Underworld: Rise of the Lycans

"Every war has a beginning."

2009 1h 32m EN

👍

6.5

SOLID

★6.5TMDB · 4,081

FantasyActionThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A prequel to the first two Underworld films, this fantasy explains the origins of the feud between the Vampires and the Lycans. Aided by his secret love, Sonja, courageous Lucian leads the Lycans in battle against brutal Vampire king Viktor. Determined to break the king's enslavement of his people, Lucian faces off against the Death Dealer army in a bid for Lycan independence.

“Every war has a beginning.”

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Cast

Rhona Mitra
Sonja
Bill Nighy
Viktor
Michael Sheen
Lucian
Shane Brolly
Kraven
Steven Mackintosh
Andreas Tanis
Kevin Grevioux
Raze
David Aston
Coloman
Geraldine Brophy
Nobleman's Wife

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Patrick Tatopoulos
Writers: Danny McBride, Robert Orr, Len Wiseman
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 17 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Underworld Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Patrick Tatopoulos, shot by Ross Emery. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Paul Haslinger. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Eric Potter shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Rhona Mitra and Bill Nighy and Michael Sheen carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Every war has a beginning.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0834001 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Patrick Tatopoulos directs. Ross Emery behind the camera. Paul Haslinger scores. Eric Potter cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 17 years ago.
2Part of the "Underworld Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
3Directed by Patrick Tatopoulos, shot by Ross Emery. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Paul Haslinger. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Eric Potter shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Rhona Mitra and Bill Nighy and Michael Sheen carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Every war has a beginning.".
8IMDB entry: tt0834001 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9The top-rated still from this film on TMDB has multiple community votes — a signal the frame composition stuck with viewers.
10Classified under 14 themes, including "prison", "vampire", "slavery", "castle".
11Released under 10 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Ross Emery
Original score: Paul Haslinger
Editing: Eric Potter
Production design: Dan Hennah
Costume design: Jane Holland
Makeup / hair: Jeff Flitton
VFX supervisor: Vincent Cirelli
Sound: David Farmer
Runtime: 92 min · 1h 32m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $35,000,000
Box office: $92,158,961
Return: 263% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (2009)

Part of

Underworld Collection

A centuries-old war is waged between vampires and lycans (short for lycanthrope, from the Greek 'luk' [wolf] + 'ánthrōpos' [human], or werewolf). It begins with a fifth-century man, the sole survivor of a plague that wipes out his village. Somehow, his body turns the disease to his benefit, and afterward, he ceases to age. After living secretly, he moves often to prevent his immunity to the ravages of time from being discovered, even marrying on occasion. After he fathers twin sons who also inherit his gift, they learn its ultimate price after they become the first vampire and lycan after one suffers a bite from a bat and the other from a wolf. Once they learn they can "turn" normal humans into others like them by inflicting their bites on them, they terrorize the nearby countryside, taking from them either victims or tribute. The vampires ultimately enslave the Lycans until love leads to the Lycans' escape, igniting a bitter war that seems destined to have no end.

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Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2015-10-09
★ 6.5/10
I should have crushed you under my heel the day you were born. Underworld: Rise of the Lycans is the prequel to the previous two Underworld films. It tells the story about what led to the werewolf/vampire feud, with bloody energetic results. In core essence this is Braveheart/Spartacus, only in CGI laden horror/action form. Michael Sheen buffs up into Karl Urban, who as Lucian (bad ass Lycan) leads his species to a bloody revolt, and Kate Beckinsale has made way narratively for Rhona Mitra, who sexes things up. The action is pulse raising and the Gothic designs and atmospherics are first rate, while the battle royale finale is fit to crown any genre film of its type. Problems are evident, though. The constant flow of CGI blood becomes irritating after a while, and Bill Nighy (in spite of being a franchise regular) is still looking miscast! But it has proved to be a series with hairy legs and fangs that refuses to die, a popcorn munchers dream. So enjoy the spectacle and the screenplay homages, and I'll have a bag of tortilla chips and a choc ice please. 6.5/10
EvilWayz2017-07-01
★ 10/10
No idea why the rating for this flick is hovering just above 50"%. As far as prequels go this one is brilliant. The first movie left a lot of gaps in the story, where did Lucian come from, what started the war, how did he get to be the lover of the King's daughter in the first place. While there is a lot of epic battles with the gore that goes with, this movie is easily the best movie in the franchise, which is minor heresy on my part since Kate Beckinsale is the quintessential vampire in my book. Rhona Mitra throws down hard as the rebellious daughter of the King, and her haughtiness and disdain are completely believable to the point we think that Lucian's love for her is unrequited. I can't go into it any more without spoiling the movie but if Evolution let you down a bit, Rise of the Lycans will restore you faith in the franchise.