The Director's Cut is one ofthe great luxuries of the DVD market (and laser disc market before it).Compromises made to a theatrical movie for marketing or ratings purposes can becorrected in a home theater release.
The results can be mixed. Alean, mean movie with break-neck pacing like 'Terminator 2' suffers a slow-downwhen padded with the additional scenes of the director's cut. Othermovies, like 'The Abyss' and, more recently, 'Daredevil'improve significantly when critical scenes restore a sense of logicalstorytelling that was cleaved from the theatrical version.
Last week saw the DVD releaseof the Director's Cut of 'Hellboy'. It's a handsome edition in terms ofpackaging and depth of content. Those who love the 'Hellboy' movie will likelywant to pick it up.
THE MOVIE
So which kind of director's cutis 'Hellboy'? Already a fine movie in its theatrical release, is this a case offixing something that ain't broke? Or a dramatically new take that causes you tosee the movie in a different light?
The 'Hellboy' director's cutfalls squarely in the middle. The movie isn't significantly better than thetheatrical release. Unlike the aforementioned movies that benefited fromrestoration, the theatrical 'Hellboy' was already a well-constructed work.
But the fifteen or so minutesof new scenes don't hamper the movie either. They do serve to allow thecharacters to breath and develop a little more, without slowing things down orfeeling gratuitous.
We get new insights into therelationship between Liz (Selma Blair) and Agent Myers (Rupert Evans). Thesescenes strengthen the love triangle and Hellboy's jealousy.
There a macabre, fun subplotinvolving the eyes of Rasputin (Karel Roden), which get sucked out of his headin the opening sequence. These scenes also reveal a bit more about the nature ofSammael.
The new cut is unrated, but Isuspect if it had been subjected to the ratings process, it would have easilywon a PG-13.
Little snippets here and thereforward the characters and mythology and should prove fun viewing for fans.However, most of the new footage was seen on the "Deleted Scenes"portion of the previous DVD release.
THE EXTRAS
The director discusses thevarious passions and influences that drove him and Mike Mignola through theprocess of making this movie. Influences like pulp novels, H.P. Lovecraft, JackKirby, Ray Harryhausen and more.
Guillermo also lets you in onthe thinking behind the new scenes that were added and the original reasons forremoving them.
Also new on this edition of theDVD is an isolated score track, spotlighting Marco Beltrami's music for thefilm.
Features that were included onthe previous edition are carried over here as well.
If you're intobehind-the-scenes footage, Disc One retains the "Right Hand of Doom"set visits, which can be viewed interactively with the movie, or separatelythrough the DVD menus. Similarly, there's a storyboard track, although this oneapparently has new images that were not in the previous release.
If you're looking foradditional story, the DVD comics, written by del Toro and drawn by Mignolaare here as well. These can be viewed interactively with the movie, or on theirown.
Disc Two of the set isvirtually identical to disc two of the previous release, except for the labelprinted on the disc itself.
This disc is packed with animpressive array of extras that will please any fans of the movie, and thoseinterested in the filmmaking process.
The two and a half hour"Seeds of Creation" documentary provides a fascinating look at thisintricate production, starting with the comics and leading up to the release ofthe movie.
The "Deleted Scenes"area is sort of pointless, as all these items are restored into the director'scut of the film. Still, you get additional commentary from del Toro about thereasons for the editing.
There are in-depth characterbiographies here, both in comic strip and expanded text formats.
Tons of other features take youbehind the scenes on special effects, storyboards, animatics, art design,marketing materials and more.
While there's nothing new onDisc Two for fans who have the original edition, it certainly is a generouscompilation of extras.
Disc Three contains a varietyof new stuff that take you even further into the worlds of Guillermo, Mignola,comics and film.
First up is yet another look atthe movie, with a video commentary by Jeffrey Tambor, Ron Perlman, Selma Blairand Rupert Evans.
Now, if you have the firstedition, this is really the same material that was presented as commentary trackon that one. The difference here though, is that it's a video commentary. Thismeans that we actually see the actors in the recording studio, as the theatricalcut of the movie plays in a small inset on the screen.
Normally I would yawn at this.I generally find actor commentaries tedious, as actors come off sounding alittle self-important. These four, though come across as spirited and bonded,that it's actually a fun segment. There are plenty of amusing anecdotes, a sensecamaraderie and general tom-foolery that makes this segment amusing.
The "ProductionWorkshop" takes you, once-again, further behind the scenes on the making ofthe movie. As a fan, I found it all quite interesting to watch.
If you didn't attend Comic-ConInternational 2002, in which del Toro presided as a foul-mouthed but hilariousmoderator in a packed-room panel with Perlman and Mignola. Back then,Comics2Film provided a transcriptof hilarious discussion. The DVD presents the complete video of the event.
Disc Three has tons of artworkfrom the movie. I especially enjoyed the variety of designs for Sammael, may ofwhich were far a field from the final baddie. There's even a narrated slide showin which Mignola walks you through his illustrations.
And, if you don't understandcomics yet, Scott McCloud has a video segment here to help you out.
THE PACKAGING
Generally the packaging on DVDsisn't anything to get excited about. The packaging on this is pretty nicethough.
The DVD comes in a slip casefeaturing the monochrome art from the international poster.
Inside are three super-slimclamshells, each bearing a separate DVD. The covers and corresponding disklabels are adorned with Hellboy, Liz and Abe respectively.
Wedged in between is "TheDiary of Grigory Rasputin", a nice little bonus created by Mignola for therelease. The 24-page booklet has a faux-leather (card stock) cover, a ribbonmarker and parchment pages, adorned with cryptic writing and illustrations. Theafterward of the book is a note from Mignola himself.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The Director's Cut of 'Hellboy'isn't so radically different that the casual fan should feel the need to rushout and buy it.
However if,like me, you love the 'Hellboy' movie, this edition is a must-own, both for thenew look at the film and for the additional extras and goodies. If you're tornbetween this edition and the previous DVD release, I recommend the Director'sCut.
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