Not Quite Golden

Hellboy II: The Golden Army is a whole lotta movie. Maybe too much movie for one movie. Guillermo Del Toro is a certified genius, but I can't help but think this movie would've benefited if someone had reigned him in a little.

Don't get me wrong - there's a lot to love here. The creature designs and the sheer number of cool monsters and great concepts on display are breathtaking and at times overwhelming. The battle with the "Forest God" is really incredible, and the whole film is just bursting at the seams with unfettered creativity and an obvious, manifest love of the world of fantasy.

The problem is that Del Toro never lets up at all; it's one amazing fantasy creature after another, and the plot suffers as a result. The emotional themes ring a little hollow, especially Abe Sapien's storyline, which is basically a setup for a plot twist that the film doesn't come to honestly. Often the tone and the dialogue feel forced, like they're all just trying a little too hard.

I really do think I would've LOVED this movie had it come out when I was in college, playing a lot of roleplaying games. The villain, who may as well have stepped out of a hacky White Wolf sourcebook, strikes me as juvenile and silly now but man, 20-year old me would've died for it. I wouldn't have found the plot to be a little too roleplaying campaign-y either. In fact, that's probably the best way to describe this film. A roleplaying campaign your friend put together that has a lot of great ideas but ultimately crams too much in and lets ambition get the best of it rather than tempering that creativity with storytelling restraint.

This sounds like a slam but I did enjoy the film. It is a flawed but entertaining fantasy action movie and I do hope they let him make a third one just to see if he has any ideas left after cramming what feels like 20 years' worth of fantasy concepts into this one.

What's it Worth?: Check it out if you've already seen Wall-E a few times and need to kill time until The Dark Knight comes out. Otherwise, rent the Bluray.