Underworld: Evolution

There aren't going to be any new Matrix films. Neo was killed off, peace was made with the machines, Zion was saved and the rest will be left to play out in really, really shitty video games and -- I'm guessing -- the occaisional graphic novel or short anime feature.

I still think the potential exists for an incredible movie from the Matrix universe, just not the central "savoir" storyline from the trilogy. Neil Gaiman wrote an amazing short story about a man who realized he was inside the Matrix. Really emotional, with a plot focusing on what it meant for his existence, his family and life in general. You can probably still find it somewhere on www.whatisthematrix.com, where it was originally posted. And I thought some of the shorts in the Animatrix explored that angle really well, too -- like the story about the Japanese girl and the neighborhood kids who go looking for a missing cat and stumble on a glitch in the Matrix, not quite realizing what it is.

So, yeah, the premise still has life in it, but I think it's too much to hope the better-imagined stories would ever make it to film.

Maybe he's meant to be a virgin or something .... "oh .. sorry, I thought that's where it goes"

Here's the Neil Gaiman story, for anyone who's interested:

http://whatisthematrix.warnerbros.com/rl_cmp/rl_neil_g.html

I saw it tonight for the sole reason that I couldn't think of anything else to do and looking at Kate Beckinsale for 90 minutes was as good an outing as any.

She didn't disappoint, with the possible exception of Laurel Canyon this is the hottest she's ever looked on film. And the entirely gratuitous but incredibly hot sex scene she has early on was worth the price of admission alone, and you didn't even get to see any naughty bits.

Saw it last night. It seems like the first one and this are really two parts of the same movie they flow so well together, which is a good thing. The repeated cuts to angles off Kate Beckinsale's ass in that leather suit were almost enough to make me weep tears of appreciation, until that weak sex scene.

The werewolves looked a hell of a lot better, the flashback scenes were dope and the fights were more interesting, but the plot got ridiculous at certain points. Too much shit to keep track of, with things that just plain didn't make sense (ie. why did Marcus obey Viktor, given the circumstances they explained later on in the firm?)

Eh...and certain things that moved the story forward seemed real video game-like. There were a couple "upgrade" scenes where I wouldn't have been surprised to see HP stats pop up on screen, and a couple martial arts sequences that looked suspiciously MK comboesque to the point where I thought Kate was gonna get bonus points.

But I love this type of cheesy vampire shit so I'll end up buying the DVD when it comes out anyways.

I'm still thinking of it days later and would like to get the DVD. But I just love Kate. Sure, the movie isn't all that. It IS entertainment. And it is a genre flick. But it's MY genre....

The movie was crappy, but entertaining. Kate was hot. It really could have done without the Cinemax style sex scene and the two curse words that were used in it, it made it seem like they were trying for the "R" rating.

It was what I was expecting... mostly.