Not quite the shock of the new, but enjoyable nonetheless.
This year even the most seasoned critics and film buffs have been taken aback by the overwhelming hype and fanboy hysteria that greeted the opening of The Dark Knight, so most would be forgiven for being unaware that another comic book sequel is hitting the screen this summer.
From the early Noughties, comic book adaptations began ignoring the camp and comic elements of their history and embracing the dark and gloomy origins of graphic novels, and Hellboy somehow managed to sit neatly in between. It was entertaining without being life changing, funny without being forced and whilst Big Red yearned for the same kind of acceptance as Spider-Man and the X-Men, he still remained the Gene Hunt of comic characters; fists first and thoughts later.
The plot is paper thin (something about an ancient battle between humans and mythical creatures and a goblin-built clockwork) but Guillermo del Toro’s talent has always been to create worlds and bring creatures to life. The scene at the Troll market should earn creature and make-up effects head Mike Elizalde and cinematographer Guillermo Navarro an Oscar nom as each and every character is a treat for the retinas, even if some are suspiciously similar to creatures from Pan’s Labyrinth.
Ron Perlman delivers his performance with relish but apart from his obvious enjoyment of American TV, cigars and cookies there really isn’t much to sink your teeth into. To top it off, his girlfriend Liz (Selma Blair) is a bit wet, and given that she’s the only prominent female in the film it’s interesting that she’s painted as a whiny bore that gets at the loveable rogue about leaving the legion of cats lying around.
She isn’t the only weak link; Luke Goss (yes, that one) plays the villain and despite being badass enough to cut a raindrop in half with a samurai sword he is hardly imposing and threatening enough to worry Hellboy or the audience.
Guillermo del Toro turned down the chance to direct I Am Legend, One Missed Call, Halo and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in order to follow-up his 2004 original, and the affection he has for this labour of love is infectious. Some say other adaptations have too much self-importance attached to them and del Toro is simply happy with providing a wild ride.
And it is very enjoyable (particularly a drunken impromptu Barry Manilow karaoke) but whether or not this movie experience manages to stick with you after you’ve left the cinema is open to debate.
The first one was a riot.
Not quite the shock of the new, but enjoyable nonetheless.
Probably best to leave the franchise here.
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linda
• 4 years agoI thought it was like what Indiana Jones: Kingdom of the Crystal Skull should have been – plenty of one-liners, decent love tussle and an epic finale in an ancient cave plus a sacrificial offering.
I would have been interested to see Del Torro have a go at Harry Potter...
Graimito
• 4 years agoAs is the problem with most characters with a "destiny", there's just not that much to say, and comic books, films and TV shows that take on the subject tend to flounder, desperately scrabbling for ways to prolong the hero or heroine's final, apparently inevitable, confrontation with their fate.
This is what Hellboy the comic did, and while constantly grappling with, but never following through on Hellboy's destiny, it forgot to invest any character development in him. Ultimately, he became a semi-serious All-American Joe, which is a serious disappointment for a guy with an indestructible right hand that is a key to the apocalypse.
The most interesting character in the whole comic book was the Roger the homunculus. Now HE deserves a film of his own.