Hellboy II: The Golden Army Review

Posted by Jeremy Thomas on 07.13.2008

Big Red is back in a major way

Directed by: Guillermo del Toro
Written by: Guillermo del Toro

Starring:
Ron Perlman - Hellboy
Selma Blair - Liz Sherman
Doug Jones - Abe Sapien/The Angel of Death/The Chamberlain
Luke Goss - Prince Nuada
Anna Walton - Princess Nuala
Seth MacFarlane - Johann Krauss (Voice)
Brian Steele - Mr. Wink
Jeffrey Tambor - Tom Manning
John Hurt - Trevor Bruttenholm
Roy Dotrice - King Balor




Running Time: 110 minutes
Rated PG-13 for sequences of sci-fi action and violence, and some language

In 2004, the comic book adaptation film genre looked to be sputtering out. It had been two years since the blockbuster success of Spider Man, and a year since X2: X-Men United had racked up $400 million worldwide. Following those two juggernauts had been a couple of misfires, as the Ang Lee-directed Hulk bored audiences with an overly-cerebral story and the adaptation of Alan Moore’s The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen had been such a nightmare, it pushed the great Sean Connery into a retirement he still hasn’t come out of. Superheroes were in short supply in Hollywood, and terrible hype was being put on the forthcoming films for The Punisher and Catwoman, leaving the second Spider Man movie as the only bright spot on the horizon. Amidst all of this, Sony’s Revolution studios took a chance on a then-largely unproven director, Guillermo Del Toro, and his adaptation of a very different kind of comic book. Featuring a giant red, wisecracking demon as its hero, Hellboy, based the Dark Horse comic book created by Mike Mignola, burst into theaters. It was well-received by critics but a moderate success at best, making its budget back only after foreign grosses were counted. Still, Revolution announced a sequel, which was sidelined when the company went out of business.

Flash-forward to 2006. Del Toro, who hadn’t made anything since Hellboy, released Pan’s Labyrinth. The Spanish-language dark fantasy, released by the auteur production company Picturehouse Films, was a huge hit both commercially and critically. It grossed $83 million worldwide and garnered a host of awards, including three Academy Awards. Suddenly, Guillermo Del Toro was a name in demand, and Universal Studios acquired the rights to Hellboy in order to get a sequel going. Armed with much more creative control this time around, Del Toro got back cast members Ron Perlman, Doug Jones, Selma Blair and John Hurt, and set about to make Hellboy II: The Golden Army.

As Hellboy II opens, we’re told a bedtime tale, via Professor Broom (Hurt) of an ancient battle between humans and the creatures of myth. It ends with the creation a crown, an artifact that would give its royal wearer control of the might Golden Army. The mechanical force destroyed the humans, so completely that King Balor of the elves (Dotrice) was filled with regret. He forged a truce with the humans where they would have the cities, and the creatures would get the forests. Balor’s son Prince Nuada (Goss), displeased, left in exile and the crown was portioned out among humans and elves. The Golden Army was buried, and the story became legend. We then move to the present, where the story quickly finds its relevance to the plot. Nuala is tired of the way humans have destroyed the planet, and he takes one piece of the crown by force. The other two rest in the hands of his aged father and his sister Nuala (Walton). Nuala goes running, and her brother must find her to get the crown together and raise the Golden Army. Enter the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense.

At the B.P.R.D., things are proceeding a bit less then smoothly, as we might imagine from the first. Hellboy (Perlman) and his girlfriend, pyrokinetic Liz (Blair) are having relationship difficulties, while the big red guy is tired of living in the shadows. When he’s publicly revealed, he is shocked to realize how much the public fears him. The B.P.R.D. is forced to bring in a new agent, the suited psychic spirit Johann Krauss (voiced by McFarlane), to watch Hellboy. With this new dynamic in place, the B.P.R.D. sets out to protect Nuala—who fishy empathy Abe Sapien (Jones) has fallen for—and stop Nuala from raising the Golden Army and destroying humanity.

One of the more frustrating aspects of the otherwise great Hellboy was the obvious studio meddling. Among other things, the presence of FBI agent John Meyers was a clear and clumsy attempt by the studio to find someone attractive and charming that audiences could relate to instead of the big red demon, and it made for a bit of a mess. Del Toro has obviously been given more control over his production with The Golden Army, and it pays off in spades. The script, which Del Toro wrote, is a much cleaner, deeper story then the pulp-genre story of the first one. The agents of the B.P.R.D. are better developed and are struggling with more adult issues. Hellboy is looking for acceptance in a world where he is entirely different, while Liz wants a life outside of gunplay and hunting down monsters. Even Abe is dealing with issues, those of love. All of the characters are given much more complex story arcs, to the betterment of the film. While Del Toro deviates from the stylistic elements of the source material a bit, he manages to stay true to the spirit by focusing on the characters. The introduction of Krauss creates for some fun dialogue, as Hellboy gives a nod to the Nazis of the first film by saying “Germans make me nervous.” The end result of the script is a much more even story that doesn’t just focus on a few characters and present the others as flavor. The plot and conflict is one that is much less black-and-white then the “good guys vs. Nazis” of the first film as well. Nuada is undoubtedly a villain, but he’s much deeper then the black hat Rasputin. He is, at his core, a creature who is tired of seeing humanity rape the earth, and is striking back in order to protect his own people, those who—like Hellboy himself—are strange and feared, but have no less right to live then any human. Del Toro brings off this environmental plotline in a way that recent films, such as The Happening, failed by being too overt. It never feels preachy, and the message is more (excuse the pun) organic to the plot line, not forced.

The acting is better this time around as well. Ron Perlman is an utter joy to watch in almost anything he’s in, but here in his second time around as Big Red, he seems far more comfortable. Perlman handles the role with the same kind of commitment he showed in the first film, but it seems a bit less like a suit he’s wearing, and the result is a more natural performance. His Hellboy remains charming and funny, but not without his own issues. No one would have been able to pull off this role as well as Perlman, and it’s a joy to see him on screen. Doug Jones, a Del Toro regular, benefits the most from Del Toro’s creative control, as he gets a much more involved storyline and—most notably—takes over as the voice of the role from David Hyde Pierce. Jones doesn’t quite have Pierce’s vocal talents, but his physical skills make up for it, and he never truly flounders. A scene between Hellboy and Sapien, sitting back and drinking over woman problems while singing Barry Manilow, is shockingly good, both endearing and kitschy in the best possible way. Blair has a bit more problems as Liz—the character has the most to transition to. It’s difficult at times to relate the Liz from this film to the one from the first, and while that’s not exactly Blair’s fault, she’s unable to quite find that balance. On the villains’ side, Nuada is performed very admirably by Luke Goss, who gives Nuada the same kind of shades-of-gray brushstrokes to the role that made his performance in Blade II the highlight of that film. The supporting cast is equally good, with Walters, Manning, and Hurt providing good performances, and a surprisingly good voice acting job by McFarlane (of Family Guy fame) as the new B.P.R.D. agent Krauss.

Visually, the film is as undeniably a Del Toro film as any other portion of it. There are strong comparisons that can be made to Pan’s Labyrinth, and this is neither surprising (that film’s cinematographer, Guillermo Navarro, films here as well) nor a bad thing. The world of Hellboy is mixed with the dark and fantastical sensibilities of faerie Spain, and it presents an absolute visual feast. Del Toro has also clearly refined his ability to shoot action sequences, and the CGI creations, from the faerie villains to the impressive Golden Army, are breath-taking. Helped out by a strong Danny Elfman score, the action moments in the film are remarkable and leave a lasting impression that is quite enjoyable.

Some parts of the film are, admittedly, less impressive than others. The film bogs down at times when Hellboy has to deal with the world of humanity, and there are occasional times where the balance between the two worlds is uneven, or the pace gets a little messy. Del Toro also still needs a bit of work at managing the transition between comedy and drama. In the end, these are things that hold the film back a bit, but never crank it to a stop, and the strength of the characters, as well as the amazing world Del Toro crafts around them and melds with our own, is able to carry it through to an enjoyable finish.

The 411: Those who felt that the original Hellboy suffered too much by taking away from the imaginative characters created by Mike Mignola will feel quite redeemed with Hellboy II: The Golden Army. Working from a story he plotted with Mignola, writer/director Guillermo Del Toro crafts a fine, enjoyable film that strengthens our love of those very characters. Great performances from Ron Perlman, Doug Jones and Luke Goss highlight a good cast, and the astounding visuals combine with fun and exciting action sequences to make for the kind of thoroughly enjoyable sequel fans demanded. Del Toro has yet to let audiences down, and he doesn't here.

Final Score:  8.0   [ Very Good ]