The Incredible Hulk

Ang Lee's take on Hulk was considered a colossal flop by box office standards; however, who knew that a silver lining would come out of it. Already reveling in success from last month's Iron Man, Marvel looks poised to establish themselves as a bankable entity; and with The Incredible Hulk, that trend will surely continue. No longer is the focus on more character driven, high arching story lines but rather non-stop action. From that standpoint, The Incredible Hulk delivers in every way possible so unless you have a real dislike for comic book movies, this film will surely be a guilty pleasure for many. I, myself, included.

First and foremost, I didn't necessarily hate Ang Lee's version; but I will agree that it was excruciatingly bad. Too much of the focus was on the origin of Hulk and while I agree that a back story is sometimes a good thing, I felt like it took away from Ang's film and made it that much worse. Luckily, this new Hulk sums things up with a brief montage in the opening credits and from there, things start to roll.

Starring Edward Norton as Bruce Banner/Hulk, this new film begins like a espionage, spy thriller but slowly picks up with every passing frame. I'll admit, even Edward Norton impressed me with his performance here; so much so that Eric Bana's portrayal seems like a distant memory. Not to be outdone, the supporting cast all thrive in their roles and add depth to an already great movie. I'll admit, I've never cared much for Liv Tyler but her performance here more than makes up for her role in The Strangers. While both films showed off her range as an actress, Hulk brings out the best of her and is really what makes the "compassionate" part of this film work. As sappy as it may seem, Liv and Edward have great chemistry on screen and a majority of their scenes are joyous to watch. In relation, the CGI/special effects are amazing [as well] and rivals that of Iron Man by the slimest of margins. If anything, Marvel proved that they're well aware of what their doing and if Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk are any indication of what's to come, I can hardly wait for this [much anticipated] Avengers movie they're building up to.

Speaking of that, you could tell that the last scene of The Incredible Hulk was purposely shot ambiguously in regards of leaving the door open for a sequel; but it's the Tony Stark cameo before the credits that raises a lot of intrigue. Like I said, this Avengers movie will be a real good look for the Marvel franchise so, my fingers are crossed in hopes that they can pull it off and so far they're two for two. The Incredible Hulk smashes it's predecessor in every possible way and is as every bit as good as Iron Man. Real talk! Therefore, rejoice comic book fans. They finally got something right.

Rating: 4 inkblots out of 5