Incredible Hulk 2008 (2008)

"The dialogue is minimal but sharp, the pace swift and the action sequences suitably loud and brutal.  Ken Fox, TV Guide
"...a neat thrill ride with an intelligent script by Zak Penn and smart, well-paced direction by the French director of "The Transporter" series...  Kirk Honeycutt, The Hollywood Reporter
"Edward Norton's a more evocative actor than Eric Bana, and he supplies all the emotions required by Leterrier and writer Zak Penn.  Lawrence Toppman, Charlotte Observer
"...the big green gamma-guy returns to the screen in a purer, more unadulterated, vastly more entertaining form.  Marc Savlov, Austin Chronicle
"A super-powered adrenaline blast!  Pete Hammond, Hollywood.com

Editor's Note Hailing more from the pulp-melancholic spirit of CBS's 1978-1982 Hulk television series than its 2003 predecessor did, THE INCREDIBLE HULK wordlessly tells the entire gamma ray-afflicted origin story of scientist Bruce Banner's alter-ego within its first three minutes. This credit sequence in particular evokes (albeit with some cinematic weight) the lo-fi, premise-informing quality that one would find at the onset every episode of a cultish TV show, thus making two things quite clear. First, the Edward Norton-starring INCREDIBLE HULK is not a sequel to or a remake of Ang Lee's HULK, but a reboot equipped with an alternate plot, a new dynamic, and a different set of rules. Second, it is director Louis Leterrier's (UNLEASHED, THE TRANSPORTER) express intention to deliver a tightly wound, economically paced thriller in which scenes of drama and action are not mutually exclusive. THE INCREDIBLE HULK replaces cerebral family drama with the story of a lonely, afflicted scientist who, at the start of the movie, is already in hiding, training his mind-body dichotomy. As for the Hulk that inevitably comes forth, a previously poetic weightlessness is rejected in favor of gargantuan physicality, and this time there's an equal behemoth for the not-so-jolly green giant to battle. It's akin to seeing the huge robots of TRANSFORMERS face off, only with more muscle and bone. The angst, of course, isn't gone from this incarnation--not if Norton's intelligently passionate Banner and his tender, forbidden relationship with Dr. Elizabeth Ross (Liv Tyler) have anything to say about it. It's simply that this Hulk always smashes before he ponders. Rounding out THE INCREDIBLE HULK's main players are William Hurt as General Ross and Tim Roth as marine Emil Blonsky, two men in pursuit of the Hulk who, like Banner, aren't so much evil as consumed by tragic character flaws.

	Edward Norton
	Tim Blake Nelson
	William Hurt
	Liv Tyler
	Ty Burrell
	Tim Roth
	Gale Anne Hurd - Producer
	Avi Arad - Producer
	Zak Penn - Screenwriter
	Edward Harrison - Screenwriter
	Peter Menzies Jr. - Director of Photography
	Kevin Feige - Producer
	Kurt Williams - Visual Effects Supervisor
	Jim Van Wyck - Executive Producer
	Avi Arad - Executive Producer
	Robert Downey Jr. - Cameo
	Stan Lee - Executive Producer
	Kirk Petruccelli - Production Designer
	Craig Armstrong - Composer
	John Wright - Editor
	David Maisel - Executive Producer
	Louis Leterrier - Director

New York Times
"There are some big, thumping fights and a few bright shards of pop-cultural wit..." 06/13/2008

USA Today
"[S]teeped in action and special effects....[Featuring] Edward Norton's engaging portrayal of scientist Bruce Banner, who turns into the gargantuan green monster in times of emotional stress." 06/14/2008

Los Angeles Times
"[S]olid and efficient....Norton and Roth are strong actors, and Liv Tyler is properly empathetic as Banner's longtime girlfriend, Betty Ross..." 06/13/2008

Empire
3 stars out of 5 -- "With more weight, heft and sinew....There's a primal boil to the super-ogre that recalls that other iconic misunderstood-monster, King Kong." 08/01/2008 p.50

Premiere
"[The film] manges to align the character with the energized tropes of contemporary superhero franchises by making his strength the real star of the show." 06/11/2008

ReelViews 8 of 10
For five years, Marvel has been trying to figure out what to do with one of the biggest potential franchises of its universe. Ang Lee's Hulk proved to be a dud with fans and producing a direct sequel was as unlikely an alternative as altogether forgoing additional Hulk movies. So the decision was made to "re-imagine" the character, which is a nice way of saying that the 2003 feature would be ignored. The Incredible Hulk is a more traditional superhero movie than its predecessor and should please those who want their not-so-jolly green giant served with helpings of action. This film provides less talk and more smashing...Structurally, The Incredible Hulk is a fairly straightforward superhero movie. While it is not an "origin story" in the strictest sense, it functions as one in the way it must introduce characters, establish situations and relationships, and open a series. As a result of so much backstory, there's not a lot of room for a complex plot...The special effects used to create the Hulk aren't flawless but they're good enough. The CGI is evident mainly during the final battle, when it's apparent that a lot of what we're seeing was crafted in a computer. The word "cartoonish" comes to mind but, considering that this is adapted from a comic book, that's not an inappropriate descriptor. The work here passes muster, and the Hulk is no longer the bright green of the 2003 feature. Letterier has rendered him in a grayish-green. - James Berardinelli

Chicago Sun-Times 7 of 10
"The Incredible Hulk" is no doubt an ideal version of the Hulk saga for those who found Ang Lee's "Hulk" (2003) too talky, or dare I say, too thoughtful. But not for me. It sidesteps the intriguing aspects of Hulkdom and spends way too much time in, dare I say, noisy and mindless action sequences. By the time the Incredible Hulk had completed his hulk-on-hulk showdown with the Incredible Blonsky, I had been using my Timex with the illuminated dial way too often...It's obvious that the real story is the tragedy that Banner faces because of the Hulk-inducing substance in his blood. But if Banner never turned into the Hulk, nobody would ever make a movie about him. And if the Hulk were never Banner, he would be like Godzilla, who tears things up real good but is otherwise, dare I say, one-dimensional...So, what's to like in "The Incredible Hulk"? We have a sound performance by Edward Norton as a man who desperately does not want to become the Hulk, and goes to Brazil to study under a master of breath control in order to curb his anger. And we have Liv Tyler in full trembling sympathy mode...When you get down to it, as a fictional creature, the Incredible Hulk is as limited as a bad drunk. He may be fun to be around when he's sober, but when he drinks too much, you just feel sorry for the guy. - Roger Ebert