Hellboy II Review
I just walked out of Hellboy II: The Golden Army, and well, I loved it. Ron Perlman was great as ever as Hellboy, Selma Blair’s Liz was way more kick ass now that she’s accepted who she is, and Doug Jones as Abe Sapien was just so much fun. New addition to the cast, Johann Strauss, a character, so I’m told, direct from the pages of the comic, was by parts annoying, interesting, but otherwise unnecessary. My husband liked the addition, I not being a fan of the comic, didn’t really care.
The banter and chemistry between the three main characters was wonderful and infectious. By far the most memorable scene was the drunken duet between Abe and Hellboy.
I remember reading a review for this film from Ain’t it Cool News by Moriarty that was very touching. According to Quint, Prince Nuada, the main bad guy, is not really a bad guy, per se. He is just going about things the wrong way. He wishes to save his kind, the faerie, but he feels the only way to do that is to destroy humanity. People fear what they do not understand or what they cannot control. Western culture has humanity commanding over nature and therefore there for our consumption and destruction at our whim. Nuada wants what a part of all of us who understand that we need to be a part of this world and not just live off of it like parasites, who wish for a little magic in the world want.
Guillermo del Toro is a brilliant storyteller. His imagination comes away in his unique visual style. The creatures he creates around Hellboy and his cronies, are varied, flawed, beautiful and grotesque. Through Prince Nuada’s characterization one can see that perhaps del Toro’s love of the fanciful and fantastic is not just a form of entertainment but also a deep seated desire for this world to not only exist but perhaps be the actual world. Moriarty goes into some of this in his review and after seeing the film I have to agree.
I loved this movie and I think you should too. See it, love it, and if you like, tell me about it. This film felt like a love letter to the fantasy genre fans. Consider it read and filed away to be brought forth time and again to remember thy love.
4 1/2 out 5.
