Whatever else influences the blockbusters of the current summer, comic books apparently provide the chief inspiration, e.g., "Iron Man," "The Hulk," "Wanted," and now, the latest addition to an endless list, "Hellboy II: The Golden Army." Since a good proportion of the intended audience probably knows the origin of those movies, the dependence on the comics makes as much sense as adapting popular novels to the screen, a practice that extends all the way back to the early days of the cinema, and will also continue for as long as literature and film exist.

Like most of the recent comic book movies, "Hellboy II" dances along the edge of mythology, toying at least superficially with primeval characters and themes. In the first movie the large, grotesque title character emerged from Hell and, raised by a kindly scholar, employed his gifts in the service of the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense as an agent against creatures from those lower depths. Not surprisingly, that film employed religious imagery and themes entirely appropriate to millennial conflicts between human beings and Satanic forces.

The new film mixes elements from both Greek and Norse mythology, with a gesture in the direction of "The Lord of the Rings." The menace comes from chthonic forces, creatures of myth, enemies of the human race who made peace with mankind in the ancient past, but now return, led by a pale prince named Nuada (Luke Goss), who, in the usual manner, desires to conquer the world. To that end, he wants to join the three pieces of a special crown - like Tolkien's three rings - which will enable him to resurrect the invincible army of the title.

Hellboy (Ron Perlman) and some companions from the Paranormal crowd, notably Abe Sapien (Doug Jones), the piscine psychic, the fiery Liz (Selma Blair), and an ectoplasmic entity who dwells inside a metal suit, join with Nuada's twin sister, Nuala, to defend the human race against the prince and his magical multitude of horrible beasts. Their efforts create a good deal of havoc in the streets of New York City, and to the dismay of the press and public, destroy a considerable amount of real estate. Hellboy and his pals belong to the misunderstood and unappreciated class of superheroes, so even saving the human race earns them little in the way of gratitude.

Following the traditional pattern of the superhero blockbuster, Hellboy and his pals engage in a series of violent battles against some decidedly weird enemies, who often steal the show from the goody guys. In one of their early skirmishes they barely escape legions of insects called tooth fairies, who devour all the calcium in the bodies of a couple of human agents. The crew also visits an underground commercial enterprise known as the Troll Market, which features an extraordinary variety of hideous beings that make the famous bar scene in "Star Wars" seem quite ordinary.

Guillermo del Toro, who directed the first "Hellboy" and won the Academy Award for his strange and brilliant "Pan's Labyrinth," once again exhibits the richness and originality of a truly unique imagination. His parade of strange creatures resembles nothing else in the crowded fantasy/science fiction/horror blockbuster field, making some of his proliferating metamorphoses quite astonishing. In perhaps the most stunning action sequence in the film, Prince Nuada tosses something like a large Mexican jumping bean down a grate, where it rapidly grows into an enormous many-tentacled monster. After Hellboy destroys it, it turns into a gigantic flower that collapses, forming a lovely garden.

The large, unlovely Ron Perlman, who has played more beasts and monsters than Lon Chaney, Bela Lugosi, and Boris Karloff combined, repeats his engaging interpretation of Hellboy, swilling down the suds, chomping on cigars, and flinging wisecracks as frequently as he tosses enemies around the landscape. In the backgrounds of a couple of scenes, televisions show moments from "The Bride of Frankenstein" and "The Creature from the Black Lagoon," hinting at the pathos in Hellboy's character, an amiable behemoth who, like the creatures in those films, yearns for human acceptance, a nice touch in a wild and comic film. 

Hellboy II: The Golden Army

(PG-13), written and directed by Guillermo del Toro

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