The Incredible Hulk Movie Review

    Like any typical testosterone driven human being, I grew up admiring larger than life heroes. I can’t really say that I collected but I surely bought countless trading cards and comic books about super heroes in my life. Not to mention the TV series I’ve watched about them. I never get tired of them. I’ve always thought they are cool and that won’t change any time soon. So you can only imagine my anticipation every time I go and watch their movies nowadays especially that these movies now are more loyal to the source material and the technological advancement in film has made the industry capable of bringing these stories and characters to life. So as I had my walk towards a local mall where The Incredible Hulk was being screened last night, that is how exactly I would describe my feeling; anticipation. And now that you know that I am a true Incredible Hulk fan, you might wonder if I was pleased or was I let down? Let me just tell you in detail:

    If there were two things I was sure all along that were done right with this movie, they were the choice of rebooting the franchise and the actors who played the characters this time around. The reboot, I believe, was necessary and I don’t think I have to explain my case. The 2003 film Hulk was just a disaster and its not the good kind of disaster. Ang Lee’s vision of how the Hulk’s story should be told was just off and its really embarrassing for the green giant to be mistaken for Shrek. With this new interpretation of Hulk, I believe Lee’s mistakes were undone and a big part of it were the new actors in the story. Edward Norton was just perfect for the role of Bruce Banner. I believe my friend Jimmy put it perfectly when he said “When I was watching Ed Norton, I was actually seeing the Bruce Banner that was in the comics.” Norton projected a troubled weakling of a man who’s on the run but all through out the movie, you can always see in his eyes the pent-up anger thats struggling to break out. And that, my friends, is exactly how Bruce Banner should be. Now I couldn’t really say that Liv Tyler’s performance as Betty Ross deserves an award but she did deliver a very admirable, sweet character which excellently counters the rage that disturbs Banner. Of course, our hero wouldn’t be complete without his villians and William Hurt and Tim Roth did fantastic performances as General Ross and Emil Blonsky respectively. Having the role performed by a well respected veteran actor is just what General “Thunderbolt” Ross truly deserves. With his “I-don’t-giva-sh#t”, in-your-face attitude, Emil Blonsky is such a cool villian. With the existence of an entity such as the Hulk, Blonsky is driven to become the perfect fighting machine so he could beat the green giant up. And that perfectly builds up the anticipation for their showdown when Blonsky finally transforms into the Abomination. The facial expressions that Tim Roth gives as Blonsky is enough to make the character a complete badass. 

    Now, lets talk about a very sensitive subject about the movie which is the Computer Generated Imagery (CGI). One thing is for sure: the CGI in this reboot is defenitely a lot better than in the 2003 Hulk Film. This Hulk is far from Shrek. Although I will admit that the Computer Generated Hulkisn’t that convincing when put in a real environment and beside some real people. But what we have to keep in mind is that texture isn’t the only important factor in CGI. Its also very important that the animation (movements) of the characters be done right and The Incredible Hulk has done just that. The fight sequences shows intensity and aggression which what the Hulk is all about. The fight choreography was fierce and cinematography of the action sequences was able to capture every impact perfectly clear. The framing of the fight scenes was great as you will always know what exactly is going on in the screen unlike the overly chaotic camera movements seen in the recent Transformers film.

    So I would say that I was actuallly pleased with the film. I recommend it to everyone I know but I am sure that the true fans of the Incredible Hulk will be the ones who will really enjoy this movie. Personally, I believe this comic book adaptation has done more than enough to be deserving of being called Incredible. Watch out for some cool cameos and hints of how the future Marvel films will go. Enjoy and remember that… HULK SMASH!!!

4 out 5 stars!