Cool as Hell

Rating: Null/10 (16 September 2004)

A recent trend in the creation of super heroes is to add a characteristic looked down upon or seen as evil. This trend is very evident in the dark and Gothic late-night cartoon called "Spawn," created by Todd McFarlane. The ever-growing popularity of "Spawn" created a demand for powerful, dark super heroes, a demand which has now been satisfied by the film "Hellboy." The 2004 film Hellboy, directed by Guillermo del Toro, is about a baby demon that was summoned by the Nazis and rescued by the Americans. This demon, aptly named Hellboy (Ron Perlman), was raised by America's paranormal adviser Trevor Bruttenholm (John Hurt) into a very bulky adulthood. Along with the psychic fish-man Abe Sapien (Doug Jones) and the fiery fire-starter Liz Sherman (Selma Blair), Hellboy is sent on a mission to stop the evil Grigori Rasputin (Karel Roden) from instigating the apocalypse and ending mankind's existence. Guillermo del Toro was showing that things happen all around us that we cannot see. This was emphasized when the 'mysterious' Hellboy roams the streets to fight crime. This idea was also enforced by the secret paranormal association owned by the government. This theme was present (but vague) through the random plot twists and this idea seemed to be masked by the film's wry comedy. This movie was very well done, but not perfect. There were great action scenes where Hellboy wielded a rather large revolver against ancient beasts. Hellboy's wise-cracks and quirks, such as Hellboy's horns which he sands down to 'fit in,' put humor to even the darkest situations. The plot itself was well-written, and the make-up and special effects were amazing. Personally I would not buy this on DVD because the plot was predictable, but if you have not seen this hellish piece of cinema, go to the nearest Blockbuster and spend three bucks to see a movie that is definitely Cool as Hell.