In 2003, Ang Lee and the folks at Marvel made a movie about the Hulk. Ballyhoo and whatnot followed along with bad, bad reviews. Something was wrong. Ang Lee is a great director. However, he is known for pieces with grace, love, and a little sorrow. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and the Oscar-winning Brokeback Mountain are great stories that he told. He really likes depth and emotion in his characters. Which made him the worst choice for Hulk.
While I'm not about dumbing down movies, Hulk is first and foremost, a comic book character. Not just any comic character, but one that leaves destruction and fury in his wake. Hulk no cry and have arty cinematography, HULK SMASH!!! Fans of the Hulk expect some drama, but a lot of action and mayhem. Hulk had lots of drama (it oozed drama) and very little smash to it. Therefore, the film suffered and bombed.
Five years later, Marvel has made a public apology...and I accept it. The Incredible Hulk isn't so much a sequel as it is a retelling of Bruce Banner's (Edward Norton) plight. Banner was exposed to severe amounts of radiation causing him to transform into a behemoth, dubbed "The Hulk," whenever his heart rate is elevated and he is angered. This leaves Banner with little choice but to exile himself in order to run from General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross (William Hurt) and the military who are attempting to weaponize the beast within him while leaving behind his longtime girlfriend, Betty Ross (Liv Tyler). While in hiding, Banner attempts to find methods of curing himself while simultaneously studies meditation and anger management in order to quell the monster. In order to track down and capture Banner, General Ross is assisted by an accomplished soldier named Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth) who is willing to undergo inhuman experimentation in order to be physically on-par with the Hulk.
The movie is good, but far from perfect. Liv Tyler does a decent job acting, but the Betty Ross character is portrayed more like the nail-biting, worried girlfriend than the smart doctor that she is. William Hurt is fantastic in his role of the General in what would otherwise be a cookie-cutter angry, military-first soldier. Edward Norton is perfect for Bruce Banner. Acting in Fight Club must have helped him portray this "tough bookwormy wimp" character. Tim Roth is the main villain, which is what he is best suited for in most films. No complaints there.
The film does a great job with the look of the Hulk monster. Yes, it's clearly CGI but it doesn't look like the green play-dough monster from the last movie. The animators did a great job with the facial expressions of the jade giant. The smashings, especially the final fight, were well done and reminiscent of the great monster movies. There is little drama and character development, probably shorthanding it due to the overhaul of it from the last movie, but the slow moments that were there were good and meaningful.
Is it as good as Iron Man? No. Is it high art? No and it's not supposed to be. Is it fun and make you root for Bruce Banner? Yes. So mission accomplished. Oh, and speaking of Iron Man, Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) makes an appearance in the movie. I'll leave it to you to see where in the film and why. You did stay after the credits of Iron Man, didn't you?
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