The Last Witch Hunter : Movie Review

The witch hunter feels like one of those films based on a game or comic that didn't quite catch on because there seemed to be a dozen more like it. But perhaps it is an original action-fantasy idea conceived by the star, Vin Diesel, and screenwriter Cory Goodman, that has regrettably been drained of energy and character in the finished product, directed by Breck Eisner.

In this storyline, armies of witch hunters, led by the  have battled vile supernatural creatures for centuries. Among them, one of their best, is Kaulder(Vin Diesel), a brave warrior who was "cursed" with immortality by the Queen Witch (Julie Engelbrecht) right before he slayed her. Eight hundred years later, he is their ultimate weapon, and the last surviving witch hunter, tracking down rogue witches who violate the rules of the truce between witches and humans that maintains their peaceful coexistence.

However, it all goes south when the Queen's loyal followers decide to end the peace by resurrecting her, and unleashing another black plague on  mankind. To achieve this, an evil witch interrogates and curses Kaulder's only living friend, the just-retired 36th Dolan (played by Michael Caine), who's job it is to keep record of the immortal hunter's missions and be his handler. In order to save him and mankind, Kaulder with his newly appointed 37th Dolan(played by Elijah Wood), begin their mission to find the witch who cursed his friend, and stop the plague. On their way, he forms an unlikely alliance with a witch who prefers the peace, Chloe (played by Rose Leslie). The witch, and the witch hunter, must fight together to save humanity and keep the peace.

That's all for the plot, and now about the movie. The characters are pretty much one-dimensional which is a shame considering the lineup of actors present on the screen. The occasional cheesy one liners fall rather flat. The action scenes are fun, fully utilizing Vin's physicality as his character fights foes with his flaming longsword(and it has a name, with magical inscriptions and everything). The visual effects are decent at best, and cringe worthy at worst.

Ultimately, this film isn't really worth the price of a ticket on a weekend, probably better as a rental from Google, or perhaps best as a graphic novel. But, if you just want to see Vin Diesel kick some supernatural butt, its worth a watch. Oh, and Kaulder has a sweet looking Aston Martin Rapide S as his ride.

Thanks for reading, as always, feel free to share and comment.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fast X: Movie Review

Image
This is it, the final instalment of the Fast & Furious franchise that started all the way back in 2001. To be precise, it's the first part of the tenth and final instalment in the series. There was a lot of build-up around this one with various petrolhead circles making plans for group viewings. But I wanted my Fast X experience to be as unadulterated as possible. I did not even watch a single trailer and did not have any inkling about what to expect in terms of stunts and new characters. I did not mention story plot expectations because I knew that there probably wasn't going to be one, not really.   Everything from hereon can be considered a spoiler, so skip to the final para for a rating/assessment. The "Plot" The central storyline, if that's what we can call it, for Fast X gives us a flashback to 'Fast Five' (arguably one of the best movies in the series in terms of heist sequences). We are treated to some tear-jerking flashbacks of Paul Walker as ...
Read more

Red Notice: Movie Review

Image
 It's quite common for movies to be made with no plot, a cast of popular actors with loyal fanbases and a big CGI budget. Red Notice is one of those movies. Netflix has been churning out an increasing number of platform-exclusive movies, but it's now harder to find good ones. When they dropped the first trailer for this action-flick starring Ryan Reynolds and Dwayne Johnson, I knew I was going to watch it as a fan of the Canadian funnyman. They also showed Gal Gadot as a key character to onboard a slew of horny teens as well. The movie plot is a treasure hunt for an Egyptian artefact, a bejewelled golden egg and part of a set of three, known as Cleopatra's eggs. It explains off the bat that the term Red Notice is the highest wanted level in Interpol, which is a sort of global police agency. The movie then introduces us to a generically-sassy boss lady Inspector Das, played by Ritu Arya, who's chasing one of the best art thieves in the world. She enters the scene accompa...
Read more

How A Brand Image Can Be Ruined By Its Own People

Image
In a highly competitive business environment, the only sustainable option is to build a brand that attracts certain types of buyers with quality products catering to their interests. Or to put it simply, brand image is key for long-term success. Unfortunately, too many brands make simple mistakes that can undo years of marketing exercises and not even realise it. The one I want to talk about here is how brand image is ruined/tarnished by its employees and affiliates.  I recently attended the Indian MotoGP and due to event circumstances, my tickets were adjusted to a different stand at the Buddh International Circuit. Mind you, these were far from the more affordable tickets and had a lot to live up to. My new seats were in a stand that had been rebranded as the Yamaha stand with massive tapestries and flags all around. The MotoGP is a three-day event with the main race on the final day. The first two days, casual fans did not bother to show up so that meant the stand was at half-ca...
Read more