One of the Most Rewarding Blu-rays
Added 11/16/2009
Not only is this a great movie to watch, but the feature on blu-ray is complimented with some of the best special features I've ever seen. Aside from the horrible idea called U-control, the second disc is a sugar-coated geek-treat for those of us who love behind-the-scenes. Guillermo Del Toro knows excatly what we want to see when we look through special features: Pre-Production, Production, and Post VIDEOS. I'm tired of seeing special features on blu-rays with pages of reading. I can go to wikipedia for that. The director, I'm sure, watches a lot of other directors' work and admires their clips behind the camera. So he made his own and made us fans all proud.
Universal, on the other hand, needs to take advice from Del Toro. Give us clips, not 5 movie tracks with different text and buttons coming out of every corner of the screen. It doesn't matter if U-control is user-friendly or not. The problem is that it is tedious and boring. Give us the feature film with one or two commentaries to choose from. Then gives us a picture in picture track to pay homage to the gift of blu-ray. Then leave it alone and pack all the behind the scenes raw footage on disc two. Nobody reads the fun facts while your movie plays, or rewinds the scene so he can catch every bit of his/her pre-visualization clip. Make special features that people can enjoy, and people might actually start watching them.
Now to the movie. Sorry, I digressed on the extras, but the appreciation of this blu-ray mainly comes from the admiration of the effort the director took to make a great disc 2. Anyway, Hellboy 2 is way better than it's predecessor. It's pacing, style, and story are all perfected in this sequel. Did you think Hellboy 1 was missing something? Well Hellboy 2 found it. It found a more enjoyable villain, a richer color pallette, and much more. The action has grown a lot more memorable in this one, due to choreography and CGI improvements. I'm proud to see that Guillermo has found the balance between CGI and practical effects that we all longed for. In addition to all these great improvements, the small things like humor and music compliment the movie even more, and make this Guillermo's most well-rounded film to date, besides Pan's Labyrinth.
What is my favorite part of this movie you ask? Probably the strong creativity it has. Theres so many interesting creatures and scenery that you have never seen before within this movie. Watch it again after you've seen it once, and I guarantee you, you will see something new. Hellboy 2 is a beautiful film that does justice to the poorly received first film. Most people weren't drawn in by the first movie, but by now, we're all ready for a sequel. Thank you Guillermo for giving us a great film with a blu-ray that makes all others look impaired.
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Great special effects & action
Added 11/6/2009
PLease note that I saw this movie on HBO so I can't speak to the quality of the DVD transfer. But I did want to make a few comments about the movie.
I basically watch movies like this for the special effects and the action, not expecting anything much in the way a convincing story, well developed characters, or even good acting. That way I avoid the anguished indignation of the many sci fi or fantasy fans when the sequel fails to live up to their overblown expectations. After all, it's sci fi/fantasy, what did they expect? Last Tango in Paris or Gone with the Wind?
Of course, the counter-argument is the movie, Bladerunner, which has everything, but then Bladerunner was based on the Philip K. Dick novel, and Dick was a half-wacked, dyspeptic but brilliant sci-fi writer who was in and out of psychiatric care or even mental hospitals much of his life. Maybe there's a lesson there somewhere when it comes to finding good ideas and move scripts.
But anyway, all that aside, I really enjoyed this movie, perhaps because I didn't see the original Hellboy which everyone here is unfavorably comparing this sequel to. But this movie has some of the best action, special effects, spectacular background sets, and fight sequences of any recent super hero movie. The fight between Hellboy and the Golden Army soldiers, who can reassemble themselves sort of like animated Leggos, is cool. The final fight scene in the clockwork-like underground cave is ingenious and suspenseful, and the super kung-fu elf bad guy is like something out of Hidden Tiger, Crouching Dragon.
Overall a pretty exciting action flick that is sort of like Tolkien's Middle Earth meets Lost in Space, since there are some campy sci-fi elements too. I give it a solid 4.5 stars just for its adrenalin pumping action and special effects. Just ignore the sappy love affair and sit back and watch the action. Plus when the ectoplasmic being in the cool looking space suit tells their CIA-clone boss he can "**** my ectoplasmic schwanstucker" at the end of the movie I just about fell out of my chair.
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Very fun to watch.
Added 10/30/2009
I thought this film was a pretty good sequel to the first as it wasn't over the top as sequels usually are and the plot was decent as it focused on royal siblings at odds of each other with one trying to enslave humanity and the other trying to uphold the peace. Most of the original casts comes back for this one and Abe Sapien gets a lot more screen time than that from the first which is a good thing cuz I thought his performance was brilliant (especially the dialogues between him and the princess). The scenery of the film is also worth to mention because at one point of the film, it kind of reminded me of Tim Burton's "Edward Scissor Hands". Despite this comic hero does not belong to the notorious Marvel or DC, I still recommend this film to all comic book movie goers as this one is not one to miss.
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Hellboy II... Yea, an Excellent Movie
Added 10/28/2009
1. I recall the first HellBoy movie as a interesting and entertaining film, but nothing beyond that (it's just my recollection).
2. However, Hellboy II is really a well made movie. Well acted, witty and funny writing, nice storyline, great action sequences, all in all, a very good movie.
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Not as enjoyable as the first Hellboy
Added 10/24/2009
Hellboy 2 is an average film and a let-down after an excellent showing in the first film. Without giving any of the plot away, Hellboy 2 spends far too much time on Hellboy acting like an immature pre-teen, which pulls the viewer out of key scenes throughout the movie that would otherwise cause a measurable emotional impact. I didn't feel any sort of 'response' or connection to the characters when things wrapped up, particularly for Abe Sapien. Sorry I'm being vague here, but I don't want to spoil the film for those who haven't seen it.
The video and audio on Blu-ray do not disappoint, however. This video is near reference quality, in my opinion, practically 'popping' off the display. Colors are definitely over-saturated, but I think that's what the makers had in mind when producing this film. It works, though. Audio will give your sound system a nice workout. Expect plenty of bass and excellent use of directional sound.
The digital copy is an excellent bonus. It's compatible with nearly every portable player out there including the iPod/iPhone. I did not view the bonus materials as I had little interest in watching anything more related to Hellboy 2. The video/audio quality and digital copy push this movie to 3/5 stars. Otherwise, unless you're a die-hard Hellboy fan, this movie is best left for a rental; and it's one you won't feel guilty passing over, either.
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Let me remind you why you once feared the dark
Added 4/24/2009
Guillermo Del Toro has become the new master of dark fantasy -- first with the quirky clockpunk "Hellboy," then with the Oscar-winning "Pan's Labyrinth." Not to mention forthcoming travels to Middle-Earth.
So you know he has the skills to pit Mike Mignola's scarlet anti-hero against an army of fairies and elves, and not make it silly. Instead, it's a spectacular dark fantasy full of humor, action, quirky appeal, romance, and some truly astounding special effects. But what really shoves this movie over the top is Del Toro's brilliant direction, and the stunning performance by Ron Perlman.
Decades ago, Professor Broom (William Hurt) told a small Hellboy a yuletide bedtime story about the Elf King Balor and his unstoppable Golden Army, and how the crown that controls the Army was split into thirds and divided among fairies and humans. Well, you can't really expect that kind of power to never be revived.
Cut to current day. Hellboy (Perlman), Liz (Selma Blair) and Abe (Doug Jones) investigate a strange supernatural attack on an auction house, where the archeological curiosity known as the Crown of Bethmoora was being sold -- only to be attacked by savage tooth fairies. Turns out the crown was stolen by Prince Nuada (Luke Goss), a resentful young elf who is determined to take the world back from humanity -- using, of course, the Golden Army.
And while Hellboy chafes against strict new commander Johann Krauss (a suit filled with ectoplasm), Abe encounters Nuada's sister, Princess Nuala -- who also happens to have the last third of the crown. But Nuada will not allow anyone to oppose him as he searches for the Golden Army's location, and Hellboy and his friends must venture into a strange, ancient kingdom to stop him from destroying all of humanity.
The worst you can say about "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" is that it sticks to the formula of the demonic outsider with a dark destiny, and his continuing romantic woes. There's some retreading as Hellboy realizes anew that he'll never fit into the world of humans, because he's big and red and has horns and a tail. Okay, we got it. Next big psychological issue!
Fortunately those flaws are relatively minor ones. Del Toro is still able to spin a dark, twisted story with some truly bizarre creatures (the utterly alien, eye-winged Angel of Death), clockpunk robots, trippy underground goblin markets and a new BPRD agent who is basically ectoplasm in a suit. And for the action scenes, Del Toro does not pull punches when it comes to the smashing action scenes -- giant thrashing vines and a one-on-one duel with Nuada are among the highlights.
With all this going on, it would be easy to neglect the characters. But Del Toro packs the script with solid snappy dialogue and some poignantly romantic moments -- including some pretty startling actions from dear ol' Abe. And he also adds little moments to this epic story that remind us that these are supposed to be people -- such as Hellboy's bickering with Krauss, or Abe and Hellboy getting drunk and having a little Manilow singalong together. It's just so cute.
But what really sets this movie apart is the "children of the Earth." No flitting Victorian sprites -- these are creatures that are weird, grotesque, dangerous and immensely powerful, from nasty little tooth fairies up to vast rock monsters and plant gods. There's an alien, bizarre aesthetic to these creatures that feels wholly real, as if Neil Gaiman casually dropped a few sketches onto the drawing board.
But as amazing as the visuals are, Del Toro never neglects the characters. Perlman is perfect for the role of "big Red" -- he's gruff, sarcastic, moody, but also endearing and self-deprecatingly likable. There are more hints of his potentially dark future, and he faces some delicately-handed temptations. But Big Red's good heart is still very much in the forefront, no matter how much human beings fear him.
Blair gives a more lively performance here as a spunkier Liz, who also has some surprising developments in store. Jones is pitch-perfect as the fish-man, who experiences the first pangs of young love for Nuala, while Goss gives a chilling, whispery performance as a rebel prince who is willing to do whatever it takes -- even kill family -- if it helps him restore the fey kingdom. Pretty good villain, since he clearly isn't trying to be bad.
This is the ultra-mega-super-whatever edition of this movie, which basically means that you get a giant cube crammed with stuff. Aside from the blu-ray (with its wealth of features and behind-the-scenes stuff) you also get a nice poster, a Del Toro "journal" of inspiration and thoughts on the film, and a little statue of a Golden Army robot. The statue seems a bit flimsy, but otherwise the Limited Edition is pretty good.
"Hellboy II: The Golden Army" is a wild, darkly ornate ride through the world of half-forgotten gods and fey. While it has a few flaws, those are far outweighed by the brilliant of Del Toro's vision.
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I Like Toys
Added 4/13/2009
The toy is pretty cool, and the movie in blu-ray looks great... but i wonder why they didn't do a hellboy instead of a soldier of the golden army as a toy?
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I could only see half off the movie ,so i got a movie that dosn't work "great" I did also buy The 8 news james bond blue ray movies and i live in scandinavia europe and amazon.com could see that on my ordre and still they send me Movies in code A that only can be played in the USA (EU is Code B)" So dont buy movies from amazon.com if you live in europe, they dont know the codes ".The only good thing is that the ordre come on time .Really sorry that i have to write this .
Steen
Denmark .
0 out of 14 people found this helpful.
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