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My fiancé says I’m the perfect
woman. He uses several examples to prove this: I can knock back several pints of Guinness
as good as any native Dubliner; I’d proudly order a steak instead of a salad any day; I
can quote Full Metal Jacket just as easily as quoting Shakespeare. This past
weekend, he added something else to the list: not only did I willingly go see the movie
Hellboy (without any sort of compromise to see The Prince and Me the
following weekend), but I loved it and actually want to see it again.
Hellboy, based on the Dark Horse Comics series of the same name, tells the story
of a demon with a heart of gold. Hellboy was born into this world during World War II
through the partnership of the Nazis and the evil occultist Rasputin (as natural a
pairing as Martin and Lewis, of course). Instead of wreaking havoc on the world as they
originally wanted him to, Hellboy was found as an infant by the kindly Professor Broom
(John Hurt), who raised him as his son, teaching him to be kind. As an adult, Hellboy
works for a government agency dedicated to researching and defending the country from
paranormal villains (which is reminiscent of the “Initiative” from the Buffy the
Vampire Slayer television series). Basically, he hunts down and kills the bad
guys—but the bad guys are all monsters. Now, Rasputin and his cohorts are back, and they
want to take another shot at destroying the world—and they want Hellboy to help.
The plot of the movie is very formulaic, and because of that, I
won’t delve into the storyline too much; instead I’ll concentrate on why I liked this
movie so much. First, it was riotously funny—Hellboy is perfectly played by Ron Pearlman
(the same guy who played Vincent on the ‘80s television series Beauty and the
Beast), who is often heard muttering an exasperated “CRAP!” when things don’t go
exactly his way. The acting is actually pretty good—the interaction between Hellboy and
Professor Broom is touching, as is his struggling relationship with his girlfriend, Liz
(a pyrokinetic, or firestarter, played by Selma Blair). There was a scene at the end
between Liz and Hellboy that actually made me a little teary. Secondly, the special
effects were great—not Lord of the
Rings great, but still pretty good. The best effect was Hellboy himself—6’5”
tall, fire engine red, with two great horns protruding from his forehead (although he
regularly files them down to stubs, so he looks more “normal”).
To be honest, I didn’t walk into the theater expecting Citizen Kane, but I
certainly didn’t expect to be so thoroughly entertained the entire time, either. There
were some plot holes, but the movie entertained me so much (between the special effects,
the comedy, and the acting, you never find yourself bored) that I was willing to overlook
the deficiencies in plot. Again, this movie isn’t going to win any Oscars, but it was so
amusing that I not only would see it again, but I’m actively looking out for an
opportunity to do so.
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