Jack Kesy in Hellboy. Image courtesy of Dark Horse Entertainment and Ketchup Entertainment
In the world of comic books, there is only one Hellboy. Right away, the supernatural hero stands out with his giant frame, red color, and sawed-off horns on his head. He resembles a detective with his giant trench coat and customized revolver because he is an agent for an organization that deals with the paranormal, supernatural, and demonic. Beyond those things, Hellboy is the greatest comic book property from Dark Horse Comics to have successfully transitioned to the big screen. There have been a total of three Hellboy movies, and “Hellboy: The Crooked Man” will be the fourth one.
Now, things take a turn when watching the official movie trailer for “Hellboy: The Crooked Man,” as it is evident that this upcoming movie was made on a limited budget. The subpar production value resembles something you could watch freely on Tubi or a Saturday night movie original special on the old SyFy channel back in the day. It looks cheap, which is a shame because Hellboy is one of the most recognized comic book characters outside of the Marvel Universe.
Indeed, it is disappointing that this soon-to-be-released Hellboy movie did not secure a major studio to produce and distribute it. But you can’t blame the major movie studios because the last Hellboy movie, which was a reboot, flopped. Realistically, they should have made a third Hellboy movie with Ron Perlman still as Hellboy because he embodied the role perfectly. He gave Hellboy a personality, a certain charm, and charisma that made him the perfect choice for the cast. The decision not to follow up on ‘Hellboy II: The Golden Army’ was ill-fated and a massive mistake, as the first two Hellboy movies with Ron Perlman were entertaining, smartly scripted, and had a lot of depth. It was a bummer and a lost opportunity.
Another possible reason that major movie studios passed on handling this could be that the storyline is much smaller in scope and not as grandiose as the ones in the previous Hellboy movies. And that could be a good thing for serious Hellboy comic book readers and fans who are new, because “The Crooked Man” is not the kind of enemy or threat that would bring about the end of the world or something so massive that it would require the entire B.P.R.D. to handle. Instead, “The Crooked Man” is an urban legend, a type of cryptid, and a monstrosity that belongs to folklore. In short, this monster is only one real enemy for Hellboy to put a stop to.
Nonetheless, it is best to look beyond the aesthetics and cinematography to appreciate the potential storyline of “Hellboy: The Crooked Man” that is being teased in the official movie trailer. If you are a reader of the original Hellboy comics and graphic novels released long ago, you can tell that this movie is similar to one of Hellboy’s earliest missions. It has been revealed that the setting is in the early 1950s, and judging by Hellboy’s appearance in this film, he looks much younger than he did in the previous three movies. This is not due to a different actor portraying him, but because his stature and presence are not as imposing. Yes, Hellboy does age; it was revealed in the first Hellboy movie that he ages at a slower rate compared to human beings.
Jack Kesy in Hellboy. Image courtesy of Dark Horse Entertainment and Ketchup Entertainment
Regardless of the poor production value, you can still see what they are trying to achieve here with the snippets, sequences, and tidbits shown in the official trailer. They are trying to tell the backwoods’ story of a creature that lurks at night, something you would typically share on camping trips or use to scare children. “The Crooked Man” is perhaps the perfect choice as an enemy or antagonist for Hellboy in this movie because it sets up a one-on-one battle between the demon-turned-good and an urban legend that he may not have believed existed within the storyline. It is food for thought and something to keep people pondering since ‘Hellboy: The Crooked Man’ has not been released yet.
For me, “Hellboy: The Crooked Man” is still worth watching once it becomes available in cinemas or on streaming platforms because the story seems promising at the least. This is the first time Hellboy is facing off against an urban legend that does not strictly belong to fantasy, sci-fi, or horror alone. Everyone should give it a chance before forming their opinion based solely on its official movie trailer.
Lastly, it has been revealed that Mike Mignola, the creator, and artist of Hellboy in Dark Horse Comics, is the co-writer of “Hellboy: The Crooked Man”. This explains why the potential storyline feels reminiscent of one of the simpler and shorter stories from Hellboy comics.
“Hellboy: The Crooked Man” stars Jack Kesy as Hellboy. The movie is produced by Millennium Media and Dark Horse Entertainment and distributed by Ketchup Entertainment.