But the problem was this: Ang Lee Hulk over thought the subject matter. Hulk is first and foremost about action and s sense of sci-fi humbuggery. Ang Lee tried to give us a "scientific reason" for the Hulk existing and then gave us radioactive poodles. And an incomprehensible ending.

You looked at this movie as a movie critic, instead of a geek movie goer. Not a bad thing. You spent too much time comparing it to the movie before and then to what the actors did elsewhere. Oh well...sorry you didn't enjoy it.

I find it interesting that after reading these Hulk talkbacks for awhile, I've seen that almost half the posts start with some variation on "I was one of the few who appreciated the true genius of Ang Lee's Hulk". They then proceed to enlighten those of us too dense to understand its subtleties.

Ang Lee's Hulk did truly suck, and it deserves every degree of the heat that it recieves.

Moriarty used to be the top honcho, but blew it with his gushing over the hysterical 'Speed Racer' (told you it wouldn't make it's money back, son!)

Here's to you, Capone! Roll on your 'Dark Knight' review!

Overall, I liked the film, though. Leterrier, I think, is pretty good at crafting unselfconsciously enjoyable action films, and that's exactly what The Incredible Hulk is. It's not offering much in the way depth or complexity, but it has a few laughs, some great action, and I liked Liv Tyler a lot. A solid, enjoyable film, I reckon.

By the way, in the cinema where I saw the film, there were audible gasps and a light smattering of applause when Downey appeared in that bar. People seemed to really like the cameo.

Considering Capone's review of Incredible Hulk, I think I may just ignore his review of The Happening. It seems that Capone and I do not see eye-to-eye when it comes to taste in films. Anyone who thinks Ang Lee's Hulk "did a good job plumbing the psychological depth" has questionable taste in film, in my oh-so-humble opinion.

No offense, Capone, but we just don't like the same things. You're an anime fan, too, aren't you?

Yeah. Thought so.

I won't preach about how you're a moron cause you don't like Lee's Hulk. I presume you just didn't enjoy it cause it wasn't a good time for you. I don't see how that would indicate anything other than a different opinion.

Now, if you said you thought Liv Tyler was more beautiful than Jennifer Connely, or a better actor, well then you are indeed, a fucking moron. No more questions!!!

"The challenge for any filmmaker is making the Banner character even a fraction as interesting as Hulk, a nearly impossible task"

So it's nearly impossible to make Banner a fraction as interesting as an uninteresting character?

One of the film's strong suits is the cast and it certainly shows from the get-go. I wasn't watching Ed Norton turn into the Hulk - I was watching Bruce Banner turn into the Hulk. As for character development, let's just say it was severely lacking in the department; but that's probably Marvel's fault. The truth is, it was the only thing this version lacked, which makes my anticipation for the Director's Cut that much higher. I was even pleasantly surprised by Liv Tyler and William Hurt, arguably the two weakest links in this installment.

When it comes to action, there's no questioning this man's talent. He constructs elaborate set pieces that leave you breathless and wanting more at the same time. Should a sequel be made, it'll be interesting to see how he tackles the Leader's mind-control and to what extent he takes it. Of course, this cannot be said without mentioning the CGI. While the SFX did get pretty ridiculous at times, it didn't take me out of the movie.

The producers have often said this movie is, first and foremost, a tribute to the television series and comics alike. As a result, you'll notice many allusions to both sprinkled throughout - and one particularly noticeable cameo at the end.

In retrospect, Ang Lee's Hulk is an ambitious film that is undeservedly underrated. Yes, you read that correctly. It IS possible for the two films to coexist peacefully in one's mind.

All in all, Marvel Studios and Louis Leterrier have done an amazing job with this film. This looks to me like the start of a Golden Age of superhero films. One can only hope DC gets their shit together in the near future.

One last note, I find it interesting that even though this new film is closer to the comic, they chose to show an origin much closer to the tv show (and possibly the Ultimates) than the Lee/Kirby comics. Ang Lee's origin, though different than the comic because it updates the story from nuclear testing to something else, still maintains the spirit of the comic origin, in that Banner only gets exposed because he saves someone else and takes the gamma blast. Here, it's like the tv show, in that Banner is willingly experimenting on himself. Which does make more sense with the super-soldier story they're trying to tell.

Detail SPOILER: Speaking of super-soldiers, the canister that holds the old Cap serum has the term Weapon Plus on it, I think. Which was Grant Morrison's retcon about Wolverine being part of another supersoldier program, that the X in Weapon X was actually a Roman numeral 10. I hope that they're smart enough to get the rights back from Fox someday and add some mutants to the SHIELDverse.

How STUPID! No sane scientist would do that... it was one thing that always bugged me about the show. And it seems exponentially more idiotic 30 years later to portray Banner as a fool who, instead of using test animals for his dangerous experiments (like in the 2003 film), intentionally places his OWN life and the lives of others in mortal danger for no reason other than simple curiosity.

And unlike in Iron Man, the CGI is still as SUCKTACULAR as in the original previews. It felt like I was watching Playstation 3 animated cutscenes, rather than a convincing portrayal of the Hulk.

Isn't CGI supposed to get BETTER with time? Then WHY does the Hulk look so damn plastic and FAKE in this movie, as opposed to in 2003, when his flesh looked like actual skin over muscle, instead of carved plastic from Todd McFarlane's workshop?

Really, the characters in this film looked as bad as the monsters in Will Smith's "I Am Legend"... utterly BAD. Hulk's mouth even stretched to the same ridiculous proportions every time he roared. And why are his teeth GREEN???

Rated B, for BLECH! >:P

Wow. Took the words right out of my mouth. I'm not sure if I'm as negative on this movie as him or not, but I did have a distinct "blah" feeling, and despite the big green guy looking a lot better than the previous effort (action sequences are all in low light), that's really about it. otherwise, it's just nice to see the universe forming up. and to be honest, I'm not sure it's worth $10 for about 2 minutes (total) of information about captain america and the avengers.

also, unlike IRON MAN, this movie didn't seem to follow very closely the recent animated AVENGERS movies; banner's character and motivations felt much different. plus, the way he already handles himself as the Hulk kinda eliminates the possibility of a similar relationship with the avengers that he has in the animated movies.

And unlike in the NEW Hulk film, Ang Lee's version DIDN'T look like a PS3 commercial. It actually looked like real flesh and blood reacting to light and it's surroundings convincingly. So even in the CGI department, this new Hulk movie is sorely lacking.

I'd compare this film to Daredevil. HOPEFULLY, when the Director's Cut comes out, like Daredevil, the film will be MUCH improved. As it is, it's pretty simple-minded stuff, which might explain why so many fanboys love it... it doesn't require much effort on their part. Just "HULK SMASH!" :P

Having the Hulk break things is fine, but having a smart storyline to base that on is what separates a great film from simply an okay movie.

The new Hulk is merely "okay," both due to a weak, simplistic storyline and sub-par CGI, when compared to Ang Lee's version.

Okay, Capone...Banner's an idiot. He's been on the run, living in the third world, trying desperately to live a semi-normal life, knowing that at any moment it's all gonna come tumbling down. That waiting for him out there is a fucker who would be happy knowing Banner was dead and the Hulk was a weapon. Knowing that any relationships he makes are doomed for failure, because Hulk is right there when he loses control.

So, when he gets back to his old stomping grounds, he acts rashly, seeing fucking daylight after a long time of waking up in odd places at square fucking zero, with each semblance of normalcy stripped from him. There's a metaphor at work here that was mighty subtle, like a guy who's in fuckin' prison for years, sees his chance to get out, no matter how slim, and goes for it.

It's the only love of Banner's life, and he's greedy for the time he'll get to spend with Betty Ross, because he doesn't know if it will EVER happen again. Also, dunno if you paid any attention, but the dude from Night of the Living Dead called the cops, because he saw Banner too at the pizzeria. Fuck, it's subtle, but there, at any rate, as an explanation. The government was gonna swarm him the moment he left the house anyways.

And as a final note, when Sterns is saying 'We started with mice, but it just fried them, so we went to something larger--' I was HOPING TO GOD that they were going to show those faggy, stupid Hulk dogs dead as dogshit laying in cages with names like 'Bad Idea' and 'Fucking Dumb'.

Good movie if you're a Hulk fan, and pretty badass action--Not better than Iron Man, and I believe I will be blown away by Dark Knight--but it was WAAAAY more satisfying than Ang Lee's BrokeHulk Mountain.

1. Hulk gets stronger as he gets madder -- As shown in the fight with the Abomination.

2. Hulk, in the beginning was a savage, mindless, creature, who could not be reasoned with, and eventually became a personality separate from Banner--leading into the Peter David awesome stories. Savage Hulk is the genesis, and World War Hulk is the apocalypse. It's not hard to see the ARC of this Hulk, but you DO have to look.

3. Banner is smart, but not Reed Richards smart or even Samuel Sterns smart...This was good! And it blended the TV Show origin with the Ang Lee movie origin somewhat. A smart, but not genius level scientist gets fucked up, and does what he can to get himself better.

Ang Lee's movie was a baffling failure. How much is it on DVD now over on Amazon? Like fifty cents...And which flick's gonna get to Blu Ray first? Sorry True Be-Lee-vers, The Incredible Hulk has more juice on that score as well.

You don't like this flick? It's one of two things: You had a preconcieved notion of what the Hulk should be, and fell into the shitty CGI Hulk from 03 as your refuge. Defending the bizarre mess with a strange sense of dignity, tut-tutting at the rest of us who wanted, you know, some fuckin' Hulk in their Hulk movie.

Or, you've not seen this yet.

The CGI looks like what you'd expect as a first outing from a studio that is running on a fairly tight budget when it comes to 2nd AD stuff. Not surprising, but you have to watch the fucking fight scenes. And Hulk is strong as fuck in this. I mean, ripping cars in half by throwing shit through them...And that chest-kick from the fuckin' trailer? OH FUCK. It's SO much better in the movie. That said, I can't WAIT to see the DVD version...Hopefully we'll see Norton's cut of it....and meanwhile, you guys can keep harping on about how 'intellectually satisfying' Ang Lee's Hulk was. But there's one thing Lee's Hulk ain't...That's the real fucking Hulk.

The fact that you found it so impressive that Hulk beat-up this pipsqueak kinda tells me how easily impressed you guys are by the goofiest things.

Just kiddin'. Hey, I never once say something is gonna be everyone's cup o' tea, but I will say this; guys who drink some beer, go fishing once in a while, and don't take all this bullshit so fucking seriously will really dig this flick. And that's all this is, is an entertaining flick.

Batman, if that is really you, you're smart enough to know what heroic sacrifice is, right? Either that or GASP!! You're PRETENDING TO BE BATMAN ON THE INTERNET! For shame.

Just got done reading my buddy's copies of World War Hulk...there's some far out shit in that series..but seriously, the best Hulk issues have one thing in common...five pages in a row of nothing but action and sound effects. Sorry that sort of testosterone fueled action bores you, Mozart, go watch Ang Lee's version again if it miffs you so terribly. And in the fuckin' 60s EVERYONE got powers from radiation. In fact, they make a joke about just that thing in the Ultimates comics. (I know, they're raping your childhood--blah,blah,blah...) They too are pretty good for funny books, and have some great humor...They're also influencing the way the Marvel movies are going, so, suck it up ladies...and you, Batman.

Ghost Who Lurks...are you pissed because you thought your handle would be fuckin' PRIME internet real estate before the SHITTY Phantom movie came out? ;)

The reason the chest kick for me was AWESOME was spoken above, but unless you didn't see the movie, or were too busy jotting down pissy hate for this flick in your 'Emily the Strange' slambook to notice; Roth was hepped up on the serum. And Hulk fucking CHESTKICKS that asshole and leaves him a fucking bag of blood with kibble for bones laying against a tree. That shit is AWESOME!!!111 Yeah, the 1s are there for comedic effect. Just kidding about you havin' a slambook, just making a point.

Lighten up, Francis. It's just a stupid action movie. Oh, and Ang Lee's flick was for gays, ladies, and gay ladies with too much time on their hands.

Gotcha! (Ducking flaming spears from the Lee fans)

130 mil pricetag? So it makes a third of the budget back in the first weekend. It sticks around until DKR, it makes its budget back and soaks in the gravy of DVD sales. This is a success, any way you slice it. And the people most enthusiastic? Real fucking Hulk fans.

And I'll be SHOCKED if The Incredible Hulk manages to make more money than even Superman Returns, because word-of-mouth will NOT make people go see this film in the coming weeks. Most people I know rejected seeing it outright, once they saw the previews. And even comic geeks are split on the quality of the finished film, unlike with IRON MAN.

I predict the next (and possibly LAST) time you see the Hulk will be in the AVENGERS film in 2011. I doubt there'll be a sequel to this, despite the Leader and Doc Samson set up.

Don't talk about Ang Lee...You wouldn't like me when you talk about Ang Lee. It's funny, because it's like that thing that Bruce Banner says, AND it's making fun of the fact that Ang Lee is Chinese! It works on so many levels. Hulk laugh lots. HAR HAR!

That's why I said no SANE scientist would do it and why it makes no sense to portray Bruce Banner as being so foolish and reckless in the new movie. It just makes him look like a crazy idiot.

Oh, and the joke is "Don't make me Ang Lee..." It's funnier if you get it right. ;)

The HULK should be money in the bank for Marvel and the fact that IRON MAN has such strong box-office returns with almost zero recognition to the general public beforehand, is testament to how well-made it was, both story- and action-wise.

And blaming Ang Lee's film for hurting the new Hulk movie is ridiculous. Batman Begins wasn't hurt at all by the previous crappy Batman films that preceded it. People just wanted to see a GOOD Batman movie.

In general, the public wants quality films and will reject movies that they see as a waste of their time and money, regardless of how famous the characters are.