Hellboy (2004)

Directed by: Guillermo del Toro | 120 minutes | action, comedy, adventure, science fiction, horror | Actors: Ron Perlman, John Hurt, Selma Blair, Rupert Evans, Karel Roden, Jeffrey Tambor, Doug Jones, Brian Steele, Ladislav Beran, Biddy Hodson, Corey Johnson, Kevin Trainor, Brian Caspe, James Babson, Stephen Fisher

After the overwhelming successes of ‘Batman’, ‘Spider-Man’ and ‘Blade’, film adaptations of cartoon characters are a popular subject for directors. Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro also saw something in turning a paper hero into a cinema version. The result has become ‘Hellboy’.

Most comic book adaptations come from the stables of the powerful American publishers Marvel and DC. Del Toro chose the underground publishing house Dark Horse, where the obscure cult comic comes from. Hellboy was created by cartoonist Mike Mignola, who gained a following among comic book enthusiasts due to his distinct drawing style. Mignola’s characters are fanciful and very bizarre. Unlike popular superheroes like ‘Batman’ and ‘Superman’, Hellboy is not your typical ‘all American guy, turns out to be a hero’. Mignola devised an antihero who tries to preserve his humanity and not stand out in society. The comics revolve around the fun of reading and contain almost no moralistic sermons.

It must therefore be said that ‘Hellboy’ cannot be accused of good taste. Ninja-Nazis, Rasputin, zombies… it’s all in director Del Toro’s film. As a viewer, a lot is demanded of your empathy. The beginning of the film begins in a misleading way, when a group of Allied soldiers wants to take out a Nazi platoon. The setting of WWII is very convincingly portrayed, the uniforms are nicely chosen and the chaos of a war is well portrayed. For the first five minutes you imagine yourself in a war film, then the camera shows a fleeting shot of a masked Nazi and a kind of portal to hell. As if that weren’t enough, the film continues to fire strange, bizarre events at the viewer. The masked Nazi turns out to be some sort of ninja who effortlessly kills a dozen soldiers and appears to be invulnerable. The entire print has this strange storytelling style, where every scene is bursting at the seams with strange finds and bizarre plot changes.

Del Toro, however, is skilled enough to take a break and introduce his characters. Although dosing is not one of its strong points. The action continues to pile up fast. Nevertheless, the Mexican filmmaker knows how to give his main characters a heart. The loving and respectful approach of the characters is the strongest point of the print. Ron Perlman plays the lead and does it very convincingly. Despite the macho-one liners and tough attitude that characterize Hellboy, Perlman manages to create a touching character. The actor knows very subtly to bring a certain depth to his role. In particular, the scenes in which Hellboy wants to declare his love for Liz are very successful. In a rather childish way, you see the behemoth at work. A nice contrast between the tough attitude he adopts during the battles with Rasputin and the Nazis. The relationship between Hellboy and his ‘father’, John Hurt, is also very well developed. For example, there is a masterly scene in which an evil ‘son’ is outraged by the house arrest that his ‘father’ imposed on him. The small nuances between being an adult and being a child are very amusingly portrayed. In addition to being a convincing action hero, Perlman also knows how to create an endearing character. Very handsome as Hellboy is two meters tall and has a terrifying appearance. The humanity of this cartoon character is many times greater than that of the main characters from other cartoon adaptations.

The action is well put together. The special effects are very convincing. Unfortunately, the wire-frame technique is sometimes a bit too obvious. In short, you can see it quite clearly when working with cables. However, it doesn’t bother. The entire feel of the film is over the top, leaning towards pulp. Director Del Toro knows how to use this atmosphere well and ensures that the print never goes wrong by making the film appear better than it is. In the end ‘Hellboy’ has become a very bizarre, surreal production that shows the genuine love and respect for Mignola’s creation. It is commendable that Del Toro has not made any concessions to make the film more accessible to a large audience. The original character is retained in the movie version.