Rated Hellboy 7/10
Hellboy is a film about the occult and struggles for power that holds up incredibly well in part because it has a heart that it isn't forced to compete for time amidst its larger spectacles. This makes Hellboy a kind of document for what our superhero and comic book adaptation film landscapes looked like (and might have been) had Marvel taken different lessons from its success and employed a greater level of care in its own choices in adaptation.I appreciate it's visuals even as some of them don't completely hold up (the underwater scenes involving Abe Sapien and the Sammaels are notable for being undesirably inscrutable) as well as the fact that it doesn't pretend to be more than it is and isn't structured as if a sequel was even a consideration, much less a foregone conclusion. It's simple storytelling, with good pacing, genuine characters, and compelling performances, all of which make it not just a good time with family or friends in any setting, but the kind of film you can comfortably rewatch again and again without its anachronisms--good and bad-- tugging too forcefully on your experience.