Hi Mr Cater – I think Benicio de Toro is a wonderful actor too, which is why his performance in this is so disappointing. I did see that 600 Movie Blogs list on Total Films and was extremely pleased to have been included. Glad you like my site and cheers!

Oh, and great site … found you through 600 Movies Blogs You Might Have Missed (which, if you didn’t know where on there, you are).

‘Nothing wrong here that a silver bullet couldn’t fix.’

‘Not so much howlingly bad as it is disappointingly lifeless.’

‘Decent production values and makeup can’t compensate for the dramatically inert text, made worse by banal dialogue even gifted Del Toro can’t help, and helmer’s little understanding of the genre, the anxiety, fear, fun it has offered viewers for decades.’

And my fave:

‘Congratulations Universal – you made Van Helsing 2.’

Also, don’t defend a movie you haven’t seen yet.

I think you’ll find that most critics do have more clout than me so don’t let my review spoil your enjoyment.

Cheers
Thomas

Hopefully I’ll enjoy it with the lowered expectations.

Just to answer Matt’s earlier question – the fact that Abberline had been involved with the Jack the Ripper case is briefly mentioned once but not referred to again. It sounds like there may have been a subplot that was developed but then left out of the finished film, which is a shame as I would have liked to have seen a lot more of him.

I guess its just a matter of taste in the material. Other reviews have called it immensely entertaining, anchored by 4 great performances.

Oh well. What were some of the positives, in your opinion, if that’s too much to ask?

Sam – why on earth would I choose to hate a film? I do what I do because I love cinema and I’m always open to what every film has to offer. If you read more of my writing you’ll discover that I usually do look for the positives but in this case I really struggled and therefore responded as I saw fit. With any luck you’ll enjoy the film immensely and you can dismiss my opinions as simply a difference in taste. But in the meantime please don’t get upset with somebody’s review about a film that you are yet to see.

It’s also odd, considering the other positive reviews the film has garnered from Austrailian and French critics, who are hard to please.

I just think this is something you chose to hate, and didn’t want to enjoy.

I’d rather have a critic be absolutely honest when reviewing a movie, particularly one that has so much anticipation behind it. After all, I’m sure that the majority of moviegoers would be more offended by some sell-out movie critic who constantly produces blurb-friendly movie reviews without so much as one objective criticism.

Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions. It’s a bit shocking to read that even the accomplished Walter Murch couldn’t make the film more expertly paced with his editing skills. How long would you say that the running time is without the credits? Slightly over an hour and a half?

I’m guessing that, since Joe Johnson mentioned having to cut seventeen minutes of the film in a recent interview, the pacing consequently suffered. I believe there was also a small subplot about Hugo Weaving’s character being involved in the case of Jack the Ripper, unless it’s still mentioned in the movie to an extent…

Thanks again!

I’m starting to feel like a bit of downer for reacting this way towards a film that so many people seem to be anticipating so enthusiastically but I had to call it as I saw fit.

Chaplin’s performance is fine but her part is so small that she doesn’t get much room to move. I’m usually a big fan of Elfman but I didn’t even realise that he had scored this film until I saw his name in the end credits. It’s a fairly unremarkable score but adequate.

Cheers
Thomas

Just out of curiosity, what did you think of Danny Elfman’s score? Furthermore, how is Geraldine Chaplin’s performance as the gypsy lady? From the pre-release clips, her performance struck me as quite intense…