A hunter, a vampire, a pirate, a invisible man, an immortal, a mad scientist, and a famous American troublemaker are about to make the most unlikely of teams. Allan Quatermain is a legendary hunter who’s exploits such as finding King Solomon’s mine have made him famous in his home country of England, but because of a previous exploit gone bad he has forsaken his country and lives happily in Africa. But when a new threat arises that could endanger the entire world his country calls upon him once more to lead a group of extraordinary men to combat the new evil. The Phantom has brought the world to the brink of a world war with new inventions such as tanks and automatic weapons, all in an effort to sell his new arms to the highest bidder. So now it is up to M the top British official to recruit a team that is special and has a chance to beat the Phantom. Mina Harker is a woman that in her search for the legendary Dracula not only cost her, her husband’s life but also turned her into a vampire. Captain Nemo is a famous pirate with his legendary ship the Nautilus whom is now trying to redeem himself. Rodney Skinner is a thief who took an invisibility potion to help him in his trade but now lacks the cure and is stuck indefinitely invisible. Tom Sawyer is the famous American troublemaker all grown up now who helps out the team and finds himself a offer to join the team. Dr. Jekyll is a scientist that invents a formula that turns him into a monster Mr. Hyde. And Dorian Gray’s past is a mystery but he is also an immortal who can vastly help the team. So these extraordinary gentleman set off on a journey to save the world before its too late and to help redeem their somewhat shady pasts.

Based on the comic by Alan Moore the comic and this movie incorporate some of the most famous of literary characters of all time, even the villain in the end turns out to be a famous literary villain. I doubt many of the people who see this movie will get a lot of the side jokes and humorous literary references like that of Moriarty but they made me laugh as it seems this movie had fun trying to fit in as many references as they could. The best though has to be Rodney Skinner who was not only the comic relief but the special effects on his power of invisibility was jaw drop dropping awesome and wonderfully done. And even the effects for Mina Harker’s transformation to a vampire were better than in any vampire movie I have ever seen, and the makers of such stories might want to take notes. The story seemed a little hurried at times as it seemed like they tried to fit in too much in a two hour time span but well worth the journey. The movie moves from one action sequence to the next in one great special effects sequence after another. You come away drooling over the possibility of a sequel since now that they have done the back-story for all the characters they could now just dwell on their adventures. If you enjoy classic literature or you enjoy a good action movie with eye appealing special effects this is the movie for you as the movie had a little of everything including a spectacular end sequence that included some of the best fight sequences in any movie released in recent history.
4 stars out of 5