Incredible. As In "Not Credible".

Rating: 5/10 (12 June 2008)

This rendition of the Hulk story sees Edward Norton as "Bruce Banner". He is a man in hiding in South America, living an anonymous life as a factory worker. Why? Well, the government (or rather a particular Army General) want to find him at any cost. Really, what we're looking at in this film, is the story of a victim. Banner was created by the government, and now, the government want him for their own ends. It's a little of the Frankenstein-complex yet again in American cinema, (see "Robocop", "Universal Soldier" for other takes on this premise.) It begins, and rather than sit through twenty-minutes plus of back-story, the decision was made to show all relevant explanatory scenes in an opening montage sequence. These scenes (although quite clumsy in their direction) were an inclusion I was grateful for. I thought this would help the film find some momentum. But, I was only half-right. We skip ahead to Bruce's anonymous existence in Brazil, and we are itching to see signs of the hulk within him. Only hints in some of his unusual behaviour would ever suggest that he has any more than an anti-social problem.
When a clash between the government forces finally erupts, it is fairly underwhelming; a competently shot chase-scene plays out (Edward Norton runs like a girl!) and a poor "fight" scene to conclude it. When the animal of the title is finally revealed, it is a shadowy, confusing environment, and we only see a glimpse. Here, the direction delays the unveiling of it's draw-card as long as it can. Also, like so many movies of late, I found myself enjoying the scenery more than the performances - Brazil has never looked like more colourful and fascinating in it's maze of slums and shanty-towns.
Banner's nemesis "General Ross", uses "Blonksy" as his right-hand man. This role (play by Tim Roth) starts well enough (the David vs. Goliath notion is a nice touch), then gets a little over-the-top, then hits the outright ludicrous. He seems to have a major grudge over a special operation in Brazil that doesn't go his way. Just WHY this is such a problem for this guy is never made clear - he takes "failure" (although he has several other attempts at the same mission) way too personally for a spec-ops soldier. This brooding resentment is amplified by General Ross' tampering, and we are promised a showdown between two Goliaths.
The problem this films has is that it tries to make an underdog out of a superior character. A victim, a persecuted monster, the hulk is meant to draw sympathy AND be the unbeatable character. Sure, he takes his hits, but you're never worried that he won't succeed. The only way this film can raise the stakes is from turning things up from ten to eleven on the dial. And I'm not convinced that going to eleven makes the viewing experience that much better - rather, it overshadows everything else you've just sat through and invested in.
The climax, although well done in isolation, is ridiculous in it's seriousness. The love interest is just an excuse to give Bruce someone to talk to - to explain his Jekyll and Hyde complex, (one scene in a cave is particularly stupid. Watch the continuously changing size of his body). The father/daughter relationship has a particularly bitter taste to it, and Roth's evolving psychosis happens much too suddenly - we see HIS transformation as a despicable "abomination", but is it really that different from Banner's? Why is one worthy of sympathy, when another is demon that should be exterminated? Because it's "uglier"?
Comic book to film movies are never going to work for me in this format. Imposing the super-human character over today's society will always come across awkwardly for me. They seem to want it both ways: an unstoppable physical giant, worthy of the armed-forces complete attention, and an anonymous weak-bodied victim, who is cursed with the power others will kill for. This contrast, although interesting on paper, is increasingly hard to convey believably.