Movies and more...

HULK

So... I watched Hulk the other night. My wife was doing homework in the den and I was getting tired of playing PS2, so I decided to watch a movie. I hadn't even opened it since I had bought it at columbiahouse.com for $.29. That's right, 29 cents. It was one of the movies I picked out during my introductory package. I saw this movie in the theater with my brother, so I knew what I was getting. I figured that 29 cents was worth it for this movie. So... onto the review.

When I saw Hulk in the theater, I thought it was good with the exception of one part. This was remembered when I watched it the other night. There's a point in the movie where I think it should've ended, but NO... Ang Lee(director) just HAD to continue the movie. The only reason I can come up with is that he wanted to leave it open at the end for the possibility of a sequel. The thing is, I feel if it would've ended where I think, it would still be logical for a sequel to continue from that point. The thing with sequels is that you can make a sequel start anywhere. You can always make something happen at the begginning of a sequel to link it to the first one (can you say BACKSTORY?). I personally feel that a movie should be self-contained EVEN IF there is a planned sequel. That way, if something falls through with the sequel and it never gets finished, you still have a complete movie that isn't dangling at the end. And you can be proud of that.

Visuals: I give it a 3. Why? Well, The Hulk was obviously done in CG. I don't mind the fact that he's CG, but make it realistic looking instead of making him look like a freakin' cartoon for cryin' out loud. I think it would've been better if they would've had the Hulk as a costumed actor filmed in front of a green screen and made the tanks and stuff CG (there are some spots where the tanks were CG and you couldn't tell). That would've been more believable.

Sound: I give it a 4.5. I feel that the sound effects were great. The sound of the choppers, tanks, explosions, bullet fire, everything is really good. There's a scene with a pack of genetically-enhanced dogs that stands out in my mind as excellent in the sound effects catagory, because there's all this snarling, the Hulk with his labored breathing, the breaking of branches, the breaking of bones, and all of the ambient noises. Great stuff there.

Story: Overall, I give it a 2.5. It was a bit weak. They did a good job to let you know that Betty Ross was very important to Bruce Banner, but it was easier to realize this when Bruce was in Hulk form. The moment of the movie I mentioned earlier where the film continued after the point where I thought it should've ended is what brought this rating down. It was just plain stupid storyline after that point. If that wouldn't be in there, then this rating would be a 3.5 at least.

Special Features: Overall, I give it a 4. Disc one includes:

• The feature commentary with director Ang Lee
• "Hulk Cam" - allows you to watch special feature clips as the film plays by selecting the icon that shows up during the movie (kinda like an infiniFilm)
• Deleted scenes - I can understand why they were cut. There weren't any that I felt should've stayed in the film
• There are also other features on disc one, but not really worth mentioning besides the Cast and Filmmaker Bios (I thought those were great)

The second disc is chock full of special features. Some of my favorites include:

• "Evolution of the Hulk" - 15 minute documentary on Hulk history
• "The Incredible Ang Lee" - 15 minute documenary on director Ang Lee and how ambitious he was with this film
• "The Dog Fight Scene" - 10 minute behind the scenes featurette
• "The Unique Style of Editing Hulk" - 5 minute look at how they used editing to get the feel of a comic book into the film
• There's more on disc two as well, but I can't list 'em all. I've gotta leave some surprises for you.

Entertainment Value: I give it a 3. Would I buy it for $20? No. Would i pick it up on sale? Well, I bought it for 29 cents, so I guess I'd have to say yes. If you can get this movie for around $10-12 and you like Marvel comics, then go for it. If you like seeing things being torn apart, broken to pieces, and tanks flying through the air, then make sure you buy this one. And oh yes, if you want to see Lou Ferrigno and Stan Lee, keep your eyes peeled when the film takes you to the Berkely Biological Research Center. Overall, I think it's a good film with the one exception in the storyline.

posted by stuelu @ 9:52 AM