The Hulk Review
by Shannon Patrick Sullivan (shannon AT morgan DOT ucs DOT mun DOT ca)June 30th, 2003
THE HULK (2003) / ***
Directed by Ang Lee. Screenplay by John Turman, Michael France and James Schamus, from a story by Schamus, based on the comic book characters created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Starring Eric Bana, Jennifer Connolly, Sam Elliott. Running time: 138 minutes. Rated PG for frightening scenes by the MFCB. Reviewed on June 29th, 2003.
By SHANNON PATRICK SULLIVAN
Synopsis: A laboratory accident causes geneticist Bruce Banner (Bana) to transform into a rampaging green-skinned monster: the Hulk. The military's General Ross (Elliott) is summoned to deal with the problem, while his daughter Betty (Connelly) -- Bruce's partner -- is caught in the middle. What are the plans of the smarmy Major Talbot (Josh Lucas)? And how is Bruce's father (Nick Nolte) involved in the metamorphosis?
Review: Eschewing the obvious, violence-heavy approach, Ang Lee's "The Hulk" almost tilts the scales too far in the other direction. Much is made of the psychological aspects of Bruce Banner's transformation -- and alas much of this is conveyed in dialogue rather than depicted on-screen. The result is an oddly-paced film which boasts a lot of potential, but doesn't quite deliver. Certainly, the decision to show the many shades of Bruce/Hulk -- inspired by the latter-day treatment of the character in the comics -- is a wise one, making "The Hulk" more than just an expensive "Jekyll & Hyde". But ultimately, we still want to see the Hulk do what he does best -- smash things -- and there is surprisingly little of this in the movie. Coming off particularly poorly is the climactic encounter between the Hulk and the villain of the piece, which is so abbreviated as to be almost worthless. Still, Lee and his team are to be complimented for some excellent computer animation -- the Hulk himself is portrayed as well as could be hoped, appearing neither too cartoonish nor too mundane. In comparison, the cast cannot hope to measure up -- they're variously too bland (Connelly) or too caricatured (Lucas). And I was disappointed that, like the TV series, the Hulk barely got any dialogue; as any reader of the comics knows, the big green giant gets all the best lines.
Copyright © 2003 Shannon Patrick Sullivan.
Archived at The Popcorn Gallery,
http://www.physics.mun.ca/~sps/movies.html
Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.
