Thursday, July 17, 2008

Hellboy II: The Golden Army



It's hard to point the finger at Hellboy II. I can't quite place my disappointment. I just think that it isn't a strong of a film as its predecessor. The problem may begin with Hellboy and Liz being in a relationship. Hellboy pining after Liz was a hell of a lot more interesting than there current domestic squabbles. Honestly, their relationship was more pedestrian than the participants. The exit of Agent Myers is left unexplained, and like the odd exit of Tank in The Matrix sequels, I was wondering why. Agent Myers was a useful tool in orienting the audience with the freaks, a foothold or familiarity amongst oddities. The same is true for the agent who was close to Hellboy in the first movie that met his demise. There are no human interests in this movie. It's a movie for the freaks. And while it explores these freaks longing for acceptance, recognition, and whatnot, there's no basis that this movie offers me for investment other than "Remember how swell these weirdos are from the first movie? They're back." And that's almost enough. They are all strange and charming enough in their own ways to merit sticking around for the whole runtime, but their adventure is no more relevant to me than Thomas the Tank Engine and certainly not the kind that sticks with you after it's over. That's a bit of a tangent. Regroup.

I understand the use of the Hellboy child on Christmas scene as a way to introduce a lot of information in a way that is more interesting than subtitle cards or scrolling text at the beginning. But Hellboy as a kid A) sounds off B) looks off C) acts poorly. This is not Hellboy as a child. This is a haphazard attempt to approximate how a child's Halloween costume with a budget might look. As for the exposition. It's a bit heavy before any real action has begun. I think it may have been better to let the audience be a bit disoriented along the way as the action unfolded and bits of the legend revealed itself. As is, the story is a bit different than the press coverage has led me to believe. Still, there is enough action, enough charm, and enough fun to keep audience members involved. I will say that I've viewed Del Toro as a visionary director for some time now, with little awe for his dialogue or storytelling. Pan's Labyrinth offered hope to the contrary, but I'm afraid that Hellboy II is more a return to his work in Mimic and Blade II. He knows how to entertain, but doesn't push further. It's fun and worth a night out, but I don't really need to see it again.

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