The Movies: Blade II (2002), Hellboy (2004), Hellboy 2: The Golden Army (2008) Oh, to be inside the mind of Guillermo del Toro. Despite having never been there, of course, the Mexican director has spent a pretty hefty portion of his career showing us exactly what it would be like if we did end up there. So del Toro's name has become well-associated with the likes of comic book movie adaptations - even his movies that aren't directly based on outside sources (Pacific Rim, for example) have the look and feel of a comic book: heighten realities, quirky characters, bold visuals, and - let's face it - awkward, clunky dialogue cues. First, there was the brilliant and compulsive Blade IIl; then Del Toro's second foray into the realms of comic book adaptations came with Hellboy. The results were solid and the movie was greatly entertaining, but it wasn't until Hellboy 2: The Golden Army that del Toro's personal visions seemed to meld with his source material to maximum effect. Indeed, del Toro's comic book films seem to act as playgrounds for his imagination, proving that there really is room for an auteur to work his or her idiosyncratic stylings in and around somebody else's story.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
