As a form of entertainment special effects movies seem to
have taken over, sometimes to the delight of movie lovers and while at other
times to their dismay. It seems that the more Hollywood relies on the computer
generated image (CGI) the less outstanding it becomes; it’s accepted and
expected rather than something spectacular to view. What makes a movie
outstanding in cases like this is the story. Does it involve the viewer, does
it engage the viewer and does it make sense? On rare occasions it happens
(consider the STAR WARS movies). In some it doesn’t (consider most SyFy Channel
movies). But for the most part it falls somewhere in between. Such is the case
with THE LAST WITCH HUNTER.
The film opens in the past when the last great battles were
taking place between humans and witches. The Witch Queen has retreated to her
den and a group of sword wielding humans have tracked her down with the intent
of finishing her and her kind. A battle ensues and Kaulder (Vin Diesel) is left
facing the witch, sword in hand, a combination of iron and fire required to
kill her with a blow to her heart. He strikes but she does the same to him,
making him immortal while she withers away to dust.
Fast forward to the future where witches still exists.
Apparently killing the Witch Queen did not do them all in. Now Kaulder works
for a secretive organization with ties to the Catholic Church that tracks down
witches and uses of witchcraft to prevent them from killing humans. It ranges
from small things like misguided teens attempting witchcraft to full blown
killers on the street.
Helping the witch hunter is the Dolan, currently at their 37th
incarnation played by Michael Caine. The Dolan has helped Kaulder through the
decades, informing him of outbreaks and incidents as well as providing him with
the tools needed to accomplish his tasks. Dolan the 37th is about to
retire now and Kaulder presents him with a gift. His replacement, Dolan the 38th
(Elijah Wood) arrives and is introduced. As he and Kaulder become acquainted,
his predecessor is killed before Kaulder can return to save him.
Investigating his friend’s death, Kaulder finds a clue from
him to look into his first death. To remember he visits a spell worker, sort of
an allocated witch, named Chloe (Rose Leslie). While under a memory spell he’s cuffed
and left to die in an inferno as the real witch behind the events that have
happened escapes. Of course so does Kaulder. Tracking down this witch and
finding out who is really responsible becomes the goal of Kaulder with the help
of his new Dolan and Chloe. But can he find the answers before time runs out
for him as well as humanity?
The story here is actually a good one when you look at it. A
bad guy is presented early on along with a hero to prevent that evil from
succeeding. The conspiracy of a secretive organization there to protect the
world falls in line with many movies today as does a secondary group there to
counter them. But while it’s a good story it seems more commonplace than I
thought it would be. Perhaps that’s because I’m a jaded movie goer who sees
more than most. For me while I thought the story was good it felt too familiar
in some ways.
Diesel does a great job as Kaulder. Physically Diesel has
always been the musclebound hero in more than one film. But here he allows his
character to smile on occasion and to talk and think deeper than most are used
to. The ability to play characters like this has always been there and in truth
most have had that combination of brains and brawn. But it’s his physical
appearance that most fans notice, much like they did with Sylvester Stallone,
another underrated actor remembered more for his physicality than his
abilities. Hopefully that will change.
In the end the film was entertaining but so fueled by CGI
events that it fell into that mid-range category of effects driven films. Sure
it was fun but with so many movies coming out like this the odds are that it
gets lost in the mix. Not much about it makes it stand out above the rest. A good
time can be had watching the movie but repeated viewings aren’t likely for most
with the exception of Vin Diesel fans. It’s a fun movie but not outstanding.
And in a world populated by CGI creations something more needs added to the mix
to make it memorable.
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