Great action sequences spoiled by almost no character development make Underworld: Awakening a film easy to miss. Awakening manages to pack much of what make the earlier film successful: great fight scenes, dangerous enemies and excellent graphics, but none of the chemistry between characters or fun.

Underworld: Awakenings is set 12 years after the last mainstream film in a world torn by war. The humans, determined to destroy lycans and vampires, have developed powerful weapons to hunt and exterminate them. Using ultraviolet light and variants of silver iodide or projectiles, the enhanced humans are nearly extinct and in hiding. Only a few of the creatures are frozen in hopes of finding a cure to the “disease.”

One of those frozen is Selene (Kate Beckinsale). She is freed by the mysterious subject 2, a strange vampire/lycan hybrid the humans are using for their experiments for genocide. When Selene meets a coven of the very few vampires left all hell breaks loose and a new war breaks out: lycans vs. vampires, and such lycans. Enhanced by hybrid blood the lycans are powerful and, one in particular, is massive.

The plot is derivative, the characters reactions predictable and even the story is just a rehash, something we’ve all seen before. The originality of the Underworld series seems completely gone. Worst of all, the best character, Michael Corvin, didn’t come back for this iteration. There was a feeble attempt at including him but it was just that, feeble. Apparently the actor elected to bolt the series.

I love vampire films, but I truly don’t love this one. The action is good but most of the vampires are pale imitations of the deadly killing machines in former films. There is nothing worse than a wimpy vampire…nothing!

I also felt Beckinsale, certainly hot in her skin tight outfit, was not enough to save the film. Only Theo James stood out in the new Underworld. As David, unfortunately one of the wimpy vampires, he managed to capture my interest and I look forward to seeing him developed in the next movie. Oh yes, there will be another!

One further point: there is absolutely no reason Underworld: Awakenings needed to be in 3D. The film is too dark. I can’t even remember a moment when the technology enhanced the film. 3D for 3D sake is unconscionable.

I want to see the series return to the premier format: original story elements, powerful vampires, great character development and some visceral fight scenes. Should that happen I will be a fan once again. For now, I cannot be.

Rating 1.5 stars out of 5 and a bag of moldy Milk Duds…