I’m going to get this out of the way now: I have loved the Hulk since I was a kid. He’s my favorite character in the Marvel Universe but I assure you that I will not be biased when it comes to this film (well, maybe a little). That said, lets talk about the decently-executed version of the Hulk.The film opens up with Bruce Banner (Ed Norton) living incognito while General Ross (William Hurt) devises a plan to bring Banner back to America so he can dissect him for Hulk’s DNA. That’s where bad ass Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth) comes in, who leads the team sent to bring Banner in, and eventually is turned into the Abomination for his trouble. The story is simple enough; starts strong yet loses much of Act One’s steam by the end. That doesn’t mean the script is really bad, it’s just it isn’t as well done as say “Iron Man.”
It seems that the biggest issue that fan boys and film-goers alike had with Ang Lee’s bloated 2003 version is that there wasn’t enough Hulk smashing stuff. This film is much different. The action scenes are well done and sprinkled throughout the film so every time Banner Hulks out, it’s a welcome balance of mayhem instead of feeling like too much or too little.
The first half of the film delivers on a well done chase film. It’s almost in the vein of a Bourne film with Banner evading Blonsky and the rest of his tactical unit, but then that dynamic disappears the second the film focuses more on the Hulk. Don’t get me wrong, the CGI work in this film is well done, yet I really enjoyed Norton’s performance and hated to see him take a back seat to his computer counter part.
But fans rejoice, this film has some great nods to the television show. Whether it be using the music from the show to playing with the “you won’t like me when I’m angry line,” this film is extremely faithful to the subject matter. So that said, I will go on record to say that this is Louis Leterrier’s best film. I can’t wait to see what this guy does next because seeing how he handled this one shows that he has great potential.
My major issue with this film, though, had to be the ending. I won’t give it away but I couldn’t believe how the fight ended between the Hulk and the Abomination. I can buy Gamma-radiated men and all that, but given the way the fight ended... it just didn’t seem logical to me. But other than that, I didn’t have too many problems with the film.
So take it as you will. I have stated how big a fan I am but that still can’t hide the fact that this is a decent film. In the end, don’t go see this if you are looking for an intellectual film. If you're into seeing some fun, mindless action in a faithful Marvel comic adaptation for a couple hours, then go see the Hulk smash some stuff.
For a more biased take on "The Incredible Hulk", check out the Hulk's review>>>
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