Title: Constantine

Cast, Crew, and Other Info:

Director: Francis Lawrence
Writers:Jamie Delano, and Garth Ennis

Features:
Keanu Reeves .... John Constantine
Rachel Weisz .... Angela Dodson/Isabel Dodson
Shia LaBeouf .... Chas Chandler
Djimon Hounsou .... Midnite
Max Baker .... Beeman
Pruitt Taylor Vince .... Father Hennessy
Gavin McGregor Rossdale .... Balthazar (as Gavin Rossdale)
Tilda Swinton .... Gabriel
Peter Stormare .... Lucifer

Premise:

Based on the DC/Vertigo comic book Hellblazer and written by Kevin Brodbin, Mark Bomback and Frank Capello, Constantine tells the story of irreverent supernatural detective John Constantine (Keanu Reeves), who has literally been to hell and back. When Constantine teams up with sceptical policewoman Angela Dodson (Rachel Weisz) to solve the mysterious suicide of her twin sister (also played by Weisz), their investigation takes them through the world of demons and angels that exists just beneath the landscape of contemporary Los Angeles. Caught in a catastrophic series of otherworldly events, the two become inextricably involved and seek to find their own peace at whatever cost.

High Point:

Constantine's threat to Balthazar, or his farewell to Lucifer.

Low Point:

Either the portrayal of Lucifer, which was good, just not what I expected, or the 'soldiers of hell', who looked like Gollum after a shotgun blast.

The Scores:

Originality: 2/6 I haven't read the comics, but even so, this wasn't much that was new. Heaven and Hell, with all the assorted characters from the Christian Mythos, are fighting right in front of us, end of the world hangs in the balance. Dogma and End of Days were both mentioned when we discussed what the movie reminded us of.

Effects: 4/6 Nothing new in terms of special effects, but what they had looked good. They had a few bullet-time type shots, which looked good. My biggest complaint on this front would be my low point.

Story: 4/6 The story was good, and was told well, not revealing too much too soon, nor delaying any of the answers needlessly. I'm still not sure I understood how everything fit in, but I'd want to see it again to make sure it wasn't just me missing details.

Acting: 3/6. Keanu was Keanu. Everyone else came off a little bored or disinterested.

Production: 5/6. Everything came together very well, with dark scenes being dark, and everything explaining what we needed to know.

Emotional Response: 3/6 I laughed where appropriate, and felt awe and/or dread, but in general, I didn't really like any characters, or care if they ended up surviving or not.

Overall: 5/6. I enjoyed this movie, and I plan on going to see it again.

In total, Constantine receives 26/42.