You could call this film the thinking man’s comic book movie. I personally didn’t find it as emotionally engaging as SPIDER-MAN, but it’s another great installment in the comic-turned-movie genre. Director Ang Lee (CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON) takes a traditional parent and offspring conflict and wraps it into a classic monster movie like FRANKENSTEIN.
Bruce Banner (Eric Bana, BLACK HAWK DOWN) is a talented young scientist who has trouble expressing his buried feelings. He is working on a regeneration healing experiment with his ex-girlfriend Betty Ross (Jennifer Connelly, A BEAUTIFUL MIND). An accident in the lab, which should have killed Bruce, only makes him feel better. His estranged father David (Nick Nolte, AFFLICTION) reemerges and sheds light on how his experiments have left his son “unique.” Betty’s distant father General Ross (Sam Elliot, TOMBSTONE) stopped David’s experiments and questions how Bruce could be traveling down the same road as his dad.
The performances by the four leads are wonderful. Nolte is especially great. The final confrontation between David and Bruce is almost Shakespearian (and that’s not a hyperbole). Bana is an inspired choice as the nerdy scientist for gets his inner rage unleashed. He's been haunted by a childhood trauma that he doesn't understand, which makes him emotionally distant, until he reconnects with his father. Connelly brings the same sensitivity to her that she brought to A BEAUTIFUL MIND; another film where a scientist goes a little nuts. Elliott was born to play an egomaniacal general. The weak link in the acting area is Josh Lucas (SWEET HOME ALABAMA) as Talbot in the thankless and one-dimensional role of the evil corporate scientist who only wants to use Bruce to make himself rich. Where Elliot knows just how far to push his over-the-top character, Lucas makes his corporate crony a cartoon.
I felt the effects were solid, but some of the fight scenes reminded me of BATMAN – shot at night and hard to follow. Lee's use split screens and swipes added a comic book feel to the film that was interesting. For a story that is essentially about a giant green monster, HULK is far more thoughtful than one might expect, but still features all the action that one might expect from a HULK feature too. In focusing on the issues that surround the character, instead of "Hulk smash" every other scene, another childhood hero makes it to the big screen with flare and excitement.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
