*WARNING* SPOILERS
What happens when, expecting a big, loud, dumbed down summer action movie, you get something that is character driven, well acted, and has even better action than any of the other summer movies?
According to most people, it seems you get disappointed.
To me, "Hulk" is a wonderful film (although I still wish it had the words "The Incredible..." before it). I love it to death. I saw it four times in theaters, loved the story, and felt what it was like to be the Hulk. However, it's NOT a summer movie. The acting is too subtle, the script too rich, and the film's overall soul too deep to be widely accepted by people looking for a quick escape during the summer (not to knock other summer movies though).
I won't recap the plot, as it has been done over and over. What I will say is that the makers of the film weave the story of poor old Bruce Banner in a weird, intriguing way.
The script plays the characters like chords on a dying violin. However, one of those strings vibrates so loud it shakes the whole instrument. All the characters are well written, with distinctive dialogue, and little hints at each of their lives. It is like a subtle, yet vibrant, symphony.
The acting is near perfect. From the second I saw him in the dorky bike helmet, Eric Bana was Bruce Banner. However, as good as he and the rest of the cast are, sometimes they are too subdued (sometimes with Bana and a little too often with the great Jennifer Connelly) or too emphatic (Nick Nolte, although perhaps I not seeing just how clearly insane he was). Josh Lucas was a bit too one-dimensional in his portrayal of Glenn Talbot, but perhaps that's the scripts fault for giving him a slimy weasel to play in a soulful film. However, Sam Elliot strikes all the right notes as good old General Thunderbolt Ross. But, nonetheless, I felt for everyone in the film...except really for Talbot (but, strange as it sounds, especially for David Banner).
The special effects are as top notch as you'd expect them to be in a big budget movie, but it's what Ang Lee does with them that makes them special. Instead of just pointing the camera at the effects (as, to me, was what it felt like watching "X2", even though I do like that movie) he shifts focus around things, letting the camera fly as the Hulk jumps, bringing the experience of the film to life. Even in the quiet moments, when Hulk is just looking at Betty or a desert flower, I still enjoy looking at him. But, he's still more fun when he's throwing tanks around.
Danny Elfman's music perfectly sets the mysterious, violent, and deep tone of the film, with excellent uses of bombastic tones and quiet, sad vocals that help bring out the soul of the movie. However, considering this is from the man who made the great `Batman' score, is it too much to ask for a little Hulk theme music?
And then, of course, there's the famous (or infamous) editing. To me, it made otherwise boring things, like Bruce and Betty's lab, interesting. However, it did get unnecessary a time or two (do we really need to see the helicopter carrying Bruce into the desert from five different angles?) Also, it wasn't used as much during the Hulk action scenes, where I think it could have made cool scenes even cooler. Imagine seeing Hulk fight the dogs from five different angles!
All these things on their own are great, but it's when they're all added up that the movie gets its great, big soul. I felt all the pain David and Bruce felt for their lives when David talks about how he accidentally killed his wife, heightened by the great acting, editing, and the music that made the whole scene seem to cry. I longing between Betty and her father for the great relationship that could have been. But all that just makes me care more for the movie. What made me love it was the feeling of being the Hulk as he jumped for miles at a time. I still get teary eyed at the pure joy of that one, long shot as Hulk just runs and jumps over the canyons, the music of pure freedom playing behind him.
Without the soul of the movie, it would be a great package of great parts of acting and special effects and all that. With just that, I'd give it an 8 out of 10, since it still has a few faults. But it's with that soul, that big green Hulk soul that has all the basic human emotions wrapped up in their purest, most exciting forms and put on screen, that I love this movie dearly, and look past it's faults to give it a 9, or even a 9 and ½ or a 10. But numbers can't measure love very well, so I guess I shouldn't try.
Knowing how great the film is now, I know it would have been torture to have to wait for it to be released at a more opportune time, like in the winter, when most of the other, more thoughtful movies are usually released with a chance at the box office. However, I think Universal should have pushed it for Christmas with an advertising campaign that focused on the soul of the movie instead of the action, which as I saw firsthand, made some people think it would be too corny. Maybe then it would have been accepted better. But, maybe by choosing Ang Lee, the film was destined receive mixed views, as those expecting a mindless action `Hulk' would be disappointed and those wanting a deep character study would not like the action. Lee said in an interview (and I'm paraphrasing here), that he saw little difference between dialogue scenes and action scenes, as both served ways of progressing the story. I guess most moviegoers couldn't see it that way. But, I feel fortunate to have `gotten' this movie, because it touched me with its heart, and rocked me with its muscle. Maybe the summer during a major war wasn't a good time for a deep, thoughtful, big budget movie to be released. Maybe it will be better accepted in the future when people can look back and reflect on it, who knows. But I sure know now that I love this movie to death, and no mixed reviews can take that away from me.
What happens when, expecting a big, loud, dumbed down summer action movie, you get something that is character driven, well acted, and has even better action than any of the other summer movies?
According to most people, it seems you get disappointed.
To me, "Hulk" is a wonderful film (although I still wish it had the words "The Incredible..." before it). I love it to death. I saw it four times in theaters, loved the story, and felt what it was like to be the Hulk. However, it's NOT a summer movie. The acting is too subtle, the script too rich, and the film's overall soul too deep to be widely accepted by people looking for a quick escape during the summer (not to knock other summer movies though).
I won't recap the plot, as it has been done over and over. What I will say is that the makers of the film weave the story of poor old Bruce Banner in a weird, intriguing way.
The script plays the characters like chords on a dying violin. However, one of those strings vibrates so loud it shakes the whole instrument. All the characters are well written, with distinctive dialogue, and little hints at each of their lives. It is like a subtle, yet vibrant, symphony.
The acting is near perfect. From the second I saw him in the dorky bike helmet, Eric Bana was Bruce Banner. However, as good as he and the rest of the cast are, sometimes they are too subdued (sometimes with Bana and a little too often with the great Jennifer Connelly) or too emphatic (Nick Nolte, although perhaps I not seeing just how clearly insane he was). Josh Lucas was a bit too one-dimensional in his portrayal of Glenn Talbot, but perhaps that's the scripts fault for giving him a slimy weasel to play in a soulful film. However, Sam Elliot strikes all the right notes as good old General Thunderbolt Ross. But, nonetheless, I felt for everyone in the film...except really for Talbot (but, strange as it sounds, especially for David Banner).
The special effects are as top notch as you'd expect them to be in a big budget movie, but it's what Ang Lee does with them that makes them special. Instead of just pointing the camera at the effects (as, to me, was what it felt like watching "X2", even though I do like that movie) he shifts focus around things, letting the camera fly as the Hulk jumps, bringing the experience of the film to life. Even in the quiet moments, when Hulk is just looking at Betty or a desert flower, I still enjoy looking at him. But, he's still more fun when he's throwing tanks around.
Danny Elfman's music perfectly sets the mysterious, violent, and deep tone of the film, with excellent uses of bombastic tones and quiet, sad vocals that help bring out the soul of the movie. However, considering this is from the man who made the great `Batman' score, is it too much to ask for a little Hulk theme music?
And then, of course, there's the famous (or infamous) editing. To me, it made otherwise boring things, like Bruce and Betty's lab, interesting. However, it did get unnecessary a time or two (do we really need to see the helicopter carrying Bruce into the desert from five different angles?) Also, it wasn't used as much during the Hulk action scenes, where I think it could have made cool scenes even cooler. Imagine seeing Hulk fight the dogs from five different angles!
All these things on their own are great, but it's when they're all added up that the movie gets its great, big soul. I felt all the pain David and Bruce felt for their lives when David talks about how he accidentally killed his wife, heightened by the great acting, editing, and the music that made the whole scene seem to cry. I longing between Betty and her father for the great relationship that could have been. But all that just makes me care more for the movie. What made me love it was the feeling of being the Hulk as he jumped for miles at a time. I still get teary eyed at the pure joy of that one, long shot as Hulk just runs and jumps over the canyons, the music of pure freedom playing behind him.
Without the soul of the movie, it would be a great package of great parts of acting and special effects and all that. With just that, I'd give it an 8 out of 10, since it still has a few faults. But it's with that soul, that big green Hulk soul that has all the basic human emotions wrapped up in their purest, most exciting forms and put on screen, that I love this movie dearly, and look past it's faults to give it a 9, or even a 9 and ½ or a 10. But numbers can't measure love very well, so I guess I shouldn't try.
Knowing how great the film is now, I know it would have been torture to have to wait for it to be released at a more opportune time, like in the winter, when most of the other, more thoughtful movies are usually released with a chance at the box office. However, I think Universal should have pushed it for Christmas with an advertising campaign that focused on the soul of the movie instead of the action, which as I saw firsthand, made some people think it would be too corny. Maybe then it would have been accepted better. But, maybe by choosing Ang Lee, the film was destined receive mixed views, as those expecting a mindless action `Hulk' would be disappointed and those wanting a deep character study would not like the action. Lee said in an interview (and I'm paraphrasing here), that he saw little difference between dialogue scenes and action scenes, as both served ways of progressing the story. I guess most moviegoers couldn't see it that way. But, I feel fortunate to have `gotten' this movie, because it touched me with its heart, and rocked me with its muscle. Maybe the summer during a major war wasn't a good time for a deep, thoughtful, big budget movie to be released. Maybe it will be better accepted in the future when people can look back and reflect on it, who knows. But I sure know now that I love this movie to death, and no mixed reviews can take that away from me.