The Last Witch Hunter

Robert Murphy

Fantasy movies are a tricky beast to maneuver around because so many directors just assume you can throw some monsters at the screen and have an epic hero come in and save the day to make the whole thing work. The movies are not taken too seriously most of the time, despite the growing popularity of science fiction, but what is clear is the care that went into the latest fantasy film to garner my attention The Last Witch Hunter.

Now despite following many of the fantasy tropes I just laid out Kaulder (Vin Diesel) is still a charming superhuman style character that graces the movie viewer. He is the last of the original Axe and Cross witch hunting members, cursed with eternal life after he and the rest of his party put an end to the Witch Queen (Julie Engelbrecht) centuries ago. Now he has spent the years continuing his efforts to prevent any new threats of witches uprising and trying to conquer the world, protecting humanity for all this time and doing with a half cocked smile across his face. Diesel is exactly the type of character you want at the forefront of this style of film as he helps suspend some of the disbelief that viewers have going into it. It is exactly the same thing you want when you're making an action movie, there are unbelievable car chases, explosions and female encounters that would make your eyes role but with a strong lead behind it you just don't care and that's exactly what Diesel does here. 

This isn't to say that the action or the special effects that went into The Last Witch Hunter aren't top notch. Being an obvious fantasy dork means that I love when a movie finds a new way to bring out something I have seen before and believe me I have seen plenty of witch stories before this one. In a modern age however they blend in a more unique way, modern witches can practice magic and are regulated by Kaulder as well as the Axe and Cross to keep them from harming humans. This means that they use magic for things like making mind altering cupcakes or running hookah bars like our female protagonist Chloe (Rose Leslie). She and Kaulder share a bit of a romance throughout the film that is thankfully not overdone, they like each other and everyone knows it so let's leave it at that basically. This style of self explanation transfers over to the magical elements of the story, Kaulder explains a few minor details but everything is presented in a manor in which the audience figures it out quickly on there own so the movie doesn't have to.   

It also helps that Kaulder has been a round the blocks a few times though, actually more than a few as one his lines in the movie indicates just how old he is by calling his Dolan Ellic (Michael Caine), watcher and keeper of Kaulder's exploits, a kid or going off about being around when the first block of the Axe and Cross's hideout was laid. This leads him to be extraordinarily cocky when it comes to life and dealing with witches because nothing can really challenge him. The story will eventually point out though that he has more than a couple weaknesses to exploit as powerful witches plot to bring back their queen. But, until you get to see her again you are left with her lesser underlings which don't fill the time between the queens second coming. 

The man pulling the strings, Belilal (Olafur Darri Olafsson) has some impressive magic at his disposal but his motives remained unclear for the entirety of the story, he showed up to smack Kaulder around and stop him from interrupting his plans and that was it. It's capped off by the fact that he is ultimately dealt with in a simple manner and makes you question why Kaulder couldn't defeat him in the first place. From here the rest of the story gets exceedingly rushed over as it makes it's way to the finish line by pumping out some quick action and adding a weak twist right before the movie ends. It's at this point that you start to realize that the narrative runs a bit too thin when everything is all on the line and this includes adding dialogue that suggest a possible sequel to the story. But, despite this the majority of The Last Witch Hunter's story remains grounded on what it sets out to do and accomplishes it quite well. 

Like so many other fantasy tales The Last Witch Hunter should count it's blessings and be considered just what the title implies "the last." Vin Diesel is set perfectly in his role as a swarthy former viking, living his life as an immortal witch hunter, and he even gets a happy ending out of the deal. The magic and special effects are also brought out in a new and interesting way that is touched on ever so lightly and doesn't not need lengthy exposition to fill in the details. This works well for most relationships the story offers up to Kaulder as well with Michael Caine and Rose Leslie playing well with Kaulder's charms. So, even if it is a tale with a similar tune to others you've seen, it is still one you will enjoyed listening to even now.

Good:

- Vin Diesel as Kaulder

- Secondary character such as Caine and Leslie

- Magic is presented in a unique and simple way

Bad:

- Flat villain for a majority of the film

- Story runs on empty at the very end

Scully Rating: 6.8 out of 10