June 30, 2008
Movie Trailer: Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Guillermo Del Toro has proven himself to be quite the cultural force and one seriously talented filmmaker. He returns to helm this sequel to 2004's Hellboy. The films are based on the graphic novel* of the same name. Ron Perlman also returns as the demonic, cigar chomping hero.
It would seem easy to dismiss this film, and its predecessor, as another example of the decline of our society - great, now the devil is the good guy. Its a fair criticism to an extent, this is well designed spot of post modernism. In a strange way, the play of what Hellboy is (a demon) opposing what he tries to be (a hero) has some interesting subtext going going for it.
Del Toro put a good deal of thought into his first outing and created an enjoyable twist on what should have been a predicable McMovie. This one? Well, Perlman seems made for this role and Del Toro's eye for design is certainly in full effect. If the story is sound it will probably be worth the hassle of seeing it in the theater.
It would seem easy to dismiss this film, and its predecessor, as another example of the decline of our society - great, now the devil is the good guy. Its a fair criticism to an extent, this is well designed spot of post modernism. In a strange way, the play of what Hellboy is (a demon) opposing what he tries to be (a hero) has some interesting subtext going going for it.
Del Toro put a good deal of thought into his first outing and created an enjoyable twist on what should have been a predicable McMovie. This one? Well, Perlman seems made for this role and Del Toro's eye for design is certainly in full effect. If the story is sound it will probably be worth the hassle of seeing it in the theater.
Visit the official site
* - "Graphic novel" eh? How fancy, its a novel but its graphic. It's a comic book with better binding. And while we're at it, action figures are dolls.
Screenwriter: Guillermo del Toro (El Laberinto del fauno (Pan's Labyrinth))
Director: Guillermo del Toro (Blade II)
Actors: Ron Perlman (The Ice Pirates), Selma Blair (The Fog), Doug Jones (Lady in the Water), Jeffrey Tambor (Hellboy), Luke Goss (One Night with the King), and John Hurt (V for Vendetta)
Labels: Guillermo Del Toro, Jeffrey Tambor, John Hurt, movie trailer, Ron Perlman, Selma Blair
posted by Michelle Obama's Left Nut at 9:00 PM
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5 Comments:
well, it does look visually lush. I've never been much "into" the Hellboy thing (and the comic does come in issues as well as bound volumes simulating graphic novels, I believe--though it began as a graphic novel, perhaps, and not in ishes. The problems of periodical, episodic, and serial are tough to untangle, but something written at book-length originally does have a different "feel" to something written in an episodic form, for sure). The first movie was decent, though.
Postmodern? I don't see it. I mean, there are wry comments about "good and demon," sure. But that really all amounts to a problematization of the nature/nurture debate, which is quintessentially modern, so, if anything, only the snark is pomo-lite.....
But, hey, everything since Frank Lloyd Wright is pomo, right?
Cheers,
PGE
"postmodern" would be the last five lines of dialogue in this episode of Angel.
I recently have been more interested in graphic novels as their popularity have increased over the last ten years. Good careful reading and observation of the artwork and pacing reveals them to indeed be more than comic books. Apparently they are also now studied and accepted as real literature in universities and among the general populace who love literature. This a change from when I was in school, where they would have been summarily dismissed, I would guess. Action figures are dolls.
I can never sit through the first Hellboy, for some reason, but I don't have a problem with it much as a fantasy action film.
Greg,
The fact that they're being studied in universities isn't exactly proof of their worth. I'm sure I can find some lame professors who'd assign straight up comic books as being relevant lit.
The change from years past is that the population has gotten increasingly illiterate and these souped-up comic books are the literary version of the cash registers at McDonalds that have pictures instead of words and numbers.
Hellboy 2 was fun; for sure that director has an amazing imagination, reminded me a lot of his work in Pan's Labyrinth
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