The Last Witch Hunter Review
RYAN: This is a Halloween action film and I’m thrilled to see a movie featuring witches, when so many seem to tell the story of other kinds of monsters. I love the mystical notion of witchcraft and the fantasy of good vs wicked witches – and that’s a highlight in this film. They make reference to Oz and Salem but built their own mythology and lore around this breed of witch. But… it’s a Vin Diesel movie. And sadly, it’s not his best performance. I liked him so much in Furious 7 earlier this year. I had the greatest of hopes for him here and… not so much.
MICHAEL: He’s not a good actor. The role in this film calls for a man with the wisdom of 800 years and in what universe are you casting that and think – Vin Diesel! No. Maybe Ryan Gosling or someone cooler who can actually act and look wise. When he’s on screen with Michael Caine in this film, Michael is so much more commanding than Vin.
RYAN: That’s true. It’s an unfortunate casting for this.
MICHAEL: He really was bad, especially as an actor reacting to other actors. I was watching him while other actors had lines and he’s just blank.
RYAN: I think he committed to the role but he just doesn’t have the chops for this. It is an action film and he plays the badass really well but you’re right. Some of his lines were cheesy when another actor would have made them more cool. I liked this movie – it’s fun and the story is great because there’s a witch hunter to as it turns out, becomes the hunted. Not giving anything away, but that’s a cool plot. And all of the magic in the film is enjoyable. I love that stuff. The magic effects were better than the big, action effects.
MICHAEL: The CGI was pretty behind the times. A lot of it reminded me of The Mummy. But this whole movie is a direct parallel to the movie Constantine, which was better in almost every way. This movie is a clone. Those are February movies though. It doesn’t make sense this is coming out during this time of year.
RYAN: It’s a good Halloween option. I’d being seeing it now, anyway, because it’s fun to see a witch movie in the spirit of the season.
MICHAEL: It’s not scary.
RYAN: It’s not a horror film. Some of the witch characters look creepy, especially for younger kids. But it’s not trying to be a scary film. It’s a Halloween, action, fantasy film. It starts out looking like Lord of the Rings and then jumps to modern day. They did a good job with the older part of the film.
MICHAEL: As far as the witching went, there are men and women witches and I would have liked to see them look witchier.
RYAN: They are supposed to have integrated with society but I will give you that the over style and costuming should have been way punched up. That’s a major missed opportunity in this movie. Even for the casual clothes, it should have had more style to chicness to it.
MICHAEL: Elijah Wood gets introduced early on and he’s the character you identify with but they he disappears for much of it. That made it uneven for me.
RYAN: I agree. The same, story-wise, with Michael Caine. There was a kind of episodic feel to Vin’s character’s experience. He’s unraveling a sort of mystery but it’s not clever enough to keep you on your toes. Elijah and Michael elevated the film though.
MICHAEL: Definitely. I wouldn’t have liked it without them. Even they were not at their best in this.
RYAN: If you enjoy witches like I do, the lore and mythology is fun to see in this – but after a brilliant creepy film like Crimson Peak just came out last week, it’s a hard sell for a movie like this which is a B movie in comparison.
MICHAEL: This is an okay midnight movie. I love this genre of stuff but not this one as much.
RYAN: I’m surprised with you because you rave about movies that are far worse than this!
MICHAEL: That’s true. It’s just too late for this. It’s too deviated of other things I’ve seen.
RYAN: That may be but for the kids who haven’t seen all the movies you and I have, this is a fun experience. It’s certainly not the most original out there and whereas Crimson Peak is a must see in the theater, this one could be enjoyed later at home.
