Context Clues 6
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VAN HELSING / *** (PG-13)
May 7, 2004
There have been countless movies uniting two monsters ("Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man," "King Kong vs.
Godzilla," etc.), but "Van Helsing" convenes Frankenstein, his Monster, Count Dracula, the Wolf Man, Igor, Van
Helsing the vampire hunter, assorted other werewolves, werebats and vampires, and even Mr. Hyde, who as a bonus
seems to think he is the Hunchback of Notre Dame.
The movie is like a Greatest Hits compilation; it's assembled like Frankenstein's Monster, from spare parts stitched
together and brought to life with electricity, plus lots of computer-generated images. The plot depends on Dracula's
desperate need to discover the secret of Frankenstein's Monster, because he can use it to his countless offspring to
life. Because Dracula (Richard Roxburgh) and his vampire brides are all dead, they cannot give birth, of course, to
live children.
Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman, Wolverine in the "X-Men" movies) is sometimes portrayed as young, sometimes old
in the Dracula movies. Here he's a professional monster-killer with a Phantom of the Opera hat, who picks up a
dedicated friar named Carl (David Wenham) as his sidekick.
The director, Stephen Sommers, began his career sedately, directing a very nice "Adventures of Huckleberry
Finn" (1993) and the entertaining "Jungle Book" (1994). Then Victor Frankenstein must have strapped him to the
gurney and turned on the juice, because he made a U-turn into thrillers, with "Deep Rising" (1998), where a giant
squid attacks a cruise ship, and "The Mummy" (1999) and "The Mummy Returns". Now comes "Van Helsing," which
employs the ultimate resources of CGI (computer generated effects) to create a world that is violent and hectic,
bizarre and entertaining, and sometimes very beautiful.
CGI can get a little boring when it allows characters to fall hundreds of feet and somehow survive, or when they
swoop at the ends of ropes as well as Spider-Man, but without Spidey's superpowers. But they can also be used to
create a visual feast, and here the cinematography by Allen Daviau ("E.T.") and the production design by Allen
Cameron join with Sommers' imagination for spectacular sights. The best is a masked ball in Budapest, which is part
real (the musicians balancing on balls, the waiters circling on unicycles) and part fabricated in the computer. It's a
remarkable scene, and will reward study on the DVD.
I also liked the movie's recreation of Victor Frankenstein's laboratory, which has been a favorite of production
designers, art directors and set decorators since time immemorial (Mel Books' "Young Frankenstein" recycled the
actual sets built for James Whale's "The Bride of Frankenstein"). Here Frankenstein lives in a towering gothic castle,
just down the road from Dracula, and the mechanism lifts the Monsters to unimaginable heights to expose him to
lightning bolts.
At the outset, we may fear Sommers is simply going for effects overkill, but by the end, he has somehow
succeeded in assembling all his monsters and plot threads into a high-voltage climax. "Van Helsing" is silly and
spectacular, and fun.
1. What does the word in bold mean in the following sentence?
"The director, Stephen Sommers, began his career sedately, directing a very nice
‘Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ (1993) and the entertaining ‘Jungle Book’ (1994)."
A. eagerly
C. slowly
B. violently
D. calmly
2. What does the word in bold mean in the following sentence?
"There have been countless movies uniting two monsters (‘Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man,’ ‘King
Kong vs. Godzilla,’ etc.), but ‘Van Helsing’ convenes Frankenstein, his Monster, Count Dracula, the
Wolf Man, Igor, Van Helsing the vampire hunter, assorted other werewolves, werebats and
vampires, and even Mr. Hyde, who as a bonus seems to think he is the Hunchback of Notre Dame."
A. leaves out
C. stops
B. joins
D. helps
Merle the Magnificent
Merle the Magnificent was the worst magician in the world. The kids at Tommy Plinkton's 8th birthday were on to
him. He had already tried to make flames shoot out of his hands, but all the flames did was scare the kids sitting in
the front row. When a balloon from Tommy's bouquet popped, it startled the trick doves Merle had planned on making
appear out of thin air. The birds flew out of Merle's coat and then went right to the buffet table. They began to eat the
hot dogs, the burger buns, and bits of the cake. Tommy's parents tried to chase them off, only to get stuck in Merle's
magic hoops of mystery and fall into the pool.
For his finale, he tried to pull a rabbit from his hat only to have the rabbit bite him repeatedly. What he didn't know
was that the rabbit had rabies. Merle ran to the bathroom as the rabbit started chasing the children around the
Plinkton's enormous backyard. Merle had to go to the hospital. And he didn't even get to take a bow before the
ambulance showed up.
This was the last straw for the Biloxi branch of the Magician's Alliance. Merle had joined them when he was a
magician's apprentice; however, once he became a full-time magician, they seemed to be looking for an excuse to
kick him out of the alliance.
When he arrived home, he found a letter waiting for him from the alliance. It read, "Dear Mearl, we regret to inform
you that due to the recent disappointing illusion, the Magician's Alliance of Biloxi has decided to revoke your
membership. We wish you the best." They didn't even get his name right.
Merle wanted to make the paper disappear, but he wanted to make himself disappear even more. That's when it
occurred to him. I will make myself disappear! he thought.
Merle quit his job when he returned from the hospital. He stopped paying his bills. He stopped retuning calls. He
stayed in his house for a month. His few friends came by to check on him only to see his house looking deserted. The
weeds grew like stretching arms. The newspapers stacked up at his front door. His mail stacked up in his box. No
one knew where he was. When even his friends stopped coming by, Merle knew he had done it. He moved out of the
house and decided to start over on Pensacola. As he packed the last of his things in the car, he looked to his house
and to his neighbor's houses. Merle the Magnificent took one last bow and disappeared into the night.
3. What does the word in bold mean in the following sentence?
"For his finale, he tried to pull a rabbit from his hat only to have the rabbit bite him repeatedly. "
A. animal
C. last part
B. money
D. magic
4. What does the bolded word mean in the following sentence?
"Dear Merle, we regret to inform you that due to the recent disappointing illusion, the Magician's
Alliance of Biloxi has decided to revoke your membership."
5.
A. give back
C. take away
B. move
D. charge
Imagine a place where it rains every day. Tall trees loom above you. Branches form a green ceiling high in
the sky. Plants, vines, and brightly colored flowers fill every inch of space. You are in a Costa Rican tropical rain
forest. Rain forests fringe the low lying areas of the Caribbean and Pacific coasts. Costa Rica lies close to the
equator, which means that temperatures stay warm - around 80 degrees - all year.
Looking at the information presented above, which of the following is the meaning of loom?
A. to appear as large and impressive
B. a frame or machine that threads or yarns to form a cloth
C. a branch or vine
D. to run around in circles
Alfred Nobel invented dynamite. He was, however, a pacifist who felt bad about the destructive power that he
created. He established the Nobel Prize as an award for outstanding achievement in physics, chemistry, medicine,
peace, literature, and economics.
6. Looking at the context, what is the definition of pacifist?
A. someone opposed to violence
C. a violent person
B. a famous person
D. a great inventor
7.
One of the recognizable characteristics of the male cardinal is its bright red feathers.
What is the meaning of the word characteristics in the sentence above?
A. a feature that helps to identify something
C. something that scares off predators
B. something beautiful
D. a light, flat growth that helps a bird fly
8.
Adversities such as poverty, poor grades, and a weak family background can be overcome with hard effort.
Looking at the sentence above, what is the meaning of adversities?
9.
A. obligations
C. pleasures
B. confusion
D. obstacles
Phil was very happy to learn that his tumor was benign and would not make him sick.
Looking at the sentence above, what is the definition of benign?
A. painful
C. large
B. deadly
D. harmless
10.
Because he attacked from behind, Lisa was unable to identify her assailant.
Looking at the sentence above, what is the definition of assailant?
A. an attacker
C. a co-worker
B. a parent
D. a priest