Credible Hulk

So I'm still trying to catch up with all the summer movies I've missed lately and ended up seeing The Incredible Hulk a few days ago. I never saw the 2003 Hulk film, but from general consensus, I didn't miss much. While some may think that it was too soon to do a Hulk reboot, I can understand why it was done. I would compare it to the Ocean's Eleven franchise. Ocean's Twelve was a critical disaster and those involved felt it was necessary to make another to appease fans. Given how beloved the Hulk is in the comic book universe, I think Marvel had a similar mentality in wanting to do another film. And while I'll assume this was better than the 2003 film, this latest incarnation of the big green guy still fails to deliver a home run that will be remembered in the annals of great comic book movies.

This time around Edward Norton plays Bruce Banner. Through an opening credits montage we see the origins of the Hulk, and then start the film with Banner hiding in Brazil. The first half of the film focuses on Banner always being on the run trying to elude the military led by General Thaddeaus 'Thunderbolt' Ross (William Hurt). While this is a familiar storyline for the Hulk, I really felt that this film tried to focus on it now as a result of the popularity of the Bourne films. This film tried to have the same vibe of 'tortured guy on the run from the government', but it lacked the intelligence or intensity that those films have.

Edward Norton is certainly a talented actor and does fine here, but is not helped by his surrounding cast. Both Hurt and Tim Roth (playing soldier Emil Blonsky, who eventually becomes the Hulk's archnemesis, the Abomination) underplay their roles. Neither guy gets an opportunity to let loose and exhibit any traits that would make the audience truly hate them. Liv Tyler as Banner's girlfriend, Betty Ross, is miscast here. There was no sense of chemistry between her and Norton. And her milquetoast performance never allows to audience to sympathize with her as she watches her boyfriend going through this unfortunate metamorphisis.

The second half of the film does provide plenty HULK SMASH moments, but the scenes have a sense of destruction for destruction's sake rather than being meaningful. I couldn't help but think while watching Hulk and the Abomination go at it in the streets of New York that people should lay off of Hancock for his destructive ways given all of the damage that this superhero imposes on a city.

Without getting emotionally invested in the characters, I found myself picking up on small things that annoyed me; things I probably would have ignored in a better film. For instance, there is a lengthy action sequence with the military attacking the Hulk on a college campus, yet there doesn't appear to be a soul around. If these events took place at my college, there would be mass hysteria, plus a strong likelihood of many students getting injured amongst all the carnage that is taking place. On the flip side, later on in the film we see the Abomination destroying everything in his sight on a New York street. Minutes later, the Hulk finally arrives to do battle, yet there are still a large number of citizens hanging out in the streets. Wouldn't most of these people have already fled in fear at this point? While these are clearly minor things in the scope of the film's quality, they stuck out at me nonetheless and caused the film to lose its realism (as real as a film about a giant green man could get, that is).

What's interesting about The Incredible Hulk is how workmanlike it is. The film isn't bad, just completely ordinary. There is no real sense of fun found in the film. For a film that is about a larger than life character, the film is anything but. Everybody goes about making this film as if it is just another job. At no point do you get the sense from anyone involved with the film that they have a passion for this character and they want to share it with the millions of fans who love this character.

After two underwhelming efforts, I have a feeling that the Hulk is Marvel's equivalent to Superman when it comes to film. While both are wildly popular characters, neither are engaging enough to make entertaining films about them. They are both simply too strong to make them relatable. I think if either one makes a return to the big screen, it should be as part of an ensemble; a JLA movie for Superman and the Avengers for Hulk.

Speaking of the Avengers, this movie does provide a few more hints that such a film could soon become a reality. Shame on the marketing department for spoiling the Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark cameo in this film, but kudos to the filmmakers for adding that scene in. It's one of the few moments in the film where you actually feel some electricity and excitement. Part of that was just the natural charisma of Downey, but it was also due to the fact that in that scene you got a sense of something significant will happen beyond the mindless destruction offered by the Hulk alone.

Like so many other films this summer, this one seems to have its heart in the right place, it just doesn't quite put everything together to make it a sucess. If this film was done merely to help establish the Avengers franchise, I can live with that. But if there are any legitimate plans to continue making Hulk movies, they better go back to the drawing board again because some fixes still need to be made. If you haven't seen this already, I'd suggest just waiting for DVD. It's not like there aren't any other comic book movies out there to see if you want to watch one. Save your money and go see The Dark Knight next week. I have a feeling that one might be a bit better. Grade: B-