VIGILANT gargoyles and ferocious demons are locked in bitter conflict. The gargoyles led by their queen, Leonore (Miranda Otto), capture a monster created by Victor Frankenstein (Aden Young) and christen him Adam (Aaron Eckhart).
The hideous creation refuses to join the gargoyles and instead roams free, slaying demons across the centuries using weapons given to him by Leonore and her valiant commander Gideon (Jai Courtney).
Adam is repeatedly targeted by Naberius (Bill Nighy), one of the original fallen angels, who now leads the demons in their bid to bring eternal darkness to the world.
This is one of the first screen versions inspired by Mary Shelley's classic text in which the scientist's monster is a dreamboat, implausibly fashioned from the corpses of eight hunks. The simplistic plot in writerdirector Stuart Beattie's script is complemented by two-dimensional characters for whom we feel nothing.
The filmmaker's intention that we cheer for Adam and the gargoyles and boo-hiss the dastardly demons comes to naught.
Instead, we're left with unintentional humour and a blitzkrieg of digital effects that, blissfully, only bombards our retinas for a smidgen over 90 minutes. Be thankful for that small mercy.
DAMON SMITH
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here