'Hellboy' outshines superhero genre

For all the money they've made, superhero movies of late have been a disappointing lot. "Spider Man" made Peter Parker into the emotional and physical equivalent of a 10-year-old girl. "The Hulk" decided to show exactly how depressing superhero movies could be. And "Daredevil"... well, the less said of "Daredevil," the better. Now, finally, someone has decided that superhero movies can actually resemble comic books. "Hellboy" is the newest of the superhero movies, based on a Dark Horse comic book of the same name. Where all the other movies have failed (namely in action, humor and execution) "Hellboy" shines. "Hellboy" is the story of Rasputin (the historical one) and his attempts to bring about the apocalypse. The movie begins with a secret U.S. Army mission to Scotland, where the desperate Nazis are attempting to build a portal through which the old dark lords can travel through and swing the tide of the war. The portal is closed before the plan is executed, and a small, red demon is the only thing to pass through. Professor Broom (John Hurt) finds the demon, raises it as a son, and names him Hellboy (Ron Perlman). The movie then picks up years later, where a dying Broom suspects that a shadowy group is attempting to complete the insidious plan. Sound far-fetched? It is, because it's based on a comic book. "Hellboy"'s greatest success as a movie is realizing that very fact. Once all the rules of what can and can't happen are broken down, the movie has fun with itself, using lots of special effects to sell popcorn and keep moviegoers entertained. The approach works a far sight better than trying to teach moviegoers a stilted life lesson. Part of the success of "Hellboy" is the cast of relative unknowns. Perlman captures Hellboy as a blue-collar guy who feels insecure towards women and embarrassed about his appearance. At one point, new recruit Agent Myers has to be told not to stare at Hellboy's horns, and the deadpan line "he files them to fit in" is delivered. Pearlman actually manages to let some character shine through the massive layers of makeup. Selma Blair delivers a quiet, intense performance as pyrokinetic Liz Sherman. Blair's performance is very subtle as the conflicted girl with a dark past and almost no control over her powers. The strangest character of the bunch is water-breathing telepathic Abe Sapien, apparently voiced by an unaccredited David Hyde-Pierce. He plays straight-man to Hellboy until del Toro pushes him to the background for the second half of the movie. Perhaps the best reason to see "Hellboy" is the fact that the movie is populated with actual characters instead of emotional headcases or robotic heroes. Screenwriter Guillermo del Toro writes in an excellent love triangle between Hellboy, Sherman, and Agent Myers. The three are very quiet and in denial about their feelings, and it leads to huge laughs at points. Minor problems arise with the apparent forgetting of a couple major characters, but the script is the best comic-based story that Hollywood has churned out in a long time. With action, suspense, and a great sense of humor, there's really no reason to kill oneself waiting for "Spider Man 2." "Hellboy" is already here. Grade: A-