Kate Beckinsale and Scott Speedman are back as a vampire/werewolf team battling evil and divisive forces in Underworld: Evolution. Opening in theaters today, this sequel to a 2003 surprise hit promises to offer more intense action and digital visual effects as a new species of man-beast emerges to threaten both bloodsuckers and their hirsuit counterparts.
Also returning for the second chapter is director Len Wiseman (Beckinsale’s husband), who again teamed with screenwriter Danny McBride to expand the world of Selene (Beckinsale), a gun-toting vampire warrior who finds herself at odds with Viktor, the father of modern-day vampires, played by Bill Nighy.
Underworld: Evolution was not screened for the press, which is usually not a good sign. However, judging by the trailer, fans of digital effects and animation should have plenty to take in as the film dishes out some impressive work by Luma Pictures, CafeFX, ntropic, Fantasy II Film Effects, Krypton, Company 3, Furious FX and Framestore CFC overseen by vfx supervisors James McQuaide and Gary Beach.
The first Underworld film was released in September of 2003 and debuted to more than $22 million, claiming the top spot at the box office. The sequel has a chance of pulling a repeat performance given the weekend’s lack of other wide releases and the recent No. 1 success of the Lions Gate horror entry, Hostel. The only competition may come from The Weinstein Co.’s animated hit, Hoodwinked, should word-of-mouth bring out more families.
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