06/12/2008
Movies:: 14 comments: by Stefan Halley
The Hulk is back and better than ever. Forget what you’ve seen before. This is what you’ve been waiting for.
For any fan of the classic Marvel Comics era (Lee, Kirby, Ditko), it is hard get behind an adaptations into TV or film, for one main reason; most of the Marvel based films (Ghost Rider, Daredevil, Elektra, The Fantastic Four) have come off as being as deep as a mud puddle and half as clear. While the transition of details from the comic book to film format is difficult, it’s the characters themselves that put the meat in the sandwich, and who are absolutely necessary to pull off a decent rendition on film. By grabbing a hold of the reins with the recent release of Iron Man, and now The Incredible Hulk, Marvel has started to re-establish itself and bring all the elements to the screen that made the classic comics so great.
In just two films, Marvel is already starting to establish a solid framework from which they can translate the ‘Marvel Universe’ to the big screen. While some may see the cameos (Tony Stark makes an appearance here), and name dropping as a way to please the drooling fan boys, it’s more than that. Both films can be viewed as standalone stories; you get an overall feeling that they are interconnected to a larger plot down the road (Cough..The Avengers.. Cough). If The Incredible Hulk is any indication of what is to come, then Marvel is successfully showing that they can work together with the studios to pave the way for more great films.
Some might piss and moan about the new film being a reboot, but it differs from the previous Ang Lee take, and stands on its own. While Ang Lee’s film led up to the gamma blast, and its aftermath, Leterrier’s film starts off with the accident, and hits the ground running. It’s a fresh start, and doesn’t waste any time. The film picks up at the end of the previous one with Banner in South America, and on the lam from the authorities. Once the ‘potential’ of Banner’s condition is realized, the military led by, ‘Thunderbolt’ Ross (William Hurt,) sets their sights on the renegade scientist. Also joining the pursuit is Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth), a wild card of a soldier who winds up in an alliance with Ross to bring down the mean green machine. The lengths that Blonsky goes to detain Banner wind up bringing him closer to the Hulk than anyone expected. While the plot may seem minimal, it’s the interaction between Hurt, Roth, and Ed Norton that really carries it along. If it wasn’t for the performances of such a strong cast, the film’s faults would have been much more apparent.
The Incredible Hulk shares several traits with the past incarnations of the Green Behemoth. Ed Norton plays Bruce Banner in the same way that Bill Bixby did on the TV series. Banner is seen as a man caught in the midst of a volatile situation, only looking for a solution to his conflict. While it may be hard for some to forget Norton’s performance in American History X, he portrays Banner in a balanced manner between conflict, and the love for Betty Ross (Liv Tyler). The relationship between Banner and Ross is similar in scope to Ang Lee’s take on The Hulk, but it is not the main gist of the film. While the romantic aspect works to expose Banner’s humanity, the rest of the film serves to blatantly riff on the savagery.
The main lynchpin of the film is unquestionably Tim Roth, in his manic role as Emil Blonsky, super soldier. Roth plays Blonsky like a rabid wolfhound, continuously pursuing his prey, and presents himself as a solid adversary to the Hulk as he evolves into Abomination. He’s first seen by the military as a key component to their project, but he soon becomes as much of a loose cannon as the Hulk, and then the fun begins. Once the Hulk and Blonsky come to blows, the whole thing begins to revert back to some of the classic scenes drawn by Jack Kirby, in the days of the original ‘Grey’ Hulk. We’re talking mass destruction on a epic scale, and hordes of collateral damage. Where Ang Lee’s Hulk hinted at the possibilities of full scaled chaos, this film delivers it with full blunt force trauma. For a film driven mainly on CGI, it’s surprisingly barely noticeable. Everything literally flies by at such a breakneck pace that you really don’t have time to notice the digital flaws.
In the end director Leterrier, screenwriters Zak Penn and Edward Norton should be commended for putting together such a balanced film. There’s more than enough ass kicking action to satisfy the summer film fan, as well as substantial depth in plot and character to please the fan boys. While some may not put The Incredible Hulk on par with Iron Man, I say that they both stand as impressive representations of what made Marvel great to begin with. Hopefully, they will also stand as the first two in a long line of great Marvel films to come. Consider me converted.
Special thanks to Tim Merrill. While Tim isn’t a regular correspondant to Pop Syndicate, he was gracious enough to provide this review of The Incredible Hulk. Thanks Tim.
Location: Malmo, Sweden
Occupation: Editor-in-Chief
Bio: Stefan has been writing reviews for seven years and started Pop Syndicate out of need to voice his mis-guided opinion.
Posts: 406
Posted by Jack Spyder on 06/07/2008, 12:41 AM
Amazing!!!! I mean, INCREDIBLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’m avoiding spoilers right now ‘cuz I wanna go with fresh eyes to the movie, but it feels very good to know that the reviews are all positive ‘til now.
Jesus, I REALLY wanna see this movie. Like… NOW.
HULK SMASH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ...savvy?
Posted by Stefan Halley on 06/07/2008, 09:20 AM
I can’t wait to see this. This review gives me hope it will be good.
Posted by Peter Butler on 06/08/2008, 06:50 AM
this is so vague. they obviously haven’t seen the film, it reads like a horoscope.
Posted by Tim Merrill on 06/08/2008, 01:29 PM
Peter:
Would you have rather I gushed over every single scene, and went into everything in detail ala Aint It Cool? For most of the reviews before the new Indiana Jones film, people were continually dropping mention of scenes one after another. Why bother to go see it?
When Stephan asked me to write this review, I intentionally tried to keep it spoiler free. There are more than a few nods in the film to longtime fans of Marvel comics, and I enjoyed watching them spring up without any anticipation. Do you really need a spoiler?
He turns Green, and smashes up all kinds of shit.
While you might not have appreciated the review, I can accept that, but remember that a lot of people enjoy going into films fresh, without any type of expectations or pre-assumptions. That’s where i was coming from, for better or for worse.
Thanks for reading regardless - Tim Merrill
Posted by Ron Guillet on 06/08/2008, 02:45 PM
Well written review, Tim. You give me high hopes that this movie will indeed kick-ass. While I’m interested in the story, the action is making me the most excited. With talks of the final fight being 15-minutes long, how can you not get excited like a Marvel fan-boy? Anyway, great work!
Posted by Mark on 06/08/2008, 07:02 PM
Excellent review, Tim. I’ve been following this film religiously since Marvel announced they were making it two years ago, and this is one of the best reviews I’ve read. I turn 30 on the 19th, but I’m dragging along eight friends to watch the movie this Friday as part of b-day festivities. Oh, you didn’t owe that guy an apology, but classy of you to give him one anyway.
Posted by Mark on 06/08/2008, 07:07 PM
p.s. Why were you not “converted” previously?
Posted by Tim Merrill on 06/08/2008, 09:29 PM
Mark:
Thanks for the compliments. Like I tried to say with the review, I think it’s always been a struggle for Hollywood to cross over from comic books, mainly due to to two things.
One, is that fact that you can’t compress an entire comic book series into a 2 hour film, so why try. If it’s broken up over a series of films, it’s fine, but to try to compress origins,villians,romantic interests,back story, all into one film is pushing it. Frank Miller was wise in just focusing on 3 stories, but even then it felt compressed, and rushed.
The second problem is the nature of the beast. It’s no secret that Hollywood pumps out films anymore strictly for the ADD set,in small bite sized, mtv video style morsels. Anything too, ‘cerebral’ is strictly frowned upon, and big dumb fun is the order of the day.
With Iron Man, The Hulk, and with Nolan’s, ‘Dark Knight Returns’, we’re finally seeing a turning of the tide, where people are FINALLY demanding more, and surprisingly Hollywood is delivering. Well, alot of it has to do with the fact that Marvel finally went in house, and people like Jon Favrau understand what it is to make a balanced film based on a comic book. Even with Louis Leterrier, I was expecting a more mindless film with the Hulk, based on his previous pedigree with The Transporter I-II, and Danny the Dog, but again he seems to be someone who knows how to put together a slamming film with some actual substance to it.
Sorry for the rant, but I hope this explains why I was ‘converted’
Posted by Derek on 06/09/2008, 11:21 AM
Great review! Wasnt a fan of the 2003 version, but sounds like this new version is finally doing a little justice to the character.
Posted by Mark on 06/09/2008, 05:08 PM
Tim,
Yes, it does - thank you.
Incidentally, I just finished reading Emanuel Levy’s review of the movie and it’s easily the harshest I’ve seen. He seems to be all over the place with his analysis, and supposedly his grade for the movie has fluctuated between B- and C+ over the last 24 hours (presently at C+). If you’re able, I would be interested to hear your thoughts on two key areas of difference between your reviews: (1) You say the film is “balanced,” while he says it’s “sharply uneven and structurally messy” and (2) he says Tim Roth gives the “weakest performances” of the film, while you contend Roth is its “main lynchpin.”
From everything I’ve read, your review is easily more aligned with that of the consensus or mainstream, so I’m well more inclined to believe you than Mr. Levy. [And, well, Levy plagiarizes much of the movie synopsis from the official movie site, and for me, that’s a major no-no.]
His review: http://emanuellevy.com/article.php?articleID=10096
One last tidbit, you mention in your last response that “‘cerebral’ is strictly frowned upon.” Would you then say The Incredible Hulk is a cerebral film (aka Batman Begins)? I loved the latter, but for all of my wishes to the contrary, I’m having a hard time shaking the perception of the former as “a more mindless film” like you thought it would be or as as “an actioner,” as Levy claims. What can you say to convince me that this is truly a cerebral film?
Posted by Fendrri on 06/09/2008, 10:53 PM
I actually enjoyed the 2003 hulk. To me, it felt deep and dark. The character building was awesome. The way Banner struggled since he was a kid, and the climax vs his father also made a nice plot, well to me anyway… Bana and Connely were also awesome. I don’t really understand why people hate the movie so much. Nevertheless, can’t wait to see the new one. Thanks for the review!
Posted by Damian on 06/10/2008, 01:44 AM
Hey Tim,
Peter is either a douchebag or a troll, and seeing as he didn’t
have the balls to respond to your response, I’m going with troll.
I think Marvel is on it’s way to take the crown from DC’s Batman,
but it’s going to be tough. If Hulk is even close to Iron Man, this
one will be a home run. And when these dovetail into The Avengers…
holy shit, if Marvel does it right, this will be Star Wars for the comic
book geeks. Here’s hoping!
Great review, btb.
Peter- Move out if your Mom’s basement before you turn 40 this year,
and get a real job while your at it. ‘Obviously didn’t see the film…’
HOW THE smurfin WOULD YOU KNOW? Sweeping, smurfin, ignorant
statements are the ass end of the online cosmos, and you are the
smurfin Mayor.
Posted by Mark on 06/10/2008, 06:16 AM
Fendrii, I agree with you on the 2003 Hulk. My affinities for the Hulk aside, it’s one of the few movies that I can sit down and watch, over and over, just for the character development. There’s so much substance, just maybe a little bit too much.
Damian, your comment “If Hulk is even close to Iron Man, this
one will be a home run” seems to make it a done deal. You’re not concerned about the negative stigma associated with Ang’s Hulk? What would constitute a home run? To me, it’s restoring credibility to the franchise and getting a sequel. No way do I expect people to come out like they did for Iron Man, but my feeling is those who do see this movie will love it and it’ll have a greater legs than the first Hulk did.
Posted by Stefan Halley on 06/13/2008, 10:33 AM
I love the fact that they incorporated some of the Bruce Jones run into the Hulk movie. It’s great they are catering to the nerd crowd.