"Hellboy" Packs a Meaty, Hell-raising Punch

     Okay, so...Hellboy.

     Let me just start by saying that I was on board with this movie the moment I watched the first trailer for it. Was I bummed that the Guillermo Del Toro brand was missing? Sure. Was it weird to see someone other than Ron Perlman don the horns? No doubt. But gall all mighty...seeing Hellboy riding a demon dragon while wielding a flaming sword was so effing metal! Look, I get that franchises get rebooted all the time, and I'm not surprised that this one followed suit. From the marketing of this movie, I was promised one hellavu time, and I will say this: this iteration does not fall short in the spectacle arena, that's for sure. However, it's a lot to take in. If movies were like meals, then Hellboy was the most unhealthy, greasy meal that was delivered with the same amount of pomp and circumstance as a Thanksgiving feast.

     In this version, Hellboy (David Harbour) is caught between the supernatural and human worlds and must battle an ancient sorceress (Milla Jovovich) bent on revenge. I have to say, Harbour kills it as the big red fella, and I really dug his interpretation of the character. He was easily the best part of the movie, which is obviously a good thing since everything sort of hinges on him. For the most part, the acting is pretty decent; it's clear Jovovich is aware of the absurdity she's involved in, and delivers a truly over-the-top performance that at times is somewhat cringy, but plays well against Harbour's comedic timing. The story is where the movie really falters. It's not that it's bad, because it's not; I was thoroughly engaged and entertained from beginning to end. It's just that there's so much of it. There is easily three movies worth of information, mythology, back story, and plot packed into this one movie that for most of the run time it felt like just a series of events falling all around you like giant dominoes. Almost every story point that is brought up was truly interesting, and I wanted to know more--to spend time with certain characters before getting shuffled off into other driving plot points--but there's a vicious momentum to this movie that you have to just accept and ride out till the end.

    I know comparisons will be made between this new film and the two that came before it, and I don't want to spend a lot of time on that aspect simply because those previous two from director Guillermo Del Toro were fantastic and the new one should be viewed on its own merits. What I will say though is that I really missed, if anything, the sense of darkened whimsy that only comes from Del Toro's style of filmmaking. I applaud Hellboy (2019) for bringing something new to the table. If you're going to remake or reboot something, that's the best way to do it; swing for the fences. In place of the whimsical mystery and wonder, directer Neil Marshall introduces a more hyper-violent and gory take to the half-demon monster hunter. I'm cool with that. In fact, I really quite enjoyed the action and mayhem that ensued on screen. It was comical, gratuitous at times, but it was consistent with the established tone, and you have to applaud them for that. This is a new Hellboy franchise, and it is ushered in on the backs of some crazy events, that's for sure.

    At the end of the day, I found Hellboy really fun. It's a bloated narrative that manages to be really funny at times, and kinda heartfelt at others. With as much story as they packed in, what really suffered was the emotional connection to the characters. They tried, but it's just a lot. But, despite its flaws, I still had a good time. It is epic in scale, gory as all get-out, with pretty good visual effects and a wonderful performance by our new resident Hellboy. I don't know if it's going to out-do Shazam! at the box office this weekend, but it's an entertaining ride and I recommend seeing it.