Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)

Ron Perlman is back as Hellboy, a fiery-red demon working for the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Development (B.P.R.D.). He is followed by his allies, Abe Sapien and Liz the "human torch" of Dark Horse. They do what they have been assigned to do, only it has to be done top secret. However, Hellboy is just the same wisecrack when it comes to following the rules and regulations of the department, especially secrecy. He just doesn't abide by the concept of "discretion" as directed, but always finds one way of exposing himself for photographic exhibitions.

After the first movie we get to see Hellboy as a child, after the CGI infant devil he used to be. he is a small red child with broken horns and larger teeth than a human child's. Like I said, no CGI was needed because it would be too expensive and render the whole texture unrealistic. At least this was not for a long time.

What is it about this movie that seems to catch my endless attention? Creature designs and production values, with or without C.G.I. If I could express my opinion about it, it would be that to see several non-human characters to have a design that needed no C.G.I. whatsoever. In fact, the amount of work done on them makes them so realistic as opposed to CGI which often renders them fake. I know costume designs must be daunting for some actors to endure, but it is more worth it than CGI. The puppetry and the textures of every costume and creatures of various designs are the manifestations of various imaginations of the creators who contributed to this movie project.

Though I would like to recall that the prologue is animated with CGI but looks as though marionettes were used. Nonetheless it does not matter because this prologue consists of goblins and elves as well as numerous humans animated without much detail. They look better that way since they would all be cast in shadows which would cover up their textures anyway.

Prince Nuada returns from exile. He wants to reclaim the world mankind has ravaged; he wants to punish them for pushing his kind to dilapidation and near-extinction. He wants to reclaim the three pieces of his father's crown and reawaken the Golden Army, but his twin sister Princess Nuala intervenes to slow down his campaign. You've got to resonate with this guy: his motivation is strong because mankind has forgotten history and has wiped out the civilization of magical beings. What do you expect when they are faded into myths and legends? Nuada despises the vices of mankind which have led to this predicament.

Prince Nuada and Princess Nuala are what I like to call them, the Gemini. These who are linked in such a way that if one is inflicted so is the other equally. Some of Nuada's adversaries ware more than willing to execute him even if this also harms Nuala. But for anyone such as Abe to have grown attached to Nuala, he proves to be difficult to contend with by means of killing him.

The B.P.R.D. has to remain secret because of obvious reasons: one of them being Red (Hellboy) being a demon.  He has dedicated his existence to protecting mankind against his own kind. Nuada tries to cloud Red's thinking by having him consider his position, whether it is actually worth protecting the ones who treat him as a monster instead of returning to his own kind. You have to be frank, this plot device is reoccurring in every movie where there are non-human beings living among humans. Of course, he is a demon and no one trusts him anymore than they can trust a vampire.

This guy above is Professor Johan Krauss, an ectoplasmic being. A new addition to the crew has been stationed in New York after Hellboy's debacle and now has to keep him on tabs. Abe Sapien and Tom Manning already form a bond with this character, as if they can do well as critics themselves. This annoys Red the more, due to the fact he dislikes nerdy aura and his attitude towards the policies of the bureau.

Hellboy and Liz are having a rocky relationship after the first movie while Abe and Nuala are forming one. Hellboy is just the type who refutes cleanliness and this incenses Liz. Abe is cultured and appreciative towards the arts, and so is Nuala. They both share a love for poetry, which brings them both together.

This scene perhaps must be my most memorable. A forest god, the last of its kind, makes its presence in the city. After Hellboy destroys it, its very essence has dispersed and leaves a beautiful sight, causing uproar from the public who condemn him as a monster. They believe that his presence causes chaos and misery on the people of the realm. In fact, the God does not cause widespread destruction of the city but just focuses on Hellboy himself, hence the uproar.
The score is so touching that I just felt emotional for the Forest God; decimated by Hellboy, a demon sent to the human realm to bring about its destruction. The God, destroyed by Hellboy, was more like a victim than a perpetrator. I just had to feel great sympathy for it.

You have to enjoy this movie for the creature designs, production value, editing that turns this movie into an action flick where it demands it, character development and the chemistry among the characters, not to mention humor. There are some movies that this one shares similarities with, such as Blade II (2002). I am sure that the director Guillermo del Toro was not sure about how to come about making a comic book movie but decided to do so after past projects. With a comprehensive plot and subplots, and lucid motivation of several characters, why would anyone dismiss this movie as hectic and deplorable? It is a crowning achievement of a director whose project has attracted fans and non-fans alike.

Son Of The Mask (2005)

Well here's a movie you would want to forget; a sequel to the successful movie featuring Jim Carrey, The Mask (1994). But really, this is more like a remake than a sequel since it now takes place in Fringe City, even though it initially opens up in Edge City. Also, none of the actors from the first film, including Carrey himself, reprise their roles; although the actor who plays Dr. Neumann reprises his role. So while Edge City is characterized by a dark tone, Fringe City is characterized by a rosy, colorful atmosphere.

So what is so bad about this movie? Well, there is idiotic and mostly unintelligible dialogue, dry acting on one hand and hammy acting on the other, horrible CGI work, an almost non-existent plot and abundant toilet humor.

It appears this movie spent so much money on CGI and ended up rendering some characters far too scary for even children. If you watch the 'baby born of the Mask' competing with Otis the Dog, the whole house is turned into a war zone as is the case in Tom & Jerry. The reaction from young viewers will be shock and disgust. Even before the rivalry, the baby is reanimated in various faces of characters from other cartoon classics like The Flintstones, Michael J. Frog and Woody Woodpecker. In addition, Otis with the Mask on takes on facial images of Wile E. Coyote, leaving disgust in one's eyes. In all, the heavy use of computer animation turns this flick into a live-action cartoon, a parody of The Mask.

I forgot to mention various camera angles: fish-eye views, close-ups and wide-angled shots. These are frequent throughout this movie and they distort the images well enough, as if the CGI wasn't grotesque enough already.

Toilet humor has been prevalent from the beginning, where a couple with five children talk like lobotomized patients; almost three times was the word "poop" mentioned in one scene--disgusting. Then this kid dubbed "Captain Underpants" headbutts Tim in the crotch (I don't think Kennedy was able to recover from that scene for hours!) I could see the look on Tim Avery's face, which are also our faces of bewilderment. I would bet that Jamie Kennedy made that face because he knew his film career had just begun to dissolve and implode. And another memorable scene, what I call the golden fountain, is truly the moment where I think Kennedy was not really acting but was seriously appalled by the very idea. I don't really know if I should feel very sorry for him.

And the Mask, this guy is the ultimate bomb. He is no charismatic genius, nowhere near his predecessor. His smooth, Elvis Presley-esque voice and flat personality leaves one utterly disappointed and deceived to the point of walking out of the cinema. This Mask looks more like a green-faced Ken doll with a wooden spirit, plastic hair and no charm. No wonder we only see him on screen for less than twenty minutes.

Here it is: hammy acting, choppy delivery, repetitive or inane dialogue, stagnant chemistry, gross misuse of CGI, and idiotic plot. What more can I explain? This movie was produced long after airing The Mask series, which many would note to be more mature but adequately humorous compared to this bomb. In fact this sequel is pointless since Jim Carrey declined to reprise his role, or if the script was rewritten entirely. So why bother in the first place?