VAN HELSING

Van Helsing Rating - A

MSRP: $24.95 
Costco Price: $18.87
Wallmart Premiere Price: $15.97 

STARS:
Huge Jackman
Kate Beckinsale 
Richard Roxburgh 
David Wenham 
Will Kemp 
Kevin J. O'Connor 
Shuler Hensley

Directed by Stephen Sommers 
Written by Stephen Sommers 
Produced by  Universal Studios
Producers - Stephen Sommers & Bob Ducsay
Visual Effects Supervisor - Allen Daviau

Stephen Sommers is one of my favorite directors. The man has a knack for action films, making the jump to forefront with the 1998 Treat Williams feature "Deep Rising" before going on to make The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, Scorpion King and now Van Helsing. 

I expected a lot from this film and was not disappointed. Sommers delivers with another outstanding action packed adventure mixing Van Helsing with Frankenstein's monster, The Wolfman and Count Dracula. I was expecting a cameo of the Mummy at some point in the picture though. It delivers a seat of the pants escapade from reality that kicked butt from start to finish.

The CGI effects are bursting through the entire film but do not take away from Sommer's storytelling. While explosive they simply help tell the story. The acting is excellent for an action film and it has two of the up and coming action stars of today in Jackman (X-Men) and Beckinsale (Underworld).

I have been lucky the last two weeks of DVD releases. First I get "The Day After Tomorrow" and now "Van Helsing". It's been a great year for movies. Up next... Shrek 2. WooHoo!

On the money side of things, what killed the feature at the box office was something that happened at the end the film.The number one rule for a successful hit Stephen Sommer's ignored. It's easy to remember and difficult to forget. NEVER, EVER, KILL ONE OF THE FILMS HEROES AT THE END OF A MOVIE!!! You can kill them early but not at the end, ever. The Wachowski Brothers made the same brutal mistake with the third Matrix film. Will these people never learn.

PACKAGING 
Universal has used the same packaging as The Day After Tomorrow. It comes in a hard plastic case that slides nicely into a coated cardboard slide. It's very nice.

VIDEO
The video quality is A+. The colors are incredible, the blacks are black. There is no pixelation during the special effects or high action scenes. 

AUDIO
The It's Dolby Digital 5.1 is ground shaking. It sounds incredible. You will use your set-up watching this film.

EXTRAS 
Their are two versions of this film. Mine is the standard release without the extra three classic horror films. But even on this disc you have tons of extras. 
*  Explore Dracula's Castle 
*  Bringing the Monsters to Life 
*  You Are in the Movie 
*  The Legend of Van Helsing 
*  Feature Commentaries from Stephen Sommers, Bob Ducsay, Richard Roxburgh, Shuler Hensley and Will Kemp.
*  Play the Van Helsing Game on the XBox.
*  Outtakes.
    

OVERALL VIEW 
Like "The Day After Tomorrow" Van Helsing is a kick ass romp in the television ride you will want to watch again and again. Hugh Jackman once again establishes himself as a class a action star that can really act. Kate Beckinsale comes off the hit Underworld again battling Werewolves and kicking some serious vampire ass. With the special effects and top notch directing this is a great film to spend a couple of hours from reality with. I am glad the film is part of my video collection.

Van Helsing Rating - A

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