Ayo! We’re still easing into Spooky Season with another horror-adjacent pick that’s fun, stylish, and visually appealing. This week, we’re talking about Guillermo del Toro’s “Hellboy” films!
First, though, Otis shares a story about seeing karma unfold in real time and we discuss the lack of consideration people have in public these days. Then, we have some thoughts about what we’ve been watching lately. Otis saw “Megalopolis” and “The Substance” and has some questions. Mostly… what was Francis Ford Coppola smoking? Can we get some? Is this a masterpiece or a hunk of trash? Otis also might have CTE… but was it the movie, the slap, or both? Plus, PALMREADER watched “Lost In Translation” and “Dredd” again and still loves them both dearly.
Then it’s time to talk “Hellboy” and “Hellboy 2: The Golden Army”, both written and directed by our guy Guillermo del Toro. Admittedly, we don’t spend too much time on 2004’s “Hellboy” because we both feel it is the weaker of the two films. It suffers from all the issues that plagued mid-2000s superhero movies and, although it is stylishly done and features a great cast, it is confined to a movie with flat antagonists, recycled tropes, the weight of introducing a character and world to a wider audience, and too many storylines. Also, we don’t care for Myers. With that being said, "Hellboy" is still fun and there are glimmers of awesomeness that can't be ignored. Ron Perlman as Hellboy is fantastic and the rest of the cast seems to be having a lot of fun. John Hurt as Professor Broom and Selma Blair as Liz are great and Doug Jones/David Hyde Pierce as Abe Sapien rules.
Ultimately, it’s 2008’s “The Golden Army” that we wanted to talk about. It’s a prime example of why “letting them cook” can be so damn rewarding. It’s a shame that we’ll probably never get a third sequel and conclusion of the trilogy and we discuss at length why that might be the case. This movie takes everything about the first and does it better. After GDT’s success with “Pan’s Labyrinth”, he was given more creative control and allowed to let his inner dark fantasy freak out. It’s visually impressive, fun, charming, less bogged down by issues than the first, has better and more interesting antagonists, and is filled with great world-building, lore, and special effects. Plus, welcome additions to the story like the ectoplasmic Johann Krauss and more character moments filled with humour and charm. It’s a lot of fun… even if you have to turn your brain off! And that angel of death? Hell yeah.
We end things with a chat about the "Hellboy" franchise, why it’s so hard to adapt the comics to film, the upcoming “Hellboy: The Crooked Man” and the failed “Hellboy” reboot, and some more GDT talk. We also share some stuff we’ve been listening to and ramble a bit (as usual).
We’ll be back next week with the official start of Spooky Season!
INITIATE BIRD PROTOCOL!
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