Lovely 'til the very end (literally)

Rating: 9/10 (10 November 2010)

I decided to watch this movie with only loose knowledge of the Hulk. All I knew going in was the very basics- Bruce Banner is a scientist who's experiment goes awry and he turns into a monster every time he gets angry. I didn't know what this version was going to be like, and I had NO idea whether a sequel was in the making (which would ruin the fear you get out of wondering whether the main character will or won't die). This movie is AWESOME that way!!!!!
I loved the fact that Bruce Banner is a misunderstood villain. He tries to control his... I'll call it his disease, he works on controlling his temper. He even tells people, "I'm not good when I'm angry." He's used to playing cat and mouse with the government, is pretty smart (Well, duh, he's a SCIENTIST), very mysterious and (excuse my language) undoubtedly cute! In other words, there's no better choice for this role than Edward Norton. Even though he's technically a villain since he has no control over his disease, I still found myself loving every bit of him on screen. I'm not saying this is bad, but Edward Norton, at least in this, has a habit of making simple lines pull at you and make you love the Hulk. (Oddly, I found myself smiling when he said, "The circumstances called for improvisation." Who would've thought that barfing could be adorable?!) I was routing for him the entire time and Edward Norton never failed to deliver a line perfectly.
Setting Bruce Banner and Edward Norton aside, the rest of this movie doesn't fail to go past expectations! Usually in action movies I just assume that all the main characters will live because that's just how action movies work. In this, my jaw dropped more than once and I did say, "Aww, what? They're dead?" at one point before breathing a sigh of relief. The excellent CGI really helped keep the action pumping; I think my mind forgot that the Hulk is just an image made by a computer for about 10 minutes!
"Now, why didn't you give this a 10?" you may be asking yourself. I gave this a 9 because the ending, though completely fitting, was a little disappointing. It was a bit like watching the end of Inception, you find yourself wondering whether Bruce has overcome his disease or whether the disease has overcome him. I'd like to think Bruce won.
Robert Downey Jr. He had a completely random cameo at the very very end that apparently leads to the vague idea of a sequel of some sort (And this is coming from a die-hard Downey fan). I thought Iron Man was arrogant and, at the end of the first Iron Man film (which also came out in 2008), he believed he could fair by himself. Yes, Samuel L. Jackson told him other wise at the very very end of Iron Man, but why on Earth would Tony Stark listen to him and not all the other people who've tried to give him advice? This Avenger's movie better be EPIC or I'll feel like I just got slapped in the face!
All in all, though, this is a great movie. Since you've read my review (hopefully), I'm assuming you've read how much information I came into this movie with. That's all you need to truly enjoy this film. And one last thing. I tried to resist, but I can't help myself: "HULK SMAAAAAAASH!" :D