My Take: Flawed but modestly entertaining, and compared to the previous HULK opus, a little better.
Among the others, I was disappointed by Ang Lee's HULK. I have no problem with a more character-driven superhero/comic book movie, but in the expense of deepening the character's persona, it lacks the good ol' comic book action fans have grown to love. Louis Leterrier's reboot/semi-sequel THE INCREDIBLE HULK makes up for that. It's still a flawed experience, with some scenes that still pad out the better bits, but in terms of pure big-screen comic book experience, it's an improvement, albeit not a vast one.
In case you actually liked the Ang Lee version, Leterrier and writers Zak Penn (and Edward Norton, who made an uncredited re-write on his character) doesn't really forget the events of the first movie, but still makes sure everyone else keeps up with a new and different story. Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) is now in hiding, still in search for a cure for his "sickness" with the help of an unseen contributor. Meanwhile, Gen. Ross (William Hurt) is still in search of our monster-transforming fugitive, this time with the help of a bloodthirsty assassin (Tim Roth) who is proves his more than a match for our hero (and we learn later, more than a match for the Hulk as well).
Unlike Lee's artsy version, Leterrier isn't afraid to push through with the action for most of the time, even if his direction of the dramatic scenes are just as slow-moving as Lee's. The still-developing romance between Buce and Betty Ross (Liv Tyler) just doesn't spark. Norton, a fine actor who does a good job in deepening the character, just lacks the charisma of even a doomed comic book character, while Tyler just doesn't add anything to the role. Hurt and Roth actually add some actual depth to the proceedings. While it won't compare to the Iron Men and Dark Knights of the same year, Leterrier does deliver the "Hulk Smash" fans expect, if very little else.
Rating: *** out of 5.
Among the others, I was disappointed by Ang Lee's HULK. I have no problem with a more character-driven superhero/comic book movie, but in the expense of deepening the character's persona, it lacks the good ol' comic book action fans have grown to love. Louis Leterrier's reboot/semi-sequel THE INCREDIBLE HULK makes up for that. It's still a flawed experience, with some scenes that still pad out the better bits, but in terms of pure big-screen comic book experience, it's an improvement, albeit not a vast one.
In case you actually liked the Ang Lee version, Leterrier and writers Zak Penn (and Edward Norton, who made an uncredited re-write on his character) doesn't really forget the events of the first movie, but still makes sure everyone else keeps up with a new and different story. Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) is now in hiding, still in search for a cure for his "sickness" with the help of an unseen contributor. Meanwhile, Gen. Ross (William Hurt) is still in search of our monster-transforming fugitive, this time with the help of a bloodthirsty assassin (Tim Roth) who is proves his more than a match for our hero (and we learn later, more than a match for the Hulk as well).
Unlike Lee's artsy version, Leterrier isn't afraid to push through with the action for most of the time, even if his direction of the dramatic scenes are just as slow-moving as Lee's. The still-developing romance between Buce and Betty Ross (Liv Tyler) just doesn't spark. Norton, a fine actor who does a good job in deepening the character, just lacks the charisma of even a doomed comic book character, while Tyler just doesn't add anything to the role. Hurt and Roth actually add some actual depth to the proceedings. While it won't compare to the Iron Men and Dark Knights of the same year, Leterrier does deliver the "Hulk Smash" fans expect, if very little else.
Rating: *** out of 5.