July
3The Marvelous Monster Machine
Rotund, chatty and cerebral, Guillermo del Toro seems the embodiment of the expression, “it’s never too late to have a happy childhood.” The Mexican filmmaker is on the campaign trail to promote "Hellboy II" and he clearly relishes the prospect.
Hellboy II is another in del Toro’s series of gothic fantasies, but it’s more accessible than "Pan’s Labyrinth" (a sleeper hit) and, as such, a good transition to his next endeavor, "The Hobbit." Having shot "Hellboy II" in Budapest and edited it in London, del Toro is eagerly anticipating a four year sojourn in the quietude of New Zealand where he will work alongside Peter Jackson on his next epic.
“My life is a suitcase,” del Toro says with a certain cheerful resignation. “I am the traveling Mexican.” Wherever he goes (even to dinner) he totes along one of his small leather-bound notebooks, acquired in Venice, in which he records notes for future scenes along with richly detailed sketches of characters.
Many of the characters are monsters, to be sure, since those are central to del Toro’s universe. The monsters, some ominous, some playful, have inhabited his imagination since earliest childhood much to indignation of his parents, but he has brilliantly monetized them.
The monster-protagonist in Hellboy II, del Toro says, is a ‘blue collar guy’, the antithesis of a James Bond or a Spider Man. “He’s like a plumber -- the sort of guy you’d call if you find yourself in trouble.” Indeed, he may be a bit of a lug, but del Toro’s hero is still capable of dealing with the array of protoplasmic mythics and aquatic empaths that block his path.
Del Toro is a man who loves to let his imagination roam, but he is very much a serious student of film who can discourse on the craft of Hitchcock and who helps guide and promote the work of fellow Mexican filmmakers like Inarritu and Cuaron (with whom he has a production company called Cha Cha Cha). For him, movies are both a playpen and a serious business -- and a superbly remunerative place to have a happy childhood.
(For more of my conversation with del Toro, see Shootout on AMC this Sunday)
(Click on pictures for larger images from del Toro's notebook).
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Looks like "The Hobbit" is in excellent hands.
Posted by: jack | 7/4/2008 8:25:44 AM