Underworld Awakening (2012)

SPOILER WARNING!!! This post spoils movie Underworld Awakening (2012)

Underworld Awakening is fourth Underworld movie. First one was entertaining Blade ripoff. Second one continued where first ended. It replaced interesting characters with action. It was quite lazy effort but it did bring something new to Underworld lore. Third was prequel showing what we learned in second movie. It had some characters from first movie but didn't have main characters of first two movies. This movie happens some time after second movie. Kate Beckingsale returns her role as Selena.

Movie start after humans have discovered vampires and werewolves. Humans hunt and kill them. Selene and Michael try escape but walk into ambush where they are captured. These few minutes at the beginning is what we got from most interesting part of the movie. Purge is not shown at all. It is mentioned later in movie but we don't get to see that. I waited to get zombie movie with vampires and werewolves. You could have interesting action movie in that scenario. Show how that effects to humans and making our heroes escaping in world where everyone can betray them and most want to kill them. That would have made interesting scifi movie. Much better movie than we got.

Selene wakes up twelve years after capture in Antigen laboratory. Purge is over. Vampires live underground and all werewolves have gone. Selene is patient one he can see with eyes of patient two who turns out to be her daughter that Antigen has raised. What follows is back to back action scenes and few easier scenes which explain what has happened. We learn that Antigen is werewolves company and they raised Selenes kid to make serum that makes them superwerewolves. Antigen had Michael too. He escapes during final fight. This sets stage for next movie.

This movie betrayed me. Beginning showed what this could have been. Instead of that we got stupid action movie with over the top action hero figures. In first movie Selene was vulnerable. In this she is shot to head and that doesn't even slow her down. She takes multiple shots in her back and acts like that was just rain. How can you feel danger in audience when you hero doesn't get hurt? Another annoying thing is that this movie doesn't have similar interactions between vampires and werewolves that first three movie. In those movies characters had history with each others and they had motivations to do what they did. This movie had nothing that makes you care about characters.

I wonder why we didn't get movie that happened during purge. I could have vampires and werewolves forced to work together but making plans against each others. First movie showed what you could do in this world. This movie forgets all that and even wastes most interesting part of the story. Purge is only mentioned. It doesn't have any effect during movie. Werewolves even hunt Selene in streets during one action scene like no-one cares about them. What seems to be the case. I liked how werewolves adapted new situation better because they could act like normal humans unlike vampires who die in sunlight. But that was too little.