Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Directed by Guillermo del Toro
Starring Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, Luke Goss
Rated PG-13
Release date: July 11, 2008

So, unless The Dark Knight ends up disappointing me, which I doubt it will, we could be looking at a summer with at least three truly great comic book movies, between Dark Knight, Iron Man, and Hellboy II. I’m here to tell you that Hellboy II: The Golden Army is even better than the first film, and I can’t wait to see it again, just so I can experience it again. From the acting to the action sequences to the effects and then just the overall story, director Guillermo del Toro and crew have created a masterpiece and have set up what could be another great sequel when Hellboy 3 eventually comes out.

I’ll start with the story. The film more or less picks up where the first one ended, with Hellboy (Ron Perlman) and the rest of the BPRD dealing with threats that regular people are unable to deal with. This time the threat comes from an Elven prince named Nuada (Luke Goss) and his quest to obtain the titular Golden Army, an unstoppable force created to destroy mankind. The BPRD is aided by the prince’s sister, Nuala (Anna Walton), who doesn’t want to see the force used as it will destroy everything in its path.

Meanwhile, a new BPRD agent is brought in to keep control of Hellboy, and we are introduced to Johann Krauss (voiced by Seth McFarlane), a ghost who walks around in a specially designed suit. Of course the eventual showdown between Hellboy and Nuada comes and we get a bunch of great fight scenes along the way, as well as a few surprises.

What really struck me about the movie was the amount of humor the film had, and not in a cheesy or forced way. All the comedy came from the characters naturally, and the audience I saw it with was laughing at all the right times. I’d say that I laughed more than when I saw The Love Guru, which might not be that difficult, and even though the first Hellboy film had its moments, this one had more than its share of laughs. That said, the film still managed to balance the humor with both the action sequences and a great deal of romance.

But what I loved most about the film was the make-up effects used to bring the world to life. No, don’t get me wrong, the film has a lot of great digital effects that blend in seamlessly with the regular actors and sets, but it’s the practical effects and make-up that really make the difference and make the world believable. Take Johann Krauss for example. There are a few times when he’s out of his suit and he’s just a digital cloud of ectoplasm, but for the most part he’s locked in his suit, which has a ton of moving pieces and smoke coming out. He feels more real this way when he is interacting with the rest of the cast, than if he had been a complete digital creation. Of course, Ron Perlman and Doug Jones look great in their suits, same as they did in the first film, but the real masterpiece of the film comes when the group makes a trip to the Troll Village, which is a brilliant mix of digital and make-up creatures.

And, the whole thing would have fallen apart if it wasn’t for the work of the entire cast, who turn in great work from top to bottom. Ron Perlman is great again as Hellboy, as the first film showed, he’s the perfect actor for the role. As opposed to the first film, Hellboy and Liz Sherman (Selma Blair) spend a lot of time together, and Perlman and Blair have a lot of chemistry together, and really sell the relationship, which is at the center of the story this time. Blair has to be happy with the expanded role they gave her for the sequel, but who must be really happy is Doug Jones, who not only gets to play Abe Sapian on screen, but also gets to voice the character this time around. You can tell the difference from David Hyde Pierce (who voiced Abe in the first film), but only if you’ve seen the previous movie recently. He also gets a lot of juicy moments to play, especially in some scenes between Abe and the elf Princess Nuala. He also shares the first decent musical number in a comic book movie, although I’d still maintain that a moratorium needs to be placed on singing and dancing in comic book movies, but if you have to have one, at least keep it short, like they do here. Jeffery Tambor is of course funny, and the early scene with John Hurt is a welcome addition, but the breakout performance of the film is Seth McFarlane as the voice of Johann Krauss. I didn’t recognize who was doing the voice until the end credits rolled, which is credit to his work on the role. He is responsible for a lot of the humor in the film, and while he may be a bit over the top with his German accent, he’s still hilarious and is a big reason the movie works. And his action scene at the end of the film had the audience laughing and excited at the same time. He’s one of the main reasons I can’t wait to see this film again.

So, great action, beautiful effects, and fantastic acting all create a sequel that is a great step above the first film, and the second best film I’ve seen this summer, and if I see it again, it may take first place. This is not just a great comic book film; it is one of the best action films of the last few years. This is one that I hope doesn’t get lost in the shuffle of the other big films left to come out this year and I have to recommend this to anyone looking to have a good time at the theater.