Wild, Fun, & Very Entertaining

Rating: 10/10 (11 August 2005)

I love Guillermo del Toro. The man makes great movies that are always fun and extremely entertaining. Cronos was good, Mimic was great, Blade II was the best movie of 2002, and now he gives us Hellboy, a great action movie that is funny and enjoyable, with all kinds of neat comic book touches, very original superheroes and lots of disgusting creatures.
Ron Perlman, who is one of my favorite actors (and obviously one of del Toro's too) is perfect as Hellboy. He IS Hellboy. No one could have played him better. His attitude, his personality, his physique and his voice are all dead on, making him ideal for the role. Perlman makes Hellboy very cool, but also extremely likable. Hellboy's wisecracks are hilarious and Perlman nails them with just the right amount of sarcasm and wit. Perlman also does a wonderful job portraying Hellboy's soft side when he's with Liz Sherman, played decently by Selma Blair. John Hurt is great as Professor Broom, Hellboy's 'father', displaying wisdom and kindness in his old age. The bad guy, Rasputin, is evil enough, but doesn't seem like too much of a threat. The real threat comes from his henchman, Kronen, a sword-welding badass whose mechanized body keeps him alive and makes him almost invincible. Meyers and Abe Sapien do a fine job too.
The special effects are amazing, especially Hellboy's make-up. Rick Baker did a fantastic job turning Ron Perlman into the red-skinned, yellow-eyed Hellboy with a variety of prosthetics and make-up effects. Hellboy's stone arm is wild and devastatingly useful when it comes to beating the crap out of people. I enjoyed his horns and red tail, which in one scene pays homage to Indiana Jones. Abe Sapien's aquatic effects are done very nicely, as is Sammael, the hell-hound Hellboy fights multiple times. Hellboy's gun, 'The Samaritan', is also a nice touch. My only complaint is that the CGI was overused, as in most movies these days.
The action scenes, though short, are very cool. The scene in the museum that leads into an all-out chase between Sammael and Hellboy is pretty cool, with Hellboy punching the hood of an SUV, flipping it wildly into the air to save Meyers from being run over. Hellboy's fight with Kronen is fun and very original, as well as his demolishing brawl with Sammael in the subway. The giant tentacled creature at the end is very cool too.
Guillermo del Toro's trademark visuals are in full effect here. His use of color, most notably amber, is excellent and gives the movie a very unique and interesting feel. His utilization of the elements is ever-present with lots of fog, smoke, and rain. The Gothic architecture and grimy locations are used very nicely with the Nazi island, the dark and dank subway system, and the Rasputin's temple. He also chooses some neat camera angles and movements, which give the movie a genuine comic book appearance. Good job, Guillermo!
Bottom Line:
Hellboy is a great popcorn movie. With a great director, excellent cast, fantastic special effects, and del Toro's unique visual style, Hellboy turns out to be a helluva lot of fun.