Constantine
John Constantine is a comic book favourite amongst the geeks. First appearing in Vertigo Comics, in 1985 Swamp Thing (vol 2 #37,) and created by the great Alan Moore, Constantine has his own batch of comic series called Hellblazer (what what check out my research yo!) Cynical, deadpan, snarky, cunning and yet a passionate humanist who wants to do good in his life, Constantine is a British anti-hero; an occult detective who is just trying to save himself from hell.
That is the comic books.
Flip forward twenty years and you get the Warner Bros sinking their demonic teeth into the source material and producing something that loosely based on comics….that stars Keanu Reeves.
Changing the hero from British to American, Constantine the film is based around our titular character. Here, Constantine is an exorcist who was blessed with the powers to see both Angels and Demons on earth. However, due to a suicide attempt at 15, Constantine is now condemned to hell and hopes that his constant exorcism will absolve him as he is dying from cancer. Wait, there’s more; when detective Angela Dodson approaches Constantine to help her investigate her twin sisters supposed suicide, Constantine uncovers an evil plot to take over the world and it is only up to are cynical protagonist to save the world, save the girl and save himself.
Why Is It Bad?
Have you ever heard the phrase too many chefs spoil the broth? The film starts off as a nice film about defeating demons and then it just gets silly. Strife with inconsistencies and switching from one dramatic plot element to the next, Constantine shoves as many characters and storylines into the movie as possible so it is bursting to the seams with ridiculousness. With demons, angels, and psychics, oh my, Constantine doesn’t seem to know where it is going or what it wants to say. And for fans of the original character, you will be extremely disappointed (geographically and you know, Keanu Reeves-ally.) It is a romp…an extremely convoluted romp.
Why Is It Good?
Because we don’t expect anything more. Constantine was never going to win any awards nor do we expect much from a comic book movie. It’s either Avengers and Dark Knight or Green Latern and Hornet. Constantine, given the source material and the lesser known character, was always going to sit in the middle. And it is happily lapped up by those who don’t go in taking it seriously. It is a wicked ride with hilarious wit, great moments and surprisingly good acting. For once, Keanu Reeves lack of expression and stony faced “acting” comes in handy because that’s what the role needs (a British accent would have been great but whatever.) Rachel Weiss doesn’t hold back (and is incredible because of it,) Tilda Swinton is brilliant as the androgynous Gabriel and Peter Stormare is the devil; that’s a genius casting as in itself.
Constantine is an adrenaline filled ride and with most drug addled movies, it requires no brain. If you separate it enough from the source then you will enjoy it more. So it may have Shia LaBeouf but you shouldn’t condemn this so quickly. Everyone on this project knows it is no ground-breaking movie or classically renowned like The Exorcist. But, much like Constantine, it is neither evil or good. It’s beautifully neutral and does exactly what you want it to.
TTFN
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