The rejuvenation of franchises no one cares about continues with Underworld: Blood Wars, which limped into theaters in January and failed to make its budget back domestically—though ultimately ended up with an $80-million worldwide take against a $35-million budget.
Kate Beckinsale, with nothing better to do, returns to her most recognizable role and proceeds to do the exact same thing she’s done before: fight vampires, fight werewolves, and deal with the politics of a rigid vampire hierarchy.
The mildly lucrative franchise has always been moderately entertaining (save for the Beckinsale-less prequel), typically relying on fast pacing and slick gothic visuals, and Underworld: Blood Wars is no different. If you’re a fan of the franchise, the movie will meet expectations. If you’re not, you’re probably not reading this review anyway.
Underworld: Blood Wars doesn’t do a lot to change minds or even convince audiences why it exists—it’s literally just more of the same, with the film ending in exactly the place you’d expect so that if Sony Pictures for some reason decides to make yet another one, they can make another movie just like this one.
It would have been great if director Anna Foerster had tried to make something more of Underworld: Blood Wars, but more than likely she was hired specifically to revolutionize absolutely nothing. It’s not impossible to see the Underworld franchise, under the right oversight and with the proper courage, exploding and reaching new heights, but it’s also unlikely; Sony Pictures seems content with a franchise that limps along, sucking the blood (and cash) from its dwindling pool of devoted followers and clawing from the shadows for another morsel of opportunity.
Underworld: Blood Wars isn’t a failure—it is the exact movie you’d expect—but there’s nothing new to see here.
Review by Erik Samdahl unless otherwise indicated.