Film Review

09 January 2009 22:18 BST

Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Directed by Guillermo del Toro, out August 20th, in cinemas, starring Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Luke Goss, Doug Jones, running time 120mins.

In a nutshell...

Mine's a five-fingered Mary.

What's it all about?

Infuriated with centuries of truce with humankind, underworld prince Nuada (Goss) seeks to revive the titular dormant army in a bid to give the magic kingdom free rein over Earth. Only Hellboy (Perlman) - with the help of pyrokinetic Liz Sherman (Blair), aquatic empath Abe Sapien (Jones) and newcomer Johann Krauss (voiced by Seth MacFarlane) - can save the world from annihilation.

But having been born in the flames of Hell, raised on Earth, but accepted by neither world, does Hellboy really know which side he's on?

Who's in it?

Ron Perlman, a Golden Globe winner, returns in the role he was born to play as the cigar-smoking, beer-drinking hell spawn forced to weigh his wish to settle down with his girl and his cats against his superhuman ability and an unknown destiny that could decide the fate of all. Selma Blair shows off a choppy asymmetrical hairdo as she reprises the role of fiery - in temper and ability - Liz, while Doug Jones benefits from a bigger budget with a beautifully-realised, testing part as Abe Sapien. Fans of Family Guy and American Dad, meanwhile, will relish in the vocal talents of Seth MacFarlane as Johann Krauss while Luke Goss proved he must have been working on his martial arts while in Bros as the malignant Prince Nuada.

Guillermo del Toro, meanwhile, stands as probably the most imaginative filmmaker working today, transforming the gothic promise of his early efforts Cronos and The Devil's Backbone into global success with the Spanish-language smash hit Pan's Labyrinth in 2006. He takes a second crack at adapting the work of Hellboy creator Mike Mignola with this follow-up to 2004's first film and is beginning work on developing two films based on JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit.

As an example...

"You can suck my ectoplasmic Schwanzstucke!" - Johann Krauss

"[talking about Krauss] I like the way he takes charge." - Tom
"You think?" - Liz
"He's efficient, and precise." - Tom
"Add resistant to that and you got yourself a new watch." - Liz

"[reading a CD's tracklisting] 'Can't Smile Without You'? Yep, I'm gonna need a beer, too!" - Hellboy

"We know where to begin. Trolls live under bridges." - Johann Krauss
"Wow. You're a genius." - Hellboy

Likelihood of a trip to the Oscars

In a year in which the Oscar buzz surrounding The Dark Knight has seemingly thrown convention on its head and suggested that comic book films have a chance once the Academy doles out its judgements, you could be forgiven for hoping for a nod in the direction of Hellboy II: The Golden Army. Unfortunately, it's way too niche to ever be seriously considered and as great as the performances of Perlman and Jones (the best of a good bunch) are, their demonic and aquatic onscreen guises render them unlikely to be given a fair viewing from the award panels. It's in the technical categories where Hellboy II could - and should - clean up.

What the others say

"It was made with the kind of heedless, geeky enthusiasm that has been drained out of the standard, sombre superhero melodramas that crowd the multiplexes these days. It's an artful, clever throwaway that may, over time, turn into a valuable collectible." - AO Scott, New York Times

"As much Tolkien's baby as Mignola's, this has more heart and humour than most fantasy films can dream of. Hellaciously good." - Helen O'Hara, Empire

So is it any good?

As comic book movies go, a Hellboy sequel would have seemed a less likely proposition to reach the screen than Angelina Jolie giving up on celebrity life for a quiet life in Kansas. Compared with the globally renowned, iconic likes of Spider-Man, Superman and the X-Men, a tobacco-chewing, foul-tempered demon doesn't exactly fly in marketing terms. And with Guillermo del Toro delighting critics and fanboys, but befuddling the majority of global audiences with his innovative take on the series, a follow-up seemed an unlikely dream for most devotees of Big Red.

Thank Hell for DVD, in that sense, with an extra-packed boxset showcasing countless new fans to the wry wit of del Toro's crack at Mike Mignola's creation as well as convincing Columbia Pictures that a sequel was worth shot. And when del Toro proved he was an auteur possessed with an imagination not seen since George Lucas' early years in the peerless Pan's Labyrinth, the future looked decidedly shiny for Hellboy II: The Golden Army.

And fortunately, this follow-up is certainly no poor relation to its predecessor, joining the ranks of sequels that are superior to their antecedents. Hellboy II: The Golden Army is an overwhelming success, thanks to a hellacious mix of a hugely increased budget, a weightier role for Doug Jones' Abe Sapien, the introduction of a moral complexity lacking from the first film and set pieces that seem to push the works of Hayao Miyazaki, HP Lovecraft and JRR Tolkien into one mouthwatering fantastical sandwich.

From the magnificent puppet work used in an exposition-heavy opening sequence, through the icky and decidedly un family-friendly 'tooth fairies' attack to the chaotic, sturm und drang of the collision with the forest elemental (which rumbles like the Cloverfield monster but is straight out of the Miyazaki palette), the sheer vision on offer is staggering and promises great things from del Toro's take on Tolkien.

Bernat Vilaplana's editing is incredible and as the troll market allows del Toro's imagination to run wild (making the Stardust market look low-budget in comparison), it's clear that this is a director with a sumptuous bag of tricks at his disposal.

It's not only a visual feast, however, with a surprisingly affecting romantic arc between Abe Sapien and Princess Nuala, Hellboy's easy wit in fine fettle throughout and a cursory look at the alienation and fear that could see Big Red take a villainous turn in future.

Criticisms, in turn, are few, solely focusing on the hackneyed way in which the disappearance of Rupert Evans from the franchise is handled with one throwaway line and the short shrift given to the emotional depth of the principals, though the mastery of del Toro's eye for the fantastical renders the latter fact largely irrelevant.

This is a film realised on a significantly grander scale than the first instalment and you yearn for del Toro to always be afforded this big a budget. But with Hellboy II a deserved box office smash and the record-breaking potential of the Hobbit films to come, he's already assured a purse greater than anything you might find under the Lonely Mountain.

8/10

Lewis Bazley

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