Hellboy II shouldn’t exist. It defies Hollywood math. The first film didn’t make much money at the box office. No one other than hardcore geeks was clamoring for a sequel. And once the possibility of a sequel did bloom, Sony refused to bank it and sold the rights to Universal. It’s a minor miracle this film got made, but I’m glad it did.
I’m the only person scribbling for RopeofSilicon who digs Hellboy II (check out Brad’s savage body slams here), and I was ridiculed endlessly for it when a few of us met up at San Diego Comic Con last summer. I won’t deny the film has some gaping holes in logic, the kind made all the more frustrating when considering the ease of the fix (don’t make the twins linked). But when a film cooks damn hot on so many other levels, I just don’t care.
Hellboy II is like Spider-Man 2 in that it either jettisons or repairs the problems from the first film, pimps out the things that did work and takes some major risks with tone that end up paying off and then some (oh yeah, I speak of juicing up the soundtrack with some Barry Manilow). This film hammers all the proper buttons when it comes to comic timing (which was rather awkward in the original), music, action, romance, pacing, and atmosphere.
It almost goes without saying writer/director Guillermo Del Toro has crafted a film of retina popping visuals, in which minute detail plugs up every inch of the screen. Scene after scene delivers new creatures and worlds that never fail to astonish. Sometimes it’s frightening. Sometimes it’s beautiful. Often it is both. Such gorgeous visuals would appear hollow if the characters were flat. However, Del Toro is passionate about his demons and mutants and humans – and even the villains – and every moment feels that way. Even during the second viewing, the holes in logic practically went unnoticed, because of Del Toro’s captivating characters and story.
This is grand entertainment. A movie unafraid to go weird on us and I love it. So if you’re a fan of the flick, then you must snatch up the 3-disc special edition. Admittedly this is a film tailored for the pristine quality of high-def, but the transfer is still decent (although, considering I know the capabilities of Blu-ray I couldn’t help but feel a tad meh about the DVD image overall).
Yet there’s no “meh” feeling when it comes to the goodies on the special edition. The centerpiece is an exhaustive (if slightly mundane) two and a half hour documentary on the film’s creation. If you wanted to know how Del Toro and friends pulled off the sweet eye-candy, the answer is probably here (and it may shock you when you realize how much of the movie is comprised of practical effects). And after watching the doc along with several short featurettes showcasing the sets and creatures while filming, even the harshest of critics can’t deny an absurd level of maniacal-obsessive loving attention to detail (of perhaps the non-logic variety) went into the making of Hellboy II. Nothing was done half-assed and all in all, that’s my ultimate assessment of the film itself.
