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patentdragonPart 3 of the 2008 Summer Blockbuster Season...
At The Movies... The Incredible Hulk It's annoying that everyone thinks they're so clever when they think back to the ...Hulk TV series, and think they know it all - and when the Hulk... well, "Hulks out", along comes the whining about all the special effects and explosions. Sorry, people, but the "real" Hulk doesn't spend all his time punching through polystyrene walls in green make-up, a fright wig, and a strategically slashed shirt, denting a car bonnet, scaring some gangsters or - shock horror - wrestling a stuffed grizzly bear...
Okay, that's the rant done. Now for the movie...
As this is a reworking of the material, the origin is skimmed over in the titles (guess that must be some of the 70 minutes that was supposedly cut), and that more closely matches the TV series's laboratory origin as opposed to the "official" Gamma Bomb incident. Not a big problem, but then comes a fairly major "huh?", as in "why the hell does a guy wanting to avoid getting scared, angry or otherwise agitated hide out in a Brazilian slum, of all places? Oh, and why does the Russian bad guy have to be played by a British actor? A requirement of the studio, or something...?
That, however, is the sum total of the niggles - almost. The rest of the movie powers along just fine, pausing only intermittently for romance and talky stuff, yet managing to address all that needs to be covered with suitable efficiency. The Hulk effects, and effects in general, do struggle a little in daylight, but at other times, they're generally good - I get the feeling CGI creatures and people, on the whole, just move a tiny bit too fast.
This is better than Ang Lee's Hulk. There, said it. Lee ruined the first movie by disrupting the sense of reality most other superhero movies achieve, and don't get me started on the messing with the origin, which I must report absolutely is important, so shut up critics. There is some history and character juggling (such as the aforementioned bad guy), but nothing like as much as the first movie.
Finally, two things: yes, Tony Stark does appear at the very end, and no, there's isn't anything tacked on at the end of the titles.
The Verdict: Overall, quite satisfactory. Good cast, good performances, a good amount of Smashing, various bits of foreshadowing for future movies (*cough* The Leader *cough*). Also better than Spidey III (and I'll keep doing that until Spidey IV comes out, and is better than III, so :P). 8/10
Coming Soon... Prince Caspian, The Dark Knight, maybe even Wall-E... oh, and Hellboy II.
At The Movies... The Incredible Hulk It's annoying that everyone thinks they're so clever when they think back to the ...Hulk TV series, and think they know it all - and when the Hulk... well, "Hulks out", along comes the whining about all the special effects and explosions. Sorry, people, but the "real" Hulk doesn't spend all his time punching through polystyrene walls in green make-up, a fright wig, and a strategically slashed shirt, denting a car bonnet, scaring some gangsters or - shock horror - wrestling a stuffed grizzly bear...
Okay, that's the rant done. Now for the movie...
As this is a reworking of the material, the origin is skimmed over in the titles (guess that must be some of the 70 minutes that was supposedly cut), and that more closely matches the TV series's laboratory origin as opposed to the "official" Gamma Bomb incident. Not a big problem, but then comes a fairly major "huh?", as in "why the hell does a guy wanting to avoid getting scared, angry or otherwise agitated hide out in a Brazilian slum, of all places? Oh, and why does the Russian bad guy have to be played by a British actor? A requirement of the studio, or something...?
That, however, is the sum total of the niggles - almost. The rest of the movie powers along just fine, pausing only intermittently for romance and talky stuff, yet managing to address all that needs to be covered with suitable efficiency. The Hulk effects, and effects in general, do struggle a little in daylight, but at other times, they're generally good - I get the feeling CGI creatures and people, on the whole, just move a tiny bit too fast.
This is better than Ang Lee's Hulk. There, said it. Lee ruined the first movie by disrupting the sense of reality most other superhero movies achieve, and don't get me started on the messing with the origin, which I must report absolutely is important, so shut up critics. There is some history and character juggling (such as the aforementioned bad guy), but nothing like as much as the first movie.
Finally, two things: yes, Tony Stark does appear at the very end, and no, there's isn't anything tacked on at the end of the titles.
The Verdict: Overall, quite satisfactory. Good cast, good performances, a good amount of Smashing, various bits of foreshadowing for future movies (*cough* The Leader *cough*). Also better than Spidey III (and I'll keep doing that until Spidey IV comes out, and is better than III, so :P). 8/10
Coming Soon... Prince Caspian, The Dark Knight, maybe even Wall-E... oh, and Hellboy II.
