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Every Hellboy Movie, Ranked | Cinemamix

Pabio December 9, 2024

There are many superhero series, but none quite like hell boy. Created by Mike Mignola and featured in four live-action films, Hellboy is unique in that each director seems to have a very different approach to presenting the character and his world.

Some Hellboy films seem to lean more on the character and his relationships, while others lean more on the humor and creature side of things. One film even slips into horror film territory, a la The evil deaths series.

But whatever approach you take, one thing is certain with each film: it’s sure to be a unique little adventure. So here are the four hell boy movies, classified.

David Harbor with a quizzical look on his face in the 2019 film Hellboy — (Image credit: Lionsgate)

4. Hellboy (2019)

Director: Neil Marshall

Cast: David HarborMilla Jovovitch, Ian McShaneSasha Lane, Daniel Dae Kim

What is it: Our hero, Anung Un Rama, aka Hellboy (Harbour), must stop a blood queen (Jovovich) before her powers. to go out of control and she takes control of the world. The film also functions as an origin story for the hero, as well as a partial retelling of Hellboy: The Wild Hunt comic book story arc.

Why it ranks here on this list: Our own Eric Eisenberg said it best in his average review of the filmbut this restart of hell boy it’s just not very good. A major problem is “humor”, as it tries (and fails) too often to be funny.

That’s not the only problem, as the film just seems too busy for its own good. And I understand what they wanted.

Much of the film introduces you to the main character, and we spend a lot of time getting a sense of him and his world. In that way, I think Neil Marshall and the writers were trying to separate this story from Guillermo del Torothe version of. While this is definitely admirable, I don’t really think they succeeded, and it ends up feeling like a lesser version of the character.

Plus, they made a conscious effort to make this R-rated movie, and it seems completely unnecessary. The violence seems excessive and it’s not very funny, and the dialogue is needlessly profane.

I like that we have characters like King Arthur and Baba Yaga, and I also like that Harbor creates an interesting contrast with Perlman, even though Harbor himself admitted that the film had “major problems”. But overall, I think I agree with most people that we just wanted Hellboy III. Not that.

Jack Kesy looks up as Hellboy in Hellboy: The Crooked Man

(Image credit: Ketchup Entertainment)

3. Hellboy: The Crooked Man (2024)

Director: Brian Taylor

Cast: Jack Kesy, Martin Bassindale, Jefferson White, Adeline Rudolph, Leah McNamara

What is it: A young Hellboy and another member of the BPRD (Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense) find themselves in the Appalachian region surrounded by witches. There is, however, a darker force, known as the Crooked Man, lurking in these parts, and Hellboy must stop him.

Why it ranks here on this list: The twisted man is definitely the most different Hellboy movie we’ve ever had, and probably because its creator, Mike Mignolia, was so deeply involved in the storyline. It follows closely (perhaps a little too closely, in fact) the history of The twisted man comic book, and it contains the most horror elements of any film.

I particularly like Jack Kesy’s performance as Hellboy. Unlike Harbour, who felt like he was going for something similar to Perlman’s performance, Kesy’s portrayal feels completely different, and that’s mainly because she’s a younger version of the character.

This has a huge impact on tone. In many ways I would compare it to the two Judge Dredd movies we’ve had. THE Sylvester Stallone The movie was goofy, but it was also an interesting introduction to the character I have a soft spot for.

However, in the Karl Urban Dredd movie (which I find far superior)the character and the world are so much more lived in, that’s how I feel about this Hellboy movie, which doesn’t take forever or a day to introduce us to the character.

If I have one complaint, it’s that the film seems uneven. It starts out good, but then it tries a little too hard with the scares later, which results in it not being scary at all. Still, I mostly enjoyed my time with this film.

Ropn Perlman wearing a brown trench coat and shaved horns in Hellboy

(Image credit: Sony Pictures release)

2. Hellboy (2004)

Director: Guillermo del Toro

Cast: Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Doug JonesKarel Roden, Jeffrey Tambor

What is it: Serving as an introduction to the character, Hellboy joins the BPRD (which is apparently located in Newark, New Jersey) and teams up with other strange agents in order to stop the forces of evil.

Why it ranks here on this list: Do you know why I love Guillermo del Toro? It’s because looking The best del Toro filmsyou don’t feel bad to put hell boy on the same list as his Oscar-winning film, The shape of water. They are both great films! They also both look distinctly like his photos.

The first hell boy succeeds where the 2019 film failed because even though both function as origin stories, del Toro understood that getting to know the character could be done throughout the film, and not have to take about the first hour.

It also helps that the entire cast is simply phenomenal in their roles. Yes, Perlman is an excellent Hellboy, but I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Doug Jones as Abe Sapien or Selma Blair as Liz Sherman. I also think the simplicity of the film works in its favor, and that it didn’t need to be rated R to remain engaging. The PG-13 rating worked very well.

Overall, it’s truly a treat of a film, and it would definitely be the best Hellboy film ever made, were it not for its fantasy sequel.

Ron Perlman is shocked by Selma Blair behind him in Hellboy II: The Golden Army.

(Image credit: Universal)

1. Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)

Director: Guillermo del Toro

Cast: Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, Luke Goss, Anna Walton

What is it: A prince has a grudge against humans (think Magneto, but for magical people) and he wants to take over the world for other magical creatures. He plans to do this with an army of golden robots. But here comes Hellboy, Abe Sapien and Liz to save the day again. Adventure and humor ensue.

Why it ranks here on this list: I think The Golden Army is my favorite del Toro film. Either that or Blade II. (Another great comic book movie!) What makes this movie work is pretty much everything. The sense of adventure, the dynamic between the characters (Liz is pregnant this time, but Hellboy doesn’t know it!), the special effects, the antagonist (Prince Silverlance is so cool!). Everything about this movie is amazing.

And it moves so quickly! Pacing is extremely important to me, and this film moves so quickly. It’s two hours long, but I feel like it’s half that long, and I mostly think it’s because the stakes are so high, but at the same time it’s very personal, so we never lose track of anyone’s emotions (Abe Sapien is particularly interesting this time).

I also think it helps that this story isn’t heavily inspired by a previous Hellboy story arc like the other three films. Instead, he seems to be one thing and takes advantage of it.

The Golden Army it still holds up today, and it’s one of my favorite comic book movies. They struck gold with this one.

For more Hellboy news or upcoming horror moviesdon’t forget to stop by here often!

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Every Hellboy Movie, Ranked | Cinemamix

4. Hellboy (2019)

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Every Hellboy Movie, Ranked | Cinemamix

4. Hellboy (2019)

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