Hellboy

PG-13

Now Playing

2 hr. 5 min.

Fantasy

Sci-Fi

Action

List

81%

204 Reviews

Tomatometer

66%

250,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

At the end of World War II, the Nazis attempt to open a portal to a paranormal dimension in order to defeat the Allies, but are only able to summon a baby demon who is rescued by Allied forces and dubbed "Hellboy" (Ron Perlman). Sixty years later, Hellboy serves as an agent in the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense, where he, aided by Abe Sapien (Doug Jones), a merman with psychic powers, and Liz Sherman (Selma Blair), a woman with pyrokinesis, protects America against dark forces.

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Critics Consensus

With wit, humor and Guillermo del Toro's fantastic visuals, the entertaining Hellboy transcends the derivative nature of the genre.

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They don't make em like they used to.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/06/24

Full Review

Audience Member

20 years later and this ranks as one of director Guillermo del Toro's best works Adapted from the Dark Horse comics by Mike Magnola starring Ron Perlman, the late John Hurt, Doug Jones, David Hyde Pierce, Selma Blair The opening starts with American soldiers at Poland 1944 near the end of WWII Rasputin of the Czar Royal Family and his disciple Kroenen and their followers prepare to summon a demon from another dimension to fuel Adolf Hitler's vision of world domination He is stopped however; the soldiers seem victorious but something else came out A small red creature with a rock hand is found and adopted by Professor Trevor Broom and deemed the name Hellboy Cut to present day the professor is slowly dying yet still runs operations at the BPRD aka the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense They specialize in hunting down all kinds of supernatural beings keeping the world safe A new recruit has joined named John Myers to be partner for Hellboy But he's a bit egotistical, temperamental, jokey, and childish Other associates include Abraham Sapien, an aquatic creature who can read minds and Liz Sherman who uses pyrokinesis but she left the agency a while ago for fear of losing control Hellboy and her used to date as well But with Rasputin's return the world faces an apocalypse involving Hellboy himself (even though he is destined to bring about the end of everything) Perlman totally fits the bill playing this character and the makeup effects and prosthetics blend perfectly, he's an outlier among the more normal offerings of comic book characters we've grown accustomed to Del toro has such a unique love and feel for other worldly creatures, thankfully he doesn't shy away from using real props and costumes He has such a macabre sense of humor along with a distinct visual flair and this was his dream project for years I've never heard of the Dark Horse Comic by Mike Mignola, it was originally a throwaway idea at first by the creator himself Yet he became popular once he hit the stands in August 1993 showing up in crossovers, mini-series and one-shots The film can be a bit derivative and some of the dialogue can be quite trite but the movie manages to be quite colorful, visually interesting, expansive, funny, charming and atmospheric It's also rooted in occultism namely Nazi philosophy from the source material to HP Lovecraft The filmmakers even insert a two fathers-one son element representing the main characters conflict, with Perlman he's having fun playing the superhero without being so self-serious finding community in his own circle Hellboy even after all this time holds a unique style of filmmaking next to lavish production values

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

04/03/24

Full Review

Georgan G

Haven't seen this wonderful super hero film in decades. The back story begins when the Nazis work to bring demons from hell to help them & shows Hellboy grown into a fighter for the good guys. Great special effects.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/01/24

Full Review

Jim M

This movie was a blast from start to finish. Ron Perlman was such a Fantastic Hellboy. This movie is a instant Classic.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/17/23

Full Review

Leaburn O

I'm rating this by superhero standards. Pre every film turning into max CGI, end of universe battles between twenty superheroes v a million baddies, we used to get some slightly more toned down versions with a bit more character. This is one of them. Not a good film by any means but better than the majority of what followed n the genre so I gave it an elevated score.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

11/29/23

Full Review

Shaun E

For a live action cartoon, Hellboy more than passes muster. It has strong visuals, the graphics have more than stood the test of time and there is plenty of action to keep the film moving forwards. The best acting performances come from Ron Perlman as the title character, and from Jeffrey Tambor as the pompous and irksome Manning. It is the case that the storyline is not particularly strong, although the underlying plot is fairly sound, even if it not all that sophisticated. Most of the acting performances are nothing to get excited about, although Perlman's Hellboy is certainly engaging enough that you actually want him to get the girl come the end. There is a lot going on in the film and I think that a little more time could have been spent developing the plot so that the story felt more complete, stronger characters were developed and the film felt a bit fuller. The best scene, in my opinion, was not an action scene, but the scene where Hellboy was sat on a rooftop with a 9 year old boy. This felt like a great and natural way to let us see into Hellboy's character without it feeling forced. A good choice to include that scene which could easily have been cut. This was a fairly easy watch that didn't take any brainpower. I don't know what to expect from Hellboy II, but I hope that it fills the gaps that this film left open.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

10/20/23

Full Review

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Guillermo del Toro

Director

Ron Perlman

Hellboy

John Hurt

Professor Bruttenholm

Selma Blair

Liz Sherman

Rupert Evans

John Myers

Karel Roden

Grigori Rasputin

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Namrata Joshi

Outlook

The film may not be thrill-a-minute entertainment like Superman, Spiderman or Batman. But this is precisely what makes it tick.

Rated: 2/4

Jan 7, 2019

Full Review

Bruce Diones

New Yorker

When the movie's story line concentrates on the character of Hellboy and his relationships with those important to him, the film becomes a unique romp, with an exciting yet vulnerable superhero at the center who just happens to be the spawn of Satan.

Apr 14, 2013

Full Review

Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

Director Guillermo Del Toro captures some of the visual color, tone, and beauty of the comic book. But he sometimes makes you feel like you are reading it over someone else's shoulder, and that person takes too long to finish a page.

Rated: 3/5

Dec 24, 2010

Full Review

Emilie Black

JoBlo's Movie Network

The film itself is fantastic and so easy to fangirl all over; with an amazing cast and so much talent involved, it could not possibly fail, and it didn’t disappoint.

Rated: 9/10

Nov 2, 2023

Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

The experience rewards with palpable craft embedded into each facet, from character development to special effects. It’s treated like a majestic opus by a master filmmaker

Rated: 3.5/4

Sep 6, 2023

Full Review

Toussaint Egan

Polygon

Stands apart from other superhero action movies of its ilk as a film that's as emotionally impactful as it is gorgeous to watch.

Jul 7, 2021

Full Review

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Synopsis

At the end of World War II, the Nazis attempt to open a portal to a paranormal dimension in order to defeat the Allies, but are only able to summon a baby demon who is rescued by Allied forces and dubbed "Hellboy" (Ron Perlman). Sixty years later, Hellboy serves as an agent in the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense, where he, aided by Abe Sapien (Doug Jones), a merman with psychic powers, and Liz Sherman (Selma Blair), a woman with pyrokinesis, protects America against dark forces.

Director: Guillermo del Toro
Executive Producer: Patrick J. Palmer
Screenwriter: Mike Mignola, Guillermo del Toro
Distributor: Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Revolution Studios
Production Co: Revolution Studios, Dark Horse Entertainment, Lawrence Gordon Productions
Rating: PG-13 (Sci-Fi Action Violence|Frightening Scenes)
Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 30, 2004, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 16, 2011
Box Office (Gross USA): $59.0M
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SRD, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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