Hellboy

Synopsis
Based on the comic book series by Mike Mignola, Guillermo del Toro's gleefully eccentric film follows the supernatural adventures of Hellboy (Ron Perlman), a cigar-chomping, horn-filing demonic hero enlisted by an occult scholar (John Hurt) to fight evil in the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense. Along with the fire-throwing Liz Sherman (Selma Blair) and the amphibious psychic Abe Sapien (Doug Jones, with the voice of David Hyde Pierce), Hellboy is joined by new recruit John Myers (Rupert Evans), a squeaky-clean FBI agent assigned to keep the big red devil's exploits in check. Things get out of hand, however, when a vicious monster is unleashed by the villainous Rasputin (Karl Roden), leading to events that may set off an apocalyptic nightmare for humanity.

Echoing Peter Jackson's passion for THE LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy, HELLBOY is a labor of love from del Toro, a longtime fan of the comic and its creator. The director's enthusiasm shows, since HELLBOY is a wondrously strange slice of pulpy adventure, mixed with horror and humor, and enhanced by stunning visual effects. In the title role (and lots of red makeup), Perlman is pitch-perfect, giving the good-natured misfit a powerful--yet surprisingly sensitive--presence. Blair, Evans, Hurt, and other actors are similarly well cast, rounding out an ensemble intent on retaining the movie's dark yet superbly entertaining tone.

Reviews
"HELLBOY is engaging." (Entertainment Weekly)

"Mr. del Toro lets loose with an all-American, vaudevillian rambunctiousness that makes the movie daffy, loose and lovable." (New York Times)

"There's no shortage of slick special effects and rampaging monsters here. Yet what catches the eye and captures the imagination is the lovingly hand-crafted feel of the design..." (Los Angeles Times)

"Guillermo del Toro has crafted a fiery action picture destined to please comics fans..." (USA Today)

"It's vibrating with energy, and you can sense the zeal and joy in its making." (Chicago Sun-Times)

"[A]n engaging supernatural action film....It's easy to be captivated by del Toro's style and the film's overall panache." (Box Office)

"The bad guys have great looks....HELLBOY succeeds because it brings the visuals from the page to life with a beating red heart." (Sight and Sound)

"Perlman nails Hellboy's blue-collar ethos....[With] visual artistry and sly wit..." (Premiere)

"Perlman is outstanding....Over-the-top fun..." (Uncut)