Thursday, July 17, 2008

on the screen: Hellboy II

2 hours of madcap madness from Guillermo del Toro? Bring it on!

Last night we went to watch Hellboy II at Cineleisure Damansara. With all the other movies that are out right now, Hellboy II wasn't really high on my list of movies to watch, but it was one of the only movies that was showing at a later time because some preview of the Dark Knight was taking up most of the cinemas -_-

Anyway, the movie was just alright. Nothing much to shout about, with some action, few laughs, and not much of a storyline. Couldn't fault the special effects, but good effects does not a good movie make.

So where did those two hours go, anyway? The storyline was insipid at best, while the acting was decent, all the characters and especially their powers were criminally underused. Why does Liz Sherman need a gun when she can shoot fireballs from her hands? So much more effective. And throughout there are only 3-4 actual action scenes. I left feeling nothing for the characters nor for the action or storyline. Maybe if there weren't any other movies to watch and if it were cheaper tickets, I wouldn't mind so much, but paying RM24 for such insipid fare while there are other, better flicks out there is just not my cup of tea. However, there were some nice rides so it wasn't a total washout. A scene where Hellboy and Abe Sapein are singing Can't Smile Without You while drinking their sorrows away is especially delightful.

Verdict
Story: 5/10
Characterization: 4/10
Action: 6/10
Effects: 7/10
Overall: 6/10

On a side note, which blooming idiot at Cineleisure Damansara decided to schedule for like 6-7 cinemas to end their movie screenings at the same time? That created a massive jam, at the escalators, auto-pay machines, and in the car park. You can generally have movies start at the same time, cause people will come at differing times, but having several movies end at the same time and with the awkward parking system at Cineleisure just makes for a bad idea.

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