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Blade: Trinity (2004)
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Movie Review by Nick 
December 8th, 2004
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Comic book fans are often treated to below average films portraying their favorite heroes, and with its first sequel it seemed that Marvel Comic's "Blade" franchise was no exception. Where "Blade" was a fun watch, it appeared the entire series was about to take a downhill ride on the short bus to Judge-Dreddsville after the abominable "Blade 2." The over-use of poor CGI and creature effects took an already weak plot and turned it into 117 minutes of wasted film. Luckily, salvation can come in many forms, and in the case of "Blade," it arrives as "Blade: Trinity." David Goyer, who penned all three films in the series, throws his hat into the ring as director for "Trinity" and the trilogy is better for it. Foregoing a good portion of the sub-par effects that plagued "Blade 2," Goyer presents the viewer with a story that is character driven and relies more on dialogue, but still manages to pack in plenty of action.
In the third and (supposed) final installment into the "Blade" series, Blade must enlist the all-human vampire hunting force "The Nightstalkers" to help save the human race from a vampiric "final solution." Vampire leaders have exposed Blade, portraying him to the FBI as a murderous psychopath and making him an enemy of the same people he protects. While contending with the FBI is a formidable task on its own, vampire forces have also resurrected the dreadful beast that fathered their race, Drake (commonly known as Dracula). Said to have been born perfect without any need to evolve, he possesses something the leaders hope to acquire through his genetic imprint; the ability to exist in daylight, a trait they could use to destroy the "Daywalker" Blade and conquer the world.
Series star Wesley Snipes is sharper than ever as the eidolon-like vampire hunter, showing a grittier, meaner side than he had in the two previous entries, and in a turn for the better the lack of CGI-designed battles gives him a stage to showcase his abundant martial art skills. Kris Kristofferson also reprises his role as Blade's friend and mentor Whistler, and while he still brings his patented brand of gruff to the character that has made it his own, his role is a disappointingly small one.
Joining the cast as Blade's allies- and eating a chunk of his screen time- are Jessica Biel (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) and Ryan Reynolds (National Lampoon's Van Wilder). Reynolds's portrayal of Hannibal King alone makes the film worth seeing with his uproarious, ad-libbed dialogue stealing every scene and pegging him as a comedy superstar of the future, while Biel does exactly what's expected of her as Whistler's tough-as-nails daughter Abigail; she says her lines, beats up vampires and looks beautiful doing it. New to the dark side of the "Blade" universe are independent film queen Parker Posey, WWE wrestler Triple H and Australian actor Dominic Purcell. Posey, as usual, does a great job as Danica Talos, the cold-blooded head vampire, however I couldn't help but feel there may have been a better fit for the role. Triple H appeared to be a direct port of his wrestling persona, and luckily for him, this was exactly what the role of the vampire thug Jarko Grimwood required. Purcell was passable in the role of Drake, and added a needed element of brutality to a particularly ruthless character, although anytime he was on screen I found myself wondering if he couldn't have used a better accent to portray the ancient Sumerian.
"Blade: Trinity" is by no stretch of the imagination a great movie, so if it's the next "Citizen Kane" you're looking for then move along, because you won't find it here. However, for fans of the "Blade" series, "Van Wilder," or even if you're just in the market for a solid action film then "Trinity" should be right up your alley.
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