The film Text copyright (c) Filmverdict 2006-present. Any film titles and artwork used are copyright of their respective owners.
Guillermo del Toro is certainly not a man short of imagination; that much is made increasingly clear with each film the Mexican-born director masterminds. His films therefore tend to be a breath of fresh air compared to the originality-starved Hollywood output. It is this unbridled creativity, however, that proves to be a hindrance to his latest opus, Hellboy II: The Golden Army - his second sequel (he also directed Blade II) but his first follow-up to one of his own films. The first Hellboy was certainly quirky, especially when compared to other typical "superhero" fare, but Hellboy II takes the individuality quotient up several notches. This is nothing like you've ever seen before.
While Hellboy was a fusion of del Toro's sensibilities and the scribblings of the character's creator Mike Mignola, its sequel is completely the work of Guillermo del Toro, auteur. His unmistakable fingerprints are everywhere, making this an unashamed fantasy film, complete with elves, trolls and tooth fairies (perhaps he's gearing up for The Hobbit?). The problem is, though, that his imagination runs riot: Universal - who have taken over financing duties after original studio Sony passed on the sequel - clearly have a lot of respect for the Oscar-nominated director of Pan's Labyrinth, and give him a surprisingly large amount of money (given that Hellboy was hardly a blockbuster, despite healthy DVD sales) to bring his vision to the screen. What results is a visually stunning adventure, proving that del Toro is a master of combining live-action animatronics with CGI, and one that overflows with life and colour, but also one that is something of a mess. The plot, which is too convoluted and frankly irrelevant to repeat here, is firmly placed in the service of the visuals, letting del Toro show off his astonishingly large array of fantastical beasts and elaborate sets (and what sets they are: the much-hyped "Troll Market" is a wonderful concoction). If the viewer is never given time to get bored, they're not allowed to really invest in the characters, either.
That's not to say del Toro skimps on character moments; for example, one sequence in which Hellboy and aquatic sidekick Abe Sapien get drunk and partake in an impromptu singing session is a delight. Ron Perlman again provides the film with a hugely likeable central character, spitting out wisecracks with aplomb, even if he does say "oh crap" rather too often. Doug Jones now gets to voice Sapien as well as embodying him, and does a fine job. Surprisingly, though, the absence of Rupert Evans' Agent Myers - who provided the point of audience identification in the first film, but doesn't exist in the comics - is a damaging one. Now it just feels like we're watching a two-hour freakshow, albeit a humorous and good-natured one. (New character Johann Krauss, voiced by creator of Family Guy Seth MacFarlane, never feels like a fully-developed creation.) Hellboy II, therefore, while displaying individual moments of brilliance, just doesn't hold together. As an insight into the hyperactive mind of a creative prodigy, though, it's unparalleled.
The summary
An interesting plot and a general sense of coherence are AWOL, but imagination and creativity are present in spades. Beautiful nonsense.
Agree? Disagree? Say so in the Guestbook!