A Reel 20: HELLBOY & KILL BILL VOL. 2

April may be exiting stage-right, but there is still time to celebrate the 20th anniversary of two films released 20 years ago this month: Guillermo del Toro’s HELLBOY and Quentin Tarantino’s KILL BILL VOL. 2. 

 

Releasing first was HELLBOY. 

Based on the Dark Horse Comics character of the same name, this blend of the superhero, fantasy, and horror genre followed the adventures of Hellboy, a demon turned paranormal investigator fighting to save the world. The film was adapted mostly from HELLBOY’s debut comic, Seed of Destruction, and was written by its director, Guillermo del Toro. Guillermo was a perfect match for the material, having been a fan of horror and fantasy and was recently coming off a hit; his superhero/horror blend, BLADE II from 2002. Ron Perlman and his chin took on the lead role, and he was joined by Selma Blair, Jeffrey Tambor, Rupert Evans, and the late great John Hurt. David Hyde Pierce provided voicework in an uncredited role. 

 

Upon release, HELLBOY would be a box office hit and earn good reviews. It would be nominated for four Saturn Awards, winning one (Best Make-Up). It would spawn a sequel: HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY in 2008. 

 

Just a couple of weeks later, came the martial arts film KILL BILL VOL. 2 by Quentin Tarantino. 

 

VOL. 2 was the second of the two KILL BILL films which were made simultaneously, with VOL. 1 releasing six months earlier. It was originally set for a one film with a runtime of over four hours, but was later divided and re-edited into two films. 

 

The sequel, like its predecessor, was conceived as a multi-genre film, combining martial arts, blaxploitation, spaghetti westerns, and grindhouse cinema. It followed a tale of revenge, with a character mostly known as The Bride, seeking revenge against her would-be killers…led by Bill. The role of The Bride would go to Uma Thurman, and she would be backed up and bloodied by David Carradine (Bill), Michael Madsen, Daryl Hannah, Gordon Liu, and Michael Parks. The score would be a collection of tracks across musical genres, including country music and Spaghetti Western scores from Ennio Morricone. 

 

On release, KILL BILL VOL. 2 would earn good reviews and be a box office hit. It would be nominated for several awards at the Golden Globes, Empire Awards, and Saturn Awards. 

 

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Twenty years ago this month, we were treated to two films that stretched across nearly every genre of cinema. HELLBOY dove deep into myth, provided scares, and gave us a unique cinematic hero that was funny and relatable. KILL BILL VOL. 2 had the characteristics of a yarn from the Old West, while dipping its toes (quite deeply), into samurai lore. One was fantasy, the other was something could very well have happened in our reality. And both were helmed by filmmakers who were both in their groove. 

 

Guillermo del Toro was not only coming off a hit with BLADE II, but he was refining his skills playing with gods and monsters; skills that would lead him to his masterful, Oscar-nominated PAN’S LABYRINTH in 2006, and his eventual Best Picture winner, THE SHAPE OF WATER in 2017. And in HELLBOY, his learning of the strange and unusual could be seen on the screen. He gave monsters human traits, and made them actual characters instead of the old things that go bump in the night. Guillermo turned the tables on what we expected, and that’s what great filmmakers do. 

 

Quentin Tarantino was coming off a splatter-fest in KILL BILL VOL. 1, and audiences expected much of the same in VOL. 2. But here was where Tarantino’s maturity, and skill as a storyteller and filmmaker rose to the top. Instead of another hack-em-up flick, VOL. 2 slowed things down and became a character study; looking at damaged characters in self-exile, operating independently, and mulling over the fine line between life and death. VOL. 2 smashed expectations, which is what all great sequels should do.