Hellboy 2: The Golden Army
Encyclopedia
Hellboy II: The Golden Army is a 2008 American supernatural superhero film
based on the fictional Dark Horse Comics
character Hellboy
, starring Ron Perlman
and Selma Blair
. The movie is directed by Guillermo del Toro
and is a sequel
to the 2004 film Hellboy
, which del Toro also directed. Perlman reprises his role as the eponymous character. The film was commercially released on July 11, 2008 in the United States and Canada by Universal Pictures
.
is told a bedtime story by his adoptive father, Trevor Broom
, involving an ancient war between Man and magical creatures, all started by Man's greed. After years of battle and defeat of the magical creatures' forces, the master of the goblin blacksmiths offered to build an indestructible golden mechanical army for King Balor, the one-armed king of the elves. Influenced by his son Prince Nuada (Luke Goss
), Balor ordered the building of this Golden Army. Soon the humans attacked again but the Golden Army devastated them so mercilessly that Balor forged a truce with the humans to stop the bloodshed: Man would keep his cities and the magical creatures would keep their forests. Nuada did not agree with the truce, and left in exile. The magical crown controlling the army was broken into three pieces, one piece going to the humans and the other two kept by the elves, so the Golden Army could never be used again.
In the present, Nuada declares war on the humans. He collects the first piece of the crown from an auction, massacring all at the site by unleashing tooth fairies onto them, and kills his father for the second piece of the crown. His twin
sister, Princess Nuala (Anna Walton
), escapes with the final piece. Meanwhile, Hellboy is having relationship issues with his girlfriend Liz
. He is also having trouble accepting that their organization, the B.P.R.D.
, must remain a secret. During a mission to investigate the massacre at the auction, Hellboy allows himself to be revealed to the world. In the commotion, Abe Sapien
discovers that Liz is pregnant. Furious about the public unveiling, the Bureau's superiors in Washington send a new B.P.R.D. agent, the ectoplasmic
medium Johann Krauss, to take command. With Krauss in charge, the team tracks the tooth fairies to the troll market, an enormous merchant city hidden under the Brooklyn Bridge, to search for clues. Abe stumbles onto Nuala, who has obtained a map leading to the Golden Army, during their search, and quickly falls in love with her. She is brought under B.P.R.D. protection following an attack by Nuada's sidekick, the troll
Wink, and an elemental
forest god, both of which Hellboy kills. During the elemental fight, Hellboy is questioned by Nuada whether it is right to fight for the humans when he too is perceived by humans as a monster.
Nuada tracks his sister to the B.P.R.D. headquarters using their magical bond, which causes them to share wounds and allows them to read each others' thoughts to an extent. Nuala, sensing her brother's arrival, throws the map, along with the canister in which it came, into a fire and hides the final piece of the crown within one of Abe's books. However, the real map is on the canister. Meanwhile upstairs, Abe and Hellboy become drunk together and sing "Can't Smile Without You
", by Barry Manilow
. Nuada kidnaps his sister and critically wounds Hellboy with his spear. Unable to remove the spear shard, Liz, Abe, and Krauss take Hellboy to the location of the Golden Army, hidden in County Antrim
, Northern Ireland
. They encounter a Bethmoora goblin, and he brings them before the angel of death, who has been waiting for their arrival. Though warned that Hellboy will doom humanity if he lives, and that she will suffer the most from it, Liz pleads for Hellboy's life. Amused by her choice, the Angel removes the shard from Hellboy's chest and tells Liz to give him a reason to live. She reveals to Hellboy that he's going to be a father, and he recovers.
The goblin leads the team to the resting place of the Golden Army (revealing that he is the builder of it), where Nuada awaits them. In exchange for Nuala, Abe gives him the last piece of the crown. With the crown reformed, Nuada awakens the Golden Army and orders them to kill the team. After a seemingly victorious attack on several of the mechanical soldiers, the group watches in shock as they magically repair themselves. Hellboy challenges Nuada for the right to the crown, and Nuada is forced to accept, since Hellboy is a member of Hell's royal family (he is mentioned as "Son of the Fallen One", since his father was a Prince of Sheol
). Hellboy defeats Nuada and spares his life, but Nuada tries to stab him when Hellboy turns around. Nuala commits suicide
to stop her brother: the dying Nuada tells Hellboy he will one day have to choose whether humanity or the magical beings must die out. Abe rushes to Nuala and psychically tells her his feelings for her—and cries after previously implying that he cannot smile, or cry—before she and her brother turn to stone and die. Liz then melts the crown, shutting down the Golden Army forever. As the team leave the underground compound, Tom Manning
reprimands them for their actions. To his surprise, Hellboy, Liz, Abe, and Krauss all hand over their belts and announce their resignation from the B.P.R.D. (though Hellboy keeps one of his guns for when the world needs him again). As they walk away, Hellboy contemplates his future life with Liz and their baby. Liz stops and corrects him, saying "babies", surprising him with the fact that she is pregnant with twin
s by holding up two fingers.
's Hellboy
the previous month, a sequel was announced by Revolution Studios
with del Toro returning to direct and Ron Perlman
reprising his lead role as the titular character
. The director sought to create a film trilogy with the first sequel anticipated for release in 2006. Revolution Studios planned to produce the film and distribute it through a deal with Columbia Pictures
, but by 2006, Revolution had gone out of business. In August 2006, Universal Pictures
acquired the project with the intent to finance and distribute the sequel, which was newly scheduled to be released in summer of 2008. Production was scheduled to begin in April 2007 in Etyek
, Hungary (near Budapest) and London, England.
Director Guillermo del Toro explored several concepts for the sequel, initially planning to recreate the classic versions of Frankenstein
, Dracula
and The Wolf Man. He and comic book creator Mike Mignola
also spent a few days adapting the Almost Colossus story, featuring Roger
the Homunculus
. They then found it easier to create an original story based on folklore, because Del Toro was planning Pan's Labyrinth, and Mignola's comics were becoming increasingly based on mythology. Later, Del Toro pitched a premise to Revolution Studios that involved four Titans from the four corners of Earth—Wind, Water, Fire, and Earth—before he replaced the Titans with a Golden Army. Mignola described the theme of the sequel, "The focus is more on the folklore and fairy tale aspect of Hellboy. It's not Nazis, machines and mad scientists but the old gods and characters who have been kind of shoved out of our world."
Del Toro released Pan's Labyrinth
in 2006, and the film earned multiple Academy Awards, providing the director enough clout to begin production on Hellboy II. Guillermo del Toro began filming Hellboy II in June 2007 in Budapest and concluded in December 2007. The film was the first American production to shoot at Korda Studios in Hungary, then newly built outside Budapest. The creature shop was led by the company Spectral Motion, and Filmefex contributed work in makeup and prosthetics. The latter company designed a creature for the troll market scene and built several statues and full-sized replicas of the Golden Army.
, also includes All I Wanna To Do Is Rock by the Alternative-rock Scottish band Travis
. The end credits song is Noir by Red Is For Fire, composed by Ben Isaac.
, which had opened with $23.2 million. The opening was the biggest of Guillermo del Toro's directing career.
According to CinemaScore
, audiences gave the film a B grade. The demographic for Hellboy II was mostly male, and the age distribution for moviegoers below and above 25 years old was evenly split. Outside of the United States and Canada, Hellboy II had a limited release on 533 screens in Mexico, Thailand
, Malaysia, and Singapore
, grossing $4.6 million.
In its second weekend in the United States and Canada, Hellboy IIs box office performance dropped 71% to gross $10.1 million, a larger drop than its predecessor, which dropped 53% in comparison. The sequel's larger drop was attributed to the significant opening of the Batman film The Dark Knight
. As of September 9, 2008 Hellboy II has grossed $75,986,503 in the United States and Canada. The film came top in the UK and Ireland box office charts upon its release on August 22 and earned an additional international gross of $84,401,560 bringing its worldwide total to $160,388,063, meaning it has currently outgrossed the first film by nearly $53 million, and has yet to open in at least one country.
; being interviewed by James Lipton
on Inside the Actors Studio
; playing video games with Chuck Bartowski
(Zachary Levi
) from Chuck
; visiting the set of American Gladiators
; auditioning for a high school event; and hosting a public service announcement
with a cat.
The single-disc edition includes the movie and a very limited selection of special features. Available on the one-disc edition is a "Director's Notebook" section, in which pages of Del Toro's famous notebook are reproduced, showcasing design sketches and annotations by the director, as well as "video pod" segments in which he explains these designs and concepts further. The segment is available in the three-disc edition in the "pre-production vault", which also includes other galleries. The three-disc special edition includes two audio commentaries (one by Del Toro and another by members of the cast), six deleted scenes, several featurettes, a full-length documentary, and image galleries. Though not added into the movie after credits due to budget cuts, a comic-style of the Zinco Sequel is added to the special features, serving as a prologue to the third Hellboy movie. The third disc contains a digital copy.
reported that 87% of critics gave the film positive reviews, with an average
score of 7.1/10, based upon a sample of 196 reviews. At Metacritic
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average score of 78, based on 35 reviews, gaining a better critical reaction than the first film.
Michael Rechtshaffen writing in The Hollywood Reporter
said Hellboy II was an uncompromised vision of Guillermo del Toro's imagination. He said that with the director given free rein, the film came across as an amalgam of the best moments from his previous films, only with better visual effects. John Anderson of Variety
wrote of a rococo
precision to the visuals that exceeded that of the first film. He cited del Toro's "clockmaker's preoccupation with detail" and ability to blend state-of-the-art technology with more classical visuals as the reasons for the film's success. Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly
said that the plot did not often deviate from its comic-book traditions, but that del Toro staged the action "brilliantly". He said that while the visual effects deserved recognition, what made the film so exciting was the personality they were imbued with. Chuck Wilson of The Village Voice
said that del Toro was on autopilot, but that he and his Pan's Labyrinth
crew, cinematographer Guillermo Navarro
in particular, staged the steady stream of action set-pieces expertly. Mike Goodridge of Screen International
wrote that del Toro had retained the B movie
tone of the first film, saying the film managed to avoid the self-importance of The Incredible Hulk
and the Batman film series
and that del Toro was simply a "great storyteller" providing a "good time". Stuart Levine in Premiere
praised the visuals and "beautiful" set-pieces, but said del Toro's script fell a little short of his direction. Alonso Duralde
writing for msnbc.com
said it represented a backwards step for del Toro, saying that despite several creepy sequences, the film was a return to the muddled storytelling and pretty visuals of his pre-Pan's Labyrinth films. He said del Toro's screenplay lacked energy or momentum. However, Peter Bradshaw
, of The Guardian
said almost the opposite was the case, as he thinks "it is a crackingly enjoyable and exciting sequel, with something that the memory of Pan's Labyrinth might have entirely erased: a sense of humour." Noting that "this spectacular movie seethes and fizzes with wit and energy, absorbing and transforming influences such as Ghostbusters
and even Harry Potter
and the secret world of Diagon Alley."
John Anderson said the film would be "almost unthinkable" without Ron Perlman in the lead role, saying the film was more successful than its predecessor mainly due to the more deliberately amusing tone and the "drily ironic" title character. He said the only weak link was Luke Goss' "unimposing" villain. While praising the general banter between Perlman and Blair, Stuart Levine said the nonchalant Hellboy exhibited insufficient growth as a character, and that Jeffrey Tambor was largely wasted in his role. He agreed that Goss' villain was weak as written, with no tangible menace. Helen O'Hara of Empire
said the character was only let down by a lack of screentime in which to give him enough dramatic weight, and that Goss did "a perfectly good job". Owen Gleiberman said Perlman was more assured than in the first Hellboy, funnier and more cantankerous. He said the entire ensemble had "an appealing, outsize grandeur" about it. Mike Goodridge said the film carefully developed the character relationships, and Chuck Wilson said that other than the title character's penchant for chewing cigars, he was otherwise "uninteresting". Alonso Duralde wrote that the "sitcom-ish" character dilemmas were uninteresting, saying that Perlman and Tambor's performances were regularly let down by the script. He said that Blair's performance was possibly the first bad one he'd seen by the actress, and that while Jones was "brilliant" physically, his vocal performance was inferior to David Hyde Pierce
's in the first Hellboy film. Michael Rechtshaffen called Perlman "terrific" and said Blair's brooding portrayal was effective.
Michael Rechtshaffen concluded that Hellboy II was less focused than the first film, but that it played "faster and looser" and mostly a "wild ride". In a positive review, John Anderson's main criticism was a sequence set in Northern Ireland, which he called the least interesting and most conventional segment of the film. Chuck Wilson said the film "didn't have much on its mind", but that it would amaze children and amuse adults, Stuart Levine said the film was worth viewers' time, and Alonso Duralde said Hellboy II was "limp and unengaging". Owen Gleiberman surmised that the film was "derivative yet... dazzling", and Mike Goodridge concluded by praising the filmmakers' skill at creating a film that, despite featuring "stunning" action sequences and creature effects, still found time for character development and a fulfilling story that expanded the franchise's wider mythology
. Peter Bradshaw suggested that "'Visionary
' is a word too easily applied to fantasy movies, but it sticks easily here."
The film appeared on some critics' top ten lists of the best films of 2008. Rene Rodriguez of The Miami Herald
named it the 5th best film of 2008 (along with The Dark Knight
), and Stephanie Zacharek of Salon
named it the 10th best film of 2008 (along with Iron Man
).
named Hellboy II: The Golden Army Best Fantasy Movie of 2008, also receiving the same honor at the 2008 Scream Awards. At the end of 2008, Rotten Tomatoes listed the film as Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy in their 10th Annual Golden Tomato Awards. It was also nominated for an Oscar
for Best Makeup, but lost to The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
. Hellboy II: The Golden Army has won Best Horror
for the Saturn Award
.
in one-shot comic book Hellboy: The Golden Army (January 2008) with three variant covers;
In his introduction film director del Toro affirms his and Mignola’s admiration of Velasco’s “clean, propulsive narrative, draftsmanship, and artistic skills” and states that the intention of this title is to treat the film’s opening narrative as a mini-epic and give the artist the opportunity to tell it with unlimited budget and shooting time.
In the story Professor Trevor Bruttenholm
, caring for the young Hellboy at Douglas Air Force Base, New Mexico
on Christmas Eve 1944, relates the story of the Golden Army from the film’s opening prologue, which he describes as the first tale ever told, as a bedtime story that he ends by saying one day Hellboy may find out if it is true.
is the official novelization of the film.
, PlayStation Portable
and Xbox 360
, released on June 24 in North America and August 15 in Europe. Despite its close release date, promotion alongside the film and featuring voices of the same actors, the game is not a direct movie tie-in with the plot not being related to that of the film but instead follows an original story where Hellboy investigates Nazi operations in Romania
under Herman von Klempt
, an antagonist from the comics.
Superhero film
A superhero film, superhero movie, or superhero motion picture is: action, fantasy and science fiction film; that is focused on the actions of one or more superheroes, individuals who usually possess superhuman abilities relative to a normal person and are dedicated to protecting the public...
based on the fictional Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
character Hellboy
Hellboy
Hellboy is a comic book superhero created by writer-artist Mike Mignola. The character first appeared in San Diego Comic-Con Comics #2 , and has since appeared in various eponymous miniseries, one-shots and intercompany crossovers...
, starring Ron Perlman
Ron Perlman
Ronald N. "Ron" Perlman is an American television, film and voice over actor. He is known for having played Vincent in the TV series Beauty and the Beast , a Deathstroke figure known as Slade in the animated series Teen Titans, Clarence "Clay" Morrow in Sons of Anarchy, the comic book character...
and Selma Blair
Selma Blair
Selma Blair is an American actress who has worked in film, theatre and television. She has performed in feature films including Cruel Intentions, Legally Blonde, The Sweetest Thing, Hellboy, The Fog, Purple Violets and Hellboy II: The Golden Army...
. The movie is directed by Guillermo del Toro
Guillermo del Toro
Guillermo del Toro is a Mexican director, producer, screenwriter, novelist and designer. He is mostly known for his acclaimed films, Blade II, Pan's Labyrinth and the Hellboy film franchise. He is a frequent collaborator with Ron Perlman, Federico Luppi and Doug Jones...
and is a sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
to the 2004 film Hellboy
Hellboy (film)
Hellboy is a 2004 supernatural superhero film, starring Ron Perlman, John Hurt and Selma Blair, directed by Guillermo del Toro. The film is based on the Dark Horse Comics work Hellboy: Seed of Destruction by Mike Mignola. It was produced by Revolution Studios, and distributed by Columbia Pictures...
, which del Toro also directed. Perlman reprises his role as the eponymous character. The film was commercially released on July 11, 2008 in the United States and Canada by Universal Pictures
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
.
Plot
In Christmas of 1955, a young HellboyHellboy
Hellboy is a comic book superhero created by writer-artist Mike Mignola. The character first appeared in San Diego Comic-Con Comics #2 , and has since appeared in various eponymous miniseries, one-shots and intercompany crossovers...
is told a bedtime story by his adoptive father, Trevor Broom
Trevor Bruttenholm
Professor Trevor Bruttenholm is a fictional character in the Hellboy comic book universe, created by Mike Mignola and John Byrne. His first appearance was in the comic book Hellboy: Seed of Destruction, issue #1 .-Fictional character biography:...
, involving an ancient war between Man and magical creatures, all started by Man's greed. After years of battle and defeat of the magical creatures' forces, the master of the goblin blacksmiths offered to build an indestructible golden mechanical army for King Balor, the one-armed king of the elves. Influenced by his son Prince Nuada (Luke Goss
Luke Goss
Luke Damon Goss is an English singer and actor. Since 1994, he has been married to backing singer Shirley Lewis, , and has one stepdaughter, Carli. In January 2007, he and wife Shirley moved permanently to Los Angeles, but still maintain a residence in London...
), Balor ordered the building of this Golden Army. Soon the humans attacked again but the Golden Army devastated them so mercilessly that Balor forged a truce with the humans to stop the bloodshed: Man would keep his cities and the magical creatures would keep their forests. Nuada did not agree with the truce, and left in exile. The magical crown controlling the army was broken into three pieces, one piece going to the humans and the other two kept by the elves, so the Golden Army could never be used again.
In the present, Nuada declares war on the humans. He collects the first piece of the crown from an auction, massacring all at the site by unleashing tooth fairies onto them, and kills his father for the second piece of the crown. His twin
Twin
A twin is one of two offspring produced in the same pregnancy. Twins can either be monozygotic , meaning that they develop from one zygote that splits and forms two embryos, or dizygotic because they develop from two separate eggs that are fertilized by two separate sperm.In contrast, a fetus...
sister, Princess Nuala (Anna Walton
Anna Walton
Anna Walton is an English actress. Known for her roles in Vampire Diary and Mutant Chronicles, her biggest role so far is the compassionate Princess Nuala in Hellboy II: The Golden Army, also starring her fellow Mutant co-star Ron Perlman as Hellboy...
), escapes with the final piece. Meanwhile, Hellboy is having relationship issues with his girlfriend Liz
Liz Sherman
Elizabeth 'Liz' Sherman is a fictional character appearing in the Hellboy comic book series created by Mike Mignola.-Fictional character history:...
. He is also having trouble accepting that their organization, the B.P.R.D.
Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense
The Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense is a fictional organization in the comic book work of Mike Mignola, charged with protecting America and the world from the occult, paranormal and supernatural. It maintains the services of several supernatural persons, including Hellboy. The B.P.R.D...
, must remain a secret. During a mission to investigate the massacre at the auction, Hellboy allows himself to be revealed to the world. In the commotion, Abe Sapien
Abe Sapien
Abraham "Abe" Sapien is a fictional character in the comic book series Hellboy, created by Mike Mignola. He takes his name from "Icthyo sapiens," the fanciful species designation chosen for him by his colleagues in the 19th-century Oannes Club, and from Abraham Lincoln, on whose assassination date...
discovers that Liz is pregnant. Furious about the public unveiling, the Bureau's superiors in Washington send a new B.P.R.D. agent, the ectoplasmic
Ectoplasm (paranormal)
Ectoplasm is a term coined by Charles Richet to denote a substance or spiritual energy "exteriorized" by physical mediums...
medium Johann Krauss, to take command. With Krauss in charge, the team tracks the tooth fairies to the troll market, an enormous merchant city hidden under the Brooklyn Bridge, to search for clues. Abe stumbles onto Nuala, who has obtained a map leading to the Golden Army, during their search, and quickly falls in love with her. She is brought under B.P.R.D. protection following an attack by Nuada's sidekick, the troll
Troll
A troll is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. In origin, the term troll was a generally negative synonym for a jötunn , a being in Norse mythology...
Wink, and an elemental
Elemental
An elemental is a mythological being first appearing in the alchemical works of Paracelsus in the 16th century. Traditionally, there are four types:*gnomes, earth elementals*undines , water elementals*sylphs, air elementals...
forest god, both of which Hellboy kills. During the elemental fight, Hellboy is questioned by Nuada whether it is right to fight for the humans when he too is perceived by humans as a monster.
Nuada tracks his sister to the B.P.R.D. headquarters using their magical bond, which causes them to share wounds and allows them to read each others' thoughts to an extent. Nuala, sensing her brother's arrival, throws the map, along with the canister in which it came, into a fire and hides the final piece of the crown within one of Abe's books. However, the real map is on the canister. Meanwhile upstairs, Abe and Hellboy become drunk together and sing "Can't Smile Without You
Can't Smile Without You
"Can't Smile Without You" is a song written by Christian Arnold, David Martin, and Geoff Morrow, best known in its rendition by Barry Manilow."Can't Smile Without You" was the first single to be released from Manilow's album Even Now in 1977...
", by Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow is an American singer-songwriter, musician, arranger, producer, conductor, and performer, best known for such recordings as "Could It Be Magic", "Mandy", "Can't Smile Without You", and "Copacabana ."...
. Nuada kidnaps his sister and critically wounds Hellboy with his spear. Unable to remove the spear shard, Liz, Abe, and Krauss take Hellboy to the location of the Golden Army, hidden in County Antrim
County Antrim
County Antrim is one of six counties that form Northern Ireland, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of 2,844 km², with a population of approximately 616,000...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. They encounter a Bethmoora goblin, and he brings them before the angel of death, who has been waiting for their arrival. Though warned that Hellboy will doom humanity if he lives, and that she will suffer the most from it, Liz pleads for Hellboy's life. Amused by her choice, the Angel removes the shard from Hellboy's chest and tells Liz to give him a reason to live. She reveals to Hellboy that he's going to be a father, and he recovers.
The goblin leads the team to the resting place of the Golden Army (revealing that he is the builder of it), where Nuada awaits them. In exchange for Nuala, Abe gives him the last piece of the crown. With the crown reformed, Nuada awakens the Golden Army and orders them to kill the team. After a seemingly victorious attack on several of the mechanical soldiers, the group watches in shock as they magically repair themselves. Hellboy challenges Nuada for the right to the crown, and Nuada is forced to accept, since Hellboy is a member of Hell's royal family (he is mentioned as "Son of the Fallen One", since his father was a Prince of Sheol
Sheol
Sheol |Hebrew]] Šʾôl) is the "grave", "pit", or "abyss" in Hebrew. She'ol is the earliest conception of the afterlife in the Jewish scriptures. It is a place of darkness to which all dead go, regardless of the moral choices made in life, and where they are "removed from the light of God"...
). Hellboy defeats Nuada and spares his life, but Nuada tries to stab him when Hellboy turns around. Nuala commits suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
to stop her brother: the dying Nuada tells Hellboy he will one day have to choose whether humanity or the magical beings must die out. Abe rushes to Nuala and psychically tells her his feelings for her—and cries after previously implying that he cannot smile, or cry—before she and her brother turn to stone and die. Liz then melts the crown, shutting down the Golden Army forever. As the team leave the underground compound, Tom Manning
Tom Manning
Tom Manning is a fictional character from the Dark Horse Comics universe. He is director of the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense.Manning has classically been portrayed as a stuffed-shirt bureaucrat who refuses to trust the paranormal members of his agency, even though their presence is...
reprimands them for their actions. To his surprise, Hellboy, Liz, Abe, and Krauss all hand over their belts and announce their resignation from the B.P.R.D. (though Hellboy keeps one of his guns for when the world needs him again). As they walk away, Hellboy contemplates his future life with Liz and their baby. Liz stops and corrects him, saying "babies", surprising him with the fact that she is pregnant with twin
Twin
A twin is one of two offspring produced in the same pregnancy. Twins can either be monozygotic , meaning that they develop from one zygote that splits and forms two embryos, or dizygotic because they develop from two separate eggs that are fertilized by two separate sperm.In contrast, a fetus...
s by holding up two fingers.
Cast
- Ron PerlmanRon PerlmanRonald N. "Ron" Perlman is an American television, film and voice over actor. He is known for having played Vincent in the TV series Beauty and the Beast , a Deathstroke figure known as Slade in the animated series Teen Titans, Clarence "Clay" Morrow in Sons of Anarchy, the comic book character...
as HellboyHellboyHellboy is a comic book superhero created by writer-artist Mike Mignola. The character first appeared in San Diego Comic-Con Comics #2 , and has since appeared in various eponymous miniseries, one-shots and intercompany crossovers...
: The protagonist of the movie. A super-strong demon who works for the government organization Bureau for Paranormal Research and DefenseBureau for Paranormal Research and DefenseThe Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense is a fictional organization in the comic book work of Mike Mignola, charged with protecting America and the world from the occult, paranormal and supernatural. It maintains the services of several supernatural persons, including Hellboy. The B.P.R.D...
(B.P.R.D.). Guillermo del Toro described the character's dilemma in the sequel, "[He] has always fought on the side of humans, but this [destruction of fantasy] pushes his buttons to reconsider." In the sequel, Hellboy is armed with an enormous new gun called "The Big Baby", which fires flare-like bullets. Montse RibéMontse RibéMontse Ribé is a Spanish make-up artist. She won the Academy Award for Makeup for her work in Pan's Labyrinth . She was one of 115 people invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2007....
plays a young version of Hellboy in an opening flashback. - Selma BlairSelma BlairSelma Blair is an American actress who has worked in film, theatre and television. She has performed in feature films including Cruel Intentions, Legally Blonde, The Sweetest Thing, Hellboy, The Fog, Purple Violets and Hellboy II: The Golden Army...
as Liz ShermanLiz ShermanElizabeth 'Liz' Sherman is a fictional character appearing in the Hellboy comic book series created by Mike Mignola.-Fictional character history:...
: A pyrokinetic member of BPRD and Hellboy's girlfriend. Blair described her character as more engaging in the sequel, "In the first one she was afraid to take a step. She was completely a zombie, not wanting to own up to her power and having the memory of what she'd created in her life... I was really eager to come and play Liz with a little more vibrancy." Blair also had short hair for her role, avoiding long hair from her portrayal in the first film, which she felt "brought her face down". The actress emphasized Liz Sherman's growth in the sequel, "She's looking to the future much more, and things are happening in this one that she has to buck up... I think you're dealing with a lot knowing this young girl that we last saw as very damaged, and now she's with this guy, and all these people around her, I think, we've really had to step up a strength, and a confidence in her so that I don't look like the little baby kid sister tagging along." - Doug JonesDoug Jones (actor)Doug Jones is an American film and television actor best known to science fiction, fantasy, and horror fans for his various roles playing non-human characters, often in heavy makeup, in films and television series such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth and Fantastic Four: Rise...
as Abe SapienAbe SapienAbraham "Abe" Sapien is a fictional character in the comic book series Hellboy, created by Mike Mignola. He takes his name from "Icthyo sapiens," the fanciful species designation chosen for him by his colleagues in the 19th-century Oannes Club, and from Abraham Lincoln, on whose assassination date...
: An aquatic empath who works for BPRD with Hellboy. Jones said of his return to the role after the first film, "He's been an absolute treat for me to play this time. He's written with so many different colours and levels and there's a love interest... And his buddy time with Hellboy is more concrete and his brother/sister time with Liz is even better." Jones believed that Abe Sapien became "the brains, the intellect of the team" while Hellboy protects his character because he is still "kind of innocent". The actor pointed to his character's adolescence with love, "His love life is something that's never been tapped into before... So just like a 13-year-old with his first crush, this is how you're going to see Abe this time. A portion of him. Will this affect his decision-making powers?" Unlike the first movie, where Abe's voice was dubbed by David Hyde PierceDavid Hyde PierceDavid Hyde Pierce is an American actor and comedian best known for playing psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom Frasier, for which he received many accolades including four Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.-Early life:Pierce, the youngest of four siblings,...
, Doug Jones provided the voice himself. In addition to Abe, Jones also portrayed two more characters in the film.- Angel of Death: A female angel with androgynousAndrogynyAndrogyny is a term derived from the Greek words ανήρ, stem ανδρ- and γυνή , referring to the combination of masculine and feminine characteristics...
characteristics. Jones explained his portrayal, "The script refers to the angel as a her and that's what I do. I think she has feminine qualities, but she's not totally a woman either. And that's okay. I like characters that keep you guessing." - Chamberlain: The door keeper for King Balor. The creature is long, gangly, eight feet tall and wears silk and velvet robes. It also has long, spindly fingers, which filmmakers mobilized with servos and which Jones wore as extensions of his own hands.
- Angel of Death: A female angel with androgynous
- John Alexander and James Dodd as Johann KrausJohann KrausJohann Kraus is a fictional character in the Hellboy universe, created by Mike Mignola. He is featured in the comic book B.P.R.D., published by Dark Horse Comics....
s: Krauss is an Austrian psychic whose ectoplasmic being is contained in a suit after a botched séanceSéanceA séance is an attempt to communicate with spirits. The word "séance" comes from the French word for "seat," "session" or "sitting," from the Old French "seoir," "to sit." In French, the word's meaning is quite general: one may, for example, speak of "une séance de cinéma"...
. Originally, filmmakers planned to create a computer-generated version of the glass fishbowl helmet, but with the cost being prohibitive, they created an actual helmet. To ensure the invisibility of the actor's head under the glass, perspective and mirror tricks were used. The helmet was controlled by two puppeteers, so the heavy contraption had to be shared between Alexander and Dodd. John Alexander also plays:- Bethmoora Goblin: A legless goblin who helps Hellboy and the team find the Angel of Death. He is the master goblin smith who forged the Golden Army.
- Seth MacFarlaneSeth MacFarlaneSeth Woodbury MacFarlane is an American animator, writer, comedian, producer, actor, singer, voice actor, and director best known for creating the animated sitcoms Family Guy, American Dad! and The Cleveland Show, for which he also voices many of the shows' various characters.A native of Kent,...
voices Johann KrausJohann KrausJohann Kraus is a fictional character in the Hellboy universe, created by Mike Mignola. He is featured in the comic book B.P.R.D., published by Dark Horse Comics....
s: MacFarlane took over voicing duties from Thomas KretschmannThomas KretschmannThomas Kretschmann is a German actor best known for playing Leutnant Hans Von Witzland in the 1993 film Stalingrad, Hauptmann Wilm Hosenfeld in The Pianist, Hermann Fegelein in Der Untergang, and Captain Englehorn in the 2005 remake of King Kong.-Early life:Kretschmann was born in Dessau, former...
, after del Toro decided that Kretschmann's voice and the mechanical sound FX to Johann's suit did not mesh well. - Luke GossLuke GossLuke Damon Goss is an English singer and actor. Since 1994, he has been married to backing singer Shirley Lewis, , and has one stepdaughter, Carli. In January 2007, he and wife Shirley moved permanently to Los Angeles, but still maintain a residence in London...
as Prince Nuada: The main antagonist of the movie. He is King Balor's son and a martial art expert of extraordinary proficiency. Goss was previously cast as the mutant vampire Jared Nomak in del Toro's 2002 film Blade IIBlade IIBlade II is a 2002 superhero vampire film based on the fictional Marvel Comics character Blade. It is the sequel of the Blade film series. It was written by David S. Goyer, who also wrote the previous film...
, and the director approached the actor to be cast in Hellboy II. Goss trained with action director and former-Jackie Chan Stunt TeamJackie Chan Stunt TeamThe Jackie Chan Stunt Team , also known as Jackie Chan's Stuntmen Association is a group of stuntmen and martial artists who work alongside Jackie Chan.-History:...
member, Brad AllanBrad AllanBradley James Allan is an Australian martial artist, action choreographer, actor and stunt performer...
, learning sword and spear skills for six to seven months for his role. He and Anna Walton also learned ancient GaelicGoidelic languagesThe Goidelic languages or Gaelic languages are one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic languages, the other consisting of the Brythonic languages. Goidelic languages historically formed a dialect continuum stretching from the south of Ireland through the Isle of Man to the north of Scotland...
from a dialog coach for their lines. Goss did not perceive Nuada as evil, explaining, "It's issues, his people, he's part of what he truly believes. I don't think, really, he's so deluded... [He] is driven by an ethic that was instilled by the person he has problems [with; that is,] his father, and inevitably, that leads into the conflict with him and Hellboy." Goss also noted that his character admired and revered his twin sister, portrayed by Anna Walton. He said of the prince and the princess, "There is an incestIncestIncest is sexual intercourse between close relatives that is usually illegal in the jurisdiction where it takes place and/or is conventionally considered a taboo. The term may apply to sexual activities between: individuals of close "blood relationship"; members of the same household; step...
uous relationship that's not maybe overly obvious to everybody, but some people hopefully will pick up on the fact, certainly from my direction towards her." - Anna WaltonAnna WaltonAnna Walton is an English actress. Known for her roles in Vampire Diary and Mutant Chronicles, her biggest role so far is the compassionate Princess Nuala in Hellboy II: The Golden Army, also starring her fellow Mutant co-star Ron Perlman as Hellboy...
as Princess Nuala: King Balor's daughter and Nuada's twin sister. She is described as "very light" while Nuada is "very dark", creating a yin and yangYin and yangIn Asian philosophy, the concept of yin yang , which is often referred to in the West as "yin and yang", is used to describe how polar opposites or seemingly contrary forces are interconnected and interdependent in the natural world, and how they give rise to each other in turn. Opposites thus only...
dynamic. She elaborated on the incestuous tones between her character and Prince Nuada, "He's the dark side and she's the light side and they're pulled apart and pulled back together again, and she's trying to get away because she knows there is something she has to do. He can't let that go and they can't really do anything without each other so it's a really interesting thing." Her character also forms a relationship with Abe Sapien, and Walton noted their similarities, "They are both slightly lost souls and they understand each other." Walton spoke of her character's sense of purpose, "She feels very strongly about what she has to do in the film, and then her absolute connection and love for the Earth and what we are given. That's what she's here to protect... Her relationship with her brother, and how he is almost a part of her but she has to break away and will do whatever it takes to stop him from achieving what he wants to achieve, which is the mass destruction of mankind." - Jeffrey TamborJeffrey TamborJeffrey Michael Tambor is an American actor, perhaps best known for his roles as George Bluth Sr. and Oscar Bluth on Arrested Development and Hank Kingsley on The Larry Sanders Show.-Early life:...
as Tom ManningTom ManningTom Manning is a fictional character from the Dark Horse Comics universe. He is director of the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense.Manning has classically been portrayed as a stuffed-shirt bureaucrat who refuses to trust the paranormal members of his agency, even though their presence is...
: Head of the B.P.R.D., he has a slightly antagonistic relationship with Hellboy. - John HurtJohn HurtJohn Vincent Hurt, CBE is an English actor, known for his leading roles as John Merrick in The Elephant Man, Winston Smith in Nineteen Eighty-Four, Mr. Braddock in The Hit, Stephen Ward in Scandal, Quentin Crisp in The Naked Civil Servant and An Englishman in New York...
as Trevor BruttenholmTrevor BruttenholmProfessor Trevor Bruttenholm is a fictional character in the Hellboy comic book universe, created by Mike Mignola and John Byrne. His first appearance was in the comic book Hellboy: Seed of Destruction, issue #1 .-Fictional character biography:...
: Hellboy's adoptive father, he is seen in the beginning of the film telling young Hellboy the story of the Golden Army. - Brian SteeleBrian SteeleBrian Steele is an American actor best known for playing many of Hollywood's favorite monsters and creatures.-Roles:On television, he played the Bigfoot called Harry in the series Harry and the Hendersons before moving on to play creatures in theatrical motion pictures, with roles like Mr. Wink in...
as Mr. Wink: A giant cave troll who was originally conceived by Guillermo del Toro. Wink was sculpted by Mario Torres, and the costume was worn by Brian Steele. In the film, Wink's right arm has a giant metal fist. The fist was designed by filmmakers to be made of heavy plastic to stay light enough for motors to operate the mechanical fingers. The fist could also be physically detached and used as a projectile without any computer-generated imagery used. Several of Mike Mignola's comics characters wield similar mechanical fists on chains, including the Kriegaffes used by Herman von KlemptHerman von KlemptHerman von Klempt is a villain created by writer/artist Mike Mignola for the Dark Horse Comics series Hellboy. He first appeared in the Comics Buyer's Guide.-Character Biography:...
. Del Toro said that he named Mr. Wink after Selma BlairSelma BlairSelma Blair is an American actress who has worked in film, theatre and television. She has performed in feature films including Cruel Intentions, Legally Blonde, The Sweetest Thing, Hellboy, The Fog, Purple Violets and Hellboy II: The Golden Army...
's one-eyed dog. Likewise, Mr. Wink has an old wound on the left side of his face that has closed one of his eyes. Steele also portrays:- Cathedral Head: Another troll, the owner of a map shop who gives Princess Nuala the hidden map
- Fragglewump: A monstrous Scottish troll that masquerades as a sweet old lady and feeds on kittens.
- Cronie Troll: A spice shop owner who gets in an argument with Hellboy in the troll market.
- Roy DotriceRoy DotriceRoy Dotrice, OBE is a British actor known for his Tony Award-winning Broadway performance in the revival of A Moon for the Misbegotten.-Life and career:...
as King Balor: The one-armed king of Elfland. All of his dialogue is in Gaelic.
Production
In May 2004, following the release of Guillermo del ToroGuillermo del Toro
Guillermo del Toro is a Mexican director, producer, screenwriter, novelist and designer. He is mostly known for his acclaimed films, Blade II, Pan's Labyrinth and the Hellboy film franchise. He is a frequent collaborator with Ron Perlman, Federico Luppi and Doug Jones...
's Hellboy
Hellboy (film)
Hellboy is a 2004 supernatural superhero film, starring Ron Perlman, John Hurt and Selma Blair, directed by Guillermo del Toro. The film is based on the Dark Horse Comics work Hellboy: Seed of Destruction by Mike Mignola. It was produced by Revolution Studios, and distributed by Columbia Pictures...
the previous month, a sequel was announced by Revolution Studios
Revolution Studios
Revolution Studios is an American production company founded in 2000 by Joe Roth, a former chairman of Walt Disney Studios and 20th Century Fox. Revolution was formerly a strategic partner of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which distributed and marketed Revolution's films. The company's film division...
with del Toro returning to direct and Ron Perlman
Ron Perlman
Ronald N. "Ron" Perlman is an American television, film and voice over actor. He is known for having played Vincent in the TV series Beauty and the Beast , a Deathstroke figure known as Slade in the animated series Teen Titans, Clarence "Clay" Morrow in Sons of Anarchy, the comic book character...
reprising his lead role as the titular character
Hellboy
Hellboy is a comic book superhero created by writer-artist Mike Mignola. The character first appeared in San Diego Comic-Con Comics #2 , and has since appeared in various eponymous miniseries, one-shots and intercompany crossovers...
. The director sought to create a film trilogy with the first sequel anticipated for release in 2006. Revolution Studios planned to produce the film and distribute it through a deal with Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
, but by 2006, Revolution had gone out of business. In August 2006, Universal Pictures
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
acquired the project with the intent to finance and distribute the sequel, which was newly scheduled to be released in summer of 2008. Production was scheduled to begin in April 2007 in Etyek
Etyek
Etyek is a village in Fejér county, Hungary, approximately 30km from Budapest. The area is surrounded by vineyards and is known for its wine-production...
, Hungary (near Budapest) and London, England.
Director Guillermo del Toro explored several concepts for the sequel, initially planning to recreate the classic versions of Frankenstein
Frankenstein's monster
Frankenstein's monster is a fictional character that first appeared in Mary Shelley's novel, Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus. The creature is often erroneously referred to as "Frankenstein", but in the novel the creature has no name...
, Dracula
Count Dracula
Count Dracula is a fictional character, the titular antagonist of Bram Stoker's 1897 Gothic horror novel Dracula and archetypal vampire. Some aspects of his character have been inspired by the 15th century Romanian general and Wallachian Prince Vlad III the Impaler...
and The Wolf Man. He and comic book creator Mike Mignola
Mike Mignola
Michael Joseph "Mike" Mignola is an American comic book artist and writer who created the comic book series Hellboy for Dark Horse Comics. He has worked for animation projects such as Atlantis: The Lost Empire and the adaptation of his one shot comic book, The Amazing Screw-On Head.-Career:Mignola...
also spent a few days adapting the Almost Colossus story, featuring Roger
Roger (Hellboy)
Roger the Homunculus is a fictional character featured in the Hellboy and B.P.R.D. comic books published by Dark Horse Comics. He is an unusually large homunculus, a humanoid being said to be created by means of alchemy....
the Homunculus
Homunculus
Homunculus is a term used, generally, in various fields of study to refer to any representation of a human being. Historically, it referred specifically to the concept of a miniature though fully formed human body, for example, in the studies of alchemy and preformationism...
. They then found it easier to create an original story based on folklore, because Del Toro was planning Pan's Labyrinth, and Mignola's comics were becoming increasingly based on mythology. Later, Del Toro pitched a premise to Revolution Studios that involved four Titans from the four corners of Earth—Wind, Water, Fire, and Earth—before he replaced the Titans with a Golden Army. Mignola described the theme of the sequel, "The focus is more on the folklore and fairy tale aspect of Hellboy. It's not Nazis, machines and mad scientists but the old gods and characters who have been kind of shoved out of our world."
Del Toro released Pan's Labyrinth
Pan's Labyrinth
Pan's Labyrinth is a 2006 Spanish Spanish-language dark fantasy film, written and directed by Mexican film-maker Guillermo del Toro. It was produced and distributed by the Mexican film company Esperanto Films...
in 2006, and the film earned multiple Academy Awards, providing the director enough clout to begin production on Hellboy II. Guillermo del Toro began filming Hellboy II in June 2007 in Budapest and concluded in December 2007. The film was the first American production to shoot at Korda Studios in Hungary, then newly built outside Budapest. The creature shop was led by the company Spectral Motion, and Filmefex contributed work in makeup and prosthetics. The latter company designed a creature for the troll market scene and built several statues and full-sized replicas of the Golden Army.
Music
The soundtrack was composed by Danny ElfmanDanny Elfman
Daniel Robert "Danny" Elfman is an American composer, best known for scoring music for television and film. Up until 1995, he was the lead singer and songwriter in the rock band Oingo Boingo, a group he formed in 1976...
, also includes All I Wanna To Do Is Rock by the Alternative-rock Scottish band Travis
Travis (band)
Travis are a post-Britpop band from Glasgow, Scotland, comprising Fran Healy , Dougie Payne , Andy Dunlop and Neil Primrose...
. The end credits song is Noir by Red Is For Fire, composed by Ben Isaac.
Release
Hellboy II opened on July 11, 2008 in 3,204 theaters in the United States and Canada. The film ranked first at the box office, grossing an estimated $35.9 million over the weekend, outperforming the opening of its predecessor HellboyHellboy (film)
Hellboy is a 2004 supernatural superhero film, starring Ron Perlman, John Hurt and Selma Blair, directed by Guillermo del Toro. The film is based on the Dark Horse Comics work Hellboy: Seed of Destruction by Mike Mignola. It was produced by Revolution Studios, and distributed by Columbia Pictures...
, which had opened with $23.2 million. The opening was the biggest of Guillermo del Toro's directing career.
According to CinemaScore
CinemaScore
CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data.-Background:...
, audiences gave the film a B grade. The demographic for Hellboy II was mostly male, and the age distribution for moviegoers below and above 25 years old was evenly split. Outside of the United States and Canada, Hellboy II had a limited release on 533 screens in Mexico, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, Malaysia, and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, grossing $4.6 million.
In its second weekend in the United States and Canada, Hellboy IIs box office performance dropped 71% to gross $10.1 million, a larger drop than its predecessor, which dropped 53% in comparison. The sequel's larger drop was attributed to the significant opening of the Batman film The Dark Knight
The Dark Knight (film)
The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, produced and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is part of Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel to 2005's Batman Begins...
. As of September 9, 2008 Hellboy II has grossed $75,986,503 in the United States and Canada. The film came top in the UK and Ireland box office charts upon its release on August 22 and earned an additional international gross of $84,401,560 bringing its worldwide total to $160,388,063, meaning it has currently outgrossed the first film by nearly $53 million, and has yet to open in at least one country.
Marketing
In addition to television spots showing scenes from the film, humorous adverts were also aired depicting Hellboy appearing on Ghost HuntersGhost Hunters
Ghost Hunters is an American paranormal reality television series that premiered on October 6, 2004, on Syfy . The program features paranormal investigators Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson who investigate places that are reported to be haunted. The two originally worked as plumbers for Roto-Rooter as...
; being interviewed by James Lipton
James Lipton
James Lipton is an American writer, poet, composer, actor and dean emeritus of the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University in New York City. He is the executive producer, writer and host of the Bravo cable television series Inside the Actors Studio, which debuted in 1994...
on Inside the Actors Studio
Inside the Actors Studio
Inside the Actors Studio is a series on the Bravo cable television channel, hosted by James Lipton. It is produced and directed by Jeff Wurtz; the executive producer is James Lipton. The program, which premiered in 1994, is distributed internationally by CABLEready and is broadcast in 125 countries...
; playing video games with Chuck Bartowski
Chuck Bartowski
Charles Irving "Chuck" Bartowski is the main and titular character of the American fiction television show Chuck on NBC. He is portrayed by Zachary Levi.-Character profile:...
(Zachary Levi
Zachary Levi
Zachary Levi Pugh , better known by his stage name Zachary Levi , is an American television actor, director, and singer known for the roles of Kipp Steadman in Less than Perfect, Chuck Bartowski in Chuck, and Flynn Rider in Tangled.- Early life :Zachary Levi Pugh was born in Lake Charles,...
) from Chuck
Chuck (TV series)
Chuck is an action-comedy/spy-drama television program from the United States created by Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak. The series is about an "average computer-whiz-next-door" named Chuck, played by Zachary Levi, who receives an encoded e-mail from an old college friend now working for the Central...
; visiting the set of American Gladiators
American Gladiators (2008 TV series)
American Gladiators is an American competition TV show that aired on NBC and Citytv in Canada. Hosted by Hulk Hogan and Laila Ali, the show matches amateur athletes against each other and the show's own "gladiators" in contests of strength, agility, and endurance...
; auditioning for a high school event; and hosting a public service announcement
Public service announcement
A public service announcement or public service ad is a type of advertisement featured on television, radio, print or other media...
with a cat.
Home media
Hellboy II: The Golden Army was released on DVD and Blu-ray on November 11, 2008. For the DVD, there is both a single-disc and a 3-Disc Special Edition (not available in the UK).The single-disc edition includes the movie and a very limited selection of special features. Available on the one-disc edition is a "Director's Notebook" section, in which pages of Del Toro's famous notebook are reproduced, showcasing design sketches and annotations by the director, as well as "video pod" segments in which he explains these designs and concepts further. The segment is available in the three-disc edition in the "pre-production vault", which also includes other galleries. The three-disc special edition includes two audio commentaries (one by Del Toro and another by members of the cast), six deleted scenes, several featurettes, a full-length documentary, and image galleries. Though not added into the movie after credits due to budget cuts, a comic-style of the Zinco Sequel is added to the special features, serving as a prologue to the third Hellboy movie. The third disc contains a digital copy.
Critical reception
Hellboy II received generally positive reviews from film critics. As of February 15, 2009, Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported that 87% of critics gave the film positive reviews, with an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 7.1/10, based upon a sample of 196 reviews. At Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average score of 78, based on 35 reviews, gaining a better critical reaction than the first film.
Michael Rechtshaffen writing in The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
said Hellboy II was an uncompromised vision of Guillermo del Toro's imagination. He said that with the director given free rein, the film came across as an amalgam of the best moments from his previous films, only with better visual effects. John Anderson of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
wrote of a rococo
Rococo
Rococo , also referred to as "Late Baroque", is an 18th-century style which developed as Baroque artists gave up their symmetry and became increasingly ornate, florid, and playful...
precision to the visuals that exceeded that of the first film. He cited del Toro's "clockmaker's preoccupation with detail" and ability to blend state-of-the-art technology with more classical visuals as the reasons for the film's success. Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
said that the plot did not often deviate from its comic-book traditions, but that del Toro staged the action "brilliantly". He said that while the visual effects deserved recognition, what made the film so exciting was the personality they were imbued with. Chuck Wilson of The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
said that del Toro was on autopilot, but that he and his Pan's Labyrinth
Pan's Labyrinth
Pan's Labyrinth is a 2006 Spanish Spanish-language dark fantasy film, written and directed by Mexican film-maker Guillermo del Toro. It was produced and distributed by the Mexican film company Esperanto Films...
crew, cinematographer Guillermo Navarro
Guillermo Navarro
Guillermo Navarro, ASC, A.M.C. is a Mexican cinematographer. He has worked in Hollywood since 1993 and is a frequent collaborator of Guillermo del Toro and Robert Rodriguez. In 2006 he won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for the film, Pan's Labyrinth...
in particular, staged the steady stream of action set-pieces expertly. Mike Goodridge of Screen International
Screen International
Screen International is a multimedia film magazine covering the international film business. It is published by EMAP, a British b2b media company.The magazine is primarily aimed at those involved in the global movie business...
wrote that del Toro had retained the B movie
B movie
A B movie is a low-budget commercial motion picture that is not definitively an arthouse or pornographic film. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified a film intended for distribution as the less-publicized, bottom half of a double feature....
tone of the first film, saying the film managed to avoid the self-importance of The Incredible Hulk
The Incredible Hulk (film)
The Incredible Hulk is a 2008 superhero action film based on the Marvel Comics character the Hulk. It is directed by Louis Leterrier and stars Edward Norton as Dr. Bruce Banner. It is the second film to be released in the Marvel Cinematic Universe...
and the Batman film series
Batman (film series)
The fictional character Batman, a comic book superhero featured in DC Comics publications, has appeared in various films since his inception. The character first starred in two serial films in the 1940s, Batman and Batman and Robin...
and that del Toro was simply a "great storyteller" providing a "good time". Stuart Levine in Premiere
Premiere (magazine)
Premiere was an American and New York City-based film magazine published by Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S., published between the years 1987 and 2007. The original version of the magazine, Première , was started in France in 1976 and is still being published there.-History:The magazine originally...
praised the visuals and "beautiful" set-pieces, but said del Toro's script fell a little short of his direction. Alonso Duralde
Alonso Duralde
Alonso Duralde is an American writer and film critic.Duralde was the Artistic Director at the USA Film Festival/Dallas for five years. He was also the former Arts and Entertainment Editor at the national gay and lesbian magazine The Advocate...
writing for msnbc.com
Msnbc.com
msnbc.com is a news website owned and operated as a joint venture by NBCUniversal and Microsoft.In addition to original content from its news staff, msnbc.com is the news website for the NBC News family, with content from the cable television news channel MSNBC, NBC shows such as Today, NBC Nightly...
said it represented a backwards step for del Toro, saying that despite several creepy sequences, the film was a return to the muddled storytelling and pretty visuals of his pre-Pan's Labyrinth films. He said del Toro's screenplay lacked energy or momentum. However, Peter Bradshaw
Peter Bradshaw
Peter Bradshaw is a British writer and film critic. He was educated at Cambridge University, where he was President of Footlights.Bradshaw is a film critic for The Guardian...
, of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
said almost the opposite was the case, as he thinks "it is a crackingly enjoyable and exciting sequel, with something that the memory of Pan's Labyrinth might have entirely erased: a sense of humour." Noting that "this spectacular movie seethes and fizzes with wit and energy, absorbing and transforming influences such as Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters is a 1984 American science fiction comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. The film stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, and Rick Moranis and follows three eccentric parapsychologists in New York City, who start a...
and even Harry Potter
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
and the secret world of Diagon Alley."
John Anderson said the film would be "almost unthinkable" without Ron Perlman in the lead role, saying the film was more successful than its predecessor mainly due to the more deliberately amusing tone and the "drily ironic" title character. He said the only weak link was Luke Goss' "unimposing" villain. While praising the general banter between Perlman and Blair, Stuart Levine said the nonchalant Hellboy exhibited insufficient growth as a character, and that Jeffrey Tambor was largely wasted in his role. He agreed that Goss' villain was weak as written, with no tangible menace. Helen O'Hara of Empire
Empire (magazine)
Empire is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Consumer Media. From the first issue in July 1989, the magazine was edited by Barry McIlheney and published by Emap. Bauer purchased Emap Consumer Media in early 2008...
said the character was only let down by a lack of screentime in which to give him enough dramatic weight, and that Goss did "a perfectly good job". Owen Gleiberman said Perlman was more assured than in the first Hellboy, funnier and more cantankerous. He said the entire ensemble had "an appealing, outsize grandeur" about it. Mike Goodridge said the film carefully developed the character relationships, and Chuck Wilson said that other than the title character's penchant for chewing cigars, he was otherwise "uninteresting". Alonso Duralde wrote that the "sitcom-ish" character dilemmas were uninteresting, saying that Perlman and Tambor's performances were regularly let down by the script. He said that Blair's performance was possibly the first bad one he'd seen by the actress, and that while Jones was "brilliant" physically, his vocal performance was inferior to David Hyde Pierce
David Hyde Pierce
David Hyde Pierce is an American actor and comedian best known for playing psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom Frasier, for which he received many accolades including four Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.-Early life:Pierce, the youngest of four siblings,...
's in the first Hellboy film. Michael Rechtshaffen called Perlman "terrific" and said Blair's brooding portrayal was effective.
Michael Rechtshaffen concluded that Hellboy II was less focused than the first film, but that it played "faster and looser" and mostly a "wild ride". In a positive review, John Anderson's main criticism was a sequence set in Northern Ireland, which he called the least interesting and most conventional segment of the film. Chuck Wilson said the film "didn't have much on its mind", but that it would amaze children and amuse adults, Stuart Levine said the film was worth viewers' time, and Alonso Duralde said Hellboy II was "limp and unengaging". Owen Gleiberman surmised that the film was "derivative yet... dazzling", and Mike Goodridge concluded by praising the filmmakers' skill at creating a film that, despite featuring "stunning" action sequences and creature effects, still found time for character development and a fulfilling story that expanded the franchise's wider mythology
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
. Peter Bradshaw suggested that "'Visionary
Visionary
Defined broadly, a visionary, is one who can envision the future. For some groups this can involve the supernatural or drugs.The visionary state is achieved via meditation, drugs, lucid dreams, daydreams, or art. One example is Hildegard of Bingen, a 12th century artist/visionary and Catholic saint...
' is a word too easily applied to fantasy movies, but it sticks easily here."
The film appeared on some critics' top ten lists of the best films of 2008. Rene Rodriguez of The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald is a daily newspaper owned by The McClatchy Company headquartered on Biscayne Bay in the Omni district of Downtown Miami, Florida, United States...
named it the 5th best film of 2008 (along with The Dark Knight
The Dark Knight (film)
The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed, produced and co-written by Christopher Nolan. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is part of Nolan's Batman film series and a sequel to 2005's Batman Begins...
), and Stephanie Zacharek of Salon
Salon.com
Salon.com, part of Salon Media Group , often just called Salon, is an online liberal magazine, with content updated each weekday. Salon was founded by David Talbot and launched on November 20, 1995. It was the internet's first online-only commercial publication. The magazine focuses on U.S...
named it the 10th best film of 2008 (along with Iron Man
Iron Man (film)
Iron Man is a 2008 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron...
).
Awards
IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
named Hellboy II: The Golden Army Best Fantasy Movie of 2008, also receiving the same honor at the 2008 Scream Awards. At the end of 2008, Rotten Tomatoes listed the film as Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy in their 10th Annual Golden Tomato Awards. It was also nominated for an Oscar
81st Academy Awards
The 81st Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences , honored the best films of 2008 and took place February 22, 2009, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST...
for Best Makeup, but lost to The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (film)
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a 2008 American fantasy-drama film directed by David Fincher. The screenplay by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord is loosely based on the 1922 short story of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald...
. Hellboy II: The Golden Army has won Best Horror
Saturn Award for Best Horror Film
The following are a list of Saturn Award winners for Best Horror Film:-References:...
for the Saturn Award
Saturn Award
The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
.
CEM
| Year | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Best Visual Effects | Hellboy II: The Golden Army |
Promotional comic
This story by Mike Mignola and Guillermo del Toro with art by Francisco Ruiz Velasco was published as a special promotion for the film by Dark Horse ComicsDark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
in one-shot comic book Hellboy: The Golden Army (January 2008) with three variant covers;
- Photo cover of Ron Perlman as Hellboy.
- Photo cover of Doug Jones as Abe Sapien.
- Photo cover of Selma Blair as Liz Sherman.
In his introduction film director del Toro affirms his and Mignola’s admiration of Velasco’s “clean, propulsive narrative, draftsmanship, and artistic skills” and states that the intention of this title is to treat the film’s opening narrative as a mini-epic and give the artist the opportunity to tell it with unlimited budget and shooting time.
In the story Professor Trevor Bruttenholm
Trevor Bruttenholm
Professor Trevor Bruttenholm is a fictional character in the Hellboy comic book universe, created by Mike Mignola and John Byrne. His first appearance was in the comic book Hellboy: Seed of Destruction, issue #1 .-Fictional character biography:...
, caring for the young Hellboy at Douglas Air Force Base, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
on Christmas Eve 1944, relates the story of the Golden Army from the film’s opening prologue, which he describes as the first tale ever told, as a bedtime story that he ends by saying one day Hellboy may find out if it is true.
Art book
Hellboy II: The Art of the Movie (June 18, 2008, ISBN: 978-1-59307-964-2) by Guillermo del Toro and Mike Mignola with art by Sergio Sandoval and Franciso Ruiz Velasco looks into the film's evolution, from early concept art and diary sketches to photos of the final props, sets, and includes;- Complete screenplay including a deleted scene illustrated with the original storyboards.
- Interviews and commentary from creator Mike Mignola and filmmaker Guillermo del Toro.
Novelization
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (June 18, 2008, ISBN 978-1-59307-954-3) by Robert GreenbergerRobert Greenberger
Robert "Bob" Greenberger known for his work as an editor for Comics Scene, Starlog Press and Weekly World News, as well as holding executive positions at both Marvel Comics and DC Comics. He is also an elected office holder in his home of Fairfield, Connecticut.-Early life:Greenberger was born in...
is the official novelization of the film.
Video game
During its initial theatrical release in North America, a video game set within the Hellboy universe was released around the time that of the movie entitled Hellboy: The Science of Evil for PlayStation 3PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
and Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, released on June 24 in North America and August 15 in Europe. Despite its close release date, promotion alongside the film and featuring voices of the same actors, the game is not a direct movie tie-in with the plot not being related to that of the film but instead follows an original story where Hellboy investigates Nazi operations in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
under Herman von Klempt
Herman von Klempt
Herman von Klempt is a villain created by writer/artist Mike Mignola for the Dark Horse Comics series Hellboy. He first appeared in the Comics Buyer's Guide.-Character Biography:...
, an antagonist from the comics.