One of Marvel's more crowning achievements and shows why they can be great

Rating: 9/10 (3 July 2008)

Marvel has provided us with some real stinkers...Ghost Rider, Daredevil, and the less than great Ang Lee's Hulk, Fantastic 4, and Spiderman 3 but for every dud they show why we should continue to allow them to bring their super heroes to life and Hellboy is the perfect example. I am a solid DC fan and I have been all my life but I won't deny that Marvel has the most impressive and unique dark characters in the comic book world and Hellboy is the pinnacle of it. This could have been a very hard film to create and would take some incredible talent and vision and imagination to properly bring something as unique and visually odd as Hellboy and they nailed this home!! This is one of the most visually stunning, well made action thrillers chock full of unique creatures and stunning special effects out there. It's action but it's sci-fi fantasy as it's very best and the action really never stops and yet it easily rolls out the characters and makes you feel them and care about them and that is kudos to not only the film makers and writers but the terrific cast as well. You might think Director Guillermo del Toro would be the first choice to direct an action super hero film and yet his vision and imagination were absolutely perfect for what Hellboy needed to be.
Ron Perlman has always been a great character actor but he scores a home run as the tough as nails, sensitive, wise cracking Hellboy. Underneath that enormous costume he creates Hellboy and makes it his own and he is amazing at it!! Hellboy couldn't be the same without him. Selma Blair, who I am not always a fan of, really is terrific as Firestarter Liz Sherman and the object of Hellboy's crush. They have amazing chemistry together for a monster and a woman (Beauty and The Beast anyone?) and she is a terrific character with a back story worthy of exploring in future installments and shows a lot of emotion. David Hyde Pierce as the voice and Doug Jones as Abe Sapien are brilliant. Pierce's voice is so ideal for the blue brilliant creature. He is the ideal sidekick to Hellboy. I hope we see more of him in the future installment. Karel Roden is downright disturbing as Hellboy's nemesis Rasputin and Ladislav Beran is one of the greatest villains in film history as the blade wheeling silent but deadly Nazi killer Kroenen. Rupert Evans and John Hurt round out the main supporting cast and both are very good in their smaller but pivotal roles.
If nothing else Hellboy is stunning to watch. The setting from the exotic looking library, to the dark, gritty underground tunnels to the white wastelands of Russia and the monsters they encounter are just amazingly done and perfectly written into the story. While I am sure a lot of special effects and CGI were used in the film you would hardly know it. The special effects are brilliantly used and even the most outlandish battles between Hellboy and the creatures look absolutely stunning. I would be surprised if they were able to replicate the real brilliance of this film in the new sequel being released next week although the original cast and the original director are returning and the creatures look almost as amazing. If you haven't seen this original film you must see it now especially if you love action flicks or fantasy or just want a really good time then you won't be disappointed with Hellboy. 9/10