REVIEW: Hellboy (Guillermo Del Toro, 2004)

When Hitler becomes keen on the supernatural, he forms a new branch in his regime to open up a portal in space to summon a hibernating evil into the world. Something does slip through, but is intercepted by Hitler's opposition. It is an odd, red, demon-like creature... Hellboy. At least I think that's how it goes. Guillermo Del Toro directs a recurring actor in his films, Ron Perlman, in the title role of this comic book adaptation.

From opening to closing, I just could not get into Hellboy. What was I hoping for? I'm not sure... the only other Del Toro film I've seen is Blade II, which I love for what Del Toro did with it, but his efforts here fall dead quickly. It took me three sittings to get through the film in its entirety.

Nearly every performance is wooden, especially from Perlman. I can see where some of this was intended, but it goes too far and makes for a more boring experience a la Pirates of the Carribean, although at least Pirates' humor worked on most levels. The inclusion of Jeffrey Tambor, playing a staunch politician, distracts us from the potentially (the word 'potentially' is key) interesting things going on otherwise. In fact, the only performance I cared for came as a nice surprise. Selma Blair plays Hellboy's weak spot, a sweet girl important enough to him that he'll sneak out to see her, even if it means getting caught on camera, and she delivers a believable performance that makes for a nice beacon of goodness amongst the bland juggernauts.

I know that comic books can have far-fetched storylines, especially when it comes to the subject of outer space, but the plot that Hellboy follows is utterly ridiculous. I would imagine that only fans of the source material would find enjoyment in seeing their formerly still-life hero come to life on screen. Only people who are familiar with the characters could have found the primary villian ominous - to me he looked like a well-dressed bum. Furthermore, on top of entertaining a silly story, the film goes anticlimactically over the top with special effects from the creation of a leaden behemoth monster to the random burning of the moon.

Hellboy is a well-intentioned and relatively unique take on the superhero flick, but after the first Blade sequel, I expected more from Del Toro, especially considering he is ready to drop his name from the Halo video game adaptation (which would assuredly be exciting under his direction) in order to more quickly conjure Hellboy 2... Guillermo my man, let it wait! All things considered, however, I still have relatively high hopes for what Pan's Labyrinth could be.

REVIEW: Underworld: Evolution (Len Wiseman, 2006)

Three-hundred years ago, going unseen by human historians, the father of the werewolf race known as Lycans was imprisoned despite opposing pleas from his twin brother, the father of the vampire race. Now, the vampire progenitor has been awakened and seeks his confined brother to set him free, and only a select few are powerful and knowledgable enough to stop him. Kate Beckinsale leads the cast in this dark, action-packed adventure that picks up immediately after its predecessor left off.

What a great surprise!! I was extremely hesitant to see this sequel, and even bounced back and forth with the idea after I had sat down in the auditorium seat. Though the first one was very good considering what it was, I wasn't its biggest fan. I wasn't a big fan of Beckinsale either, and after all the piss-poor reviews for her second sky-eyed outing in tight leather it was really a matter of boredom that led me to Evolution, and man am I ever happy that I caught it in theaters!

We come in to some history that kicks off the surprisingly complex plot, featuring Bill Nighy as the first recognizable actor to reprise his role. I still can't look at him and not sing to myself, "I feel it in my fingers, I feel it in my toes!" ... but he sets up well for us one of the few bad things about the movie - hackneyed performances. It would actually be a much shorter endeavor to list the bad about this movie than the good - and yes, I know how unbelievable that sounds. Another thing in the opening that prepares us for what is to come is the serious action. It is much better composed than most action films these days, and the choreography is great. Even better news is that while this opening rocks hard, it pales in comparison to the intense fight sequences that lay ahead.

The first Underworld impressed me in several ways, but mostly with its tendency to lean toward good physical effects over CGI. Evolution seems to have more computer graphics involved, but the good animatronics and on-camera effects are still very much in use.

I'm excited to feel how much I enjoyed this film. I'm no stranger to vampire media, in fact I'm happy to admit that I find the modern takes from Blade to Anne Rice extremely alluring. The style, the immortality, the blood, it's all quite intensely sexy. Is this movie for everyone? Clearly not, judging from the reviews. What is my recommendation? It's definitely worth a rent if anything, though I would suggest catching it before it leaves theaters for the intimate experience with the visuals, the surround sound and the powerful score.