STUDIO: Universal
RELEASE DATE: July 11, 2008
STARRING: Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, John Hurt, Anna Walton, Jeffrey Tambor, and Luke Goss
WRITTEN BY: Guillermo del Toro
DIRECTED BY: Guillermo del Toro
GENRE: Fantasy
RATING: PG-13

In the bowels of New York City, beneath the Brooklyn Bridge is a Troll Market where beings of the underworld congregate, out of sight of ordinary humans. Here, they take their supernatural form. Meet Mr. Wink, a seven-foot troll with a warthog nose and a protractible iron fist. Nearby, a peasant woman nurses a child, which turns out to be a talking tumor. The top of another man’s head is a delicately carved miniature cathedral. Is it empty, or are the faithful gathered there? This is the sublime and surrealistic second Hellboy vision of Guillermo del Toro. If you saw Pan’s Labyrinth, you no doubt remember such imaginative characters as the pale man, the giant toads and the fawn, strange creatures full of mystery and terror. Multiply it by ten, and you get an idea of del Toro’s Hellboy II: The Golden Army.

Based on the comic book by Mike Mignola, Hellboy is a secret weapon sent to Earth at the end of World War II to wreak havoc on mankind. His purpose was to assist the Nazis in their quest for world domination. Instead, he fell into the wrong hands, or, in this case, the right hands; the Allies. This is how the spawn of Satan, with red skin, horns and a pointy tail, in time, grew into a typical American boy.

As an adult, Hellboy works for BPRD, (Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense) a top-secret government organization that protects mankind from the world of trolls, ogres, elves and other paranormal phenomena. Possessing super-human strength and a fist like a stone sledge, Hellboy is an irresistible force when he needs to be. If he had it his way, he’d kick back with a six-pack and watch the Three Stooges.

At his side is his true love, Liz Sherman (Selma Blair), a pyrokinetic with the power to ignite and control fire anywhere on her body. Rounding out the team is Abe Sapien (Doug Jones), an ichthyo-sapien with psychogenic powers, impeccable manners, stratospheric IQ, and a penchant for rotten eggs. Half fish, Abe employs a waterlung to breathe on dry land. Their new team leader is Johann Krauss (John Alexander, Seth McFarlane), a German efficiency expert who is a protoplasmic cloud living in an air-contained suit. Their mission is to stop Prince Nuada (Luke Goss) from wiping out mankind and reclaiming the earth for trolls, fairies and creatures of the night.

Hellboy II is a menagerie of horrors, each beast specifically designed for a nefarious purpose. Created by elves, an Elemental surges out of the earth like Jack’s beanstalk, choking anything in the way of reforestation. A strange and beautiful creature, words do it no justice, which is true of most of del Toro's visions.

Hellboy II’s most memorable sequence is the Troll Market, a massive underground set where supernatural creatures ply their wares. Del Toro shot it in a cave used for growing mushrooms somewhere in the Czech Republic. There, the production built a massive market populated by a wide variety of nightmarish visions. In many ways, it recalls the cantina scene in Star Wars where George Lucas created so many unique creatures without the benefit of CG. Del Toro uses only makeup and prosthetics here, eschewing the latest technology for a more authentic look. This sequence alone is worth the trek to the theater.

A fan favorite will no doubt be the Angel of Death, a 9-foot bony figure draped in black, with four sets of wings lined with multiple sets of eyes. An awesome sight, her mouth is skull like, her face and head a great bony flange, void of facial features. It is a unique and beautiful design, emblematic of its maker.

As writer, spring boarding from the ideas of Mike Mignola, del Toro seems more interested in concocting breathtaking monsters than drafting a compelling narrative. Prince Nuada’s race to awaken the Golden Army, and Hellboy’s race to stop him is a solid basis on which to build a story. However, Hellboy’s internal struggle to fight against his own kind for a race that treats him like a freak is merely touched upon, not fully explored. His relationship with Liz, one year into marriage and on the verge of parenthood, also remains unexplored. In fact, the cinematic relationship is completely independent from what’s taking place in the comic book series. Ultimately, in the movie Hellboy himself remains less an archetype than a type.

The two Hellboy movies present a clear delineation of del Toro’s career before and after Pan’s Labyrinth. Pan’s won three Oscars, propelling del Toro to a new echelon in the Hollywood hierarchy. In the meantime, the Hellboy franchise moved from Sony Pictures to Universal. The first big screen Hellboy felt like del Toro constrained; a boundless imagination passionate about his material, but straining to satisfy studio demands and remain true to his vision. The sequel feels more like the director on his own terms, exploring darker themes through dubious antiheroes. Obsessed with imaginative, dreamy creatures as a child, it’s clear that Del Toro understands that a monster is a lonely beast, driven to perform horrible acts sometimes out of malice but usually by necessity. And sometimes, as del Toro reveals, they are made horrible by the good people around them.

As for the future of Hellboy and its director, there is good news and bad news. The bad is that del Toro will likely play only a supervisory role if future installments follow. The good news is that he’ll be working on his next franchise, The Hobbit. As for Hellboy, he will sorely miss del Toro. Without his unique and vivid imagination, the red guy is quirky, engaging, but ultimately a less compelling character.