Constantine

Well, I just watched the DVD and i have to say I was pleased and disappointed at the same time.

The movie really starts out good, but about an hour into it it gets a little "far fetched". THen again towards the end it gets a little better, but then at the very end cries SEQUEL! I hate that! I can see them turning this into a definate sequel where the two stars are now demon hunters or whatever...

The basic premise is this
"John Constantine (Keanu) is a world-travelling, mage-like misfit who investigates supernatural mysteries and the like, walking a thin line between evil and good. Constantine then teams up with a female police detective, Angela(Weisz), who seeks Constantine's help while investigating the suicide-like death of her twin sister..."

Of course John is only trying to get into Heaven throughout the whole movie in order to save himself from hell. He smokes 30 cigarettes a day and has full blown emphysema. He figures if he sends enough demons back to hell by extracting them from possessed people, he will get a ticket to heaven and "redeem himself". Unfortunately, he has only done good throughout his life for himself. Even though he is helping others, he is still only doing it for himself.

Overall the movie was good. I give it a thumbs up. but not a thumbs way up!

I like Reeves in the Matrix, and I like the Exorcist, but I was honestly bored by Constantine, only because I went in the theater thinking, "Okay, this should be a really kick ass action flick. Neo kicking ass again, with crosses and holy water. Cool."

When the action trickled in, the bar shotgun scene being the highlight, I was feeling low. Rachel Weiz is hot and all, but neither she or Keanu made me give a damn what happened to them, or maybe it was the script? Or my own expectations?

It's just that the previews made this film look like a fantasy action film, and it wasn't, except for that bar scene.
Oh yeah, and that scene with the Devil at the end, dressed in white? I couldn't get the word "Lame" out of my head.

Still, it was a cool concept, some nice visuals of hell, and Reeves and Weiz are cool to see together, but it felt lacking. Okay, I wanted to see a Blade 2/Matrix/Exorcist combination. Despite what I think, there were a lot of fans. I'll have to see it again, give it another chance, for the story this time.

According to the comic, Reeves was supposed to have blonde hair...

I'm not sure how many people are aware of this, but Constantine originated as a character in the comic Hellblazer. He was originally created by comics legend Alan Moore. Many of the film conversions of his work just haven't had the magic of the comics (i.e. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and From Hell). I've heard that Natalie Portman will be starring in a new V for Vendetta movie. I hope it fares better. That was an awesome story.