Constantine (film)
2005 film directed by Francis Lawrence

Constantine ( KON-stən-TEEN) is a 2005 American superhero horror film directed by Francis Lawrence in his directional film debut, and written by Kevin Brodbin and Frank Cappello. It is loosely based on the Hellblazer comic book series. The film stars Keanu Reeves as John Constantine, a cynical exorcist with the ability to perceive and communicate with half-angels and half-demons in their true forms and to travel between Earth and Hell. The cast also features Rachel Weisz, Shia LaBeouf, Tilda Swinton, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Djimon Hounsou, Gavin Rossdale and Peter Stormare.
Constantine was released theatrically in the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures on February 18, 2005, to mixed reviews, and grossed $231 million on a production budget between $70–100 million. Since its release, it has garnered a cult following. A sequel is in development.
Plot
In Mexico, a scavenger discovers the tip of the spear that pierced Jesus Christ and, after becoming possessed, takes it to Los Angeles. There, cynical occult expert John Constantine exorcises a demon from a young girl after witnessing its attempt to reach Earth through her, something that should be impossible because of the treaty between Heaven and Hell.
The public source identifies “Constantine (film)” as 2005 film directed by Francis Lawrence. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Constantine, film and directed.
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This entry incorporates text from “Constantine (film)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.