When it was announced that there would be a Hellboy movie a couple of years ago, I just couldn't see it working. Not that there's anything inherently wrong with the idea, but the two things that always made that book so strong for me were Mike Mignola's amazing art and the way old folktales and myths were incorporated into the story. I figured that those two characteristics would at best just help to shape the story.

I was very wrong. Obviously, Mignola's art was an influence as well as the mythos. But I hadn't counted on Guillermo Del Toro. the first movie was much better than I expected. But the second movie, which I just finished watching, was fucking fantastic. It might be my current mood or whatever, but it ranks among my favorite movie of 2008. Sure, there was completely misplaced pop songs that showed up randomly, and Seth McFarlane's voice can be distracting. But then Dark Knight was a half hour too long, and I haven't seen a single Oscar nominee*, so there you go. This movie was funny, smart, imaginative, and featured an abundance of Tecate and kittens. Also, I now have a weird crush developing on Selma Blair. and Ron Perlman. Yikes.

No, it wasn't completely loyal to the comic, but I've yet to see (or really want to see) a comic book movie that is. So yeah, there's an official HDF endorsement. Although, if you're already of the mindset that you won't like this movie, you probably won't. But I hope you do.

*I refuse to watch since they seem to be by and large the most depressing group of movies ever assembled. I WILL watch Slulmdog Millionaire sometime in a few days, but I'll leave the rest of that shit for the commitees.