Hellboy 2: The Golden Army (2008)
Cast: Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, Seth MacFarlane, John Hurt
Director: Guillermo Del Toro
Running Time: 120 mins
The sequel to the 2004 supernatural action/fantasy film Hellboy which is based on the Dark Horse comics of the same name is yet another addition to this year's already burgeoning list of comic book adaptations. The film revolves around the demon Hellboy who works with the government at the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Development along with fellow mutant-like aqua man Abe Sapien (Doug Jones) and girlfriend Liz Sherman (Selma Blair) who reprises their roles from the first film. This time around Hellboy faces the Prince of the Elves, Nuada who seeks to break the pact of peace made between the humans and his father Balor. He aims to claim the natural world from the humans who he believes is destroying it while attempting to gain control of the indestructible Golden Army in order to completely exterminate humans. Meanwhile, media friendly Hellboy (Ron Perlman) has to deal with the new kid on the block as ectoplasmic Dr. Krauss (voiced by Seth MacFarlane) is appointed as the leader of the team.
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The film carries off where the first film left off in the sense that all the familiar characters return in the new film while a lot of references are made to the first instalment. It truly feels like a continuation of the greater story while the evolution of the relationship between Hellboy and Liz is also well highlighted to the delight of the comic book and film franchise fans. The film is directed by the Academy Award nominated Guillermo Del Toro who was also behind the first instalment and in fact Hellboy 2 has Del Toro written all over it. The lighting and the style of the film is very similar to Del Toro's previous Academy Award winning Pan's Labyrinth. In fact the direction for Abe was very similar to that of the Faun in the Pan's Labyrinth until I found out that Doug Jones played the Faun as well. However, in contrast to many of the comic book films which have been released this year (The Dark Knight, Incredible Hulk, Iron Man) Hellboy 2 is much lighter with an actual comic book effect to it. Del Toro's style suits the ridiculous story perfectly as he attempts to balance what little logic there is in it while making light of any questions sceptics may have of the story's worth. Much like the first Hellboy, this film's characters have plenty of humour and the film itself provides enough of laughs during its course while the action sequences and the fairly interesting story will keep the audience satisfied. Just as the first film did despite its laughable title, this film surprised me greatly. When you know nothing of the comic books and you hear of a film called Hellboy it is a little difficult to expect a brilliant piece of cinematic achievement. However, the film wasn't half as bad as I expected and to be honest I enjoyed it quite a bit.
Ron Perlman's performance as Hellboy was enjoyable while the rest of the cast put a great performance in as well. In fact the only real complaint I have is the costumes and the makeup. Some of the character's makeup was not in the least bit believable and in fact looked plain rubbery. Hellboy's makeup was little better as the protagonist seemed to struggle to move his lips making some scenes seem dubbed. Whether it actually was or not I am still to figure out. However, the Elves notched up a few points on the makeup category as they looked splendidly scary and intimidating. The action sequences between Hellboy and Nuada are a fusion of raw muscle and graceful pose containing plenty of entertainment value.
This film suffered greatly at the hands of The Dark Knight which hit it off of the top of the box office while it was also greatly overshadowed by it. However, the film is no doubt entertaining and surprisingly satisfactory while I'm sure it pleased plenty of comic book fans. The film is also very careful not to alienate new comers to the franchise while it wastes no time with reintroductions to the origins of its protagonists. Hellboy 2 is great value for money and a very solid sequel to its first instalment. Fans will be pleased to know that Del Toro has already expressed interest in a third film after he completes the much awaited prequel to The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit said to come out in 2011.
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