Review: ‘Hellboy II’ stuns with visual effects

Directed by: Guillermo del Toro

Starring: Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, Jeffrey Tambor, Luke Goss, Anna Walton

Rated: PG-13

When it comes to visually visionary film directors, few are in the same class as Guillermo del Toro. His earlier work (“Cronos,” “Mimic”) only hinted at what he was to achieve in his 2006 masterpiece, “Pan’s Labyrinth,” a stunningly visual movie and one with an equally stunning story. It won Oscars for makeup, art direction and cinematography, and was nominated for del Toro’s original screenplay.

Before “Pan’s” release, though, the director made another inventive movie with a jaw-dropping look, “Hellboy.”

Some films make the viewer painfully aware that special effects are being used. But, as fantastical as “Hellboy” and “Pan’s Labyrinth” are, the effects are so utterly seamless and perfectly executed that one tends to get drawn into the universe inhabited by the characters and stops thinking, “Wow, what a great effect.” It’s as if we’re watching a real, live action movie set in some alternate universe.

With his latest release, del Toro lands firmly between his two best films. “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” is not as magical as “Pan’s Labyrinth” and somewhat better than the original “Hellboy.”

The action in the new film tops anything the director has done in the past, and it may cause some viewers to feel worn out by movie’s end.

If you missed the original, don’t worry. “Hellboy II” provides a nice prologue that will fill you in on the characters’ origin.

When we cut to the present, Hellboy – who is known as Red – and his fellow mutant-like beings are still living in a secret government compound. They regularly go out into the world to battle weird evil, but the agency that controls them desperately tries to make sure the average citizen never sees Red, Liz (a female human torch) or Abe (a fishman/empath).

Red is making things difficult. He craves the spotlight. The method with which actor Ron Perlman plays Red is a recognizable film archetype. Tough, wisecracking and cigar-smoking, Red is almost like a film noir character crossed with The Hulk.

As happens in “The X-Men” films, when “regular” people begin to find out about the team, emotions are mixed. Many people find them a menace. When it’s found that Red and Liz, who looks like a normal human, are married, there’s a hilarious moment when a conservative talk show host is seen saying that “inter-species marriage will threaten traditional marriages everywhere.” There are other, sometimes fleeting moments of political jabs and jibes, so pay attention.

The main story here is that long ago, a race of elves made a truce with humans. The humans can have the cities. and the elves will live in the forests and other out-of-the-way places. Besides the elves, there are trolls, fairies and other such creatures tucked away here and there, unnoticed by mere mortals.

Trouble begins to brew when Nuada, Prince of the Elves, decides to go against his father’s wishes and break the truce with the human race. Nuada points out that humankind is messing things up royally on the planet. He wants to summon the Golden Army, a group of “70 times 70” robot behemoths created long ago. To command them, he must have all three pieces of the golden crown fashioned by his father. He gets two of them straight away, but his twin sister, Nuala, has the third, and she doesn’t share the Prince’s hatred of mankind. It also should be noted that these twins have a special problem. Hurt one, and the other one is injured as well.

Nuala seeks refuge with Red and his gang – there’s a tender love story sub plot/tragedy, too – and a battle that will decide Earth’s fate begins. The skirmishes come fast and furiously, and no more than a few minutes pass between intense, beautifully shot (director of photography Guillermo Navarro, who also worked on “Pan’s Labyrinth,” is on top of his game), well-staged and gracefully choreographed fight scenes.

“Hellboy II” is much more a fantasy than a superhero film, although the character is based on comics created by Mike Mignola. It’s another worthy film in this summer’s string of blockbusters. If you haven’t seen the first “Hellboy,” you might want to get the DVD before going to this sequel. Not that it’s necessary, but it’s a fun film to watch, too.

Jim Wunderle owns Wunderle Sound Services and is a Springfield freelance writer and musician. He can be reached at info@wunderlesound.com.