Creating the World

One of the most important things comic book movie has to do is create a believable world. Obviously, superheroes don't exist with in the real world, so the ones that are created on the big screen have to be recognizable while still offering a sense of augmented reality that allows one to believe in the unreal.

The Dark Knight is the film that creates the most believable world, simply because there's not much in that movie that requires one to suspend their disbelief. Batman is a powerless superhero, and the Joker is just a criminal mastermind. Neither have super powers or abilities, and the world they inhabit seems to be grounded very much in reality.

Hellboy II accomplishes something that, in my mind, is even harder. It creates a believable world, complete with characters who are not entirely human, and who possess abilities that are not within the bounds of reality. Perhaps the believability of this can be attributed to the very fact that these characters are not exactly human. However, I think that the history and culture that is fabricated in this film really helps to sell these characters. One of my favorite scenes in the movie is when the heroes journey to the troll market. It's this vibrant, lived in space, filled with odd creatures and the relics of their respective cultures. It all seems very odd, but at the same time you can begin to understand the reasoning behind some of it. In my mind, that's what really begins to make this world something that you can believe in, at least until the credits role.