Van Helsing (2004)

Published: December 16th 2025 (week 51 of 2025)

Van Helsing is a fun film from the early 2000s. According to Wikipedia, the film "was not well received by critics". Screw the critics, though. I think the film delivers exactly what one expects from it, and does so completely unashamedly and with gusto.

Do you want action? You get plenty of it. Sure, it is so over the top that at times that it becomes difficult to maintain suspension of disbelief... but then you remember that it is a film with werewolves, vampires, ancient military-industrial sites under the Vatican, Frenkenstein's monster, etc and you go back straight to enjoying the spectacle.

Main ingredient used to make the film, aside from CGI, is the Rule of Cool: as long it looks good it goes into the mix.

Exploding horse-drawn carriages? You bet.

Machine-gun crossbows? Why not.

Leather trenchcoat for the male, and clothes that are more push-up than armour for the female lead? Of course, why is this even a question?

Definitely worth a watch.

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