Underworld: Awakening

Underworld: Awakening

Theatrical Release Poster
Directed by Måns Mårlind
Björn Stein
Produced by Tom Rosenberg
Gary Lucchesi
Len Wiseman
Richard Wright
Screenplay by Len Wiseman
John Hlavin
J. Michael Straczynski
Allison Burnett
Story by Len Wiseman
John Hlavin
Based on Characters 
by Kevin Grevioux
Len Wiseman
Danny McBride
Starring Kate Beckinsale
Stephen Rea
Michael Ealy
Theo James
India Eisley
Charles Dance
Music by Paul Haslinger
Cinematography Scott Kevan
Edited by John Smith
Production
company
Distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing
Release dates
  • January 20, 2012
Running time
 88 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget $70 million[1]
Box office $160,112,671[2]

Underworld: Awakening (previously known as Underworld: New Dawn) is a 2012 American 3D action horror film directed by Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein. It is the fourth installment in the Underworld film series, with Kate Beckinsale reprising her role as Selene. Stephen Rea, Theo James, Michael Ealy, and India Eisley appeared in new roles to the series. Filming began March 2011 in Vancouver, British Columbia.[3] The film was released in Digital 3D, IMAX 3D and 2D theatres on January 20, 2012.

Plot

Six months after the events of the second film, humans have captured Selene during "The Purge", a global military crusade to exterminate vampires and lycans. Vampires have waged guerrilla warfare against the government, but the humans have overrun them, forcing the survivors to hide underground and resist the humans on their own.

Twelve years later, human governments have concluded their campaigns against the vampires and lycans. They have annihilated 95% of the vampire race and believe the lycans to be extinct. Selene (Beckinsale), dubbed "Subject 1", is freed from cryogenic suspension by "Subject 2" and escapes the medical corporation Antigen. The corporation, run by Dr. Jacob Lane (Rea), is ostensibly trying to make an antidote for the virus that creates vampires and lycans. Selene has visions that she follows, believing them to be linked to her lover, the lycan-vampire hybrid Michael Corvin (Scott Speedman). The visions lead her to a building where she is followed by David (James), a fellow vampire.

While talking with David, Selene has another vision and discovers a young girl, Eve (Subject 2). Eve is revealed to be a hybrid and the daughter of Selene and Michael. Selene and David flee with Eve, but are attacked by a group of diseased lycans. Eve's neck is bitten by a lycan, and David insists that they take her to his coven. Meanwhile, David's father Thomas (Charles Dance) blames Selene for provoking the destruction of the vampires, and tells her that Michael died twelve years ago. A vampire doctor named Olivia (Catlin Adams) examines Eve, offering her blood to help her heal. Eve is confused by this, having been raised as a human. With Selene's encouragement, she accepts the gift and quickly heals.

Jacob Lane is revealed to be a lycan, as is his son Quint (Kris Holden-Ried). The "antidote" the corporation has been working on is a drug to make lycans immune to the deadly effects of silver, as well as enhancing their physical abilities. Eve's genetic code is required to achieve this, so Lane sends Quint with some other lycans to the vampire coven to recapture her. Expecting a human attack, David tries rallying the vampires' resistances to fight back, while his father orders everyone to evacuate and hide. Most of the vampires arm themselves. Unexpectedly, lycans arrive in large numbers, and many vampires are slaughtered. This is a huge blow to the coven, which now assumes humans and lycans are working together. Selene encounters a "super lycan", later revealed to be Quint, whose body has been changed by injections containing Eve's genetic material. Selene is knocked unconscious during the fight, and Eve is turned over to the lycans by Thomas in exchange for their departure, and David is mortally wounded. Selene decides to save Eve, but first revives David using the immortal blood given to her by Alexander Corvinus.

Selene enlists the help of Detective Sebastian (Ealy), a human who tried investigating Antigen. Sebastian agrees to help save Eve, admitting he was married to a nurse who became a vampire; they lived together without incident, but when authorities were going door to door killing vampires and lycans, his wife exposed herself to the daylight rather than suffer at the hands of humans. Selene destroys part of Antigen's headquarters using silver gas explosives, forcing Lane to move Eve out of the building to perform an operation that will create more of the lycan super-serum. Selene escapes the lycans in the building and finds Michael (Subject 0) cryogenically frozen, puncturing his cell with a gunshot to defrost him. Escaping in a van, Lane is intercepted by Sebastian, and then by Selene, who causes the van to crash. Quint arrives and fights Selene.

Eve awakens on her stretcher, freeing herself and fighting Lane, who has injected himself with the super-serum. Sebastian and David aid Eve in her fight and she kills Lane by ripping out his throat, while Selene kills Quint by planting a silver explosive in his stomach. Selene attempts to free Michael, but finds he has already escaped.

Eve, telepathically seeing through Michael's eyes, learns that he is on the roof. Selene, Eve and David run to the roof, only to discover that Michael has already gone. In a voice-over narration, Selene concludes with her determination to reunite with Michael and take back the world from the humans and lycans.

Cast

Production

"It's like putting your wedding dress on, or putting your school uniform on, it's like a time-warp feeling. "

—Kate Beckinsale, about her return as Selene.[4]

Filming began in March 2011 at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia. Underworld: Awakening is one of the first movies to be shot using RED EPIC digital cameras in 3D.[4]

Release

Box office

Underworld: Awakening topped the box office in US and Canada on its opening weekend making $25.3 million. In the UK, Underworld: Awakening achieved a revenue of $1,736,145 over a three-day period. In Australia, it made $2,864,463 on its opening weekend, $2,011,476 in Spain and $5,898,385 in Russia. Revenues in the film's second weekend dropped to $12.4 million in the US and Canada. On its third weekend, it grossed $5,600,000. As of April 19, 2012, it had grossed $62,321,039 in the US and Canada and $97,791,632 elsewhere, bringing it to a total of $160,112,671 worldwide. The film's budget was $70 million.[5] It was the first film in 2012 to pass the $100 million mark worldwide. It is also the highest-grossing film in the Underworld series, domestically and worldwide.

Critical reception

The film received generally negative reviews from film critics. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a score of 26% based on 69 reviews with 18 positive and 51 negative reviews. Its consensus is "There's more vapid action and less story in Underworld Awakening than previous installments, making the whole affair feel inconsequential."[6] Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 1–100 reviews from film critics, has a rating score of 40 based on 17 reviews.[7]

Roger Moore, a top critic from Dallas Morning News said it was "Pitiless, puerile, pointless and perfunctory — and those are just the 'P's". Joe Leydon from Variety gave the film a positive review, saying "Once again, Beckinsale brings an impressive physicality and subzero cool to her portrayal of Selene".[8] Many expressed disappointment that Scott Speedman did not return as Michael Corvin, and were upset that the character's role was greatly reduced in the film.[9][10][11][12][13][14][15]

Home media

Underworld: Awakening was released on Blu-ray Disc and DVD on May 8, 2012.[16]

Music

Underworld: Awakening (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Soundtrack album by Various
Released January 17, 2012 (Digital)
January 31, 2012
Genre Rock
Length 77:25
Label Lakeshore
Producer Skip Williamson (executive)
Braian McNelis and Eric Craig
Underworld film series soundtrack chronology

Underworld Rise of the Lycans
(2009)		 Underworld: Awakening
(2012)

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was released to digital outlets on January 17, 2012 by Lakeshore Records. Most of the album's songs are remixed by Danny Lohner. These songs are provided by bands such as: Evanescence, Linkin Park, The Cure, Lacuna Coil, as well as others.

  1. "Made of Stone" (Renholdër Remix) by Evanescence – 3:15
  2. "Heavy Prey" by Lacey Sturm of Flyleaf featuring Geno Lenardo – 4:16
  3. "Blackout" (Renholdër Remix) by Linkin Park – 5:03
  4. "Apart" (Renholdër Remix) by The Cure – 6:37
  5. "Killer & a Queen" by Stella Katsoudas of Sister Soleil featuring Geno Lenardo – 5:35
  6. "Watch Yourself" (Renholdër Remix) by Ministry – 4:14
  7. "Trip the Darkness" (Ben Weinman Remix) by Lacuna Coil – 3:46
  8. "Young Blood" (Renholdër Remix) by The Naked and Famous – 4:06
  9. "It Rapes All in Its Path" by Black Light Burns – 5:53
  10. "The Posthumous Letter" by William Control – 4:04
  11. "How'm I Supposed to Die" by Civil Twilight – 3:19
  12. "Consolation Prize" by & SONS – 3:28
  13. "Liar" (Revenant Mix by 8MM) by 8MM – 7:02
  14. "You Won't See the Light" by Ryan T. Hope of The Lifeline featuring Geno Lenardo – 3:53
  15. "Bottle of Pain" by Combichrist – 4:05
  16. "Intruder" by Collide – 4:37
  17. "Exit Wounds" (Justin Lassen Remix) by Justin Lassen featuring Silent Fury – 4:03

Score

The film's score was released on February 14, 2012 by Lakeshore Records. The music was provided by composer Paul Haslinger who did the music for Underworld and Underworld: Rise of the Lycans.

Underworld: Awakening (Original Motion Picture Score)
Film score by Paul Haslinger
Released February 14, 2012
Length 59:26
Label Lakeshore
Producer Paul Haslinger
Underworld film series score album chronology

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans score
(2009)		 Underworld: Awakening score
(2012)
  1. "The Purge" – 3:02
  2. "Underworld Awakening Main Titles" – 0:52
  3. "Raiding the Army Surplus Store" – 1:44
  4. "Non-Human Aggressor" – 1:30
  5. "I Was Subject 2" – 3:01
  6. "Arriving at the Coven" – 2:23
  7. "I've Never Seen a Child Like This" – 1:42
  8. "This Is Not One of Us" – 3:19
  9. "I Know Exactly What You Are" – 1:37
  10. "If You Knew Him as I Did" – 3:46
  11. "Prepare the Armory" – 2:09
  12. "The Uber-Lycan" – 1:05
  13. "Reanimation" – 1:16
  14. "Then Came the Purge" – 2:29
  15. "Selene Returns to Antigen" – 2:07
  16. "Find Her and Destroy Her" – 2:27
  17. "The Lycan Van Escape" – 2:14
  18. "I Heal Instantly" – 1:41
  19. "You Came Back" – 1:15
  20. "Reclaiming the World" – 1:29
  21. "The Melancholy of Resistance" – 2:40
  22. "A New Dawn" – 3:36
  23. "Corner" (Justin Lassen Remix) by Blue Stahli – 4:30
  24. "Under Your Skin" (Deadbeat Remix) by Aesthetic Perfection – 3:53
  25. "Sunrise" by Angelspit – 3:26

Sequels

Fifth film

On August 27, 2014, Lakeshore Entertainment announced plans to reboot the franchise. Cory Goodman was hired to write the script for the first film. Tom Rosenberg and Gary Lucchesi will be producers. Later it was confirmed not to be a reboot but another entry in the series. The fifth film, titled Underworld: Next Generation, is in production and is set to be released in 2015 with Theo James reprising as David from the fourth film as the new lead.

Sixth film

Wiseman revealed that a sixth film is also in development with his wife Beckinsale reprising her role as Selene.

See also

References

External links

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