What got me into Underworld the first time is Selene landing from that jump in the first scene. Still the most badass landing ever. No superhero movies have topped that
SPOT ON. No posing, no oh look how good I am, look at what I done - just jump, land, walk away like she step down 2 or 3 stairs. I loved the Underworlds film from the second I saw the trailer when the first one came out - ok 4 and 5 were sub standard, but 1, 2 and 3 were damn good films. Still watch them to this day. And helps that Kate is just so damn sexy.
Funny enough, the little "glitch" from the wire work (where Selene essentially "jumps/bounces" out of her landing) just makes it look so much more better. It just highlights how Selene doesn't need a "superhero landing" and is just like "well, off I go to be a badass now."
Selene wasn't just sexy, she was likeable. While looks play a part what i loved most was the character. I rooted for her, I wanted her to succeed. She is cool, calm, and collected even in intense situations. Just a well-written badass character. While I did not like the last entry and the thing with killing Micheal off-screen. This is one of my favorite movie franchises of all time. I even liked the movie that took place in the past. Kate Beckinsale wasn't in it, but it was still a good movie. The franchise had consistent lore and an identity of its own. It was created to tell a story, not push propaganda.
@@MegaKnight2012 no, shes still feminine. She can still be vulnerable . Shes just hardened by like 100's of years of hunting wearwolves to get revenge. Theres nothing wrong with a female character being a kick ass person.
@@jebes909090 How? How is Selene still feminine? Make her a male and Michael a female and it changes nothing, except the "werewolf" is now a female, which would have been a more interesting aesthetic for Underworld, as they didn't have women turning into Lycans until the fifth and last movie. The girls I knew when it came out didn't think Selene was feminine, neither does my sister, now I've shown her Underworld. She staunchly agrees with the opinion I had as a young teen that Selene's a dude played by a woman.
Came for Kate Beckinsale in a tight fitting leather outfit and stayed for the dark Gothic aesthetic and kept coming back for the vampire vs werewolf story... and also for Kate Beckinsale in various tight fitting leather outfits.
A small detail that I enjoyed in the first movie was the action between the vampires and lycans was paced in a way that we could see what was going on. Then, when Michael was first starting to turn (he tries eating that potato stuff in that village) we see what it looks like from the perspective of normal humans. Selene is a blur and those cops had absolutely no chance!
Not gonna lie, I was very disappointed when I didn’t saw Michael coming back to the franchise… like you said, it was an interesting character and complemented very well to Selene’s arc story. And yes, his hairstyle was absolutely wonderful 🤣
They totally failed with Michael's character. They could've done so much with it. I feel cheated. I also feel that Lucian should of had better story too. I would've like to see how powerful the two were
Yeah, I imagine Lucian, at least post-Underworld 1 timeline, had a much better story. But the whole cheating scenario left that destroyed, I mean he injected himself with something so why wouldn't he end up another hybrid? I imagine they might've reused this idea later, not "hybrids" but "if the hybrid was more werewolf" which to me is what the enchanced experimented son in Awakening was kinda like. Michael on the other hand, they screwed up first when not even letting him cameo in awakening instead pasting his face on another body, not even asked to return. The idea of him dying and that being "sad to where Selene isn't even sure she cares to not die" shown in Blood Wars just made me think "ok, but seriously, can't even do CGI and a similiar lookalike for a battle in which he lost?"@@patdawg1980 Other than there not being a 6th movie, even if 5 (and the prequel or 2) all work as conclusions, these are really the only issues I even have with this franchise. Otherwise I love it, especially extended 1/OG and Evolution.
Also it's criminal that their daughter was reduced to a throwaway line in the last movie. Enough time had passed that they could have used anyone to take up the role. They could have had all 3 start a new clan/house that takes over. All kinds of potential wasted by abandoning those characters. Now I want to rewatch them all again.
It sucked that Lucian basically would've needed the tv series effort (that neve rhappened) at the time, because of the relationship situations involving Len Wiseman, Kate Beckinsale, and of course Michael Sheen. And they really screwed up when they chose to continue the franchise, both with Michael and the daughter, Eve. The latter could've just been recast, and they should'nt have imposed his face for the very little "Michael corvin screentime." They didn't even contact Scott Speedman, like, what? I don't even have a problem with a "major player" dying, heck everyone whom dies are major players in the world, or there lackeys. IF he had to die they could've done way better.
First of all, great video and 100% agree! Also so happy you featured The Mummy. It's one of my all-time favorite movies, so underrated and Evelyn is one of my favorite strong female leads ever... so unapologetically feminine and soft, yet so fierce and brave, with plenty of flaws. Rick and she make the perfect team, and it's one of the few examples where you can see the two genders coming together to perfectly complement each other. Something you don't really see anymore. :)
What a great analysis of the franchise, I am very glad to see it get some appreciation finally! To this day Underworld is my favourite vampire/werewolf representation in movies. The lore, the style, characters and plot just worked together so neatly. The only thing I really disliked was the handling of Amelia; felt very much like a cheap way to advance the plot without giving her the space she deserved. It also threw me off in terms of in-world logic; given that she was one of the elder vampires and we got to see what Victor and later on Marcus could do, it seemed very implausible that she would go down so easily. I'd love to see a continuation of the franchise feature her in some way.
There we go! Once again, I wholeheartedly agree with you here! While some of the follow up movies had much larger collection of flaws, at least the first one was just a bit shy of being a perfect blend of style and substance. For me it lands in the same category as Robocop as high action movies that are smart and treat the audience as such. I do believe that if the writer-director duo was more experienced or if there was someone as experienced as Paul Verhoeven involved -- Underworld could have been as perfect as Robocop. As is it is still several grades below it, but still Underworld rocks and gets bonus points for being in that category of smart action films.
I watched Underworld on TV when I was WAY too young to watch them and it rewired my brain as a child. No mater how bad the sequels get I will watch them at least once. Plus, the monster designs and transformation sequences were amazing for the times that still hold up.
Amazing video, always glad to see someone put respect on Underworld's name, as I grew up with these and they usually came out the weekend of my birthday they hold a place in my heart. One thing in the video, you mentioned the rarity of the fact Vampires in this can procreate. The Vampires in Blade can also have children. Deacon Frost is looked down upon for being a bitten Vampire, and the reaper from the second one and his sister were born Vampires and had never seen the sun.
When I saw Underworld for the first time, I immediately rewatched it again. Then I watched the extras. I don't normally do that, but there was just something about it. Admittedly, the first movie was definitely the best, but I think that it did a fantastic job of doing what it intended to do.
i think another thing about underworld is that it is tonally consistant across pretty much all movies. you get what you are expecting. it also aged well due to pretty limited cgi.
I was 13 years old the first time i watched the first underworld film i absolutely loved it kate and scott are brilliant it's one of my favorite vampire films 🖤🖤🖤🧛♂️
I think those of us who watched Kate B grow up cheered for her in this role. I still rewatch it whenever it comes on. Between the great production values and what was going on behind the scenes, this stays at the top of my favorite vampire/werewolf films. Michael Sheen has been a delight to watch over the years. Rise of the Lycans also rocks.
I love/d this film it went with the likes of The Mummy which is another favorite of mine. On top for everything you said i also like the fact that the Sun remains a threat and Moon for Michael is a threat....most modern vamp and werewolf film come up with a reason to get around both. The fact that the oldest werewolf can charge at will helps sell just how old and powerful they are.
Plz more underworld I totally forgot this series existed. I was obsessed with this series as a kid and you have rekindled my love ❤ thank you so much, great video, I didn’t realise Underworld was such a good movie
Thank you. Underworld often gets bashed for not being afraid of who it's target audience is and delivering on its promises. Something that seems to have been lost in modern cinema. I like high art horror also franchises like underworld. Nothing wrong with that. Underworld for what if shakespear with Vampires and werewolves. Evil dead for over the top and unapologetic direction. Resident Evil for camp camp and more camp with fan service.
As an angsty teenager in 2003, I watched it for the lore, the Matrix-esque style, and ended up loving it for the romance that was completely unexpected to me. As soon as they got rid of Michael, it lost a lot of appeal to me. I think I need to re-watch the series again, it's been so long :)
I have probably watched Underworld 20+ times maybe even more. The first 3 movies are great. Michael and Selene working together was so enjoyable to watch.
The only Underworld film I was disappointed in was the last one. The rest all built on the lore, adding to the story in a logical way that fits in universe. The characters were complicated, they all had their reasons for doing what they were doing.
Saw Underworld for the first time at 15 and I was sold. I just never stopped rewatching it every year. Everything about it just really stuck with me. It will always be a classic!🖤
Great video, thank you for that little trip down memory lane. I love so many aspects of this movie but the acting performances really earned it a special place in my heart - even little things like Viktor's first reveal, with his completely eerie delivery of "What..is...this...ruckus?!" and the immediate "oh SHIT" reaction from the vampire fashion squad. I wish more mainstream action/adventure films today had the courage to, as you put it, lean into the material and take themselves seriously.
I absolutely loved the first Underworld movie. Sure it was a bit too flashy when you think beyond surface level, but it just clicked for me. Sadly the sequels lost something in the process.
Remember the first one well. It was great, it looked fantastic and it had such an interesting lore. Meanwhile for me Michael Sheen as Lucian was the breakout performance (also the first film I remember seeing him in) with a character I wanted to have more of, followed by Bill Nighy. So glad both returned for a prequel.
I'm only twelve minutes into this video but I have an engrained memory of my Mum adoring Underworld. It's one of the first "violent" movies I was ever allowed to watch. And I think in retrospect it's obvious why. In the early to mid 2000's there was Ripley being flogged in Alien Ressurection? One of my Mum's favourite movies ever is the Lost Boys. There was no reconnaissance for those kinda movies
Damn! Now I‘ll have to break out the 4K boxset again for another rewatch! You are so on point with this video. These movies are done dirty way too much by critics who don’t understand the material and what they are for. And although the business model is somewhat the same as the Resident Evil movie series (also owned by Sony), the comparison also hurts the Underground movie series considerably. You don’t give a lot of attention to the final two outings. Not your favorite ones?
There could be another movie that takes place between 3 and 1, highlighting what Lucian did after overthrowing the vampires and how they rebuilt and giving Amelia more screentime.
Seline avoids the MAry Sue tag mostly by the fact we start out in the middle of the war and we know she was turned long ago after her family died. Which is pretty obvious to anyone means she has been fighting for a long long time. she also keep tonally consistant which help the audiance take her as a serious person ( not to be confused with being taken seriously, i feel there is a difference between the 2 phrases) she is bad ass, she isn't just smart because the writers said she is, she is shown to be looking into things.
Watching Good Omens recently, I always wondered "Where have I seen Michael Sheen, he seems rather familiar? Hmmmm...". So I googled his films and I see "Underworld" listed. I check it out and low and behold, I found out Aziraphale, aka Michael Sheen, aka Lucian are the same people. Sooo, this is how I found out Michael Sheen was my first ever crush and the reason why I love sad, brooding man with long hair.
I feel as though Craven and Michael looked very similar on purpose (hairstyle, appearance in general) to show that Selene chose Michael because of his personality, not his looks (that are similar to Craven in appearance, but not in personality)
Ooh that is a possibility. Like how they cast Rhona Mitra as Sonja specifically because she looks so much like Kate Beckinsale and Viktor saw her as a replacement
I was watching the first Underworld on Netflix and noticed they used Victor's daughter from Rise of The Lycans and edited her it into the frist movie, which I thought was pretty cool.
The Underworld franchise worked until the last 2 movies, which just weren't good. A lot of it also worked because everyone had fun with it, while still treating it as a blockbuster.
Beckinsale has ALWAYS been a master at morphing into the characters she plays. Volt was another one. It should work, but it does because Beckinsale is fully invested in the scripts she does.
i mean did it? i remember enjoying it but i was a teenager when the last one came out. looking back at it (didn't re-watch just memories) it was a bit shit. feels like every scene resolved in a way that it was convenient for the writers; setting and characters wasn't really established properly so you know, events didn't need to adhere to them. didn't watch the video just saw the title. edit: oh turns out i wasn't a teenager when last one came out, didn't know blood wars existed
hmm my favorite of the series is Rise of the Lychans fallowed by Underworld 1, after that I feel that the series slowly drifted, I was always more interested in the werewolf aspect of the series since it was one of the few series that gave them actual backstory and made them interesting, and after Michael died/ quit the series it felt worse, the werewolves were just boogymen used to scare Vampire babies and humans were just sheep, easy to influence. After UW 3 the series became shallow is what I'm saying, better then many movies in the last 5-6 years but shallow compared to the first 3.
Yeah Awakening suffered from not having a completed script, to the point that they didn't know what the ending would be when they started filming, whereas the first three had everything mapped out in advance
Underworld worked because it came out in. 2003. That is literally all lol. It's not a good movie by any stretch but but hits all of the early 2000s tropes and people loved it.
I remember both Underworld and Resident Evil released their last movies on the same year and I was like “oh my God, female lead franchises, ending at the same time”. It was the end of an era.
I think it was genius how they set up Lucien's death pretty much 10 minutes into the movie. The ultraviolet ammunition the Lycans used on the vampires in the train shootout was so early that the audience accepts it simply because they're still learning about the rules of this fantastical version of our world. And the vampires discussing the UV rounds helps create suspense of disbelief, because they believe the Lycan stole the rounds from a human military. It's more believable that the Lycans when on the backfoot are successful scavengers instead of master technological scientists. And then, we progress to the silver nitrate rounds. When the audience has already accepted the UV rounds are a thing, silver nitrate bullets are very easy to accept. And again, this was done early. The silver nitrate bullets are left on the shelf just long enough for the audience to forget about them before they are brought back when Kraven shoots Lucien. Had the silver nitrate been introduced right before the final battle, the audience instantly would have realised Lucien was going to die. But they set up the way to stop the unstoppable force within the first half hour of the movie. We've had time to suspend our disbelief so it's not a cheap plot device. It's a good twist.
16:28 yeah, this is definitely where nostalgia is skewing your memory. There were dozens of generic female action leads back then. Even Selene doesn't really fullt escape this given the romance subplot used to help motivate her decisions.
The Underworld franchise. Is one of the best movie franchise in the world. The war between vampires and werewolves. Made a good movie. Yes! Underworld was the best. I like both monsters. The werewolf is my favorite of the two. I feel for Sonya. Her own father had her killed. For loving a werewolf. Having a hybrid child. Selen is a real bad ass vampire.
Yeah, I love this movie and I don't care what the haters say, it's actually amazing and really well-crafted. Selene, as a character, works so well and if you want to see how easily it could have gone bad, just look at how bad Galadriel from Rings of Power turned out. They basically tried to replicate Selene 20 years later (flying sword slash and all) and every single aspect was a complete failure. Rewatching it, the speech pattern and writing stands out from the opening narration, giving the convincing feeling that these characters are definitely from another time. And few movies handle exposition so well as this movie. Every reveal is like a character moment. When Selene says "Viktor would believe me," you don't know who Viktor is, it's the first mention of him, but it SNAPS and you can see how it stings the other characters.
I would really like to see someone actually try at something like the "World of Darkness" setting. Not trying for the exact setting, but something like it. Wizards that are going mad from their mind breaking magic as a dark reflection on the popular whimsy of Harry potter, vampires that are less evil than they are a different species for whom humans are just prey, werewolves that struggle to maintain their culture of violence and unity in a world gone civil, and Færies of the darkest variety twisting humans into tragic but wildly creative mockeries of nature. It's all such a rich testbed. Though, like I said, I wouldn't want it to try and adapt the true setting from the RPG. I think that would be disrespectful to the fans as it would almost certainly need to be different in ways that would disappoint the direhards so that it could reach a real audience instead of a tiny niche.
Lmao... I didn't expect the background music for Michael's introduction 17:03 It was a weird feeling. On one hand brought me back to my teen self and other hand it made me think: Okay, what kind of prank is the creator going to pull off? 😂
bring back good genre fiction,that yes shakespeare was too. And how cictorand ucian are human, just victor bhaving nuances, but is human in a bad hatabe way.
In defense of Captain Marvel, and I say this as a big fan of the character that only marginally likes the movie, giving her amnesia was probably the absolute worst way to introduce her. The third act, after she's back in contact with her friends and when we see her interacting with them and young Monica, that's what we should have gotten. Instead we got, well, what she was supposed to be, and what she was fighting against: emotionless. It's literally one of the first lines in the film, with Jude Law's character telling "Vers" to not let her emotions control her, but to be in control. And yeah, we get little flashes of character throughout, but Carol doesn't start to shine until she's back with her friends. While I haven't seen it yet, The Marvel's does a lot more for actually letting her act and be a character full of personality, instead of a cardboard cutout. Carol Danvers isn't Judge Dredd or Robocop. She's a human. Selene, similarly, is allowed to have emotions, and more than that, she's given the grace and breathing room to feel a wide variety of emotions throughout not just the first film, but throughout the whole series. So tl;dr- Carol's characterization in Captain Marvel sucked because the story sucked. Selene's characterization was great because she was allowed and more importantly NEEDED to have a depth to help pull us into the film and make us believe in the story wholeheartedly.
I'm not much into leather or the goth look so, while I recognized that Kat Beckinsale was pretty, I never really found her attractive. ...until I watched Serendipity. I still remember the shock of seeing her in a warm light and non-vampire make-up and attire and thinking, "Holy $hit! She is so hot!"
Yeah, pretty much yeah. Underworld was awesome! Bill Nighy fully commits and crushes it. Kate Beckinsale fully commits, crushes it and is the hottest vampire ever. Win.
I saw this film in the theater when it came out (same with The Matrix). Back then it was obvious that there was Pre Matrix and Post Matrix action. EVERYBODY had to copy The Matrix, or parody it, or "pay homage" to it somehow. Even freaking Shrek. It redefined everything and was this big cultural moment that everybody was inspired by or in awe of, like it redefined movies themselves. But! This movie was the only one back then where it actually felt like the Post Matrix inspired action actually fit perfectly and was totally justified. And tbh it wasn't just the action but a lot of the tone of the film felt similar to or obviously inspired by The Matrix. Nevertheless, it was the only one that felt like it actually benefited from and/or deserved to do so because it was unique in it's own right, was still original and expanding Matrixesque stuff in a new interesting and exciting way. It was the only one that felt like it fit and made sense instead of just copying it because it was the cool new in thing everybody had to do. That's something probably lost to audiences now.
My only issue with Underworld is that it's once again a vampire story where the epic thing (the hybrid) is related specifically to vampires (sure, and lycans too). I liked the vampires and lycans just being the main cast in an actionthriller or something. It's not as if movies with humans are always about finding the genes of Adam because he was the first _human_ or something like that. Other vampire movies have had eternal night and/or destroying all vampires as plot points, so almost always having vampire-specific stuff as main plot points is getting a bit old.
While he didn't mention the critics opinion on the last 2, it funny how their 1 job is to say which movies are good and which are not, but even with a 50/50 change of doing better or worse than the previous movie they keept getting it wrong.
29:40 "and Erika disappears in Evolution with no explanation" didn't Marcus woke up and devoured everyone in the manor? I always assumed that she she had being one of the victims of the hungry Elder, she was a snack after all...
Fun fact: the actors in The Matrix wore sunglasses a lot because they would blink and flinch when firing guns. The actors in Underworld were trained not to blink and flinch when firing guns hence no sunglasses. Why go to this effort? Because it would have cost a fortune to get rid of unwanted reflections from sunglasses and the director felt that wearing sunglasses indoors and at night was dumb. Go watch the 'Lobby' scene from The Matrix. How often during that scene do you see the eyes of any of the actors (main cast and extras) while they are firing guns? Now watch the 'Metro' scene from Underworld. Look at the eyes of the actors who are firing guns.
I would have Keanu Reeves play the next big role in this franchise if not the main antagonist of the next film (which will unlikely happen). But what do I know? He might play as Alucard in the live action movie of Hellsing.
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What got me into Underworld the first time is Selene landing from that jump in the first scene. Still the most badass landing ever. No superhero movies have topped that
Yes!
SPOT ON. No posing, no oh look how good I am, look at what I done - just jump, land, walk away like she step down 2 or 3 stairs. I loved the Underworlds film from the second I saw the trailer when the first one came out - ok 4 and 5 were sub standard, but 1, 2 and 3 were damn good films. Still watch them to this day. And helps that Kate is just so damn sexy.
I love to watch her, so fluidly going from landing to walking.
I replayed that scene in this video many times God I love underworld.
Funny enough, the little "glitch" from the wire work (where Selene essentially "jumps/bounces" out of her landing) just makes it look so much more better. It just highlights how Selene doesn't need a "superhero landing" and is just like "well, off I go to be a badass now."
Selene wasn't just sexy, she was likeable. While looks play a part what i loved most was the character. I rooted for her, I wanted her to succeed. She is cool, calm, and collected even in intense situations. Just a well-written badass character. While I did not like the last entry and the thing with killing Micheal off-screen. This is one of my favorite movie franchises of all time. I even liked the movie that took place in the past. Kate Beckinsale wasn't in it, but it was still a good movie. The franchise had consistent lore and an identity of its own. It was created to tell a story, not push propaganda.
Rhona Mitra is pretty badass too. I loved her in "Doomsday" - a pretty cool post-apocalyptic B-Movie.
Back when they could actually write a strong empowered woman and not just a man being played by a woman.
@@jebes909090Except that's exactly what Selene is. She's a dude and Michael's the chick.
@@MegaKnight2012 no, shes still feminine. She can still be vulnerable . Shes just hardened by like 100's of years of hunting wearwolves to get revenge. Theres nothing wrong with a female character being a kick ass person.
@@jebes909090 How? How is Selene still feminine? Make her a male and Michael a female and it changes nothing, except the "werewolf" is now a female, which would have been a more interesting aesthetic for Underworld, as they didn't have women turning into Lycans until the fifth and last movie. The girls I knew when it came out didn't think Selene was feminine, neither does my sister, now I've shown her Underworld. She staunchly agrees with the opinion I had as a young teen that Selene's a dude played by a woman.
Came for Kate Beckinsale in a tight fitting leather outfit and stayed for the dark Gothic aesthetic and kept coming back for the vampire vs werewolf story... and also for Kate Beckinsale in various tight fitting leather outfits.
You forgot tight-fitting Leather and RUBBER outfit. ;)
Yes😊
Nailed it 👌.
That's fair
💯%
A small detail that I enjoyed in the first movie was the action between the vampires and lycans was paced in a way that we could see what was going on. Then, when Michael was first starting to turn (he tries eating that potato stuff in that village) we see what it looks like from the perspective of normal humans. Selene is a blur and those cops had absolutely no chance!
Not gonna lie, I was very disappointed when I didn’t saw Michael coming back to the franchise… like you said, it was an interesting character and complemented very well to Selene’s arc story.
And yes, his hairstyle was absolutely wonderful 🤣
They totally failed with Michael's character. They could've done so much with it. I feel cheated. I also feel that Lucian should of had better story too. I would've like to see how powerful the two were
Yeah, I imagine Lucian, at least post-Underworld 1 timeline, had a much better story. But the whole cheating scenario left that destroyed, I mean he injected himself with something so why wouldn't he end up another hybrid? I imagine they might've reused this idea later, not "hybrids" but "if the hybrid was more werewolf" which to me is what the enchanced experimented son in Awakening was kinda like. Michael on the other hand, they screwed up first when not even letting him cameo in awakening instead pasting his face on another body, not even asked to return. The idea of him dying and that being "sad to where Selene isn't even sure she cares to not die" shown in Blood Wars just made me think "ok, but seriously, can't even do CGI and a similiar lookalike for a battle in which he lost?"@@patdawg1980 Other than there not being a 6th movie, even if 5 (and the prequel or 2) all work as conclusions, these are really the only issues I even have with this franchise. Otherwise I love it, especially extended 1/OG and Evolution.
Also it's criminal that their daughter was reduced to a throwaway line in the last movie. Enough time had passed that they could have used anyone to take up the role. They could have had all 3 start a new clan/house that takes over. All kinds of potential wasted by abandoning those characters.
Now I want to rewatch them all again.
It sucked that Lucian basically would've needed the tv series effort (that neve rhappened) at the time, because of the relationship situations involving Len Wiseman, Kate Beckinsale, and of course Michael Sheen. And they really screwed up when they chose to continue the franchise, both with Michael and the daughter, Eve. The latter could've just been recast, and they should'nt have imposed his face for the very little "Michael corvin screentime." They didn't even contact Scott Speedman, like, what? I don't even have a problem with a "major player" dying, heck everyone whom dies are major players in the world, or there lackeys. IF he had to die they could've done way better.
First of all, great video and 100% agree! Also so happy you featured The Mummy. It's one of my all-time favorite movies, so underrated and Evelyn is one of my favorite strong female leads ever... so unapologetically feminine and soft, yet so fierce and brave, with plenty of flaws. Rick and she make the perfect team, and it's one of the few examples where you can see the two genders coming together to perfectly complement each other. Something you don't really see anymore. :)
What a great analysis of the franchise, I am very glad to see it get some appreciation finally! To this day Underworld is my favourite vampire/werewolf representation in movies. The lore, the style, characters and plot just worked together so neatly. The only thing I really disliked was the handling of Amelia; felt very much like a cheap way to advance the plot without giving her the space she deserved. It also threw me off in terms of in-world logic; given that she was one of the elder vampires and we got to see what Victor and later on Marcus could do, it seemed very implausible that she would go down so easily. I'd love to see a continuation of the franchise feature her in some way.
Yeah they could have at least shown her going down fighting or something
Why do we have such similar tastes in TV/Movies? Your whole channel is gold 😂
Hehe thank you
My eyes got so wide when I opened RUclips. So excited to watch this right now!! 🎉
Aw thank you ^_^
There we go! Once again, I wholeheartedly agree with you here! While some of the follow up movies had much larger collection of flaws, at least the first one was just a bit shy of being a perfect blend of style and substance. For me it lands in the same category as Robocop as high action movies that are smart and treat the audience as such. I do believe that if the writer-director duo was more experienced or if there was someone as experienced as Paul Verhoeven involved -- Underworld could have been as perfect as Robocop. As is it is still several grades below it, but still Underworld rocks and gets bonus points for being in that category of smart action films.
Hehe unfortunately you've just got me now picturing Underworld in the style of showgirls - "man, everybody got Lycans and shit"
I watched Underworld on TV when I was WAY too young to watch them and it rewired my brain as a child. No mater how bad the sequels get I will watch them at least once.
Plus, the monster designs and transformation sequences were amazing for the times that still hold up.
Amazing video, always glad to see someone put respect on Underworld's name, as I grew up with these and they usually came out the weekend of my birthday they hold a place in my heart.
One thing in the video, you mentioned the rarity of the fact Vampires in this can procreate. The Vampires in Blade can also have children. Deacon Frost is looked down upon for being a bitten Vampire, and the reaper from the second one and his sister were born Vampires and had never seen the sun.
When I saw Underworld for the first time, I immediately rewatched it again. Then I watched the extras. I don't normally do that, but there was just something about it. Admittedly, the first movie was definitely the best, but I think that it did a fantastic job of doing what it intended to do.
i think another thing about underworld is that it is tonally consistant across pretty much all movies. you get what you are expecting. it also aged well due to pretty limited cgi.
I was 13 years old the first time i watched the first underworld film i absolutely loved it kate and scott are brilliant it's one of my favorite vampire films 🖤🖤🖤🧛♂️
This whole video perfectly sums up why I love this movie, and franchise as a whole. I so hope that we get a new entry at some point.
Fingers crossed for an Amelia prequel!
I think those of us who watched Kate B grow up cheered for her in this role. I still rewatch it whenever it comes on. Between the great production values and what was going on behind the scenes, this stays at the top of my favorite vampire/werewolf films.
Michael Sheen has been a delight to watch over the years. Rise of the Lycans also rocks.
I love/d this film it went with the likes of The Mummy which is another favorite of mine.
On top for everything you said i also like the fact that the Sun remains a threat and Moon for Michael is a threat....most modern vamp and werewolf film come up with a reason to get around both.
The fact that the oldest werewolf can charge at will helps sell just how old and powerful they are.
Plz more underworld I totally forgot this series existed. I was obsessed with this series as a kid and you have rekindled my love ❤ thank you so much, great video, I didn’t realise Underworld was such a good movie
Interesting and enjoyable video. I hope you'll make a video for the whole franchise. As for Amelia, there was a somehow arc and closure in Blood Wars.
It was going to be a series wide video or at least on the first three, but then I realised I could talk more about them individually
We needed more Amelia. That was a badass vamp.
Thank you. Underworld often gets bashed for not being afraid of who it's target audience is and delivering on its promises. Something that seems to have been lost in modern cinema. I like high art horror also franchises like underworld. Nothing wrong with that. Underworld for what if shakespear with Vampires and werewolves. Evil dead for over the top and unapologetic direction. Resident Evil for camp camp and more camp with fan service.
As an angsty teenager in 2003, I watched it for the lore, the Matrix-esque style, and ended up loving it for the romance that was completely unexpected to me. As soon as they got rid of Michael, it lost a lot of appeal to me. I think I need to re-watch the series again, it's been so long :)
I have probably watched Underworld 20+ times maybe even more. The first 3 movies are great. Michael and Selene working together was so enjoyable to watch.
The only Underworld film I was disappointed in was the last one. The rest all built on the lore, adding to the story in a logical way that fits in universe. The characters were complicated, they all had their reasons for doing what they were doing.
Amazing movies. Underworld movies are my all time favorites - except the most last one.
Saw Underworld for the first time at 15 and I was sold. I just never stopped rewatching it every year. Everything about it just really stuck with me. It will always be a classic!🖤
Legit, probably one of my favorite if not my favorite fantasy based vampire/ werewolf series ever.
I absolutely love the grenade scene from Underworld. That "oh shit" moment was great.
Great video, thank you for that little trip down memory lane. I love so many aspects of this movie but the acting performances really earned it a special place in my heart - even little things like Viktor's first reveal, with his completely eerie delivery of "What..is...this...ruckus?!" and the immediate "oh SHIT" reaction from the vampire fashion squad. I wish more mainstream action/adventure films today had the courage to, as you put it, lean into the material and take themselves seriously.
You make me want to go watch them all again just because I can.
you must do it!
I absolutely loved the first Underworld movie. Sure it was a bit too flashy when you think beyond surface level, but it just clicked for me. Sadly the sequels lost something in the process.
Remember the first one well. It was great, it looked fantastic and it had such an interesting lore. Meanwhile for me Michael Sheen as Lucian was the breakout performance (also the first film I remember seeing him in) with a character I wanted to have more of, followed by Bill Nighy. So glad both returned for a prequel.
Love that jab at Jacob from Twilight, very on point.
Oh I loved these so much! Feels like ages ago.
I'm only twelve minutes into this video but I have an engrained memory of my Mum adoring Underworld. It's one of the first "violent" movies I was ever allowed to watch. And I think in retrospect it's obvious why. In the early to mid 2000's there was Ripley being flogged in Alien Ressurection? One of my Mum's favourite movies ever is the Lost Boys. There was no reconnaissance for those kinda movies
My mother by contrast enjoyed Van Helsing more lol
Underworld was soo good! Thanks for the nostalgia!
Don’t forget how the dvd release took everyone by surprise. It sold like crazy.
it was all over Sky TV as well
1:41 #mytrash hit home hard 😂😂😂 also Her Portrait In Black - Atreyu
For underworld evolution 🫠🫠🫠 still on my daily playlist to this day🙌
Damn! Now I‘ll have to break out the 4K boxset again for another rewatch! You are so on point with this video. These movies are done dirty way too much by critics who don’t understand the material and what they are for. And although the business model is somewhat the same as the Resident Evil movie series (also owned by Sony), the comparison also hurts the Underground movie series considerably. You don’t give a lot of attention to the final two outings. Not your favorite ones?
Bill Nighy as Viktor is some of the best casting I've ever seen. When he's still in his "weakened" state sitting on his "throne" he's just incredible.
Yes it's a pretty much a flawless series. For what it was it couldn't have been better.
bill nighy is the goat of this series. love the way he speaks
Great review. Never watched the series, but I might now!
Great series and great summation of what I loved about it.
There could be another movie that takes place between 3 and 1, highlighting what Lucian did after overthrowing the vampires and how they rebuilt and giving Amelia more screentime.
Yeah I want to see vampires and werewolves in the Renaissance lol
Seline avoids the MAry Sue tag mostly by the fact we start out in the middle of the war and we know she was turned long ago after her family died. Which is pretty obvious to anyone means she has been fighting for a long long time. she also keep tonally consistant which help the audiance take her as a serious person ( not to be confused with being taken seriously, i feel there is a difference between the 2 phrases) she is bad ass, she isn't just smart because the writers said she is, she is shown to be looking into things.
Watching Good Omens recently, I always wondered "Where have I seen Michael Sheen, he seems rather familiar? Hmmmm...". So I googled his films and I see "Underworld" listed. I check it out and low and behold, I found out Aziraphale, aka Michael Sheen, aka Lucian are the same people. Sooo, this is how I found out Michael Sheen was my first ever crush and the reason why I love sad, brooding man with long hair.
I feel as though Craven and Michael looked very similar on purpose (hairstyle, appearance in general) to show that Selene chose Michael because of his personality, not his looks (that are similar to Craven in appearance, but not in personality)
Ooh that is a possibility. Like how they cast Rhona Mitra as Sonja specifically because she looks so much like Kate Beckinsale and Viktor saw her as a replacement
I marathon these movies every November. lol
It felt like interview with a vampire mixed with the matrix, and i loved it!
Underworld should've been a series rather than movies!!!!!
I was watching the first Underworld on Netflix and noticed they used Victor's daughter from Rise of The Lycans and edited her it into the frist movie, which I thought was pretty cool.
Yeah the 2017 remaster added in the Rise of the Lycans execution to the flashback
@@BetterWithBob I gotta buy the blu-ray DVD collection.
The Underworld franchise worked until the last 2 movies, which just weren't good. A lot of it also worked because everyone had fun with it, while still treating it as a blockbuster.
Beckinsale has ALWAYS been a master at morphing into the characters she plays. Volt was another one. It should work, but it does because Beckinsale is fully invested in the scripts she does.
Michael is also a great character, I actually think a big reason the last 2 movies don't work is because he's not in them.
For me it was Michael Corvinus, his transformation into a Werewolf and then a Werewolf phase 2 fused with Vampire blood
Underworld is childhood memories for me.
Please do create a 2nd video about the 2nd movie in this series, which I found to be equally entertaining...
Oh I've been considering it lol
i mean did it?
i remember enjoying it but i was a teenager when the last one came out.
looking back at it (didn't re-watch just memories) it was a bit shit.
feels like every scene resolved in a way that it was convenient for the writers; setting and characters wasn't really established properly so you know, events didn't need to adhere to them.
didn't watch the video just saw the title.
edit: oh turns out i wasn't a teenager when last one came out, didn't know blood wars existed
hmm my favorite of the series is Rise of the Lychans fallowed by Underworld 1, after that I feel that the series slowly drifted, I was always more interested in the werewolf aspect of the series since it was one of the few series that gave them actual backstory and made them interesting, and after Michael died/ quit the series it felt worse, the werewolves were just boogymen used to scare Vampire babies and humans were just sheep, easy to influence. After UW 3 the series became shallow is what I'm saying, better then many movies in the last 5-6 years but shallow compared to the first 3.
Yeah Awakening suffered from not having a completed script, to the point that they didn't know what the ending would be when they started filming, whereas the first three had everything mapped out in advance
I really enjoyed the UNDERWORLD SERIES OF MOVIES! THEY WERE GREAT! GREAT!
Underworld worked because it came out in. 2003. That is literally all lol. It's not a good movie by any stretch but but hits all of the early 2000s tropes and people loved it.
I remember both Underworld and Resident Evil released their last movies on the same year and I was like “oh my God, female lead franchises, ending at the same time”. It was the end of an era.
There were plans or at least ideas of a crossover and all
They would both be called woke if release today because of the female leads.
@@BetterWithBob that would’ve been awesome!
I think it was genius how they set up Lucien's death pretty much 10 minutes into the movie. The ultraviolet ammunition the Lycans used on the vampires in the train shootout was so early that the audience accepts it simply because they're still learning about the rules of this fantastical version of our world. And the vampires discussing the UV rounds helps create suspense of disbelief, because they believe the Lycan stole the rounds from a human military. It's more believable that the Lycans when on the backfoot are successful scavengers instead of master technological scientists.
And then, we progress to the silver nitrate rounds. When the audience has already accepted the UV rounds are a thing, silver nitrate bullets are very easy to accept. And again, this was done early. The silver nitrate bullets are left on the shelf just long enough for the audience to forget about them before they are brought back when Kraven shoots Lucien. Had the silver nitrate been introduced right before the final battle, the audience instantly would have realised Lucien was going to die. But they set up the way to stop the unstoppable force within the first half hour of the movie. We've had time to suspend our disbelief so it's not a cheap plot device. It's a good twist.
16:28 yeah, this is definitely where nostalgia is skewing your memory. There were dozens of generic female action leads back then. Even Selene doesn't really fullt escape this given the romance subplot used to help motivate her decisions.
props to mentioning the movie Gabriel
it's Andy Whitfield as a fallen angel. deserves to be remembered lol
The Underworld franchise. Is one of the best movie franchise in the world. The war between vampires and werewolves. Made a good movie. Yes! Underworld was the best. I like both monsters. The werewolf is my favorite of the two. I feel for Sonya. Her own father had her killed. For loving a werewolf. Having a hybrid child. Selen is a real bad ass vampire.
Underworld is a fine movie.
It's a great thing that, like with the Matrix, it was never turned into a franchise, and was allowed to stand alone.
Is that sarcasm choosing to ignore the other four movies lol
Yeah, I love this movie and I don't care what the haters say, it's actually amazing and really well-crafted. Selene, as a character, works so well and if you want to see how easily it could have gone bad, just look at how bad Galadriel from Rings of Power turned out. They basically tried to replicate Selene 20 years later (flying sword slash and all) and every single aspect was a complete failure.
Rewatching it, the speech pattern and writing stands out from the opening narration, giving the convincing feeling that these characters are definitely from another time. And few movies handle exposition so well as this movie. Every reveal is like a character moment. When Selene says "Viktor would believe me," you don't know who Viktor is, it's the first mention of him, but it SNAPS and you can see how it stings the other characters.
gonna download the first one I haven't seen these movies in so long
The unrated version is right here on RUclips
Isn't it revealed in Blood Wars that Aemilia is the mother of David?
I loved underworld as a teen girl. Thanks for putting adult words to why.
Thank you for watching :)
I would really like to see someone actually try at something like the "World of Darkness" setting. Not trying for the exact setting, but something like it. Wizards that are going mad from their mind breaking magic as a dark reflection on the popular whimsy of Harry potter, vampires that are less evil than they are a different species for whom humans are just prey, werewolves that struggle to maintain their culture of violence and unity in a world gone civil, and Færies of the darkest variety twisting humans into tragic but wildly creative mockeries of nature. It's all such a rich testbed. Though, like I said, I wouldn't want it to try and adapt the true setting from the RPG. I think that would be disrespectful to the fans as it would almost certainly need to be different in ways that would disappoint the direhards so that it could reach a real audience instead of a tiny niche.
I ve always loved the first two movies nostalgic or new (the 3rd was ok and the 4th was so bad i never noticed the 5th)
28:16 I actually thought this was the English singer, Joe Jackson, haha!
Lmao... I didn't expect the background music for Michael's introduction 17:03
It was a weird feeling. On one hand brought me back to my teen self and other hand it made me think: Okay, what kind of prank is the creator going to pull off? 😂
bring back good genre fiction,that yes shakespeare was too. And how cictorand ucian are human, just victor bhaving nuances, but is human in a bad hatabe way.
There is still good stuff being made. We just have to really search for it lol
@@BetterWithBobHave you seen the D&D film from this year? Not the same vibes at all but a future classic in the same way (imo)
@@Frogface91 I did indeed. I really loved it, and Justice Smith was just...if you know you know
Marcus was my favourite bad guy
His motivation was great and the actor did a great job
My Favourite franchise
Yay!
Welp, I'm rewatching Underwold now...
I love this series. :D I think that all 5 movies are great. :D
In defense of Captain Marvel, and I say this as a big fan of the character that only marginally likes the movie, giving her amnesia was probably the absolute worst way to introduce her. The third act, after she's back in contact with her friends and when we see her interacting with them and young Monica, that's what we should have gotten. Instead we got, well, what she was supposed to be, and what she was fighting against: emotionless. It's literally one of the first lines in the film, with Jude Law's character telling "Vers" to not let her emotions control her, but to be in control. And yeah, we get little flashes of character throughout, but Carol doesn't start to shine until she's back with her friends.
While I haven't seen it yet, The Marvel's does a lot more for actually letting her act and be a character full of personality, instead of a cardboard cutout. Carol Danvers isn't Judge Dredd or Robocop. She's a human.
Selene, similarly, is allowed to have emotions, and more than that, she's given the grace and breathing room to feel a wide variety of emotions throughout not just the first film, but throughout the whole series.
So tl;dr- Carol's characterization in Captain Marvel sucked because the story sucked. Selene's characterization was great because she was allowed and more importantly NEEDED to have a depth to help pull us into the film and make us believe in the story wholeheartedly.
I'm not much into leather or the goth look so, while I recognized that Kat Beckinsale was pretty, I never really found her attractive.
...until I watched Serendipity. I still remember the shock of seeing her in a warm light and non-vampire make-up and attire and thinking, "Holy $hit! She is so hot!"
Love this series!
Selene one of my favorite characters ever
Yeah, pretty much yeah. Underworld was awesome! Bill Nighy fully commits and crushes it. Kate Beckinsale fully commits, crushes it and is the hottest vampire ever. Win.
I saw this film in the theater when it came out (same with The Matrix). Back then it was obvious that there was Pre Matrix and Post Matrix action. EVERYBODY had to copy The Matrix, or parody it, or "pay homage" to it somehow. Even freaking Shrek. It redefined everything and was this big cultural moment that everybody was inspired by or in awe of, like it redefined movies themselves.
But!
This movie was the only one back then where it actually felt like the Post Matrix inspired action actually fit perfectly and was totally justified. And tbh it wasn't just the action but a lot of the tone of the film felt similar to or obviously inspired by The Matrix. Nevertheless, it was the only one that felt like it actually benefited from and/or deserved to do so because it was unique in it's own right, was still original and expanding Matrixesque stuff in a new interesting and exciting way. It was the only one that felt like it fit and made sense instead of just copying it because it was the cool new in thing everybody had to do.
That's something probably lost to audiences now.
Because Kate Beckinsale is hot and people like vampires. Saved ya'll 35 minutes
I would say Awakening is a solid sequel.
Dude I grew up on these sexy goth badass vampires so I was sooooo disappointed when all my friends were super into twilight. We are not the same.
I love the franchise, the movies are amazing and all those critics now and back then are just idiots. 🤷♂
Great video, well done.
KB. 'nuff said!
My only issue with Underworld is that it's once again a vampire story where the epic thing (the hybrid) is related specifically to vampires (sure, and lycans too). I liked the vampires and lycans just being the main cast in an actionthriller or something. It's not as if movies with humans are always about finding the genes of Adam because he was the first _human_ or something like that. Other vampire movies have had eternal night and/or destroying all vampires as plot points, so almost always having vampire-specific stuff as main plot points is getting a bit old.
While he didn't mention the critics opinion on the last 2, it funny how their 1 job is to say which movies are good and which are not, but even with a 50/50 change of doing better or worse than the previous movie they keept getting it wrong.
Queen of the Damned it was good movie and the OST was on spot
29:40 "and Erika disappears in Evolution with no explanation"
didn't Marcus woke up and devoured everyone in the manor? I always assumed that she she had being one of the victims of the hungry Elder, she was a snack after all...
Fun fact: the actors in The Matrix wore sunglasses a lot because they would blink and flinch when firing guns. The actors in Underworld were trained not to blink and flinch when firing guns hence no sunglasses.
Why go to this effort? Because it would have cost a fortune to get rid of unwanted reflections from sunglasses and the director felt that wearing sunglasses indoors and at night was dumb.
Go watch the 'Lobby' scene from The Matrix. How often during that scene do you see the eyes of any of the actors (main cast and extras) while they are firing guns?
Now watch the 'Metro' scene from Underworld. Look at the eyes of the actors who are firing guns.
I would have Keanu Reeves play the next big role in this franchise if not the main antagonist of the next film (which will unlikely happen).
But what do I know? He might play as Alucard in the live action movie of Hellsing.
Haha that would be something
@@BetterWithBob A "Hell" of a "Sing"...
Because in JP they sometimes use what's in english "S" instead of "Th"--
Mythbustersdidnt take in to account the vampires wall climbing fields that let them levitate or ancher in to place while pulling dowwn a helicopter
TLDR: it works cause the writers focused more in telling a great story in spite of the relatively low budget than do smth that will assure money..
I honestly wish Kate Winslet return for at least ONE more to end the series! I need closure
I hoped they could have done more with marcus