious horor movie.
ah well no accounting for others taste.
steve
i'll only say, what's wrong with you people?!?!
it was great. i think you guys took it too seriously. it was ment as a spoof, not to be taken as a serious horor movie.
ah well no accounting for others taste.
steve
Hey Steve (Arenaactor)
I'm glad you enjoyed it! I wish I had.
Actually, a lot of my friends enjoyed it as well. I'm not going to sit here and criticize anyone for enjoying a movie tnat I did not like, because it's a movie. Some people liked it, some people didn't. This is a forum for opinions, and movie preference is based solely on opinion.
Ciao
I'm glad you enjoyed it! I wish I had.
Actually, a lot of my friends enjoyed it as well. I'm not going to sit here and criticize anyone for enjoying a movie tnat I did not like, because it's a movie. Some people liked it, some people didn't. This is a forum for opinions, and movie preference is based solely on opinion.
Ciao
i saw the movie and i got exactly what i expected. so, i liked it. i didnt expect great acting or a complex plot. i expected battles, a few jokes here and there and cool special effects. what did i get? Van Helsing! the only thing that bothered me was that we saw more of Dracula's brides than Dracula.
the werewolf look was pretty cool. Dracula as a bat was cool, too bad we barely got to see it. Dracula needed to be more of a menace, instead he was just like some evil boss and let all of his henchmen do all the work. as for Van Helsing's backstory, i thought i got enough of it from when Dracula told him about his past. what more do we need to know? again, i didnt expect great character development in this movie, just special effects.....i liked the movie.
now, there is another movie coming out soon that i am going to guess and say, EXPECT the same thing. that movie is "The Day After Tomorrow". do you really expect a wonderful storyline? nope. i am going to see it to see the special effects. the story will be okay, but i dont expect any Award winning performances.
the werewolf look was pretty cool. Dracula as a bat was cool, too bad we barely got to see it. Dracula needed to be more of a menace, instead he was just like some evil boss and let all of his henchmen do all the work. as for Van Helsing's backstory, i thought i got enough of it from when Dracula told him about his past. what more do we need to know? again, i didnt expect great character development in this movie, just special effects.....i liked the movie.
now, there is another movie coming out soon that i am going to guess and say, EXPECT the same thing. that movie is "The Day After Tomorrow". do you really expect a wonderful storyline? nope. i am going to see it to see the special effects. the story will be okay, but i dont expect any Award winning performances.
tickledorange
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I thought the movie was good, very nostalgic. Not scary, unless you count the few times that something popped on screen and made everyone jump.
D
Deleted member 2452
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hey faramir
your name sake was in it too!
well the actor who played faramir at any rate.
as to waiting to pop it into the dvd player; you'll be sorry!
it is a good big screen movie. full of chills, and thrills, and more than a few laughs. at least see it at the cheapy threaters.
steve
your name sake was in it too!
well the actor who played faramir at any rate.
as to waiting to pop it into the dvd player; you'll be sorry!
it is a good big screen movie. full of chills, and thrills, and more than a few laughs. at least see it at the cheapy threaters.
steve
nah...I don't do theaters anymore. it never fails, some couple(s) bring their kids and if they are not crying, they are running around. apparantly they don't know what a babysitter is, or they are too cheap to hire one.
besides, I might be getting a big screen sometime down the road.
this new one coming out, "The Day After Tomorrow" looks interesting as well. and 10.5 was cool for a TV flick, but all the damn commercials took so much away from it.
besides, I might be getting a big screen sometime down the road.
this new one coming out, "The Day After Tomorrow" looks interesting as well. and 10.5 was cool for a TV flick, but all the damn commercials took so much away from it.
Celtic_Emperor
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I went to see Van Helsing this evening. And I liked it. While I will agree that it had a "cornball" feel at first, all of that was taken away as the plot thickened via Dracula's appearance.
I had already read this thread before I saw the movie, and thankfully it didn't take away anything from it for me. Although next time someone decides to create a review thread, it is common practice to put in asterisks or in bold type something along the lines of "possible spoilers" so that people that don't want a spoiler can ignore the spoilers or only read up to a certain point to understand the concept of the movie and decide whether its worth the watch.
I agree that Dracula's servants (who have a name, similiar to 'Dracula', can't remember what exactly) were sort of corny in a non-menacing sort of way. But as it was pointed out, they were the 'industrial' backbone of Dracula's plot. Without them and "Egor", theres no real way for any of the technology Dracula was using to take effect. While one person here refered to them as mere "screen filler", I saw them for what they were- mere peons doing the hard labor.
Overall, I got much more out of this movie than I was expecting out of it. And I really liked the religious symbolism for the progtagonist and antagonist that was added, of which I will not speak so as to not spoil anything for those than haven't seen the film yet. I feel though that it was a nice touch and really made the confrontation of good and evil that much more compelling to watch.
While there was nothing scary about this movie, it was pretty action-packed and the plot never really slowed down at any moment. It was constant, and that kept me wanting to see more as the story moved on.
I particularly like how the character of Dracula was played out in this one. The film establishes him as not only pure evil, but it also expresses his own pains, anger and frustration in being what he is. In some ways, Dracula was more relatable to us than any other character. There were moments we were meant to feel sorry for him, "sympathy for the devil" as they call it. In these instances he seemed more weak and helpless than the villagers he and his brides prey on, only to show us later how malevolent he really is.
I also liked his look and costume, mannerisms, and style. Giving him long hair was a nice touch I think, and gave him somewhat of a regal and majestic yet young though experienced look. This adaptation of the classic character was done well, and the actor that played him really did a good job, in the most subtle of ways. Dracula didn't have to do much to keep my attention, and I was just as impressed by his dialogue as I was by his screen presense. Maybe thats just me, and maybe others were expecting more out of him, but the way I see it, there was no need for him to go the extra mile and exert himself. He's like Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious from Star Wars- calm, cool, and collected. That is of course until he is enraged and in one way or another is pushed to use his powers and fight. I believe this 'stature' and 'poise' to be just a couple of the qualities which make up a really good and believable villian.
I also liked Hugh Jackman as Van Helsing. Again, another subtle character whose depth made me want to know more about him, as with Dracula. I sure hope theres a sequel.
Overall- I give Van Helsing an 8 out of 10. The reason for this rating is the pace at which the scenes were moving. While the method that was used did keep my attention and interest, I feel they were a bit rushed, and more could have been put into them, with the exception of the actual battles, which were just right and realistic.
Van Helsing was a nice treat. It was a refreshing movie for the summer. 🙂
The japanese animation version of "Helsing" is of interest, and I'll be looking forward to watching that. 🙂
I had already read this thread before I saw the movie, and thankfully it didn't take away anything from it for me. Although next time someone decides to create a review thread, it is common practice to put in asterisks or in bold type something along the lines of "possible spoilers" so that people that don't want a spoiler can ignore the spoilers or only read up to a certain point to understand the concept of the movie and decide whether its worth the watch.
I agree that Dracula's servants (who have a name, similiar to 'Dracula', can't remember what exactly) were sort of corny in a non-menacing sort of way. But as it was pointed out, they were the 'industrial' backbone of Dracula's plot. Without them and "Egor", theres no real way for any of the technology Dracula was using to take effect. While one person here refered to them as mere "screen filler", I saw them for what they were- mere peons doing the hard labor.
Overall, I got much more out of this movie than I was expecting out of it. And I really liked the religious symbolism for the progtagonist and antagonist that was added, of which I will not speak so as to not spoil anything for those than haven't seen the film yet. I feel though that it was a nice touch and really made the confrontation of good and evil that much more compelling to watch.
While there was nothing scary about this movie, it was pretty action-packed and the plot never really slowed down at any moment. It was constant, and that kept me wanting to see more as the story moved on.
I particularly like how the character of Dracula was played out in this one. The film establishes him as not only pure evil, but it also expresses his own pains, anger and frustration in being what he is. In some ways, Dracula was more relatable to us than any other character. There were moments we were meant to feel sorry for him, "sympathy for the devil" as they call it. In these instances he seemed more weak and helpless than the villagers he and his brides prey on, only to show us later how malevolent he really is.
I also liked his look and costume, mannerisms, and style. Giving him long hair was a nice touch I think, and gave him somewhat of a regal and majestic yet young though experienced look. This adaptation of the classic character was done well, and the actor that played him really did a good job, in the most subtle of ways. Dracula didn't have to do much to keep my attention, and I was just as impressed by his dialogue as I was by his screen presense. Maybe thats just me, and maybe others were expecting more out of him, but the way I see it, there was no need for him to go the extra mile and exert himself. He's like Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious from Star Wars- calm, cool, and collected. That is of course until he is enraged and in one way or another is pushed to use his powers and fight. I believe this 'stature' and 'poise' to be just a couple of the qualities which make up a really good and believable villian.
I also liked Hugh Jackman as Van Helsing. Again, another subtle character whose depth made me want to know more about him, as with Dracula. I sure hope theres a sequel.
Overall- I give Van Helsing an 8 out of 10. The reason for this rating is the pace at which the scenes were moving. While the method that was used did keep my attention and interest, I feel they were a bit rushed, and more could have been put into them, with the exception of the actual battles, which were just right and realistic.
Van Helsing was a nice treat. It was a refreshing movie for the summer. 🙂
The japanese animation version of "Helsing" is of interest, and I'll be looking forward to watching that. 🙂
AffectionateDan
Verified
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All these negative opinions... tsk tsk tsk!
Fortunately, I do my own movie reviews, instead of listening to the bashing offered up by the jaded and cynical. For what it was, I thought it was enjoyable enough. Took my young son to see it last night, and found it just fine. It won't be garnering any acadamy awards, granted, but jeezum, people. Get over yourselves. It's just a summer movie. Sheesh.
Fortunately, I do my own movie reviews, instead of listening to the bashing offered up by the jaded and cynical. For what it was, I thought it was enjoyable enough. Took my young son to see it last night, and found it just fine. It won't be garnering any acadamy awards, granted, but jeezum, people. Get over yourselves. It's just a summer movie. Sheesh.
