The Reel Rejects - CONSTANTINE (2005) IS BADA**!! MOVIE REACTION!! First Time Watching!!

Episode Date: June 20, 2025

ONE HELL OF A RIDE!! Constantine Full Reaction Watch Along:   / thereelrejects   Start your online business with a $1 per-month trial when you visit https://www.shopify.com/rejects! With... the DCU heating up, Aaron & John take a trip to the Occult side of the DC Comics world giving their Constantine (2005) Reaction, Recap, Commentary, Analysis, & Spoiler Review!! Join Aaron Alexander & John Humphrey as they delve into Francis Lawrence’s supernatural thriller Constantine (2005), starring Keanu Reeves (The Matrix, John Wick) as John Constantine, a damaged occult detective who can see half-breed angels and demons. Haunted by terminal lung cancer and his failed suicide attempt, Constantine faces down Hellspawn across L.A.’s underworld. When Detective Angela Dodson (Rachel Weisz, The Mummy, The Constant Gardener) recruits him to investigate her twin sister’s death, he uncovers a demonic plot involving the Spear of Destiny and Lucifer’s own son, Mammon. Iconic moments abound: the demonic exorcism in the morgue (“mirror—NOW!”), Constantine’s rooftop standoff with Balthazar, the emotional death of Chas, and the epic finale where Constantine sacrifices himself—slitting his wrists to force Lucifer’s hand—and convinces the Devil himself to save humanity from Mammon, plus, the sleek nightclub mind-read for Papa Midnite’s bar and the Hellscape visual effects showcase the film's cult appeal. Our hosts break down every holy ritual, razor-sharp line, and dark hero’s journey in this horror-drenched DC comic adaptation. Constantine remains a moody, multi-layered action horror that asks: how far would you go to cheat Hell? #Constantine #KeanuReeves #RachelWeisz #TildaSwinton #ShiaLaBeouf #DjimonHounsou #PeterStormare #OccultThriller #MovieReaction #ReactionReview #AaronAlexander #JohnHumphrey #React #Reaction #ReactTo #Movie #MovieReaction #Film #DC #DCComics Follow Aaron On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/therealaaronalexander/?hl=en Intense Suspense by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... Support The Channel By Getting Some REEL REJECTS Apparel! https://www.rejectnationshop.com/ Follow Us On Socials:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reelrejects/  Tik-Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@reelrejects?lang=en Twitter: https://x.com/reelrejects Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheReelRejects/ Music Used In Ad:  Hat the Jazz by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Happy Alley by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... POWERED BY @GFUEL Visit https://gfuel.ly/3wD5Ygo and use code REJECTNATION for 20% off select tubs!! Head Editor: https://www.instagram.com/praperhq/?hl=en Co-Editor: Greg Alba Co-Editor: John Humphrey Music In Video: Airport Lounge - Disco Ultralounge by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Ask Us A QUESTION On CAMEO: https://www.cameo.com/thereelrejects Follow TheReelRejects On FACEBOOK, TWITTER, & INSTAGRAM:  FB:  https://www.facebook.com/TheReelRejects/ INSTAGRAM:  https://www.instagram.com/reelrejects/ TWITTER:  https://twitter.com/thereelrejects Follow GREG ON INSTAGRAM & TWITTER: INSTAGRAM:  https://www.instagram.com/thegregalba/ TWITTER:  https://twitter.com/thegregalba Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:00 This episode is brought to you by Adidas. When the frustration grows and the doubts start to creep in, we all need someone who has our back. To tell us, we'll be okay, to remind us of our ability, to believe, because their belief in us transfers to self-belief and reminds us of all that we're capable of. We all need someone to make us believe.
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Starting point is 00:00:47 You have to have the age legal for consuming the alcohol. Thank you to Shopify for sponsoring this video. More on them in just a bit. It's time for John Constantine. Was that some nicotine gum? He just popped Francis Lawrence. Francis Lawrence?
Starting point is 00:01:14 Who that? Frank Capello doesn't write comics. Francis Lawrence is like the guy who's done the... What am I trying to say? Francis Lawrence has done like most of the Hunger Games, hasn't he? Really? He thinks he's the Hunger Games guy. I don't know.
Starting point is 00:01:27 Yeah. I never heard of it. Let's pull it up real quick. Pull it up, gang. I'm not expecting a post-credits scene in this film, but, you know, and as I type credits into IMDB, which everyone, if credits was an actual, you know, like, thing you could be credited for, then everyone on IMDB would be credited in the credits. It's true. Anyway, dumb joke aside, yeah. Hunger Games, at least, what, catching fire through the mocking Jays and the.
Starting point is 00:01:59 New ones, too. Does this one have a post-credit scene? Let me look that sheesh up. And then we will get some patron questions going. Yes. Supposedly, I mean, Francis Lawrence is attached to like a billion trillion things. I believe Francis Lawrence directed the upcoming, the walk that we watched the trailer for. Oh, that Stephen King movie.
Starting point is 00:02:18 Yes. Gavin Rossdale. Who was Gavin? He's the guy from Bush, the band, Bush. They sing the song, Collessorraine. No. Don't let the days go by Class of rain
Starting point is 00:02:33 And various other 90s jams Bioshock I am legend two Constantine 2 Battlestar Galactica This dude is Steel the How many things is Francis Lawrence tied to
Starting point is 00:02:46 This is ridiculous This does have a post-credit scene Oh Okay Then we will hang tight Director of Red Sparrow as well Okay Okay
Starting point is 00:02:55 And the Britney Spears Circus video The Britney Spears Circus video. Yeah. Just like a circus. That's right. I remember that song. I remember it to. Shout out mid-2000s.
Starting point is 00:03:08 Let's see. Thank you if you've joined us up until this point in the video. We've heard tell there's a post-credit scene. We have. But one of our favorite new rituals at the start of each of these reviews at the end of each reaction. Oh. Is to chat with our patrons, get some feedback, get some questions, a little Q and A. Okay, wait, hold on, Father Hennessy.
Starting point is 00:03:29 Okay, so Balthazar. That makes sense. Gavin Rostale. They would have had to have given, like, yeah, they would have had to have given him some kind of, like, featured role where he gets to make an impression. And that's why fight choreographer,
Starting point is 00:03:41 Chad Stahelsky, too. There you go, John Wigg, right there. Hells, yeah. And he must have maybe doubled Keanu on this, too? I don't know. Well, if you're the choreographer, I don't know if you're necessarily. But anyway.
Starting point is 00:03:51 Doing that, right? Gavin Rostel. It would make sense that they would give him, like, a small part, but that is prominent. and that also what am I trying to say like that's why I kind of like I'm like I know you but I didn't fully
Starting point is 00:04:05 like recognize them but yes okay so let's get into some Constantine questions from the patrons from our Royal Rejects before the post credits scene pops up John and Aaron
Starting point is 00:04:21 for Constantine this comes from Kev B if you could borrow Constantine's I see you dead people and some really cranky angels superpower for a day. Would you actually want to? What's the first thing you'd check out? Your neighbor's creepy basement or maybe the DMV to see if anyone's secretly possessed?
Starting point is 00:04:39 And do you think you'd ever look at your morning coffee the same way after seeing what's really out there? That's quite a, that's quite an existential question. I want to. I don't know if I would want to, but if I had to pick a place to go to, that's an interesting question maybe like a club
Starting point is 00:05:01 like a like a goff club there's going to be fun I was going to say I want to go I'm going to go to two places yeah I let go first to church
Starting point is 00:05:12 okay see if everyone checks out then I'm going to go to the nearest like either dive bar or strip club and see everybody there checks out and see what the irony ratio oh you're dive
Starting point is 00:05:24 you'll be so overwhelmed in Vegas like you get to Vegas and it's already like this movie's version of hell where it's like the winds are going and there's oh my dust everywhere and it's hot and it's hot on hot this is a sea this is or you know what
Starting point is 00:05:39 I'll go to the Maldives maybe there's angels in Maldives in the Maldives okay let's why not why not yeah yeah I mean I would want to go to places I guess that are like sort of also whimsical maybe well I mean but imagine
Starting point is 00:05:55 having the constantine powers and going to like a haunted house attraction or something and then seeing where they're actually secretly real demons lurking and yeah because they didn't so much do the angel stuff unless i want an angel because there's a lot of demons yeah so where the angels are yeah we're already here baby we're in the city angels that's true we are um and yeah i mean i certainly i think the dmv is a good call because certainly there's got to be some demonic shit happening there um because that's the other thing too is like what would you have access to go look at true um who maybe go hang out in a cemetery that'd be neat see who's hanging out that's still around yeah um and then
Starting point is 00:06:35 do you think you'd ever look at your morning coffee the same way after seeing what's really out there um maybe not hell yeah oh chaz oh chaz he's pouring one out for chaz chas cram in 2005 trop bed egg i'm like are these other headstones he did good kid He did do good. Oh, you give him your Zippo. Damn, dude. They're macro lenses. Yeah, love for Chaz.
Starting point is 00:07:04 Oh, come on. Carry us, Chaz. Do the carry. Whoa. Oh, is Chaz an angel? What? Angel, Chaz. What?
Starting point is 00:07:13 With the brows. What? Oh. Fascinating. Okay. Okay. Interesting. Fascinating.
Starting point is 00:07:30 Fascinating. Guys, your last day to watch Constantine is on June the 30th before it leaves Netflix. So make sure that you don't get got caught without your Constantine. But yes, I would not look at my morning coffee the same way again. I feel like I would be thoroughly changed after seeing what's really out there. Although I wonder, I guess my biggest question would be what I'd be seen. surprised or would I be very not surprised? Okay, here we go. Next
Starting point is 00:07:59 question comes from sci-fi extremist. Always holding it down here in the comments. This is generally regarded as a great film by both casual audiences and comic fans alike. Do you think it's proof? Not everything has to be a one-to-one adaptation
Starting point is 00:08:15 from the comics, John being a blonde British guy and they cast Tiano, or is this more of a very rare exception? That's a good question. I was sort of pondering this throughout the movie but let's what do you think i don't think things ever need to be one to one i think as long as it captures the essence of what the character is and they're telling a compelling story i think that's good enough you know people i've looked the movie joker is very well regarded in that movie
Starting point is 00:08:41 at least the first one uh is not at all accurate to the comics um you know as we enter the age of we've not enter we've been in the age of comic comic book films not a lot of them have been that one-to-one adaptation so it's really about the intent and if you're honoring the heart and core what that character is about i think gives you the flexibility in a room to do original stories and maybe things aren't exactly on the page but as long as you're telling something that's compelling give you your character an arc you set up an interesting world have interesting ways of filming said world i think you're um you're on a good track and yeah i don't think it needs we want to want it at all. No, I mean, this is, yeah, this is a good, I think, example of a time
Starting point is 00:09:24 when it doesn't have to be. I think that, you know, nowadays, because the geeks have inherited the earth in a lot of ways, there is, it's not always gatekeeping, but there is a certain sort of reverence that we hold for the source material of things. And this is an interesting case, I think, because, like, yeah, on the one hand, I feel like if you're going to translate some well-liked piece of source material of any kind, whether it be a book or a comic or a game. I think everybody, when they crowd around these things, especially when it's like the first adaptation,
Starting point is 00:09:56 is probably looking for this to be somehow definitive or somehow representative of like the core tenets of whatever the thing is spiritually. And I think, you know, especially in the world of comics or things that have had like a long time to gestate before making this leap to a new medium. Yeah, I think there is a certain level of expectation. But I think this movie, like the thing for me is,
Starting point is 00:10:18 there's only typically so much you can change before the soul of the thing starts to feel like it's not quite there anymore and I don't have the deepest lexicon for something like Constantine other than that he's a blonde British guy rather than Keanu Reeves and yeah like this seemed like a good example of a time when it does really work
Starting point is 00:10:41 because again the energy of the movie is really spot on the cinematography and the editing and the choice of how to move the camera often felt, again, very deliberate, very stylized, but in a way that also felt, again, akin to a comic book. It wasn't like over-edited. It allowed you to kind of drink these images and to really sort of steep yourself into the atmosphere. And I think it was something like Constantine, you're in a kind of nice position because, you know, you can change the specifics of like how the character is articulated again appearance voice
Starting point is 00:11:19 etc but like the core ideas are still there he's a you know supernatural uh detective hunter guy you know a chain smoking miscreant who also happens to be like you know one of our last lines of defense against you know the forces of Satan
Starting point is 00:11:34 and you know there were aspects of this it certainly reminded me of like watching something like blade or whatever uh and yeah this this felt like again just thinking back to the time I was like, this feels like an example of something where it's like, you can grasp what a source material might look like just because this feels, again, akin to a comic or a graphic novel. And I think the troublesome thing is, it's like for me, nothing has to be one to one as long as you do a good job. And like, of course, what does that mean?
Starting point is 00:12:03 How do you math that? It's hard to and you can't. And there are a lot of interesting moments in which people swing for something sort of different than a source material and they wind up far from it or, you know, sort of halfway. passed it or whatever and it doesn't always work and I think you know it's like a good movie will trump anything every time because the worst that'll happen is people go I kind of look at it as else worlds which you know I love an else worlds so yeah like I think yeah you know you don't have to ever be one to one I think there is some level of responsibility especially now it's like the thing is the I think the movies have sort of created this thing where we've gotten used to
Starting point is 00:12:42 because of like adaptations from the 80s and the early 90s of things being very loosely adapted from the source material and the tone being treated as like this is silly and wacky and sometimes that's cool and other times that doesn't help
Starting point is 00:12:56 and I think that has fueled in the modern time a certain adherence to like no we gotta like fully definitively represent these things and I get the argument for doing so especially again when so many things are being adapted for the first time but no this is like a great example of like yeah this is probably like kind of
Starting point is 00:13:12 loose in terms of how it maps over onto like the comic book lore but it's still like a really atmospheric really cool interesting you know well conceived movie that happens to i think have just enough constantine stuff that it doesn't feel like it's not constantine um so definitely not a one-to-one i guess the question is what is the acceptable ratio before we're completely lost in the weeds um so i i wouldn't see necessarily like a very rare exception but a rare exception or a somewhat rare exception i would say this movie is um mike asks and thank you all again for chiming in i love that we do this now um seeing yeah sorry i don't mean to just jump on your gratitude there oh you guys are great i love your questions and they're very interesting and outside the box hell yeah
Starting point is 00:13:56 mike seeing that constantine is comically tied to dc do you think james gunn would lead into the supernatural side of the comics for the silver screen and should they in this new direction i love me some Aeroverse Is there spooky in the Aeroverse? I mean, Constantine's in the Aeroverse. Oh, they did the show for like a season and then what they The show wasn't successful
Starting point is 00:14:20 But people loved Matt Ryan so much That they just put him in all the Aeroverse stuff Whenever they needed Constantine. Yeah, I think the show was originally on like NBC On a different network. It wasn't on the CW and then they like folded him in After a show got canceled. And I think he's been the voice in some of the animated ones
Starting point is 00:14:35 We watched too. He's been like He's the guy. character yeah for a long time um but yeah i definitely think there's room for supernatural in james gun's universe that said i know that james gunn is also doing non-canonical movies within the dc umbrella right and they're going to have an elseworld branch which is where the sequel would kind of take place in that said i don't think they're going to be doing it anytime soon i think they're really focused on their gods and monsters and just establishing their universe but maybe
Starting point is 00:15:08 some time down the line, maybe in their equivalent of a phase two or phase three, we'll get something that is more spooky or more supernatural based. Maybe we'll get Zatana finally on screen. I'm not seen her in a film or television show live action ever,
Starting point is 00:15:24 so that would be cool. Yeah, agree. I think, yeah, I wonder, the Kianu Constantine, too, I have to imagine would be an else world. Definitely. You know, something outside of the main continuity. But I think to the broad question yeah i mean like especially you know knowing that james gun comes out of trauma
Starting point is 00:15:45 and comes out of horror and and and schlock cinema and you know exploitation flicks and stuff like i i both have to imagine that he will take us there and and even stuff like creature commandos and and the suicides like you know there are spooky horror elements that peek in there and i feel like yeah being that he comes from horror stuff uh i i am very very excited to see him open up that side of the universe. And one thing I remember from Coiz and my journey through the DC animated movies is that a lot of the top line Constantine's or the stories that heavily featured him often shot up our list to being some of, you know, our better regarded ones. And there's a lot in those animated movies that they're able to get away with that I wouldn't have expected. And so, yeah, I mean, there's been talk of like, ooh, Justice League dark and other things.
Starting point is 00:16:35 And I feel like it's only a matter of time. They've got to get these universes up and running. I feel like it's a space that Marvel, weirdly, in the MCU, hasn't made a ton out of, even though I feel like they have a fair opportunity to. But in DC, I feel like I associate a darker tone with that and a more, again, as of the animated Constantine's, we've seen, a more demonic and a more, like, messed up kind of vibe. So I feel like if they can get the universe, like, really at cruising altitude and get a few successful movies under their belt, then I feel like you could, A, do something.
Starting point is 00:17:07 stuff like this, do the horror side, the underworld side, the demonic side, the supernatural side. You can make that stuff stuff that isn't as expensive as some of the top line stuff, you know, provide a contrast. And I think all it'll take is getting the universe, again, successful enough that they can then venture out into edgier, more R-rated, more, again, pulp territory. But I think it's coming for sure. And I think it's something that James Gunn would absolutely be interested in leaning into. Kevin Meek, thank you. for chiming in Kevin Meek see you out here we got shoutouts
Starting point is 00:17:41 coming your way John Aron I hope you guys are doing well one of the most painfully underrated comic book adaptations in my opinion yeah I'd agree with that cool to get a rewatch in with you gentlemen they obviously don't pull any punches with the darker side of things here with the news
Starting point is 00:17:57 of us getting a sequel do you think this would be a good addition to Gunn's new DC universe it would be a really stark contrast but I personally think it would work although I would understand the decision not to bring something this dark into the fold what do y'all think we kind of talked about this just a minute ago um but i don't think the contract like the thing is um and tell me if you agree um so apparently kevin got very trigger happy with the comment and must have like sent it before it was completed i don't think
Starting point is 00:18:25 there would be any problem with the contrast because again just judging by the animated movies and the comics themselves like the all these things i feel like in movies yeah kind of get crushed into cubes that have to be PG-13 for the most part not certain things with standing but if you know the deadpoles of the world have taught us anything it's that you know with the right formula
Starting point is 00:18:47 you can kind of go off in any direction and I feel like yeah we want a more we're in a position to be delivered for example a lighter hearted and brightly colored more brightly colored Superman story but like
Starting point is 00:19:03 comics live and die on variety and like watching again the animated movies that we've seen that have some of which in mass were in the same continuity would jump from like we're with the teen titans and like there might be peril but it's a bit lighter and it's a bit more you know youth skewing and then we're you know in the more mid middle tier of pulp with batman or you know superman or whoever and then there is the dark side of the spectrum i think as long as you treat the tones of these universes like a spectrum there's not much you can't do i i think the question here is and and this movie. Is this Raider R?
Starting point is 00:19:38 Yeah. This is Raider R. It's not super hard R. This is like, you know, this is this feels kind of like a blade or like a Punisher's probably a little, the Thomas Jane one is probably a little more, more harsh than this is. But, you know, like this doesn't seem like the kind of movie that
Starting point is 00:19:53 like if you plopped this specific movie into the upcoming DCU, I don't think you would take that much adjusting. I'm going to say yes and no. I think that kind of dig off of what John was saying. I feel like as long as we are having a diverse sense of tones and type of stories we're having, that is what promotes longevity of the DC universe. And I feel like that's very much what James Gunn is trying to do. I don't think he wants things to all feel the same. Like, hell, we're going to have a true detective style cop show with the green lanterns. And then the pinnacle of comic bookness with Superman. And then he made the suicide squad that's super rated R. So I don't think he's,
Starting point is 00:20:35 He's afraid of it not jiving with his universe. I think his more so wanting to start a universe of his own, which is why I say no, this problem, this person of Constantine would probably not be within his universe, but also Counten Reeves is a, even though he is physically ageless, I imagine if they want to fold in a Constantine into the universe. I imagine they'd go for something that is more quote unquote traditional with someone who is blonde and British, you know, and who has the longevity of. a younger man in his like 30s to 40s to kind of play constantine for years to come
Starting point is 00:21:10 as opposed to like a 20 year gap sequel i don't know if he'd be the constantine for like the next 20 years of the dc universe but i'm i'm happy to see him in the sequel that stand alone to just this one yeah um but yeah that's that's kind of how i feel about it watch them just pulling that right you know what you're the one guy yeah we got you figured it out and finally just a comment thank you Stardust and Madness Shouts back out to you OMG, OMG! OMG! No question! I am just so excited
Starting point is 00:21:41 to see another Konstantino reaction. It's one of my favorite Keanu roles and comic book movies too. I kind of kind of agree with you. If I saw this when it came out,
Starting point is 00:21:56 I mean, like, I'm very chuffed. I'd have been scared if I saw this in 2007 five. I appreciate it now as a result. Okay. Well, I'm glad. I'm glad we've come through this character arc that you could enjoy. It was fortuitous.
Starting point is 00:22:07 Yes. At least you waited. I feel like I would have been all about this as if some odd year old. I would have been, I would have been, uh, 10 when this came out of it. Oh yeah.
Starting point is 00:22:18 Yeah. See, I was a teenager. So this would have been right up my alley. Uh, but nah, this was really fun. And this is a great, I've,
Starting point is 00:22:26 it's cool to watch, um, you know, comic adaptations from this time. Because they do have a different sheen and a, different vibe and spirit. And I do think that as much as the 2000s have their own way in which they have aged and shown, you know, their age, I feel like you get stuff like this periodically
Starting point is 00:22:47 that is, you know, blockbuster scale. It's got a big cast. It's punchy. There's lots of effects and stuff. But at the same time, you could really feel like everybody getting creative on it. Like this was a really fun experience. And I'm excited for you to see certain other things. Because, again, it felt maybe not quite as groundbreaking as certain other stuff. But, like, I was thinking about Blade watching this and some other things. And I really do like the comic book multiplied by horror universe aesthetic. And I feel like a movie like this is a great example of, like, man, this has a really strong visual look. It's got a strong sonic palette.
Starting point is 00:23:26 It's got a really strong grip on just being angels and demons and, you know, the occult and religious iconography and all that stuff. It has the tone of some dark, you know, religious horror thriller of sorts, but with that action movie element and it has a lot of, it's like there's not a lot of waste in terms of the visual language. There's a lot of really striking images both in how the camera composes, but also how they use and articulate their effects. This is a movie that looks way better than it should for being in 2005. And this is also a movie where I felt that sort of spirit of like, handmaidness and spontaneity. Like, I know that there's a lot of, again, hands on this and effects, and this is probably a very expensive movie, or to some degree expensive movie. But this really felt like everyone was like, you know, I could feel the creative energy flowing through something like this.
Starting point is 00:24:22 And so even if, you know, maybe not everything is like one-to-one comic book accurate, I thought they really, you know, wonderfully spun their own little world. And I only have like a couple minor complaints as to like what I would have, maybe like to see a little bit more of. And I think Keanu, you know, for a role like this. And, you know, it's well within his wheelhouse. But at the same time, it's always kind of gratifying to be like, yeah, man. Like, I like the Elseworld's Keanu version of Constantine.
Starting point is 00:24:50 And it plays really well to his cadence and his speech. He's able to kind of speak slower and give that sort of like gruff somewhat snart. Like with a gruff, a bit of like seriousness. but, like, just a sprinkling of, like, snark on top of it. Just the right amount of attitude. And, like, again, this played to his strengths really well. And then everybody else around, you know, Tilda Swinton is, like, really making that role, her own, their own,
Starting point is 00:25:19 Peter Stormere for, like, the couple minutes he's on screen as the devil is, like, really fun and wild to behold. And that whole, yeah, that thing where he, like, does the cheek lick, the tongue punch on his cheek real quick, like, just like, and that's stuff that could easily go awry, and Peter Stormair is like a veteran character actor, so like, obviously
Starting point is 00:25:41 you get him for a reason, but like, you know, this feels like a movie where spontaneous things were allowed to happen, even though it's also like surprisingly well composed. And watching this now, I kind of didn't realize that there was so much enthusiasm about this movie, and now
Starting point is 00:25:56 I feel like all of a sudden we've been kind of invited into just like a little side door club Just like, hey, this is it a pretty cool movie? You know? Yeah, man. Yeah, what are you thinking? Rejectation, fun fact for you guys. When we started this channel, we were actually trying to become critics in the newspaper.
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Starting point is 00:27:47 support. So we never feel like stuck for long. So if you've got an idea that you have been sitting on, turn that what if into a why not? And give yourself the best shot at success. visit shopify.com slash real rejects to start your free trial and get one step closer to building something you love that's shopify.com slash real rejects thank you again shopify for not only sponsoring this video but helping us actually grow our now business thank you this uh this definitely felt like a cold classic of of the type of movie that i would have missed as a youth but i thoroughly enjoyed it nonetheless i feel like as an adult i can appreciate it more not only from the horror perspective um of like you know not being scared but from a perspective of someone who's a comic book fan i think that they did a really good job of you know capturing a visual language that was ever interesting there's always something particularly interesting happening on screen whether is the special effects stuff whether it was
Starting point is 00:28:49 just particular camera shots i found it to be ahead of its time in that way where you know I feel like the effects of what they were trying to accomplish were not up to date for where they would be believable and of today's standard. But I feel like the type of storytelling that they were doing, at least the visual effects and how they were able to display them were very 2005. Also, some of the music choices as well. But I think Keanu Reeves did an amazing job with the role in spite of the fact that he's not the traditional Constantine. I thought Rachel Weiss was also really fun in the role as well. And yeah, I think the way that they were able to try to capture this story within a two-hour limit, really, you were able to really understand it. But I feel like this is something that I feel like could have been a TV show if they really wanted it to be, the first season of a show.
Starting point is 00:29:51 You know, I would have loved to see more about his relationship with Chaz or more with his relationship. chas bottle episode please give me more chas chas in the taxi cab for a whole episode just be like john john what am i doing here john john john john what i'm supposed to do out here john damn it john i'm cold yeah we need i don't know we do we i would have liked to have known more
Starting point is 00:30:12 about his relationship with the priest that guy was cool he was cool and i felt real bad for him yeah but i think this movie did a really good job of establishing our our protagonist with canna reeves in that first scene and then Rachel Weiss. That was cool.
Starting point is 00:30:28 That early exorcism was crazy. It was awesome. It was an amazing scene. Then they played with our perception, thinking that Rachel Weiss was having multiple dreams. There was really going back between the sister and, yeah, each sister's perspective. All those stuff was really great. Yeah, I've had a lot of fun with this movie. I think it was pace fairly well.
Starting point is 00:30:48 The only things I would probably change is like maybe the guy with the spear of destiny. could have been more involved or like maybe that could have been a bigger part of the story kind of you said something about racial viz and her being a police officer that could have been like
Starting point is 00:31:04 a little bit extended as well I think they could have done more to slightly make them feel like it's it's kind of a couple things for me I feel like they could have done slightly more to make them feel like co-leads
Starting point is 00:31:16 even though you need Constantine to be the lead he is the top line character but I really liked some of the chemistry that they had I feel like yeah mostly they gave us her dramatic beats and I think it would have helped if we had seen her
Starting point is 00:31:29 I know we see her at crime scenes and with her partner guy but I would have liked to have seen her being like a cop and like seeing the grit of the character as well as the part of the character that's like heartbroken over and sort of bewildered by the death of her sister I liked what she brought
Starting point is 00:31:48 but I could feel like she did more preparation than they gave her in the text and she's not like a small character by any stretch. But like I was thinking about and you'll discover this whenever you see Blade like there's the female lead
Starting point is 00:32:00 in Blade who is kind of our eye line like yeah she's along for the ride a lot of the time and she's involved but like I feel like that movie gave her like a sense of perspective and you could see like a more more facets of the character
Starting point is 00:32:13 present in the movie and more like proactivity not to suggest that Rachel Weiss character isn't proactive but like I feel like they give her a lot of scenes where she's like kind of flustered and tearing up
Starting point is 00:32:25 and there are like a lot of dramatic moments and I feel like there's more to the character that's not being kind of shown to us because again, they bother to make her a cop a detective, you know, she's a badge carrying,
Starting point is 00:32:36 gun-toting, you know, law enforcement officer and I wanted to feel that a little bit more so that when they're in these high stakes physical situations like I can tell Rachel Weiss did that preparation because she carries herself like she can keep up with all that stuff
Starting point is 00:32:51 and I wish the movie made better use of that comprehensively i guess that's a great criticism yeah yeah i think again if we had like an extended i kept forgetting she's a cop no for sure they didn't they didn't treat her that way i never felt like she had any sense of um active active purpose active agency in the film i feel like making her more pivotal to being able to be of some assistance in the land that she's proficient in would have been a better use of her character um but i think i think yeah performance-wise not chemistry but it was really great i liked you know in the the way when we did do it her being like the eye line into his world i feel like even though he was very much the person we
Starting point is 00:33:34 were following um yeah i would i'd have liked to seem more of of constantine like miserable in his relationship with with heaven and hell and his perception on god and his perception on you know where he was going i'd have liked more character stuff in that vein but i feel like a lot of it was you know wrapped into the the plot and then him helping her and we did get some stuff about his feelings of wanting i thought that stuff was interesting about him wanting to go to heaven but knowing his his son his soul was damned and he was doing this so he can get his ticket to heaven i thought that stuff was was cool on paper and i would like to have seen more of that actively from the story i can see that i think it was just enough for me but i i get it and i can imagine
Starting point is 00:34:19 a version that has a heavier element of like what is this way If this was like 2.15 or something like that, then you could do, yeah, like, what does heaven and hell mean to John Constantine and why I think there's a very easy human inroad to like, of course he wants to balance the ledger because who wants to go to hell. But, you know, like, this is a guy who's clearly jaded and who's clearly seen the ugly sides of both. So, yeah, I think there is a lot of expanding and interesting exploration you could do. And again, I think, too, there's some amount of that that the DC animated movies managed unpacking and like, way less time. But yeah, yeah, like this had a good sense of character, even if there are aspects of,
Starting point is 00:35:02 like the feeling of the characters were still engaged, even though, yeah, if there are parts that could have been more fleshed out or more sort of intimately woven. But I think there are some nice times where at least the chemistry between the actors and what's going on in the space between them allows you to extrapolate in a way that's not fully just like,
Starting point is 00:35:22 it's a plot, there's nothing here. I'm just going to make a head cannon, you know. Like that whole scene where they're in the bathroom before he puts her under, there's like so much happening between the two of them. It's fascinating to me. And yeah, there's stuff about that that I'm like, man, I wish we saw more of this in the meat.
Starting point is 00:35:41 But there's also so much happening. Like, again, a lot of my complaints are things that, you know, kind of pale when you think of what we did manage to squeeze. Like, this is surprisingly well done. This is surprisingly good, you know, for where and when it's from. How much? Okay. Oh, no. Let's do you run in tomatoes first?
Starting point is 00:36:00 Oh, no, oh, no, oh, no. What do you think critics gave this movie? What do you think audiences gave this movie? Oh, man, this has been tough lately. I go through patches where sometimes I'm on it. I don't know if the critics would have been that kind of this movie. I feel like maybe we're looking at like a 56% critics and an audience. let's go 66 yeah for satan okay so you said 56 for audiences 56 for critics 66 for audiences okay
Starting point is 00:36:32 you were right in your close not 56 46 46 I was afraid of that and then audiences I highballed it we're 72 72 okay okay fine I mean yeah you know it's a pulp movie it's a B movie I can abide 72 is a low passing grade i think it's better than that but i can see how if you were really brass tacking it you could go there what do you think the budget this movie was god for the time 2005 um the budgets were still kind of getting big 20 years ago um let's go a hundred 10 million dollars production buzz it budget it isn't going to definitive answer but the first thing that pops up is this movie was a hundred million dollars okay sure yeah it says between 70 and 100 million but then that top part says 100 million i could see this
Starting point is 00:37:32 yeah that makes sense to me what do you think it gross worldwide god there's a question for you especially since it's what 20 odd years later we're finally talking about sequel uh 100 $230.9 million. Okay. I'm happy for that. Good for them. Good for them. They at least buy that standard,
Starting point is 00:38:01 hopefully, probably maybe at least broke even and made a little bit of profit on that. Hopefully. Yeah. Maybe enough to hopefully get a sequel soon. Yeah, absolutely. They had to spend all that paying Gavin Rossdale to be there.
Starting point is 00:38:14 But man, just like the attention to detail, I was like wowed by throughout this. I was very surprised. because even that thing like Jamon Honsu like sweating behind the ear I'm like they had to have they had to have chosen to do that
Starting point is 00:38:27 I think so I can't tell like it's and those are great moments when you're like I can't quite tell and I can see how he would just be sweaty but at the same time I almost feel like they did that on purpose you know and the movie is filled with little bits like that and like even close up inserts on objects and stuff like there's so little that feels wasted
Starting point is 00:38:45 or just thrown out there like everything feels so composed that then I start to believe that a bunch of weird little details you know were like sort of yeah tightly script supervised and thus paid attention to apparently Keanu Reeves bought the holy shotgun prop and gave it to director Francis Lawrence as a gift wow holy shotgun badass comment your favorite like on screen cool guns in universe guns the look of hell was based on old footage of nuclear tests specifically the sudden shockwave immediately after the blast
Starting point is 00:39:19 that disintegrated anything in its path, hence the crumbling landscape. At around 40 minutes, according to the director's commentary on the DVD, the rag that Constantine lights on fire to defeat the flying demons is a piece of Moses's shroud given to him by a beeman.
Starting point is 00:39:33 And this is fun. The spear of destiny prop is the same one used in Hellboy 2004. No way! So look at that. continuity. At around one hour and two minutes, Constantine's line in which he says
Starting point is 00:39:45 that he doesn't want Angela to be another ghost following him around as a reference to the comics, he is haunted by the ghosts of friends who have died because of him. Oh, that's a cool little tidbit. The original title, Hellblazer, was changed because it was too similar to Hellboy. The films were scheduled to be released within a short space of time between them, and it was decided that having such similar titles would hurt the sales of tickets.
Starting point is 00:40:07 Therefore, Hellblazer was changed to Constantine. And I think, furthermore, you would get confusion with the Hell Razor franchise. And, uh, yeah, which, you know, just. I think calling it Constantine makes the most sense even though Hellblazer is like a famous at least run right of Constantine's the character of John Constantine
Starting point is 00:40:29 was originally created by Alan Moore during his DC run on Swamp Thing however following his negative experience with From Hell and the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Moore decided to reject all money and credit from his Hollywood on any adaptations of his work
Starting point is 00:40:44 thus he gave all the money he would have gotten to the artist who drew the character with him and rejected his own created by credit from the film. Holy hand grenades were actually Christmas ornaments filled with water and let's see. Let's do there's got to be like a one or two
Starting point is 00:41:00 spoiler guys in here. Spoilies. Let's get spoily ma doily. In this adaptation of Constantine he is destined to go to hell because he attempted to stop being alive by his own accord. In the comic book Hellblazer he is sent to hell due to summing a demon into his body
Starting point is 00:41:18 The demon rebels against Constantine's control and drags a little girl back with him to hell. I think we have seen this adapted in, you know, the DC animated. A life-size replica of Rachel Weiss was made and used as the corpse of Angela Dodson's twin sister, Isabel, whose death seems to be able to have that makes sense. In the original script, Father Hennessy was supposed to die of overheating and getting thinner the more he eats. The scripted death was in his... The name Father Hennessy? Yes.
Starting point is 00:41:45 That's hilarious. That is cruel. that is mean writer that's wild yeah and it was supposed to die of overheating and getting thinner the more he eats the scripted draft was inspired by the character in the first issue of Hellblazer
Starting point is 00:41:59 who died the same way oh golly I can't read too much this is a very intense content movie the character of Father Hennessy is a mixture of three of Constantine's allies from the comic book they are Nige Archer who was a psychic Rick the Vic who was a priest and head
Starting point is 00:42:17 who was a portly substantive user and like Hennessy all are killed for being associated with Constantine and let's see
Starting point is 00:42:26 let's do this last one here oh hey that's kind of fun special features on the DVD reveal that it wasn't really Rachel Weiss in the scene
Starting point is 00:42:39 where her character flies backwards through the building a small replica of her body was made which was then shot backwards through a miniature office
Starting point is 00:42:47 adding light and wind effects. That is pretty crazy. There are also a bunch of weird little like, yeah, hidden Easter eggs and images and like numericals and stuff. This is a really cool. This was a really fun movie. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:43:02 And I had a great time. Comic stuff doesn't feel like this now. And there's a lot of cool comic book stuff now, but watching some of these from this era is making me miss the spontaneity and the real sense of tone and like, again, craftsmanship that, a particular group of individuals came up with rather than this continuum of sleek stuff.
Starting point is 00:43:23 Not to talk that down. There are some great dazzling images that modern stuff gives us. But yeah, this was like, you know, dialed up to 11 just in terms of like intent and craftsmanship and, yeah, energy and chutzpah. So, yeah, even if there are things that could be a little tighter, a little more fleshed out, I was quite enthralled. Yeah, no, this is definitely going up as a classic of the 2000 comic book era for me. I'm happy that I got to finally experience it. Yeah. Hells.
Starting point is 00:43:50 Hells, yeah. Gang, leave us your thoughts on the Constantine motion picture. Do you want part two? What do you want to see in part two? Do you want to see Mike Keanu Reeves, Constantine, and Nicholas Cage Ghost Rider crossover? Yes, please. Featuring variants of both characters played by each other. And then versions of both characters played by Matt.
Starting point is 00:44:13 Mickelson? No, the guy from TV, Constantine. Oh, Matt Ryan. Matt Ryan. We got there. Be well, people. And, uh, you know, don't sell your soul to the devil. Don't do it.
Starting point is 00:44:26 Oh, Eric Horstman. Hey. Back at it again. Let's go. He is here ready to summon a very specific demon to fulfill his own selfish causes. He is summoning the demon. Havataka. Havaktaika.
Starting point is 00:44:46 Havakta. Havatika is a demon who preys on meat eaters. Oh, no. And Eric has summoned him to rid the earth of anyone who feasts off the flesh of animals. So really, this demon is kind of a morally righteous, like superior morality kind of a ego complex. Animal rights demon, which fits perfectly with Eric's way of thinking it. So using this demon, now he's actually a hero. Your demonic benevolence has actually changed the tides of the world
Starting point is 00:45:23 and made the world a better place. See, that cynicism is paying off. Yeah, good-natured cynicism. Moral cynicism. I'm so proud of you, Eric. I'm so proud of you. You have actually been able to change the world by communicating with darkness and death.
Starting point is 00:45:39 Hey. So, dude, you keep staying in this headspace of yours. and I think ultimately you'll be able to do something productive with it. Let's face it, sadness can be comfortable, and I think you thrive in sadness. Do not get help. Do not seek any treatment, just settle with the fact that you are forever going to be this way. Heartbreak feels good in a place like Eric's.
Starting point is 00:46:14 It's really dark It's dark But hey man Eric likes it dark He's a dark little kinky guys Yeah Think of what other demons Eric could summon
Starting point is 00:46:26 Eric could probably like Summing demons up Every Friday night And just like chilling Doing lines like poker Yeah Yeah absolutely Doing lines playing poker
Starting point is 00:46:34 For money Unsankioned by the gaming Commission Price picks Run your game Run you're gay

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