The Hulk Movie

If you’re planning to see the Hulk, and you’re expecting nothing but high action, cool computer-generated effects, and non-stop superhero hi-jinks, then please… stay home. Watch wrestling. Hell, watch Jackass. Don’t support the superhero stereotype by attending this movie.

Now, if you’re planning to see the Hulk to see a smart, sophisticated, character-developing movie… and it happens to be about a classic superhero… go see this movie.

(By the way, this movie is actually about Bruce Banner, not the Hulk).

This movie is a great example of how a superhero comic can be made. It’s a serious movie that uses the superhero as a metaphor for something that is plain and human. In this case, it happens to be about anger and repressed rage.

Ang Lee does an incredible job taking the time to build his characters from the very beginning (the opposite of what was done with Daredevil, but that’s another review). He gives them a personality, places them in an environment, and makes sure the audience knows who these people are and why they are before he moves on with the main plot element, which is the manifestation of Bruce Banner’s repressed rage as the Hulk, due to a traumatic experience he had when he was a small child (well, that and Gamma rays helped). Without this initial character development, the appearance of the Hulk and its reason for being would be nothing at all except for big, cool-looking, and ready to smash all the props the crew could get its hands on.

Thankfully, this isn’t the case, and I appreciate that. Lee brings a level of art not commonly seen when translating superheroes to film. The action is still there, the thrill of seeing your favorite hero is still there, but more importantly there is an emphasis on the story and not the superhero itself. Banner is the main subject of study while the Hulk becomes a plot element.

The telling of the story is very interesting as well, As Lee brings wonderful visuals to the film. Lee uses creative split-screens to mimic comic book panels, and also plays with their layout so that we’re not always stuck looking at a grid. Backgrounds serve as separate panels as well, showing a different aspect of the story than the foreground is showing. Not only does this give the movie a comic book look, but it’s also playing with one of the unique things about comic books: aspect-to-aspect visual storytelling within the same page (or in this case the same screen). Lee plays with composition within a larger composition in a way that film has not seen, and this creativity will probably go unnoticed for its innovation but will certainly be noticed for its “cool” factor.

The music is rich as well. Danny Elfman, of course, does a great job as always. There are large sweeps of music throughout scenes (the beginning scene is one to take note of) and always chimes in at the right moment. It is absent at the right moment, as well.

The acting is top-notch. If Eric Bana doesn’t get a ton of dramatic movie offers, then Hollywood will have just pegged this movie as another comic book movie and the comic art form will retain its bad rep.

I will take a moment to let everyone know that the commercials on TV for this movie do not do the CG Hulk any justice at all. The CG Hulk in the commercials make the character look rather out of place and unnatural. Watch the film in the theater, however, and the CG Hulk fits wonderfully in his environment. He’s well animated, and becomes very much alive during his screen time.

There was only one problem with the movie that I can vividly remember, and that was the final battle scene. I’m not going to spoil the movie for anyone (like some publications and/or shows), but I will say that I’m wasn’t sure if the end of the battle was supposed to make rational sense or if it was supposed to be abstract. Visually, it was stunning and certainly had me at the edge of my seat. But after the battle was over, I didn’t know if I should sit back or stay at the edge. Before I knew it, the epilogue was upon us and the movie was about to end.

So what if the Hulk doesn’t show up until 30 minutes into the movie. The movie isn’t about him, it’s about Bruce Banner as the Hulk. It’s the story of Banner that should interest you, not the fact that a green goliath can smash anything in his way.

Phillip Ginn

7-2-2003