Hellboy

Next to the new X-FILES film and possibly the next BATMAN installment, nothing has me more excited than HELLBOY II. By the time this Mike Mignola comic creation was being adapted for the screen Guillermo del Toro was already weel know to the fan-boys for his work on BLADE II and the underground hit MIMIC. As great as BLADE II was, it did not prepare us for the spectacle that would be HELLBOY. Sadly, lack of promotional backing from Sony pictures caused it to fade into cult status which will no doubt be rectified when the Universal produced part 2 hits the screens today nut never mind the second part for now. HELLBOY is every bit a comic book film but due to the strength of our lead hellion, played to absolute perfection by the once again heavily made up Ron Perlman, and a strong suppost cast of characters it easily transcends the genre and takes on a life of it's very own. I cannot emphasise enough just how great Perlman is in the lead and he really should have been considered for an Oscar here. Utterly amazing he is and despite being under a hundred plus pounds of latex, foam and whatever you STILL know it`s him! John Hurt shows, yet again, he will act in damn near anything and there is yet again another narration sequence provided by him. Rupert Evans as the new liason for Hellboy is the only weak link here and it`s a small detail. Sharply directed, wonderfully written and an absolute visual feast, make sure to do yourself the service and see it before you hit the big screen for the seocnd part this weekend.