A Marlowe Exclusive: THE INCREDIBLE HULK (U.S. Version; Universal/Marvel Studios)

Peter Marlowe · 10-28-2008, 02:32 AM

This is a review of the LIMITED EDITION Blu-ray, which I was lucky enough to get my hands on as a thoughtful pre-holiday present from my foxy lady, and includes awesome special packaging with a holographic slipcase cover featuring the Hulk battling the Abomination -- as well as an alternate opening sequence. I must say, this is one of the nicest sleeves to adorn a BD title I have seen.

From an out-of-nowhere director -- Louis Leterrier -- comes a savior of a film showcasing one of Marvel's most loved characters during its entire comic run...and when I say "savior," I am of course talking about the fact that Leterrier and crew pulled this concept out of the dungeon that Ang Lee put it in in his first perspective of The Hulk. To many fans, that film was a forgettable tangle of plot holes & book inaccuracies and included a tiring backstory and odd introduction to Bruce Banner's father -- the whole thing just felt odd, and adding insult to injury was some pretty bad CGI work and a lead by Eric Bana that just didn't fit right. What was the deal with Banner Sr. creating dogs that would attack the Hulk? What was with the cartoonish CGI? Ang Lee's Hulk, in all fairness, wasn't the worst comic adaptation ever made -- let's leave that to Captain America or perhaps Supergirl -- and even included traces of comic authenticity what with his jumping and leaping from continent to continent...but something just wasn't right about that film, and critics and fans were all over Lee for it like white on rice.

This current adaptation, while still not nearly perfect, levels the playing field and makes up for Lee's version in spades -- yet it's strange that of the disastrous comic films that have come before it such as the aforementioned Captain America or perhaps The Punisher, this is the only one that had made execs run back to the drawing board -- quickly -- and revamp a new version to release within a few years. Now, of course, this could be because of the hoopla and excitement Spider-Man brought to the comic adaptation world -- all heros are being considered to be brought to the big screen now and even in an all-encompassing Avengers project -- but whatever the reason, this version of Marvel's green giant just works better than Ang Lee's did.

Let's get some of the negatives out of the way first -- Sam Elliot was definitely better as General Ross in Lee's version than William Hurt is in this one. As for Betty Ross, it really didn't matter who played her between Jennifer Connolly in Lee's version and Liv Tyler in this one -- they both kind of worked; but the main gripe I still have is in the casting of Banner in both these films and I still don't think they have it right yet. Yes -- Edward Norton definitely pulls the roll off better than Eric Bana did, and the most transfixing element of his performance is the way they got his green eye transformations down -- it was perfect here -- but I'm still not so sure Norton embodies the essence of Banner from the comics. Of course, the problem is that we all remember Bill Bixby from the TV show, and we see him in every actor that adorns the ripped pants now.

There's also the problem of the villain in this version -- while absolutely refreshing to see the Hulk fight another monster (the first Ang Lee film had some weird "confrontation" between Banner and his father, who becomes a "creature" too) it's never made clear why this guy runs around Harlem, New York, just smashing cars and people -- this was a weak point. The whole "villain" angle wasn't explored well in this cut.

Where Ang Lee's Hulk was more about explaining the backstory to Banner's gamma radiation sickness and testing, this new one just goes for the throat and assumes fans know the story -- it opens with flashes of Banner (Norton) and Betty (Tyler) in their lab, where his experiment went wrong and thus, he became the Hulk. It then leaps right into Banner's life now, where he is hiding out in South American and Mexican subcultures, on the run from General Ross and the government, who want to exploit his powers. There are several great, great nods to Hulk nostalgia in some scenes, such as another cameo by Stan Lee, who ends up drinking some beverage made by the factory Banner works in and accidentally dropped some of his contaminated blood in, plus a cameo from the Hulk himself -- Lou Ferrigno, who plays a security guard at a college campus that takes a "pizza bribe" from Norton so he can sneak into the lab. It's amazing how in shape this guy still is -- after all these years, Ferrigno is still built like a brick shithouse. There is also a clever little clip of the piano theme from the TV show that plays at one point. All very creative.

At any rate, General Ross (William Hurt) eventually hunts Banner down and finds him in his subterranean shit holes he's living in but there's an added focus here -- some Brit who's along for the ride, working with Ross, is very interested in this power Banner has inside him and is desperate to tap into it. Ross eventually injects him with some serum to make him super-aggressive in order to capture Banner, but the soldier goes insane and eventually becomes the Abomination -- before that, a load of chaos ensues with some wild CGI work that will make your head spin...a semi-fight between the "super soldier" of Ross' and the Hulk on the lawn of Betty's university and of course the conclusion sequence which features a brawl between the Abomination and Hulk on the streets of Harlem, New York. By the time you get to this part, the story gets a bit too much -- why does this soldier under Ross want so much power and be like the Hulk so badly? When he eventually forces the "secret scientist" who has been helping Banner find a cure for the gamma "infection" (a really dumb sub-plot of the film) to give him a full dose of whatever was in Banner's blood, he becomes this spiny, gigantic monster with more than the Hulk's powers -- but at this point, the CGI gets way too cartoonish and yet again, it's a problem I had with the first Ang Lee version: why can't they get the CGI right for these films? Spider-Man 2 looked pretty awesome, and many of the sequences in the third film looked great too, but somehow, when Norton changes from Banner to the green guy, there's suddenly a shift from film to almost video game quality, and you lose immersion. The same problem plagued Lee's cut.

Of course, there's the inevitable opening for a sequel, and the tie-in with Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) as Iron Man and General Ross, as the Avengers project ramps up...that's all I'm going to say about that. Alas, while not perfect, The Incredible Hulk is a very satisfying comic adaptation.

VIDEO ANALYSIS:
1080p WIDESCREEN 2.35:1

This was my first viewing of a Universal title in high def, as I waited on the sidelines to watch them come off of HD DVD's death and start re-issuing the titles in Blu...this transfer looks great for the most part. The opening sequence that is a flashback to the gamma accident looks murky and washed out with tons of grain, but evidently it was intentional, because the film clears up from that point and detail begins to explode. The scenes of Norton in his hideouts in Mexico and other locations exhibit great degrees of detail in the fleshtones and there was very little grain to speak of. The CGI shots, while cartoonish, looked lavish and rich in 1080, most notably the shot of Hulk going into the cave with Betty -- wow...this almost looked like an oil painting come to life on my screen. Some scenes in the later portion of the film get somewhat soft and almost DVD-like. Otherwise, a solid effort from Universal.

AUDIO ANALYSIS:
ENGLISH DTS-HD MASTER AUDIO 5.1

WOW -- if the video doesn't make your lady soil her panties with a big wet stain in the crotch, the sound mix on this disc sure as shit will. This is one of the most aggressive and immersive tracks of all the high resolution titles thus far -- and I was only running the core DTS stream of the Master Audio mix. Thundering LFE, constant surround activity, immersion -- it's all there. This didn't surprise me, though. The theater experience was orgasm-inducing, too. Crank this one up and hold on -- you're in for quite the treat. The only issue I had was that I kept needing to nudge the master volume up on my receiver to hear the dialogue because I needed to keep it much lower on the action breakouts due to the fact that I have neighbors all around me.

There are a ton of supplements in this package, and Universal has also included a "Digital Copy" of the film on standard DVD, I believe, to be used in your computer.

Enjoy!

**kamspy** · 10-28-2008, 03:09 AM

Already posted.

http://www.highdefforum.com/blu-ray-movie-reviews/81112-incredible-hulk-new-one-uk-bd.html

HD Goofnut · 10-28-2008, 06:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kamspy

Already posted.

You'd think I was reading Roger Ebert or something kam.

Peter Marlowe · 10-28-2008, 01:14 PM

Yeah, that's why I put "U.S. VERSION" in the header when I wrote this...

So it HASEN'T been covered for those from the States wanting to know about this title.

Laugh all you want Goof; at least I put the time and energy into writing an original piece that isn't "coming in under the radar" and is relevant to a current market...

Peter Marlowe · 10-28-2008, 01:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HD Goofnut

You'd think I was reading Roger Ebert or something kam.

I'll also be reporting this comment as aggression and harassment for no reason. Good job.

MikeRox · 10-28-2008, 02:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Marlowe

Yeah, that's why I put "U.S. VERSION" in the header when I wrote this...

So it HASEN'T been covered for those from the States wanting to know about this title.

Laugh all you want Goof; at least I put the time and energy into writing an original piece that isn't "coming in under the radar" and is relevant to a current market...

actually if you read other threads, you'd see that several forum members gave their insight on the US release in the thread too

Peter Marlowe · 10-28-2008, 04:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kamspy

Already posted.

http://www.highdefforum.com/blu-ray-movie-reviews/81112-incredible-hulk-new-one-uk-bd.html

Hmmmm....kind of like when you re-posted on the Street Kings thread already covered weeks before yours? And that was supposed to be a title that "flew under the radar" if I'm not mistaken...

The review I did was COMPLETELY and UTTERLY separate from the one already being discussed by others; it's a different take for folks wanting to discuss the plot, connections to the comic plus audio and video quality of the BD transfer which I found to be stellar.

Peter Marlowe · 10-28-2008, 04:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeRox

actually if you read other threads, you'd see that several forum members gave their insight on the US release in the thread too

Mike,

There's no need to start a pissing contest here about this; others may have "commented" about the U.S. version in that thread, but this was specifically written and constructed with the intention of strictly U.S. title buyers to find a thread to discuss Universal's technical specs and the plot consistencies/comparisons to Ang Lee's version, etc.

HD Goofnut · 10-28-2008, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Marlowe

Mike,

There's no need to start a pissing contest here about this; others may have "commented" about the U.S. version in that thread, but this was specifically written and constructed with the intention of strictly U.S. title buyers to find a thread to discuss Universal's technical specs and the plot consistencies/comparisons to Ang Lee's version, etc.

Are you Chris Gerhard's twin brother?

Peter Marlowe · 10-28-2008, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HD Goofnut

Are you Chris Gerhard's twin brother?

If you're going to continue coming into this thread to hijack it, you're going to be removed -- please just enter the thread to discuss the title.

HD Goofnut · 10-28-2008, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Marlowe

If you're going to continue coming into this thread to hijack it, you're going to be removed -- please just enter the thread to discuss the title.

I was asking an honest question.

MikeRox · 10-28-2008, 04:37 PM

chill dude, I was messing hence the

The only reason I put "UK version" was because it was released in the UK before the US and I wanted forumers to know it wasn't a pirate version or a fake review.

Peter Marlowe · 10-28-2008, 04:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HD Goofnut

I was asking an honest question.

No you weren't; stop acting like a two year old and grow up and knock all this nonsense off between you and kam "bullying up" on everyone in here...Jesus Christ man; this is supposed to be about our HOBBY...

HD Goofnut · 10-28-2008, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Marlowe

No you weren't; stop acting like a two year old and grow up and knock all this nonsense off between you and kam "bullying up" on everyone in here...Jesus Christ man; this is supposed to be about our HOBBY...

Again, that was an honest question. Of course this is a hobby, which is why I fail to understand why you take stuff on this forum way too seriously.

Peter Marlowe · 10-28-2008, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeRox

chill dude, I was messing hence the

The only reason I put "UK version" was because it was released in the UK before the US and I wanted forumers to know it wasn't a pirate version or a fake review.

No problem Mike; I didn't mean to piss on YOUR efforts at all -- I just wanted to add a different perspective to the title and thought you were involved with a UK-only project...all is cool. The only thing I wanted to stress was that it was stated by someone in here that likes to hijack my threads that this "has already been covered" when I pointed the same thing out to him before this that HE was doing that with Street Kings...it had been covered.

Did you enjoy the Hulk? I didn't get a chance to read through all your thoughts on that...

10-28-2008, 02:32 AM	#1
Peter Marlowe Blu-ray Reviewer Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 2,257	A Marlowe Exclusive: THE INCREDIBLE HULK (U.S. Version; Universal/Marvel Studios) This is a review of the LIMITED EDITION Blu-ray, which I was lucky enough to get my hands on as a thoughtful pre-holiday present from my foxy lady, and includes awesome special packaging with a holographic slipcase cover featuring the Hulk battling the Abomination -- as well as an alternate opening sequence. I must say, this is one of the nicest sleeves to adorn a BD title I have seen. From an out-of-nowhere director -- Louis Leterrier -- comes a savior of a film showcasing one of Marvel's most loved characters during its entire comic run...and when I say "savior," I am of course talking about the fact that Leterrier and crew pulled this concept out of the dungeon that Ang Lee put it in in his first perspective of The Hulk. To many fans, that film was a forgettable tangle of plot holes & book inaccuracies and included a tiring backstory and odd introduction to Bruce Banner's father -- the whole thing just felt odd, and adding insult to injury was some pretty bad CGI work and a lead by Eric Bana that just didn't fit right. What was the deal with Banner Sr. creating dogs that would attack the Hulk? What was with the cartoonish CGI? Ang Lee's Hulk, in all fairness, wasn't the worst comic adaptation ever made -- let's leave that to Captain America or perhaps Supergirl -- and even included traces of comic authenticity what with his jumping and leaping from continent to continent...but something just wasn't right about that film, and critics and fans were all over Lee for it like white on rice. This current adaptation, while still not nearly perfect, levels the playing field and makes up for Lee's version in spades -- yet it's strange that of the disastrous comic films that have come before it such as the aforementioned Captain America or perhaps The Punisher, this is the only one that had made execs run back to the drawing board -- quickly -- and revamp a new version to release within a few years. Now, of course, this could be because of the hoopla and excitement Spider-Man brought to the comic adaptation world -- all heros are being considered to be brought to the big screen now and even in an all-encompassing Avengers project -- but whatever the reason, this version of Marvel's green giant just works better than Ang Lee's did. Let's get some of the negatives out of the way first -- Sam Elliot was definitely better as General Ross in Lee's version than William Hurt is in this one. As for Betty Ross, it really didn't matter who played her between Jennifer Connolly in Lee's version and Liv Tyler in this one -- they both kind of worked; but the main gripe I still have is in the casting of Banner in both these films and I still don't think they have it right yet. Yes -- Edward Norton definitely pulls the roll off better than Eric Bana did, and the most transfixing element of his performance is the way they got his green eye transformations down -- it was perfect here -- but I'm still not so sure Norton embodies the essence of Banner from the comics. Of course, the problem is that we all remember Bill Bixby from the TV show, and we see him in every actor that adorns the ripped pants now. There's also the problem of the villain in this version -- while absolutely refreshing to see the Hulk fight another monster (the first Ang Lee film had some weird "confrontation" between Banner and his father, who becomes a "creature" too) it's never made clear why this guy runs around Harlem, New York, just smashing cars and people -- this was a weak point. The whole "villain" angle wasn't explored well in this cut. Where Ang Lee's Hulk was more about explaining the backstory to Banner's gamma radiation sickness and testing, this new one just goes for the throat and assumes fans know the story -- it opens with flashes of Banner (Norton) and Betty (Tyler) in their lab, where his experiment went wrong and thus, he became the Hulk. It then leaps right into Banner's life now, where he is hiding out in South American and Mexican subcultures, on the run from General Ross and the government, who want to exploit his powers. There are several great, great nods to Hulk nostalgia in some scenes, such as another cameo by Stan Lee, who ends up drinking some beverage made by the factory Banner works in and accidentally dropped some of his contaminated blood in, plus a cameo from the Hulk himself -- Lou Ferrigno, who plays a security guard at a college campus that takes a "pizza bribe" from Norton so he can sneak into the lab. It's amazing how in shape this guy still is -- after all these years, Ferrigno is still built like a brick shithouse. There is also a clever little clip of the piano theme from the TV show that plays at one point. All very creative. At any rate, General Ross (William Hurt) eventually hunts Banner down and finds him in his subterranean shit holes he's living in but there's an added focus here -- some Brit who's along for the ride, working with Ross, is very interested in this power Banner has inside him and is desperate to tap into it. Ross eventually injects him with some serum to make him super-aggressive in order to capture Banner, but the soldier goes insane and eventually becomes the Abomination -- before that, a load of chaos ensues with some wild CGI work that will make your head spin...a semi-fight between the "super soldier" of Ross' and the Hulk on the lawn of Betty's university and of course the conclusion sequence which features a brawl between the Abomination and Hulk on the streets of Harlem, New York. By the time you get to this part, the story gets a bit too much -- why does this soldier under Ross want so much power and be like the Hulk so badly? When he eventually forces the "secret scientist" who has been helping Banner find a cure for the gamma "infection" (a really dumb sub-plot of the film) to give him a full dose of whatever was in Banner's blood, he becomes this spiny, gigantic monster with more than the Hulk's powers -- but at this point, the CGI gets way too cartoonish and yet again, it's a problem I had with the first Ang Lee version: why can't they get the CGI right for these films? Spider-Man 2 looked pretty awesome, and many of the sequences in the third film looked great too, but somehow, when Norton changes from Banner to the green guy, there's suddenly a shift from film to almost video game quality, and you lose immersion. The same problem plagued Lee's cut. Of course, there's the inevitable opening for a sequel, and the tie-in with Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) as Iron Man and General Ross, as the Avengers project ramps up...that's all I'm going to say about that. Alas, while not perfect, The Incredible Hulk is a very satisfying comic adaptation. VIDEO ANALYSIS: 1080p WIDESCREEN 2.35:1 This was my first viewing of a Universal title in high def, as I waited on the sidelines to watch them come off of HD DVD's death and start re-issuing the titles in Blu...this transfer looks great for the most part. The opening sequence that is a flashback to the gamma accident looks murky and washed out with tons of grain, but evidently it was intentional, because the film clears up from that point and detail begins to explode. The scenes of Norton in his hideouts in Mexico and other locations exhibit great degrees of detail in the fleshtones and there was very little grain to speak of. The CGI shots, while cartoonish, looked lavish and rich in 1080, most notably the shot of Hulk going into the cave with Betty -- wow...this almost looked like an oil painting come to life on my screen. Some scenes in the later portion of the film get somewhat soft and almost DVD-like. Otherwise, a solid effort from Universal. *AUDIO ANALYSIS:* ENGLISH DTS-HD MASTER AUDIO 5.1 WOW -- if the video doesn't make your lady soil her panties with a big wet stain in the crotch, the sound mix on this disc sure as shit will. This is one of the most aggressive and immersive tracks of all the high resolution titles thus far -- and I was only running the core DTS stream of the Master Audio mix. Thundering LFE, constant surround activity, immersion -- it's all there. This didn't surprise me, though. The theater experience was orgasm-inducing, too. Crank this one up and hold on -- you're in for quite the treat. The only issue I had was that I kept needing to nudge the master volume up on my receiver to hear the dialogue because I needed to keep it much lower on the action breakouts due to the fact that I have neighbors all around me. There are a ton of supplements in this package, and Universal has also included a "Digital Copy" of the film on standard DVD, I believe, to be used in your computer. Enjoy! __________________ ONKYO TX-SR605B HDMI 1.3a; Onboard Dolby Digital Plus/TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio Panasonic DMP-BD10A SONY 1080p KDS-50A2020 SXRD Mains: polkaudio R20 Center: polkaudio CSi30 Surrounds: polkaudio R15 Sub: polkaudio PSW10 marantz CC4001 TASCAM CD-RW900SL PROFESSIONAL Technics SL-QD33 (due for replacement) APC SurgeArrest System INTERCONNECTS & SPEAKER CABLING BY MONSTER Last Review: Last edited by Peter Marlowe; 10-28-2008 at 02:37 AM.

10-28-2008, 01:14 PM	#4
Peter Marlowe Blu-ray Reviewer Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 2,257	Yeah, that's why I put "U.S. VERSION" in the header when I wrote this... So it HASEN'T been covered for those from the States wanting to know about this title. Laugh all you want Goof; at least I put the time and energy into writing an original piece that isn't "coming in under the radar" and is relevant to a current market... __________________ ONKYO TX-SR605B HDMI 1.3a; Onboard Dolby Digital Plus/TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio Panasonic DMP-BD10A SONY 1080p KDS-50A2020 SXRD Mains: polkaudio R20 Center: polkaudio CSi30 Surrounds: polkaudio R15 Sub: polkaudio PSW10 marantz CC4001 TASCAM CD-RW900SL PROFESSIONAL Technics SL-QD33 (due for replacement) APC SurgeArrest System INTERCONNECTS & SPEAKER CABLING BY MONSTER Last Review:

10-28-2008, 04:37 PM	#12
MikeRox Blu Blu Skies! :D Join Date: May 2007 Location: Huddersfield, United Kingdom Posts: 12,416	chill dude, I was messing hence the The only reason I put "UK version" was because it was released in the UK before the US and I wanted forumers to know it wasn't a pirate version or a fake review. __________________ REGION B 4TW! Latest HD additions - I Love You Man - 17 Again - Born on the 4th of July - Paul Blart: Mall Cop - Monsters, Inc. HD Movies - Um... Lost count >_< bout 250 Latest Gaming Additions - Mirrors Edge - Scene It BOS - Wartech: Senko No Ronde - Lego Indiana Jones/Kung Fu Panda 2 pack - Silent Hill

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10-28-2008, 03:09 AM	#2
kamspy Esteban Moderatoro Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Cincinnati,OH Good Posts: 12 Posts: 13,048	Already posted. http://www.highdefforum.com/blu-ray-movie-reviews/81112-incredible-hulk-new-one-uk-bd.html