Northern Mexico: a peasant, while digging, finds a mysterious spear wrapped in a Third Reich flag. Immediately after grabbing it, he is hit by a car at full speed, but despite this, he survives the accident and begins a long journey, bringing death with him... Los Angeles: John Constantine is a pale man in his thirties, always dressed in black, facing a serious problem: since he has been smoking thirty cigarettes a day since the age of fifteen, he is about to die of lung cancer. Constantine is right to fear death, because after attempting suicide, he has already been to Hell for two minutes before being saved by his rescuers. Back to life, he has chosen to become an exorcist in the hope of being forgiven for his mortal sin, but this vocation has made him particularly disliked by the demons who await him in the Underworld with open arms: it is said that Lucifer himself (Lou to his friends) would be willing to ascend to take his soul at the moment of his death... Unfortunately, John, despite doing a socially useful job, is not very loved even in the higher spheres of Heaven, so much so that the archangel Gabriel has informed him that for him the Gate will always remain closed. A bit depressed by the situation, Constantine is involved in the usual case of routine, the suicide of a young psychic, only to discover that the balance on Earth, long agreed upon between Hell and Heaven, could soon be disrupted... "Constantine" is the latest in a long series of cinematic adaptations of famous comics, a genre that began years ago with "X-men" which has produced great successes but also resounding flops; in this case, the DC Comics series from which the film is taken is "Hellblazer". Despite the artistic level of these films being more or less equal to that of feature films based on video games, which is low, "Constantine" proves to be a really good film, which surprises the viewer with the quality of the direction, photography, acting, and an unusual originality of the screenplay for a film of this "genesis", also permeated with a biting irony. John Lawrence, the director, from the very beginning demonstrates having not insignificant technical qualities, skillfully using the "bullet" effect of time slowdown on more than one occasion, but never out of place as in other films of recent years. The choice of certain fixed shots with slow times combined with very fast action is truly praiseworthy. The livid photography of the film helps the director's work: Los Angeles is not the usual sunny capital of California but a city perpetually shrouded in darkness, where it seems to have just stopped raining (the streets are almost always wet), and the cold colors (green and blue in particular) reinforce this impression. The night view of the city is contrasted by the yellow and livid brown of the day, giving an image of American and Mexican California similar to a desolate land of Joycian memory. The (very evocative) vision of the parallel infernal dimension is instead dominated by intense red, reminiscent of post-nuclear apocalyptic landscapes. Unfortunately, the CGI is not always at the level of the photography and visual effects. Also interesting are the clear references to past cinema, particularly to "The Exorcist" and "They Live," whose spirit pervades the entire film. Many fans have criticized the choice of the slender Keanu Reeves for the role of Constantine, as the actor was considered not conforming to the physical ideal of the Marvelian protagonist, but after seeing the film, one cannot say that such a gamble was not won, because Reeves proves to be very skillful in building his character even from small gestures, such as the games with the zippo (of decidedly enormous dimensions...) before lighting the cigarette, or in the deep nihilism that animates John and naturally emanates from his behavior as an antihero (in fact Constantine reminds the famous disillusioned and cynical detectives like Marlowe), but also from a physical point of view: in this film, Reeves indeed appears more emaciated and tired than usual, which makes him much more credible for the role. Apart from Reeves, the entire cast proves to be up to the task, particularly his "sidekick," the young apprentice Chas (Shia LaBeouf), very likable and perfect complement to the sulfurous figure of the "non-orthodox" exorcist. In conclusion, "Constantine" turns out to be a very engaging film from a visual point of view, smooth and well-structured, imbued with an iconoclastic sarcasm towards "traditional" religion (represented by the hateful Gabriel...), in one word: fun! Some fans of more extreme horror will be disappointed by the lack of "strong" scenes and gore, but the film is fine as it is and the viewing is definitely recommended.
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