DIRECTEDby Francis Lawrence,we have in“ C o n s t a n t i n e ”another comicbook turned into afilm by Hollywood…original,right?In this newKeanu Reevesproject, the actorof “Matrix” fameportrays a rude,selfish chain-smoker who is humanity’sbest and least-interested defense againstthe legions of hell.AFTER killing himself, Constantinegoes to hell for just two minutes until doctorsrevive him – and he doesn’t want toreturn there. So, he figures he’ll buy hisway into heaven with a high enoughdemon body count.Born with a gift he didn’t want – theability to clearly recognize the half-breedangels and demons that walk the earth inhuman skin – Constantine was driven totake his own life to escape the tormentingclarity of his vision. But he failed.Resuscitated against his will, he finds himselfcast back into the land of the living.Now, marked as an attempted suicide witha temporary lease on life, he patrols theearthly border between heaven and hell,hoping in vain to earn his way to salvationby sending the devil’s foot soldiers back tothe depths.THE film doesn’t offer anything new;a man must fight alone against demons,incarnations of evil and plans to destroythe world. And it isn’t too hard to figureout how it all wraps up.However, it is studded with a few goodmoments and original cinematography,and viewers will probably like the film iftheir goal is to have a good time, withoutbig expectations for the plot. And the filmhas a clear lesson – cigarettes are bad foryour health.One thing is certain: this is amongwhat has become a genre of comic booksthat landed on the silver screen, and it willnot be the last; others on the horizoninclude Blade Trinity, Sin City andSpiderman 3, and the list goes on.I give “Constantine” an 8 out of 10.Check the movies section for showtimes and theaters.
