Hellboy II: The Golden Army: The Review

by Matt

I just got back from the movie with my wife Kristy. Well, we went and got some ice cream after but I couldn't wait to come home and write about the movie.

Was it any good? A few days ago I listed my Top and Bottom of Comic Book Sequels as I eagerly awaited this sequel to Hellboy and next week to Batman. Did Hellboy II make the list? Did it manage to knock off X2 as the top dog? Hellboy II did have something that X2 did not. Two words. Barry. Manilow.


Yup, you heard me right. And no, I was not listening to Barry on the way home. But Barry was part of one of my favorites scenes. I don't want to ruin anything or spoil anything major here, lets just say that Barry (his music, not himself) was indeed part of the show. And surprisingly it fit and it must have made such an impression on me because I was singing it as I was picking out some Ben & Jerry's.

THE GOOD: I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. If you are fan of the first movie or the Hellboy comics than this movie is right up your alley. Folks not familiar might not like it as much because it was weird, but weird in a good way. Visually this movie looked awesome. The special effects were amazing and the colors were spectacular. It was certainly eye candy. The storyline felt like something right out of the Hellboy comics. The creatures were fascinating, the Death Angel was creepy but yet elegant. The acting and dialogue was good, at times the dialogue was cheesy but was in character.

I also really liked getting to know the characters more, Abe definitely had a larger role and it didn't take away from Hellboy. There were some heart wrenching parts that really made you think. Like the X-Men, you got to see how different they were and how they were treated. The main villain, Price Nuada felt a lot like Magneto. An elegant man that didn't want to relive the past and was willing to do everything to save his kind. There was humor in this film as well, and the humor is exactly what you would expect from a Hellboy comic.

THE BAD: Some of the creatures looked too weird and it seemed at times that they had to be so strange that they were all trying to get our attention. The new character Johann Kraus was fairly interesting but at times got annoying. But these problems were extremely minor and didn't keep my jaw off the floor. I guess the only bad thing is that Del Toro will be doing the Hobbit films and not the next Hellboy film. They did hint at a possible sequel.

I still think X2 was a slightly better sequel, but Hellboy II certainly gave it a hell (pun not intended) of a run for its money and now is firmly in 2nd place on my list. I highly recommend this film to everyone. Those with young children will probably want to view the film first, it does have a lot of disturbing and scary images. It was a hell of a film! Pun totally intended this time, I am writing this too late at night and I am off to bed.

Here's hoping that The Dark Knight is as good as this one! I'll see you in line next Friday night.