Edward Norton follows in the footsteps of Bill Bixby and Eric Bana in the role of Bruce Banner in the latest version of THE INCREDIBLE HULK. Plot-wise THE INCREDIBLE HULK picks up where the film version of HULK left off. Banner, now a fugitive from the United States military, has fled to a small town in Brazil, works at a local plant and constantly works on keeping his temper down as not to arouse the beast that lurks within. His love interest Betty, now played by Liv Tyler, is working as a college professor, while her father General Thaddeus Ross is still working to track down Banner and utilize his situation to the American military’s benefit. Here Hulk battles a combat fighter played by Tim Roth.
I suppose the thing that most people wanted in HULK, the film directed by Ang Lee, was more action. If that’s what you’re seeking, THE INCREDIBLE HULK delivers some big moments, but it doesn’t provide a consistent amount of action or adrenaline. Since THE INCREDIBLE HULK more or less picks up where HULK left off, I was seeking more dramatic and emotional tension between Bruce and Betty, and another one-on-one showdown between General Taylor and Bruce. Neither of these moments occur and despite infusing the cast with the talents of Norton, William Hurt and Tim Roth, THE INCREDIBLE HULK sees them more as scene combatants then characters. The plot is also more of a device than a story, serving as an excuse to move from one big Hulk battle to the next. Had the battles lived up to the billing, one might be able to overlook the film’s other flaws, but the CGI is a step backward technologically. Even the climatic battle between Hulk and Abomination, which provides plenty of bang for the buck, is visually lame, rendering a glorified version of rock’em, sock’em robots. THE INCREDIBLE HULK lacks the ambition and execution that Ang Lee’s HULK did.
Grade: C
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