Van Helsing

Stephen Sommers 2004

On film message boards across the Internet people are discussing how bad this movie is. That its full of plot holes that are obviously included to insult the audience. I have read essays on the plausibility of certain aspects of the storyline.

However, it seems to me that these people are missing the essence of this film, and that is the FUN! This film is not an Oscar worthy epic that will help you re-evaluate your life and make you a better human being. This film is 2 hours of motion picture entertainment at its best. Bold, brash and in your face.

The acting is hammy…to say the least, but the special effects are superb. As a fan of the Universal Horror films of the 1930’s and 40’s and The Hammer Horror films of the 1950’s, I saw this film as a flashy homage, made with a genuine love of these old classics.

The image updates of the ‘monsters’ (Dracula, Wolfman, Frankenstein’s Monster and Mr. Hyde) of the film work very well, they become modern but retain the core of their personalities that stems from the original written works.

I liked this film because it has a sense of fun, while not being a truly scary movie (although it does have its moments) it is a thoroughly good adventure.