Plot: What’s it about?
Taking a trip back to 2005 we find a post-Matrix Keanu Reeves. Reeves already had nearly two decades of acting experience behind him and with hits like Point Break, Speed and The Matrix on his resume he didn’t exactly need to audition for roles. And so we find our favorite Canuck donning the role of John Constantine, an adaptation of the popular comic from the DC “Vertigo” universe. Bear in mind this was the mid 2000’s and comic book films weren’t nearly as commonplace as they are today. Oddly this came out the same year Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins did, so it was a good year for the DC comic universe. Having been a reader of comic books in my earlier days, I was familiar with Vertigo, but not Constantine in particular. So what does this wine-guzzling, cigarette smoking demon killer have to offer us? Let’s dive down into the bowels of hell and find out.
Reeves plays the titular character of John Constantine, a man born with the ability to see ‘half-breeds’. These are angels and demons that walk the earth trying to influence the behavior of us mere mortals. Constantine was so disturbed by these and chose to end his life and being a Catholic, that means you go straight to hell without passing “Go.” Heaven didn’t want John and neither did Hell, so he was given a second chance at life. He’s spent that “gift” fighting off demon half-breeds in an attempt to win his way into heaven. Enter Angela. Dodson (Rachel Weisz) who’s twin sister Isabel (also Weisz, obviously) claimed to see demons. She was summarily committed to a psych ward and jumped to her death a short time later. Angela, however, isn’t buying this. She wants Constantine to find out if her sister is in Hell and, if so, what drove her to death.
There’s a lot going on in this film and I think that why I was initially detracted from it. It just seemed too “busy” for lack of a better term. But taking a different approach to this now, I think it’s one of the more under-appreciated comic book adaptations. Was it ahead of its time? Did it get lost in the shuffle with Batman Begins? Were we sick of Keanu Reeves or just waiting for him to become John Wick? Regardless of why this did or didn’t work it ultimately doesn’t matter. This was the feature film debut of Francis Lawrence, someone who’d made a name for himself directing music videos. He’d go on the next year to direct another favorite of mine – I Am Legend. Regardless of your personal thoughts on the film, I can say that taking a new approach (and a couple of decades) has given me a new appreciation for it.
Video: How’s it look?
I’d forgotten how visually intense this movie is/was. And it’s beautiful. Oddly, both Reeves and Lawrence (on the new feature) go into some pretty good detail about how the film was shot, its use of color, chiaroscuro (the balance between dark and light which, oddly, works here). This new 4K disc gives us increased depth, color and resolution and the result is simply stunning. The 2.39:1 HEVC 4K image is simply flawless. The blacks are super deep, the visual effects seem to pack even more of a punch and flesh tones (if you can call them that) are spot on. This movie has never looked “bad” by any means, but this is – far and away – the best the film has ever looked.
Audio: How’s it sound?
If ever there was a film that was tailor-made for a Dolby Atmos soundtrack – it’s this one. Every speaker you have will be used and often. It’s that engaging. I hope to never hear what it sounds like when demons from hell are flying around me, but if and when I do I’ll use this Dolby Atmos mix as a point of reference. Vocals are strong and it’s notable how many octaves higher Keanu Reeves’ voice is just a couple of decades ago. Not that it matters. Surrounds create a dizzying atmosphere that had me turning my head in every direction. My neck hurt afterwards. Kidding aside, this track is just hit after hit after hit with each passing moment. It’s a true testament to how good films can sound. I’m at a loss for words.
Supplements: What are the extras?
Most of the legacy content from the previously-released Blu-ray has made the leap to the 4K disc. I wasn’t able to find the trailers, the music video or the In-Movie Experience (that feature never really caught on). But we do have a new supplement with Keanu Reeves and director Francis Lawrence.
- Commentaries – Two that cover very different aspects of the film.
- Audio Commentary – Francis Lawrence and Akiva Goldsman deliver a more technical commentary track. The duo (director and producer, respectively) obviously comment on things like production design, casting and so forth.
- Audio Commentary – Kevin Brodbin and Frank A. Cappello are both screenwriters and, as such, their track is a bit more lively. They focus on bringing the comic to “life” (pardon the pun), some of the various drafts and how the entire scope was visualized for the screen.
- Two Decades of Damnation – It’s always nice to see a new feature on a film that’s two decades old. In this new segment, Keanu Reeves (in full John Wick attire) and director Francis Lawrence hash over some of the details of the movie, they recall different scenes, working with Rachael Weisz and so forth. I don’t know what it was, but Keanu Reeves sounds…different. Then again maybe I just expect him to sound like he did in Point Break all the time.
- Channeling Constantine – A look at Reeves and what he brought to the role of the comic book character.
- Conjuring Constantine – This focuses on the path that the comic took to get to the screen. We find some origins, a bit of history on the character and more.
- Director’s Confessional – Director Francis Lawrence tells us of some of his worries being a first-time director, we learn of his history in making music videos and the like. Relax Francis, you did fine.
- Holy Relics – Admittedly, I’m not as up-to-date on my holy relics as I should be, but thankfully we get this brief feature that tells us of some of them used in the movie. What happened to wooden crosses?
- Shotgun Shootout– Pretty much that. We get an in-depth look at the battle with Reeves’ character and his weird shotgun-type thing.
- Hellscape – I hope to never see what hell looks like (as would most of us), though we get a pretty good indicator as to what it might with this feature.
- Visualizing Vermin – Much in the same vein as the above feature, we get a crash course in how the Vermin were realized with their chopped off heads and “eyes” (if you can call them that).
- Warrior Wings – If you’ve always wondered what it’d be like to have angel wings, we get a look at how they were created for this film.
- Unholy Abduction – This is essentially a scene breakdown where Angela gets dragged through walls. That’s the way I want to go.
- Demon Face – Like the above, we get a look at how some of the effects were used to give us that unholy look.
- Constantine’s Cosmology – Author John Cousineau gives us his input on the character of John Constantine and how Reeves was “right” for the role.
- Foresight: The Power of Pre-Visualization – Shown with optional commentary from Francis Lawrence, we get some A/B comparisons from the rough footage to the completed scene with and without the visual effects.
- A Writer’s Vision – Rounding out the special features we have this self-explanatory feature that gives us some more insight into the final product.
- Deleted Scenes/Alternate Ending – Presented with or without commentary from Lawrence, we get 18 minutes’ worth of scenes (in varying degrees of completion) as well as an alternate ending.
The Bottom Line
Constantine is one that I’d forgotten about. When you’ve got an actor like Keanu Reeves who’s been in so many high-profile films, some are bound to get lost in the mix. This, for me, was one of them. Two decades later have given this film new life (pardon the pun) and Warner’s new 4K disc has given us better audio and video as well as a new supplement. What’s not to love?
