I had covered Neil Marshall's Hellboy reboot a number of times in the months leading up to its release, and unlike most people, I was on board with this film from the get go. Marshall, whose previous works include The Descent, Doomsday, and one of the best damn werewolf flicks ever created, Dog Soldiers, is a filmmaker I've admired for years and I wasn't about to jump ship because Ron Perlman wasn't cast as the film's titular character. My excitement grew tenfold as soon as I learned of the film's hard "R" rating, followed a teaser that showcased some of the gory goods. A Hellboy flick with loads of gore, profanity and a better looking Hellboy (yes, I said it)? You're damn right I was excited, and so was my good pal and fellow Crypt Teaze writer, Sean Ellis.
Fast forward to the day before the film's theatrical release. Negative reviews start flowing in left and right and the film is slapped with a 15% on the Tomatometer. Sean sends me screenshot of the carnage strewn across the internet by every high-brow critic with a voice. Admittedly, we were both worried and even consider calling off our plans to see it. Thankfully, we didn't.
Both Sean and I walked out of Hellboy satisfied with what we'd just seen. Not a perfect film by any means, but a bloody fun time, and it certainly deserves better than the hate it's received the past few days.
Straight from the theater to Sean's living room, you can hear our thoughts on the film in more detail by checking out the latest episode of Ellissinema below.