Okay, I actually watched TDK this time, and. . .

[TVC15]

I might watch Hellboy 2 tonight.  I love del Toro and Ron Perlman.  I would eat del Toro's shit--I draw the line at the Hobbit though.  That's sub-shit.

I don't have high hopes for Hellboy 2, though, because I know it's more fantasy than typical Hellboy fare.  But del Toro also did fantasy great, so I'm kinda ambivalent, but Hellboy + mythology-esque fantasy doesn't seem like a great formula to me.  I'm sure the movie will at the very least be very pretty.  I think that one is also pretty long, isn't it?

I think there is maybe a 50% chance I will take Hellboy 2 out partially through and maybe put in Pan's Labyrinth, Spirit of the Beehive, or Cria Cuervos.

[Mandark]

It's probably best to watch Hellboy 2 without bringing any sort of attachment to the comic book version.

[TVC15]

It's probably best to watch Hellboy 2 without bringing any sort of attachment to the comic book version.

Will my hardcore Ron Perlman appetite be satiated with an adequate amount of badassness, at least?  Does he at any point wield a cigar?

[Mandark]

You won't be disappointed on that front.  I also thought Selma Blair was pretty great.

The set pieces are really well done, but I think I've been too saturated by modern special effects to appreciate them.

[TVC15]

Sons of Anarchy really made me appreciate how big of a part Ron Perlman plays in my life.  I think I might be gay because of his role as Vincent in Beauty and the Beast, for example.

[Mandark]

God, I hope you get to meet him and tell him that.

[TVC15]

I'd hope he'd kick my ass <3

[Phoenix Dark]

After watching TDK for the third time (first time on DVD) my opinion remains the same. It's the best superhero flick ever made, and one of the best action flicks of the last few years imo. That being said like most movies it has its flaws

-the intro bank heist is great but I'll agree with Cohen and admit the beginning has some problems. I really didn't like the Scarecrow scene. My brother pointed out that it lent continuity to the film which is true but it just seemed poorly executed. Didn't like the Batman clones or the dumb "i'm not wearing hockey pants" quip either

-Maggie Gyllenhaal is definitely a weak link. Like Heat, this movie would have been better if there were no women involved

-The Hong Kong scene is eh. I've read reviews where people really hate on it but it was just average/meh to me. Not a deal breaker

-The ending monologue is still grating. I'm referring to Batman's, not Gordon's which I really like. The mixture of the Batman voice and the music really make it laughable. I thought Dent's character was great while Two Face really seemed half assed, stuck on the end of the film. The scene where he's threatening the kid is great but overall...what a wasted opportunity. That being said Eckhart is great.


Comparing RDJ's Starks to Ledger is pretty weak. RDJ was playing RDJ playing Tony Starks; it's the equivalently of Tom Cruise or Will Smith strutting around in a role as themselves. Heath brought a character to life independent of himself, just as De Niro did back in the day. I'm not saying Heath's performance is on the level of a great De Niro performance obviously. But Heath definitely reached a level where he totally became his character and made you believe every minute of it. RDJ didn't do that in Iron Man because he's already that damn character, irl and many movie roles

[TVC15]

I was including the Hong Kong scene in my "Cut the Falcone storyline" critique, I think.  The Scarcrow/Batclone scene didn't bug me so much, but the hockey pants line was pretty bad.

I still think RDJ (playing himself or not) impressed me more than Ledger.  As I said before, it probably comes from not expecting RDJ to be able to pull off a superhero role.  Ledger made a strong first impression with the pencil scene, but outside of that, the way he carried himself coming into the party scene, and the police station scene, I wasn't all that impressed.  Again, he did fine with the role, but it wasn't a performance I'd be rushing to give an award.

And best superhero movie?

spoiler (click to show/hide)

The Incredibles

[close]

[duckman2000]

You go on thinking that. I'm legits this time.

As if that's something you can control.

[Mandark]

I'm pretty sure it was "hockey pads" not "pants".

[TVC15]

I heard pants, too.  I can check the subtitles if I get bored. I guess pads makes more sense, though, so you're probably right.   I guess that explains why I thought the line was dumb.

[Himu]

the ending monologue is the worst thing about the movie imo.

it's just so self indulgent. would be better without any voice.

[TVC15]

The good news is that I am enjoying Hellboy 2.  It has Ron Perlman and cigars, so it's all good.  The decidedly not Hellboy-y story isn't bugging me so much and the visual designs of the creatures are pretty nice.  Whoever said it feels like a TV show is kinda right, though.  It doesn't feel like it has movie-ish scale for whatever reason.

[Fresh Prince]

RDJ was nuance, he played the prick and hero but not in an over top way. The joker was over acted. 

[EvilBoris]

RDJ was nuance, he played the prick and hero but not in an over top way. The joker was over acted. 

 
 Ooooh...
 I didn't find anything distracting, gimmicky or gratuitous about the ok yes, stylized prism ledger and the character demanded itself to be in. I think you're just using 'over acted' as a simple critical shorthand to dismiss work in this mode.

 Ledger had far more simplistically written impulses than what RDJ had to work with in Iron Man....
 but he worked on a physical rhythm to make the character's spontaniety credible, and eloquent, in its own ugly, perverse way. especially in that resourceful interrogation scene
 .. there is something raw, true twisted in those silent car window and hospital exit scenes. and just smaller moments which are easy to miss.
 
 so yeah concluding my little 'for you consideration' ad I say there is alot of nuance in his emotional volatility buuuut...

 
RDJ is also loose and will deservedly ride similar waves to oscars for tropic thunder...  and flipping things around a bit it might just be ledger's death which opened up the possibility for that facepainted academy recognition

 Neither will win though Brolin

[Cheebs]

Lol at the notion of Hellboy 2 being superior.

It's not even better than the 1st, Hellboy felt like it had a purpose, Hellboy 2 felt like some T.V Episode.

Thank you! Hellboy 1 was a fun movie. Hellboy 2 felt like it was a made-for-tv fantasy movie for the sci-fi channel. I dunno wtf Del Toro was smoking when he made it. It was a boring movie that only had a purpose of showing off an endless stream of monsters with a very cliched fantasy plot about princes, crowns and nonsense. The good characters from the first movie were severely underused and instead focused on elves and shit.