Little Mermaid, The Flash, RoP attacking fans, Indy Spoilers - FNT 251 w/ Paul Chato

It should be on Youtube not at the cinema

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Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, and Doug Jones in Hellboy: In Service of the Demon (2008)

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Jack Kesy and Martin Bassindale in Hellboy: The Crooked Man (2024)

It is dark down there. Dark as the Devil's asshole.

Jack Kesy

Jefferson White

Adeline Rudolph

Christopher Golden

Mike Mignola

Brian Taylor

Hellboy and a rookie B.P.R.D. agent in the 1950s are sent to the Appalachians, where they discover a remote community dominated by witches and led by the sinister local demon, the Crooked Man.

Hellboy: The Crooked Man

Nowhere near as bad as I was expecting

This film does not deserve the negativity it&apos;s getting. Honestly, I admit, I put Hellboy: The Crooked Man on purely to fill the silence while I faffed about on my tablet. I wasn&apos;t expecting much, especially considering all the negative buzz surrounding it and the fact it clearly didn&apos;t have a blockbuster budget behind it. But, before I knew it, the background noise I intended it to be had grabbed my full attention. I ended up genuinely watching it, and more surprisingly, enjoying it.

Does it look a bit like a fan-made film? Yeah, to a degree. It&apos;s cheap, that&apos;s clear right from the get-go. But let&apos;s get something straight: cheap doesn&apos;t automatically mean bad. If anything, the limited budget forced the filmmakers to focus on what actually matters, atmosphere, tone, story, and characters. And in those areas, I think The Crooked Man really delivers.

One of the standout elements for me was the dark storytelling. The plot is rooted in creepy Appalachian folklore and manages to carry an eerie, serious vibe throughout. Unlike previous Hellboy adaptations that leaned into over-the-top action or tried to be too flashy, this film goes for a quieter, more unsettling tone, and I liked that. It&apos;s less superhero romp and more supernatural horror, which felt refreshing. You&apos;re not bombarded with CGI spectacle; instead, you&apos;re immersed in a bleak and mysterious world where curses and demons feel genuinely dangerous.

Jack Kesy, who plays Hellboy this time around, does a solid job. No, he doesn&apos;t have the iconic presence of Ron Perlman, but he wasn&apos;t trying to. His version is more subdued, more worn down by the world around him. And that works in this kind of story. He fits the tone well, a Hellboy dropped into an isolated, cursed corner of America, where he&apos;s as much of an outsider as the audience is. I&apos;d definitely be up for seeing more of him in the role.

The supporting cast was also pretty decent, especially the preacher Tom Ferrell, who added depth and mystery to the plot. Their dynamic had a low-key but effective energy to it, and their journey together through this cursed land kept me engaged the whole time. The Crooked Man himself, the villain, was creepy in just the right way. A great mix of old-school demonic presence and regional folklore.

There&apos;s something admirable about how serious the film takes itself. It&apos;s not trying to wink at the audience or pepper in unnecessary humour. It&apos;s just telling a dark, weird story and committing to it fully. That alone gives it more integrity than a lot of big-budget, formulaic adaptations out there. It&apos;s rough around the edges, sure, but it knows what it is and sticks to its vision.

I think a lot of the criticism online misses the point. People see the lower production value and immediately write it off, but in doing so, they overlook the actual strengths of the film. There&apos;s a kind of heart to it that you rarely find in major studio projects. It may not have had the money to build elaborate sets or top-tier visual effects, but what it does with what it has is impressive.

I&apos;d definitely watch a sequel with the same cast and creative team, no question. If this film is anything, it&apos;s a strong foundation. With just a little more funding, they could build something really special in this darker corner of the Hellboy universe.

So yeah, good job for the money that was obviously spent. It&apos;s not perfect, but it doesn&apos;t need to be. It&apos;s honest, atmospheric, and tells a solid horror-fantasy story that kept me watching when I hadn&apos;t planned to. Sometimes, that&apos;s the mark of a film doing exactly what it&apos;s supposed to.

Hellboy and a rookie BPRD agent get stranded in 1950s rural Appalachia and discover a small community haunted by witches, led by the eponymous Crooked Man.

Hellboy: The Crooked Man - Official Trailer

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMzQ1NzM3YmYtYmE5MC00MDMwLWIwMmYtZjBiZTRiYTAxMzZhXkEyXkFqcGdeQWFybm8@._V1_.jpg

This film does not deserve the negativity it's getting. Honestly, I admit, I put Hellboy: The Crooked Man on purely to fill the silence while I faffed about on my tablet. I wasn't expecting much, especially considering all the negative buzz surrounding it and the fact it clearly didn't have a blockbuster budget behind it. But, before I knew it, the background noise I intended it to be had grabbed my full attention. I ended up genuinely watching it, and more surprisingly, enjoying it.

Does it look a bit like a fan-made film? Yeah, to a degree. It's cheap, that's clear right from the get-go. But let's get something straight: cheap doesn't automatically mean bad. If anything, the limited budget forced the filmmakers to focus on what actually matters, atmosphere, tone, story, and characters. And in those areas, I think The Crooked Man really delivers.

One of the standout elements for me was the dark storytelling. The plot is rooted in creepy Appalachian folklore and manages to carry an eerie, serious vibe throughout. Unlike previous Hellboy adaptations that leaned into over-the-top action or tried to be too flashy, this film goes for a quieter, more unsettling tone, and I liked that. It's less superhero romp and more supernatural horror, which felt refreshing. You're not bombarded with CGI spectacle; instead, you're immersed in a bleak and mysterious world where curses and demons feel genuinely dangerous.

Jack Kesy, who plays Hellboy this time around, does a solid job. No, he doesn't have the iconic presence of Ron Perlman, but he wasn't trying to. His version is more subdued, more worn down by the world around him. And that works in this kind of story. He fits the tone well, a Hellboy dropped into an isolated, cursed corner of America, where he's as much of an outsider as the audience is. I'd definitely be up for seeing more of him in the role.

The supporting cast was also pretty decent, especially the preacher Tom Ferrell, who added depth and mystery to the plot. Their dynamic had a low-key but effective energy to it, and their journey together through this cursed land kept me engaged the whole time. The Crooked Man himself, the villain, was creepy in just the right way. A great mix of old-school demonic presence and regional folklore.

There's something admirable about how serious the film takes itself. It's not trying to wink at the audience or pepper in unnecessary humour. It's just telling a dark, weird story and committing to it fully. That alone gives it more integrity than a lot of big-budget, formulaic adaptations out there. It's rough around the edges, sure, but it knows what it is and sticks to its vision.

I think a lot of the criticism online misses the point. People see the lower production value and immediately write it off, but in doing so, they overlook the actual strengths of the film. There's a kind of heart to it that you rarely find in major studio projects. It may not have had the money to build elaborate sets or top-tier visual effects, but what it does with what it has is impressive.

I'd definitely watch a sequel with the same cast and creative team, no question. If this film is anything, it's a strong foundation. With just a little more funding, they could build something really special in this darker corner of the Hellboy universe.

So yeah, good job for the money that was obviously spent. It's not perfect, but it doesn't need to be. It's honest, atmospheric, and tells a solid horror-fantasy story that kept me watching when I hadn't planned to. Sometimes, that's the mark of a film doing exactly what it's supposed to.

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