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By Christopher Wehner
Underworld is a monster-matching story, but at its core
is a dark and complex narrative that almost succeeds.
Set in Budapest, Hungary, the monsters wage a centuries
old war on each other. The "Underworld" is a massive
subterranean bunker system still standing from World
War II, and is where the werewolves hideout. The vampires
hide in a heavily guarded old mansion. The werewolves
are kind of your street gang thugs, while the vampires
are your, as Jesse Jackson might say, "corporate
hoods." Sophisticated, intelligent, and plotting.
According to reports, the movie looks to start production
in September, 2002 in Budapest, Hungary. The director
is Len Wiseman, who started out working as a prop
designer for movies like Independence Day and Stargate,
before becoming a director of music videos for groups
like Megadeth and En Vogue. Music video directors are
a hit and miss breed as motion picture directors. Some
pan out, and some don't. The continuity of this story
(any story for that matter) is crucial and with a first-
time feature film director, that could spell t-r-o-u-
b-l-e.
Somehow this story has been neatly mentioned as being
inspired by William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet,"
the next thing you know it will receive an Oscar
nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. There is a
love story of sorts involved, but it's a subplot and
not a very well developed one.
Underworld is a wild story when at its best vivid and
engrossing, containing some of the best action sequences
I've read to date (with enough ZIPS, BLAMS, BANGS, and
KABOOMS to make any CGI programmer froth at the mouth.)
Read more:
http://www.screenwritersutopia.com/s...underworld.htm
source: Screenwriters Monthly Newsletter