MPAA Rating: PG-13
Original Review Date: June 2, 2004
Reviewed by: Erin, Movie Muse
In a Nutshell: Quite an interesting story, pretty good
execution, with a couple of "I don't think so" moments (even for
this die-hard fantasty and sci-fi fan). I wouldn't recommend it
for everyone, but monster movie fans (old and new) will probably
enjoy it. I would not, however, recommend it for young
children, as the monsters do tend towards the frightening.
Quick Plot: Van Helsing, famed monster-hunter, goes to
Transylvania to try and save the last remaining members of the
Valerious family from eternal damnation, and he hopes to
discover some of the secrets of his forgotten past in the
process.
In Detail: I really did enjoy the story. It was a very
intriguing and convincing way to have all of these classic
monster characters interacting with each other, and they even
managed to throw in a twist or two on your expectations. Quite
refreshing, actually. The problem is that the execution just
didn't *quite* live up to the story. It wasn't bad, but it
wasn't as good as it could have been, which I always find
frustrating. Even the effects, done by the legendary ILM, did
not seem to be up to their usual standards. It did, however,
make me wonder if they had done it intentionally, to a certain
extent, to keep them from being so scary as to pull an R rating
(kind-of the same way they did the effects in the Harry Potter
films; slightly cartoony to keep the PG rating). Worth seeing
if you like the genre, but I don't recommend it for everyone.
Will I Buy It? Again, I don't think so. There were too many
parts that even I didn't watch (you know me and scary movies; I
spent some time admiring the ceiling), and I'd rather not own a
film that I can't watch several minutes of. It was good, it was
interesting; once was enough.
