The Hulk Review
by Jon Popick (jpopick AT sick-boy DOT com)June 26th, 2003
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Its dazzling opening credits might lead you to believe you're in for something truly life-altering, but by the time Hulk's other 135 minutes wind down, you'll probably be wondering what all the buzz was about. While Ang Lee's adaptation of the 1962 Stan Lee and Jack Kirby comic book is certainly entertaining, it isn't much more than a summer popcorn flick with ambitious goals that go generally unachieved. In terms of this year's comic book-turned-feature film offerings, Hulk trails X2: X-Men United, though it is on par with Daredevil.
Lee (Ang, not Stan) and screenwriter James Schamus (of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon fame) do bring one interesting addition to the table - insanely enjoyable screen wipes, zooms and scene transitions that make Hulk seem like a giant, moving comic book with interactive panels. Beyond that, there isn't really anything novel offered here that couldn't be found in any other overhyped summer blockbuster. You get hit-and-miss CG effects (Hulk can't come close to touching Smeagol), flat acting and a super-bloated running time that threatens to make even the most patient viewers throw up their hands.
In case you napped through the '60s and '70s, Hulk (who doesn't start kicking ass until well over an hour into the film) is a giant, indestructible mutant who is about as delicate as Operation Desert Shield. But he's so much more than just a big green stomping machine - he's also scientist Bruce Banner (Eric Bana, Black Hawk Down), who is pumped full of enough stifled rage and gamma radiation to turn any man from a mild-mannered Jekyll to a tow-headed Hyde.
The film is fairly faithful to Hulk's origin (he isn't gray, and his transformation isn't sparked by nightfall), while the biggest update storywise throws Banner's father (Nick Nolte, The Good Thief) and a tale of repressed youthful memories into the mix. Banner still has love interest Betty Ross (Jennifer Connelly, A Beautiful Mind) and still finds himself pursued by General "Thunderbolt" Ross (Sam Elliott, We Were Soldiers) and a guy named Talbot (Josh Lucas, Sweet Home Alabama).
He claims you wouldn't like him when he's angry, but when he isn't, Bana's Banner is pretty boring. Actually, so is just about everyone but Nolte, whose character embodies both the senior Banner and Hulk nemesis Absorbing Man. On the plus side, Bana is still relatively unknown in the US, which makes him a far less distracting lead than, say, B-Lo in Daredevil. Lee (Stan) and Lou Ferrigno both provide cameos, but my hopes for a glimpse of Bill Bixby went unsatiated.
On the tech side, the CG Hulk is sporadically amazing and laughable, with a slight edge going to the former. Danny Elfman contributes his steadiest score since Spider-Man, and mad props must go out to editor Tim Squyres for really nailing that whole comic book look and feel.
2:18 - PG-13 for sci-fi action violence, some disturbing images and brief partial nudity
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