[Review] The Hulk

[LoneWolf23]

Well, I enjoyed the movie, and I think those who didn't just can't appreciate a good movie when they see one. I won't analyze everything, but here are the points I enjoyed:

-Bruce Banner: I know some folks say Eric Bana's acting was wooden, but I remind you that the point of the character was that he's supressing most of his emotions. But when he started showing anger, I could swear the Hulk was gonna pop up any second...

-The Hulk: ...This just worked for me. The Hulk had everything... Power, Size, Realism, Humanity... This was THE HULK.

-General Ross: This is the quintessential General T-Bolt Ross. He's got everything, the cool-headed sense of duty, the stubborness, the quiet love for his daughter, the sense of professionalism, and even more compassion then he usually showed in the comics.

...And if that wasn't good enough, the guy was a competant and intelligent military commander, too.

I could go on, but those were my favorite elements. As for the complaints I've seen regarding the "GI Joe Syndrome"... You guys do realise that in real-life, vehicules don't automatically burst into flames when they crash, right? The Helicopter crashes were realistic, and I can believe that the tank crew that got tossed survived, albeit with some serious injuries.

...I've wasted enough time on this rant. The point is that The Hulk rocked and was a great movire, and nobody can tell me otherwise.

 

[Mark Chance]

If you re-read my original post (first review), I am mostly annoyed by the results of trying to keep the tragedy of his early childhood a secret from the audience, NOT annoyed by the fact I couldn't figure it out before it was revealed in Act 3.

I obviously missed that distinction. Maybe I'm obtuse today? Of course, I'm often reminded of one of the basic rules of communication: If the audience doesn't understand, it's not the audience's fault.

My criticism is that they continue to have these scenes where other characters talk to Bruce and don't say what that tragedy is. Its annoyingly forced.

Quite forced, especially given the very shoddy evidence for the whole "recovered memory" schtick in the real world.

 

[zug_zug]

Ok my opinion-possible spoilers I guess follow:




I liked the movie. It was by no means a "romp" Ive always liked the work of Ang Lee, and this is definetly an Ang Lee movie. It is slow, paced, even ponderously so in parts, as the main 2 characters(Bruce and Betty) are developed and interact. I think his direction and the use of the paneled screen worked well.

My complaints are that the main chracters about we are to care so much about, come across soooo low key. I think all the actors did a good job, but it was kind of hard to car about Bruce Banner since he was so distant. I guess that was a theme of the story, but unlike the emotional distance felt by the characters of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon I felt no tension or really empathy for them.

Another peeve would be with how literally dark many of the action scences were. Several of the sequences occured at night and on the screen seemed hard to follow.

Finally while the father/son plotline was the main thrust of the film (along with the Ross's father/daughter dynamic) I felt the resolution was a bit off. Nick Noltes absorbing man transformation and final battle felt tacked on and just served to prolong the movie to me.

As for the positive- the CGI effects were well done. The Hulk seemed a believable character. His movements were great, he stumbled, fell and was subject to the rules of the physics as he ran and leaped--just great. It was a hoot to see the Hulk rmapaging around the desert being chased by the Army. And the fight scenes were outstanding. Hulk truly acted as a creature of rage, fighting quite viciously. Oddly enough as pointed out on these boards, he seemed unable to kill any humans and it even seemed at one point he save damage to the Golden Gate Bridge.

So for me it would be a 2 and half out of 4. Id recommend it, cause its a interesting take on comic book mythos. And the CGI scenes are worth it. Just dont expect Spiderman-its more akin to Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

 

[Psychotic Dreamer]

I brought my sister with me to see the movie. She is not a fan of comic books at all and has never read an issue of the Hulk. However she totally enjoyed the movie and said it was excellent.

I as a Hulk fan also enjoyed the movie greatly. Yes they changed a lot of the story, but that is quite fine with me. The heart was still there. Bruce sacrificing himself to save someone else.

I felt the rage of the Hulk and I was sympathetic towards him. He was truely a monster that just wished to be left alone. Which was a common theme in the comics for many years. If the Army had just left him alone he would have been relativly fine, but also a common theme in the comics is the militaries obession with containint/using/destroying the Hulk.

I liked the fact that the Hulk did not seek to kill people. It was fairly true to source material. While the Hulk is a raging monster his goal has never been to harm people. It happened, alot, but usually it was not the direct result of the Hulk.

I will probably see it in the theater once more and will indeed pick it up on DVD.

 

[LoneWolf23]

I liked the fact that the Hulk did not seek to kill people. It was fairly true to source material. While the Hulk is a raging monster his goal has never been to harm people. It happened, alot, but usually it was not the direct result of the Hulk.

Agreed. In fact, during the scene with the Golden Gate Bridge, the Hulk actually jumped onto the plane to push it out of the bridge's path, saving the pilot's life...

 

[Lord Zardoz]

Some more thoughts

I think that the Hulk movie has more in common with the Daredevil movie then the Spiderman or X-men movies. It's plotline is actually alot more somber and serious then Spiderman and X-men. And unlike Daredevil, there is no fat layer friend for comedy dialog. Bruce Banner has no over riding motive to fight bad guys like Peter Parker, Xavier, or Matt Murdock. So your not getting a story of Bruce Banner vs those he opposes.

Your getting the story of Bruce Banner having to deal with people who want something from him and he is not in control of what is going on.

The sequences where the Hulk is rampaging are excellent, and on par with any other action sequence from any of the other Marvel comic movies. The story as written, does not have the same broad appeal that X-men or Spiderman does though. So your going to see alot of division between people who thought it was a great movie, and people who thought it sucked.

END COMMUNICATION

 

[DanMcS]

I liked the fact that the Hulk did not seek to kill people. It was fairly true to source material. While the Hulk is a raging monster his goal has never been to harm people. It happened, alot, but usually it was not the direct result of the Hulk.

See, the only comic I've read with the Hulk in it was the Ultimates, where the Hulk was more like a psychopathic cannibal. He killed everyone he could get his hands on. So I was rather surprised that he was so comparatively nice in this movie, which I guess makes sense, since he's the tragic hero of this one, where in the comic I read he's the tragic villain.

 

[Psychotic Dreamer]

See, the only comic I've read with the Hulk in it was the Ultimates, where the Hulk was more like a psychopathic cannibal. He killed everyone he could get his hands on. So I was rather surprised that he was so comparatively nice in this movie, which I guess makes sense, since he's the tragic hero of this one, where in the comic I read he's the tragic villain.

Well the entire Ultimate line of marvel comics are much darker twists on normal heroes. While in the normal marvel comics the Hulk is a raging monster he has never been quite as bad as he was in the Ultimates. Two very different beasts.

 

[bolen]

why did they let Nolte talk to banner at the end of the movie?

What was he attempting to do by absorbing the HULK (Gain Power)

 

[Kai Lord]

why did they let Nolte talk to banner at the end of the movie?

They honored Nolte's condition of surrender. Why they let the conversation continue when Nolte was clearly trying to agitate Bruce is anyone's guess.

What was he attempting to do by absorbing the HULK (Gain Power)

Nolte stated that his own powers were unstable as opposed to the Hulk's.