Directed by: Louis Leterrier

Written by: Zak Penn, Edward Norton (uncredited but we know better)

Based on the classic Marvel character created by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

Starring: Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, William Hurt, Tim Blake Nelson, Ty Burrell, Christina Cabot, Peter Mensah, Lou Ferrigno (voice & cameo)

Distributed by Universal

Film begins screening in the U.K. on Thursday but check your local listings for opening times/dates

Review by Michael Edwards

OK folks, I’ve sat through the full 114 minutes and am now ready to judge this fittingly bulky movie. The good news is, it doesn’t completely suck. The bad news is, it isn’t amazing either. My reviews of these big action movies tend to spark controversy whether it’s from me being too critical or not critical enough, so I’m ready to justify my opinions to the fullest here!

There was a real backlash against Ang Lee’s 2003 HULK, it was widely felt the CGI was lame, the story weak and the action uninspired. I’m pleased to inform you that a lot of that is rectified here: far from the glossily rounded figure of his last incarnation, this computer-generated behemoth bulges with sinewy muscle fibres that look ready to burst. The story doesn’t waste ages on the backstory either, in fact it’s pretty much pictorially covered in the opening credits and occasionally infused into the rest of the movie, which is a nice change. The action sequences are pretty cool too, there’s lots of smashing, heavy artillery and the final battle between the two massive fiends is impressive enough. Cars get smashed, wrecking balls are hurled about and I was even delighted to hear the words “Hulk smash!” ring out at a critical moment, and from the lips of Lou Ferrigno no less!

But that said it really felt like this was a movie salvaging a brand, setting our to undo the damage of a clumsy predecessor rather than whetting our appetites for a new era of the big green fella (who, I feel I should admit, has always been my favourite Marvel character). Roping in some great acting talent was definitely a good idea, but Edward Norton and Liv Tyler are somewhat undernourished with the script in this affair.

Bruce Banner’s vulnerability and fear comes across nicely in the capable wild-eyes of the man who has has a stab at a man fighting the beast inside before, but it’s really not given much space to develop in the few short and painfully formulaic scenes which are clearly just teeing up the action bonanzas. This constant awareness of what’s coming next certainly undermined the pleasure of the action sequences for me, and it made the romance element seem more like a half-hearted hint at a subplot than the driving force behind Banner’s hunt for a cure.

What’s more, whilst William Hurt fitted the character of General Ross PERFECTLY, I felt Tim Roth was a bit off the mark for Russian/English mercenary Emil Blonsky. His performance was restrained and he didn’t convince as a military man whose first love is hands-on combat. He just has too much of that cunning, looking over someone’s shoulder, crafty psycho persona in his characters to work as someone hungering after the brute force that Banner possesses. Tim Blake Nelson is probably most on form as the crazy Dr. Sterns, whose good intentions (a classic Marvel twist suggests) may not lead where he’d hoped.

I’ve also begun to wonder whether there might be a bit of an intrinsic problem with the big screen incarnations of our modern-day Jekyll and Hyde.

Cramming itself into the summer blockbuster slot with all the big budget kit that carries is one thing, but it also brings with it certain other expectations, one of which this particularly character is least capable of providing: humour. The sad story of this unassuming and now constantly nervous scientist and his willfully destructive alter-ego just isn’t geared for laughs. We’re treated to a few good attempts here, including Bruce’s broken Portuguese resulting in him telling someone “You wouldn’t like me when I’m hungry”, but it’s just not quite as easily incorporated as in other Marvel and DC adaptations. What’s more, the seriousness of the tale is always undermined by the fact that the monster is a huge, green monster that just can’t look realistic!

So with that in mind it is fair to say that this is a good effort at a tough character. Watching a passable (as far as a massive green irradiated beast can be) CGI hulk battle a massive military arsenal and a creepy nemesis provided some easy entertainment for a couple of hours. There were enough nods at the history of the franchise, including the necessary presence of Lou Ferrigno, a momentary intrusion of the mournful piano music from the TV series and the hulk’s favourite line. But it just wasn’t a great movie, at its best it was fun and at its worst predictable and formulaic - THE INCREDIBLE HULK is Marvel’s attempt at a safe bet to steady the franchise. I wouldn’t warn anyone off of it, but it isn’t going to be the best movie of the summer by a long shot.

Categories: Edward-Norton, Liv-Tyler, Louis-Leterrier, Reviews, The Incredible Hulk, Tim Blake Nelson, Tim-Roth, William-Hurt