The Incredible Hulk Review
Wednesday, June 18th, 2008 | Movies
Tags: Movies, review, the incredible hulk
When I first watched the teaser of The Incredible Hulk, I set my mind on not to watch this Marvel superhero movie, primarily because I thought it is a complete re-make of the first Hulk movie. What is the fun in that, watching a movie that you already know the storyline, only the actors in it are different? So, I decided to skip and just wait for it to go on DVD. To my surprise, last weekend when The Incredible Hulk went on theaters, numerous positive reviews popped online. After reading them, I learned that it is not a re-make of the old Hulk movie, and furthermore many were impressed by its heart-pumping battle scenes, and I decided to watch it in theater.
I am not a fan, so I was not too critical about Ang Lee’s Hulk. At the time, I thought it was clever and creative, the way Ang Lee tried to make the scenes in the movie to look like a comic book. Then, after watching The Incredible Hulk, maybe I understood why the comic fans prefer this one. Even for me, a comic layman, I think this one is better.
The Incredible Hulk is darker, more explosive and at moments more out of control, for instance the second major battle scene in the movie. I read some complaints about the CG works in this movie, but I thought the CG effects were pretty good. Some of the close-up shots on Hulk looked realistic and convincing. Now, the only major complaint I have is about the weak character development. I thought the director should give Edward Norton more room and time to develop his character. Although the movie is packed with destructive battle scenes, but it feels that the movie rushed into each conflict before the characters were fully developed. Of course, the acting of Edward Norton is always good, but Liv Tyler felt like she was sleepwalking throughout the entire movie.
However, I do like the crossover scenes in this movie. I like how this movie subtly refers the company of another Marvel superhero in the opening sequence, and also the final scene in which it sets up the arrival of Avengers in 2011. I think Marvel has finally learned the power of these crossover scenes, and they really help to build fans’ anticipation.
June 19, 2008
9:28 am on Thursday
I thought the crossovers where great as were the little homages to the TV series, which is where I know the Hulk from. Stan Lee’s cameos keep getting better and better.
June 19, 2008
5:54 pm on Thursday
It was a good movie, but not as great as Iron Man. Here is the link to my review: http://www.sizzlingpopcorn.com/wordpress/2008/06/14/the-incredible-hulk-stomps-into-theaters/
June 23, 2008
9:29 pm on Monday
Very nice review. Thanks for the info. i’m gonna check it out about it more. And the same as yours, I think Im gonna like the crossover scenes.