Hellboy Ii: The Golden Army: Satan's Son's Sequel Stumbles

Rating: 7/10 (26 July 2008)

If you have not viewed the first Hellboy, all the better for you, when you do see, Hellboy II. Through a 'flashback' scene, at the beginning of this sequel, the audience is introduced to the now dead, Professor Trever "Broom" Brutenholm. ( John Hurt) The setting is right out of an old, 'Father Knows Best,' early 1950's television sitcom. The silver screen brings forth, Director Guilleino del Toro's, "Professor and Hellbrat!" A vision, of father and Hellpest, at home, where too much time is not left, on the cutting-room floor. Wait for the Director's Editon, when it comes out on DVD. Hellboy is supposed to be a larger than life character, but in Hellboy II, he is not. This is made painfully aware, to the audience, when our hero is standing next to his team mates. In the original Hellboy, 'Red' (Ron Perlman) is presented as a much, larger-than-life creature from the underworld! Where do you think, the name of the film, came from, for the screenplay! Hellboy's love interest is the very hot, in fact on fire, Liz Sherman(Selma Blair). Unfortunately there is not an ounce, of this once, very heated, relationship in this sequel. No passion, and the plot suffers! There is however, Abe Sapien, (Doug Jones) whose comic relief, as an aqua-breathing, Lothario, saves the film, from death by deadpan acting, and lack of any emotion at all. Even Tom Manning (Jeffery Tambor) as the acting, bumbling, chief, of the organization, whose job is 'to bump back at things, which go bump in the night', offers little in the way of humor. Where Hellboy II does shine, is the attention, which Mr. del Toro, spent on the creatures, 'who do go bump in the night'. The interaction of 'Red' and his crew in the action sequences, are quite good, but not enough to equal Hellboy I. Now some may say, that this production, is made to show 'Red's' more human side, if so, then Hellboy II, most certainly, stumbles, over his own feet, of red clay.