MovieTime

Review

by Jason Di Rosso

Mexican director Guillermo del Toro astounds once more with this lush comic adaptation about a muscle-bound red demon working for a secret government agency. Hellboy (Ron Pearlman) acts tough like a maverick 70s cop, with all the same macho blindspots. When he's not fighting a supernatural albino warlord, he's battling commitment issues with his feisty, human flame girlfriend (Selma Blair). Over-analysing this playful mash-up of pop culture kitsch and high fantasy would be a mistake. The scene where Hellboy drowns his sorrows with his blue-skinned fish-man friend, while both sing along to Barry Manilow's 'Can't Smile without You' -- sums up its considerable kooky appeal. Go with it.

Director: Guillermo del Toro
Cast: Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, Luke Goss, Anna Walton, Jeffrey Tambor, John Hurt, Brian Steele
Producer: Lawrence Gordon, Lloyd Levin, Mike Richardson, Joe Roth
Script: Guillermo del Toro, Mike Mignola (comic by Mignola)
Cinematographer: Guillermo Navarro
Editor: Bernat Vilaplana
Music: Danny Elfman
Running time: 110
Australian distributor: Universal
Language: English
Classification: M