Films genres transform and are altered not only in response to the times but
all too often in accordance to what is successful at the moment with other
films. Now is the time of the comic book based film. Fortunately, my favorite
comics as a youth are now coming to life on the screen. The Marvel stable of
super powered people includes such luminaries as the X-Men, Spiderman and now
the Hulk. What made Marvel characters stand out above the other comics was the
pathos and humanity of their characters, the way their story lines depended more
on the real life problems than their super human abilities. Ang Lee’s Hulk picks
up this challenge. Since there have been incarnations of the Hulk on television,
both with live actors and animation, most know the basic story. Meek but
brilliant scientist Bruce Banner (Eric Banna) is bombarded with gamma rays which
affects the mutated genes he inherited from his father. When he is angered he
transforms into a huge, exceptionally strong green monster. While most super
powers are gifts in the Marvel universe they are all too often just as much as
curse. What is added in this variation of the Hulk mythos is the underlying
theme of the affects of overbearing parents on their children. Banner’s father
(Nick Nolte) was also a scientist, whose hubris leads him to experimenting on
his own genome, passing those modified genes to his son. Banner is involved with
the beautiful Betty Ross (Jennifer Connelly). Her father is General
‘Thunderbolt’ Ross (Sam Elliot), a demanding, rigid and obsessive personality.
What drives this film even more than the notable special effects is the way
these demanding fathers affect their now adult children. The monster is a
supporting character to the story of two young people trying to cope with the
expectations of their fathers. Of course a villain is required and finds
substance with the character of Talbot (Josh Lucas), a man of great ambitions to
create a highly marketable race of Hulk like soldiers. While there are effects
enough for the younger crowd, and the young person in the adults, it is the
story of confused, young people trying to be their own persons while living in
the dark shadows of their fathers. Like the comics that inspired this film the
Hulk is not so much someone to fear as it is the object of our pity. There is
also a certain amount of satisfaction that we all have when Banner transforms
into the Hulk to release his rage. How many times have we all wished secretly
for such ability? While enjoyable as an action Sci-Fi it also works on the
deeper emotional level.
I have been impressed with the roles of Jennifer Connelly for a long time
now. She brings something fresh to each performance. Here, she offers a little
variation on her Oscar winning role in Beautiful Mind. She is a young woman in
love with a man who does not fit into society, a man deeply troubled and
emotionally distant. She helps to drive the required empathy the audience needs
for the monster by helping us to remember the man that becomes the Hulk. Banna
was very much like the Banner in the comics, brilliant yet deeply disturbed.
Rather than playing the role along the obvious lines of Jekyll/Hyde he instead
takes the role of Banner to a more human level. He is scared more by the fact
that he enjoys the transformation than the transformation itself. While this is
at the heart of the Jekyll/Hyde saga here the focus is less on the contrast of
good and evil within all men and delves into the repercussions. Nolte and Elliot
give a nice contrast between two determined men. While Ross is driven to the
heights of his profession, the older Banner is laid low, working as a janitor.
Banner sees his ruined life through his son’s abilities as Ross wanted a warrior
son but got an intelligent daughter instead. These actors are on opposite ends
of the acting spectrum. Notle drifts through his role while Elliot almost risks
overacting in his presentation of Ross. What matters is but is appropriate in
this case.
Ang Lee is one of those rare directors that refuse to be put in a box,
restricted by a favorite genre. He thrilled us with "Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon", played out heart strings in "Sense and Sensibility" and previewed his
look at the generation gap with "The Ice Storm". Lee brought to this story more
than most directors could have dreamed about. The visual style of the film
included a lot of split screens. Although this technique is often used it is
rarely employed as effectively as it is here. Lee splits the screen in a fashion
that reminds us about the comic book panels where the characters where created.
At the same time it provides a visual reinforcement to the divisions that keep
the characters emotionally apart. According to the extras Lee literally threw
himself into this film. He often donned the special outfit required to capture
human motion into the computer so in a real sense he was the Hulk. Building on
themes he explored in the Ice Storm, Lee demonstrates that the conflicts between
generations in a family do not disappear when the children grow to adulthood.
While the CGI effects where the best possible I did feel that the Hulk was a bit
contrived. There was an almost unnatural aspect to some of the motions. It was
better than painting a stunt man green but lacked some of the inner humanity.
Sure the computer can do wonders, it can change the face of the graphic to
exhibit emotion but here it reverted back a bit too much to the comic book.
This special edition is really special. This is how a DVD like this should be
presented. The Dolby 5.1 audio roars from the speakers, crisp and clean. The
anamorphic 1.85:1 video is brilliant and without defect. The extras are on the
money with featurettes detailing every aspect of the computer graphics
integration into the film, how the character has changed since the comic, and a
commentary by Ang Lee and deleted scenes. This just touches the surface of the
additional material. There is so much here that you will have something to watch
long after the film ends. For fans of Ang Lee, comics and a good story line this
is a disc to own and enjoy.
Posted 10/3/03