Constantine The Movie
February 24, 2005 | 
19 Comments
Summary: It’s not the comic, by any means, but it’s not half bad.
I just got back from Constantine.
I went because a friend of mine told me it was much better that he’d expected and that I would be pleasantly surprised. You see, I’ve been a big fan of the character since the Swamp Thing days and I’ve read every issue of Hellblazer — one of the most consistently well written comics out there. When I heard that Constantine was going to be Americanized and played by Keanu Reeves I about fell over. Seriously, it seemed like the worst casting possible. I didn’t really plan to see it and I figured if I did I’d hate it.
Well, I saw the movie and I wanted to hate it. But, in the end, really enjoyed it.
Keanu wasn’t the Constantine from Hellblazer by any means, and most of the other characters didn’t ring true either, but it wasn’t totally devoid of Hellblazer spirit. There were times when I shook my head, thinking, “well, that was way off.” But, all-in-all, I thought it was pretty good.
If you compare it to the books, you’ll be disappointed to say the least, but what movie is as good as the book? And to be totally honest, I’m not sure even if they kept it true to the books, they could do a really great job of putting Hellblazer on the screen. There is just to much back-story, to much subtle wit and too much convoluted story and dialogue to make an movie I’d want to watch.
I guess what I’m saying is that by changing it the way they did, it might have been the only way they could have done it and kept it watchable.
I couldn’t help to think of it as some kind of crazy Elseworlds, Bizarro World, take on Constantine.
If you’ve never read the books, you’ll probably be able to sit back and enjoy it and those who are fans of the books, if you can get past, well, almost everything (and I know it’s a lot) and keep expectations low, you may like it too. I certainly did and I’m a huge fan.
If nothing else, it’s better than The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.
My Rating: 3 out of 5
Filed under: Review
Comments
1. Christian Watson said:
I had quite high hopes for this film given the reasonable reviews, but to be honest, I was disappointed (and, no, I haven’t read the books).
The worst problem was that I was quite bored in places - there seemed to be a lot of exposition and not a great deal of action; which was a shame, because the special effects (trips to hell, etc) were excellent.
I thought the story was pretty weak too. I think the film makers took themselves and the subject matter a little too seriously, and would have produced a more enjoyable movie if they’d have up’d the pace and recognized the subject matter for the hokum that it is.
Posted on February 25, 2005 07:29 AM | #
2. Keith said:
Christian – If you were bored in the movie, you’d have hated a true adaptation of the books. They have very little action. The action sequences in the movie were funny, because one thing the true John Constantine is not is an action hero. I laughed out loud at the scene in the hospital.
Storywise I thought it was ok, but it could have been because I enjoyed pulling out the little bits they took from the comics. The story is kind of a bastardization of various story arcs from the comic, with some new stuff thrown in. Sound bad, but I don’t know, I liked it.
It’s funny because most of the complaints have been about how bad they translated the true story. If you like action and thing the subject matter was hokum, you would have really hated a true adaptation of the story. I guess this genre isn’t for you.
But I know, you love the action flicks!
Posted on February 25, 2005 08:25 AM | #
3. Nathan Ostgard said:
I was really looking forward to the movie after seeing the trailers, even though I hadn’t read any of it, but I was actually a little bit disappointed.
Part of it was the fact that I’m a sucker for special effects. After seeing the trailer I mostly went to the movie just for that. Unfortunately, the special effects shown in the trailer were most of what was present in the movie itself, just stretched out longer.
The only other real problem I had was that too many of the scenes felt “set up” to me. At times it felt like half the movie was watching Keanu Reeves flick his lighter open and closed. It’s not the fact that he was doing it that bothered me, but that it felt like Reeves and the camera were positioning themselves every time to get that specific look, instead of a natural thing he does all the time.
Suprisingly, a lot of the things that I didn’t go to the movie for were excellent, especially the humor. I didn’t expect the movie to be funny at all, and I was laughing out loud for a good part of it.
Posted on February 25, 2005 08:37 AM | #
4. Christian Watson said:
Keith, I’m not saying that just because the film lacked a lot of action it sucked; however, I think that the quality of the writing (and the acting) wasn’t great and so these scenes dragged.
For me the story suffered because it appeared very disjointed - most likely because they took bits from the various comics.
I agree about the ending at the hospital - it was overblown and didn’t make a lot of sense.
For me, the worst thing you can do with a film based on a comic book is make it boring, which is what (in my opinion) they did. As a comparison, at least with Aliens vs. Predator, although the film was crap and I hate the director for killing off the series, the time passed quickly enough.
Posted on February 25, 2005 09:15 AM | #
5. Keith said:
Hmm, yeah, I don’t think you’d like the books. The story didn’t seem too disjointed to me at all, and I was analyzing the heck out of it. It was strange how they took little bits from the comic and wove them in. Didn’t really work too well. I mean there is a whole arc about how he beats cancer, and it’s one of the best, but thinking on it, it’s slow and would have made a boring movie.
I just don’t think you like the genre. You didn’t like Underworld either if I remember correctly and I thought that movie was really fun. Oh, and I liked the ending fine. It was the fight scene with the demons that I though was silly.
Anyway – I liked AVP quite a bit actually. Again, not as good as the comic, but it was fun. It had no story really, maybe that’s what makes a good action flick…
;)
Posted on February 25, 2005 09:34 AM | #
6. Kevin Tamura said:
I’m still trying to block that movie out of my mind. Here’s hoping Sin City rocks.
Posted on February 25, 2005 10:01 AM | #
7. Daniel said:
I have to say that I’m surprised. I’ve browsed the Hellblazer books a few times, but have been pitifully out-of-touch with comics for too long. When I saw previews, I thought, “Okay, this is so The Matrix meets The Prophecy,” and thought little else of it. Now, unfortunately, I’m of a mind to give it a go.
Damn you.
Posted on February 25, 2005 01:18 PM | #
8. Christian Watson said:
AvP would have been a fun movie if it hadn’t been part of the Alien series. A lot of people were hoping it would move the series in a new and interesting direction, but instead all it did was to repeat what had gone before but in a new location.
All the creativity went into the set design/effects and none into the story, which seems to be so often the case these days.
Posted on February 25, 2005 02:37 PM | #
9. John B said:
Keith,
Is there some anthology or TPB out there that you’d recommend to get a taste of the true Hellblazer world/mythos? I enjoyed the movie. It was about what I expected (well, maybe a little better than expected) but I thought it was well done nonetheless.
Posted on February 25, 2005 02:55 PM | #
10. Keith said:
John B – Well, they’re all pretty good, you could start at the start, or you might start with the Dangerous Habits collection which is my favorite arc. There was quite a bit drawn from this for the movie, whole scenes in fact. But it’s not the same.
Also, I just finished a new stand alone book, All His Engines which was great.
You should be able to find those in any comic store and many bookstores.
Posted on February 25, 2005 03:11 PM | #
11. John B said:
Thanks. I’ll have a go at Dangerous Habits.
Posted on February 25, 2005 04:22 PM | #
12. Sean said:
Humm… kept going back and forth about if I wanted to see this one or not - I think I will take the chance though based on your review
(although saying something was better than The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is not excatly high praise)
Yeah for Seattle too! Moving halfway across the country to there in Aug
Posted on February 27, 2005 12:47 PM | #
13. Jeff R said:
In response to the original post…
Most people forget that when they watch these movies that started in comics, forget that it is a completely different medium with different ruls.
Just like many designers cringe when a client asks to make their site looks just like “print”, movies and comics are different beasts.
I have not seen the movie yet, but I always view these in that manner, and wish that other cynics would as well.
Posted on February 27, 2005 05:12 PM | #
14. Bob Trotta said:
“Here is hoping Sin City rocks.”
From what I’ve seen it looks the nuts! I agree, I enjoyed Constantine despite myself.
Posted on March 2, 2005 03:36 AM | #
15. Small Paul said:
Well! I think I’ll adopt my Lord of the Rings procedure here.
1. See movies.
2. Read books (comics, in this case).
Gotta read more comics.
Posted on March 2, 2005 05:51 AM | #
16. Nicolas Demers said:
Hah. Well, that’s damning with faint praise.
I wasn’t planning to see the movie either, for the same reason as you–I haven’t read Hellblazer, but I’m familiar enough with the character, and, really, Keanu Reeves? A guy with all the acting range of a carp?
Hm. So, maybe I’ll give this movie a shot. Now let’s hope the Watchmen movie won’t be a total butchering of the original, like LXG was…
Posted on March 2, 2005 11:22 AM | #
17. nelly said:
THE MOVIE WAS THE BEST I HAVE EVER WATCHED AND THE DIRECTOR TRIED IN IS OWN PART TOO.THE MOVIE CONSTANTINE TEACHES US A GOOD LESSON AND TO MAKE US UNDERSTAND THAT THERE IS HEAVEN AND HELL.THE MOVIE IS GREAT THATS ALL I HAVE TO SAY.
Posted on March 15, 2005 02:28 PM | #
18. karan rai said:
the movie was fabulous and keanu reeves the best.rachel weiz was exceptional in her part.i have seen the movie 5 times and hope that there will be a sequel pretty soon.one thing constantine has made me the biggest fan of keanu reeves and that is sorely bcoz of his style in the film.i so want to meet him in person even though i am a highschool student in Nepal(asia).truly karan.
Posted on April 9, 2005 09:10 PM | #
19. Allen said:
I thought the movie was great! A little too graphic but o.k.
Posted on August 5, 2005 06:09 PM | #
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