HOLLYWOOD—What can one say about “The Last Witch Hunter?” Well if you’re looking for a horror flick, this isn’t the one you should be choosing. In addition, the idea of hunting witches seems to be barely present in this movie.
The action-flick, as I like to call it stars Vin Diesel as Kaulder, a witch-hunter who has been cursed with immortality. Some would argue that’s a wonderful gift to have, but for Kaulder that is not the case. He acts as a buffer between the humans and the witches.
What is beyond frustrating watching “The Last Witch Hunter” is the impression that this is more of a mythological journey flick than a movie about hunting witches and taking them out! If you think you’re watching a movie that will have elements of the “Harry Potter” franchise you will be greatly disappointed. The movie doesn’t give actors Michael Caine, Rose Leslie or Elijah Wood much to do, but follow Kaulder’s character around for a mission that seems unending at times.
The one thing “The Last Witch Hunter” has for it are some neat special effects here and there, but nothing that can pull this flick from landing in one of those bins of movies that you never want to watch even on a super boring day. I hate to say this, but Vin Diesel has been typecast as an actor. I have trouble seeing him in any other flick beyond the “Fast and Furious” movies and that is a shame. Why? Did you see the actor in Steven Spielberg’s war drama “Saving Private Ryan?”
He has acting chops, but the writing in this flick gives the actor no direction to work with. If I’m watching a movie about witches I expect to actually see some witch-like things occur. I expect to see some epic battles between villain and hero. I expect to hear dialogue that doesn’t come across stilted and stale. I expect a movie to be somewhat watchable.
With 2015 coming to a near end, I might have to rank “The Last Witch Hunter” as one of the worst movies I’ve seen so far this year. Halloween is indeed upon us, but this is a flick that delivers as many scares as a watching a tree in your front yard shed its leaves.
