With Pan’s Labyrinth, Pacific Rim and, of course, Hellboy, Guillermo del Toro cemented his reputation as the master of the gritty blockbuster. Practical effects, brutal action and gritty anti-heroes characterize his fantasy and sci-fi films, and Hellboy 2 is a fine example of his work.
Hellboy II – The Golden Army is on TV today:
We explain how the great Hellboy series was screwed up following this installment.
That’s what the detailed superhero fantasy Hellboy 2 is all about
Hellboy 2 is about the anti-hero played by Ron Perlman again. In World War II, we learn in part 1, the Nazis opened a portal to hell. It is closed, but the little hell boy stays behind and is henceforth raised by his foster father Professor ‘Broom’ Bruttenholm (John Hurt). Together with Liz (Selma Blair) and the seaman Abe Sapiens (Doug Jones), he works for the American agency for the investigation and prevention of paranormal phenomena.
Hellboy 2 – Trailer (German)
In the sequel there are new enemies: The eternal truce between our world and the invisible realms of the underworld has come to an end. The sleeping golden army was brought back to life by a cruel ruler of darkness, Prince Nuada.
Fantasy Fest at Amazon: Why the Hellboy Trilogy Was Never Completed
In fact, director Guillermo del Toro was planning a trilogy for his diabolical hero and his eccentric team. The ideas and the will were there :
[…] I would love to end this incarnation of Hellboy on a bittersweet note. We have ideas that are heartbreaking. The third would be the end of it all, grand, operatic and quite tragic.
Alone, the studios behind the production lacked the ultimate willingness to fund the risky project. Because Hellboy 2, although celebrated by fans and critics, was not an economic success. So the third part spent year after year in the announcement hell. The fans stewed.
Del Toro finally let the frustrated fans vote on Part 3 and got the required 100,000 votes. But when that didn’t lead to successful financing either, he declared his third part dead.
Then a third film was announced. Ironically, though, it sealed hopes for the return of popular original cast members Ron Perlman and Selma Blair. And became a disaster with announcement.
Nobody was happy with the third Hellboy movie
Because the series was rebooted 11 years later, i.e. restarted with different actors. It became one of the worst flops of 2019. And that came as no surprise.
The new film Hellboy – Call of Darkness tried unsuccessfully to reproduce the spirit of the original. He overlooked the fact that the fans weren’t just interested in practical effects and violence. The film received the desired FSK 16 rating, but used it mindlessly. Of course, this was also due to the fact that the most important creative personalities who had shaped the unique style were no longer on board. The new crew had nothing of substance to counter the expectations.
Why Hellboy Fans Are Already Disappointed – Reboot Dilemma
So much the film all over the place: With the hardcore fans, at the box office and with the critics. Nobody was happy with this part. It’s a sheer disaster that could have been avoided.
Today, the Hellboy franchise is before you shards with an unfinished trilogy and a panned reboot. You have to manage that after two such popular films.
a notice: We already published this article for a past TV broadcast of Hellboy 2.
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