Based on the graphic novels by Mike Mignola, Hellboy, caught between the worlds of the supernatural and human, battles an ancient sorceress bent on revenge.
A reboot of the film franchise, with The Descent and Game of Thrones director Neil Marshall helming the project, featuring Stranger Things’ David Harbour as the movie’s titular demon. The new trailers outline what we can expect for the plot of the film, and covers some of the familiar beats of Hellboy’s origin story. During World War II, Hellboy was summoned from Hell by Nazis looking for an edge in the later days of the war. He was instead adopted by the US, and raised under the auspices of the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, an agency designed to help fend off paranormal threats.
It’s one of those threats Hellboy finds himself embroiled in: a sorceress, Nimue the Queen of Blood, has risen, and is threatening to Thanos London — turning everyone to dust to do something evil. The story draws from a broad arc of Hellboy comics — Darkness Calls, The Storm and the Fury, and The Wild Hunt. Along the way, she appeals to Hellboy’s demonic side, trying to get him to join her and to fulfill his destiny as a ruler of Hell.
The first trailer for the film debuted in December, and didn’t instill a lot of confidence: set to Billy Idol’s song “Mony Mony,” it showed off Harbour’s take on Hellboy, as well as Professor Bruttenholm (played by Ian McShane) and BPRD agent Ben Daimio (Daniel Dae Kim). But the trailer didn’t feel like it was really showing off a film that’s been billed as a hard-R film, let alone the Lovecraftian vibe that the original comic has.
That first rough impression is not great for a franchise that already being skeptically viewed by Hellboy fans, who have long wanted a third installment of the series directed by Guillermo del Toro, featuring Ron Perlman as Hellboy. del Toro wanted to complete his trilogy, but as years passed between installments, interest shifted to other takes on the franchise, ultimately leading to this reboot. Earlier this week, Harbour spoke with Empire about the role, saying that he didn’t want to “imitate” Pearlman’s take on the character, and noted that in this film, “Hellboy’s younger. He’s rougher. He’s much more of a teenager. He’s really struggling with the idea of whether or not he’s a good person.”
Both trailers, but especially the red-band trailer shows off quite a bit more blood and gore, as well as some of Hellboy’s sarcastic humor. It feels far more in line with the original comics, even if it doesn’t look like it’s quite got the same design and feel of del Toro’s original films.
(via The Verge)
Hellboy – In theaters April 12, 2019. Starring David Harbour, Milla Jovovich, and Ian McShane, Sasha Lane, Penelope Mitchell, with Daniel Dae Kim.
