Ive been a Hellboy fan for a while now, have all the Trade Paperbacks, saw the live action film on opening day and is one of my favorite Comic-to-film translations. Me like a lot of people are awaiting the sequel thats been caught in development hell and a studio change (the original was on SONY, then the rights went to Universal, and now are in Paramount’s hands last I heard). Then something amazing happend Guillermo Del Toro, and creator Mike Mignola came together and brought Hellboy into the animated arena with “Sword of Storms” the first of hopefully many animated films (another is planned for March).
In this first animated feature from Director Tad Stones (Buzz Lightyear of Star Command), and Creative Producers Mike Mignola (creator of HELLBOY comics) and Guillermo del Toro (writer/director of the HELLBOY movie), a folklore professor becomes unwittingly possessed by the ancient Japanese demons of Thunder and Lightning. But when The Bureau of Paranormal Research & Defense dispatches a team of agents to investigate, a cursed samurai sword sends Hellboy (Ron Perlman) to a supernatural dimension of ghosts, monsters and feudal mayhem.Now while pyrokinetic Liz Sherman (Selma Blair) and fishboy Abe Sapien (Doug Jones) battle one very pissed-off dragon, a lost and cranky Hellboy must find his way home. Even if he can survive the perilous journey, how much crap does a guy have to put up with from the two most vengeful and ferocious spirits of Japanese legend? Not much more can be said if your a Hellboy fan your going to absolutely LOVE this movie, hell even if your not a fan you’ll probally like it, theres something for everyone in this flick.
For a straight to Video (kinda, it had a run on The Cartoon Network last year as well) this film is packed with special features!
• To Hell and Back - Documentary on the creation of Hellboy
• A New Breed - Documentary on how the NEW Hellboy was created for this animated film
• Conquering Hellboy - The Actor’s Role
• A View From The Top - Featurette on the making of the “heads” sequence
• Keepers of Hellboy - The 2006 Comic-Con panel discussion
• Hellboy Goes East - A Revealing look at many of the inspirations, backstories, and secrets of Hellboy: Sword of Storms
• Feature commentary - With Hellboy creator Mike Mignola, Supervising Producer/Director Tad Stones and Director Phil Weinstein
- Rating:5 out of 5
Sword of Storms is presented in an anamorphic 1.78:1 widescreen aspect ratio and wow does it look incredible, there is just something about animated films that everyone looks incredible, the colors are sharp, clear, and vibrant. No color bleeding anywhere, if it looks this great in standard definition I cant wait to see it in High Def.
The Audio presention is nothing to laugh at either, the dvd sports a very robust Dolby Digital 5.1 track which is full of bass and the surrounds are in full effect here as well. Also included are an English Dolby 2.0 soundtrack along with a Spanish 2.0 track as well.
- Rating:5 out of 5
A suprisingly awsome film gets an equally great DVD, and with a sequel already coming out entitled “Blood and Iron” which Del Toro and Mignola promise is even better than “Sword of Storms “ it looks like everyones favorite Demon Investigator is here to stay.
- Overall Rating:5 out of 5
Film and Features: 5
Technical Specs: 5
Overall Review: 5
Studio: Anchor Bay
Genre: Action/Animated
Aspect: 1.78:1 Anamorphic Widescreen
Audio: 5.1 Dolby Digital
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