MOVIE - THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN - Review Rating $$$1/2 (OUT OF 10)

STARRING - Sean Connery (Allan Quatermain), Naseeruddin Shah (Captain Nemo), Peta Wilson (Mina Harker), Tony Curran (Rodney Skinner), Stuart Townsend (Dorian Gray), Shane West (Tom Sawyer), Jason Flemyng (Jekyll and Hyde) & Richard Roxburgh (M).

DIRECTOR - Stephen Norrington (Blade, The Last Minute, Death Machine)

Based on the comic book mini-series by Alan Moore.

I had very low expectations going into The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen based on the previews. Often, in such instances, the movie will turn out to be a pleasant surprise and exceed your low expectations. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, unfortunately, is so bad that it failed to meet, let alone exceed, my low expectations.

The premise of the movie is that some of literature's most famous characters join forces, in an intellectual version of the Fantastic Four, to save the world. While the characters may have come from literary masterpieces the script certainly didn't. In fact I can't remember one intelligent insight. There's also an almost complete lack of character development as well. Like Allan Quatermaine (Connery) I'm still "waiting to be impressed".

This fictional tale, unlike the story in Pirates of the Caribbean, is a highly contrived rehashing of the notorious villain scheming to take over the world. Aiding and abetting the lack of believability of the plot is a striking lack of attention to getting the details right.

In one scene, Quartermaine and Sawyer (West) are chasing Hyde (Flemyng) across the rooftops of Paris. Despite blasts from Quartermaine's shotgun and the stomping of Hyde (who's as large as the Hulk) not even one citizen awakens and gawks out the window. Incredible, yes... believable no. The same things occurs as Venice is being blown up.

The special effects aren't extraordinary either. The blowing up of Venice is so obviously a miniature set that it's almost unintentionally funny. The 21st century version of the Nautilus is singularly unimpressive and pales in comparison to the sub featured in the 1954 film 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.

Sean Connery, who does manage to instill some swagger into the Quatermaine character, is the only bright spot in this otherwise dismal production.

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen...isn't.

Alternative Reviews:

Roger Ebert's Review

Rotten Tomatoes Reviews

Peter Traver's / Rolling Stone Review

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Official Web Site

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