'Underworld: Rise of the Lycans' kind of bites in some aspects

Of all the vampire romances to have come out recently, "Underworld: Rise of the Lycans" is by far the least sappy. In this latest outing in the "Underworld" universe, forget about long built-up romances; love is just a good justification to rip things apart when everything goes wrong. I guess it is up for the viewer to decide if this is for better or for worse.

The "Underworld" universe tells the story of two conflicting races of immortals: vampires and werewolves (called Lycans). Instead of continuing the series, the third "Underworld" movie is a prequel set in medieval times and designed to expand upon some of the back story of the previous two movies. At this point in the mythology, the Lycans are enslaved by the ruling class of vampires, which becomes an issue in the movie when Lucian (Michael Sheen) starts seeing himself as the Moses for the werewolf species. Things are further complicated by the fact that Lucian is having a secret affair with Sonja (Rhona Mitra), a vampire, who is also the daughter of vampire kingpin Viktor (Bill Nighy).

The most noticeable difference between "Underworld: Rise of the Lycans" and its predecessors is the absence of Kate Beckinsale as lead vampire Selena (whose character is not alive during the time period). Rhona Mitra does an admirable job taking up the lead female role, but Beckinsale's commanding presence and skin tight outfits are definitely missed. This being said, Rise of the Lycans is better produced, directed and acted than the previous two installments. Some of the actions sequences were impressive as well, such as seeing the Lycans attempting to flee the vampire fortress while being the main focus of the vamp's artillery. Another plus for the movie is having the leading role go to Michael Sheen is who is an actor quickly rising up on Hollywood's popularity list.

In the end what "Underworld: Rise of the Lycans" suffers from the most is the lack of freshness of the original, and no real surprises for someone already familiar with the mythology. Every part of the romance between Lucian and Sonja was already told in the first movie with nothing deeper added. For anyone with no previous knowledge, this might actually seem like a better movie. So despite some better acting, "Underworld: Rise of the Lycans" lacks the youthfulness that made the franchise originally appealing.