I was at the peak of my comic book geekdom when "Hellboy" made his very first appearance. It was in "John Byrne's Next Men," issue number 21, to be exact. Although John Byrne typically did all the art in his comic book, Mike Mignola, the creator of "Hellboy," did the artwork in the pages of that issue that included his character. Later, when "Hellboy" had his first comic book mini-series, John Byrne helped Mignola out with the writing.
Though I was an avid reader of "John Byrne's Next Men," I couldn't get into that first "Hellboy" mini-series (called "Seed of Destruction"). I liked Mignola's art a lot (it's very dark, with few colors and lotsa shadows), it really did look great, but I couldn't get into the story. I gave some of the later stories a try, and I liked them a lot more, but I can't say that I was ever a huge fan. Still, when it was announced that a "Hellboy" movie would be made, I was pretty happy, but I was also skeptical. The "Hellboy" comics have a distinct look, as do the characters, and I couldn't see how the comic could translate to the screen without looking completely ridiculous. Soon, however, I was seeing pictures, promotional materials, and the trailers. It looked great! Somehow, it didn't look cheesy. The movie may not have had the exact same look as the comic book art (which woulda been damn near impossible), but it was in the same ballpark, and the characters looked phenomenal.
Now that I've finally seen the feature film version of "Hellboy," I can pretty much say the same thing I said after I read that first mini-series; it looked great, but the story wasn't my thing.
The impression I got after seeing the photos and trailers was accurate. The characters look amazing, and even though it would be impossible for the movie to have the look of Mike Mignola's art, it comes really close. Also, it was faithful to the "Hellboy" comics (though it actually combined several different stories, "Seed of Destruction" and "The Corpse" being the most prominent ones). Did I like the movie? Yes, I did. Was I disappointed? Yes, I was. I think I'd like it more if I were to see it again, though. My hopes were really high, and I kinda forgot that I wasn't all that into the comic books anyway.
The ringleader is Guillermo del Toro. He really wanted to make this movie, and he shopped around to different studios to get it made, and get it made HIS way. Somehow, he did it. Guillermo del Toro is the talented Mexican director of "Blade II," "The Devil's Backbone," "Mimic," "Cronos," and others. He likes his movies dark, and "Hellboy" is no exception. He's a great filmmaker, and he did a hell of a job of translating the comic book into a movie. He also wrote it, with the help of Peter Briggs (making his debut as a writer), and, of course, what they wrote was based on Mike Mignola's comics.
Ron Perlman is the man who plays "Hellboy," and it's one of the best casting choices for a comic book movie ever. Flipping through the "Hellboy" comics, it's obvious that Ron Perlman was the man for the role. Director Guillermo del Toro and "Hellboy" creator Mike Mignola both agreed. Most studios, however, did not. Studios that were interested in making the film suggested Vin Diesel or The Rock for the role, but Guillermo del Toro insisted on Perlman. Almost all of the studios passed, but Revolution Studios was fine with it (after some pursuading, I imagine). Yay Revolution Studios!
In case you don't know who Ron Perlman is, he's a great character actor who often tackles roles that require that he wears a lotta make-up. He was in the TV show "Beauty and the Beast" as "Vincent" (the Beast), and he was a Cro-Magnon (or perhaps Neanderthal) man in the film, "Quest for Fire." He's worked with Jean-Pierre Jeunet (the director of "Amélie") in two films, "The City of Lost Children" and "Alien Resurrection," and he's worked with Guillermo del Toro before, in "Cronos" and "Blade II." He also does a lotta voice work. He's not the leading man type, not even close, but "Hellboy" is a character that he was born to play. I give Guillermo del Toro a lotta credit for sticking to his guns. It paid off. Ron Perlman is awesome in the movie.
Selma Blair (probably best known as the girl who had the lesbian kiss with Sarah Michelle Gellar in "Cruel Intentions") plays "Liz Sherman." I was never very impressed with Selma Blair's acting, but in "Hellboy," she's very subdued (usually she's over-the-top), and plays the role beautifully. "Liz Sherman" is a very tragic character, but the film only touches on it. The rest has to be projected from her acting, and she nails it.
"Abe Sapien" is a very cool character, but he's not in the film nearly as much as I woulda liked him to be. He's played by Doug Jones (I'm not familiar with his previous work, but I know he was in the Guillermo del Toro film, "Mimic"), with the voice being provided by David Hyde Pierce (that's right, "Niles Crane" in the TV show, "Frasier"). Jones' movements and Pierce's voice work together seamlessly, and they both do excellent work. It's too bad the character isn't in the movie that much.
I really hope that "Hellboy" does big box office. A movie that's faithful to the comic book it's based on is something that I really appreciate, and I want it to be rewarded. I also want Guillermo del Toro and Revolution Studios to be rewarded for having the balls to let a relatively obscure character actor play the lead role in a $60 million movie. I liked the film, despite being somewhat disappointed, and I'll definitely see the sequel if it gets made.
Scale of 1-10: 7