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 Set
in the late 19th century, this modern, monster movie provides some
new twists on age-old mythical tales.
Although
it shows great passion and respect for its predecessors, it also
manages to pack in some very tongue-in-cheek humour, not to mention
some big-budget, special effects… which to be perfectly honest
are little over-used, yet not too surprising considering this film
was directed by David Sommers, who brought the spectacular 'The
Mummy' and 'The Mummy Returns' to our screens.
It
tells the story of famed fiend hunter Dr. Gabriel Van Helsing, played
by Hugh Jackman, who with some all-out action stunts and snappy
one-liners is a far cry from Peter Cushing's rather more straight
portrayal of the same character in the 1974 movie, 'The Legend of
the 7 Golden Vampires'.
Van
Helsing is sent to Europe to battle with those evil beings which
dawn as the sun goes down. Against massive sets and across the rolling
back drops of London, Paris, Rome and Transylvania, he finds himself
head-to-head with the likes of Mr. Hyde (Robbie Coltrane), Frankenstein's
Monster (Shurler Hensley), the Wolf-Man (Will Kemp) and Count Vladislaus
Dracula (Richard Roxburgh)…. not to mention his three blood-thirsty
brides!
Close
by our hero's side… just the way he likes it… is the rather
ravishing Anna (Kate Beckinsale), the last remaining member of a
family committed to ridding the world of evil and if she fails a
whole generation will be condemned to purgatory forever!
So…
garlic, holy water and crucifixes at the ready. 'Van Helsing' is
certainly a non-stop roller coaster ride of creepy creature violence…
a moment of which you won't want to miss, unless of course you don't
like to see mythology evolve. Expect the unexpected!
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miss our films section!
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The
views expressed on this page are those of the contributor and the
opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the BBC.
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