The Hulk

Gentle reader, don't make this preview angry. You wouldn't like it when it's angry...

Although HULK does not have the 20-years-in-development-hell backstory belonging to last year's breakthrough Marvel Studios flick, SPIDER-MAN, it did take a long time to translate the 1960s Stan Lee/Jack Kirby comic and 1970s CBS TV show onto the big screen.

Writers as diverse as Michael France (GOLDENEYE, PUNISHER), Michael Tolkin (RAPTURE) and David Hayter (X-MEN, X-2, SCORPION KING) have taken shots at coming up with a script, but the project floundered at Universal until director Ang Lee, fresh off his success with CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON, decided he wanted HULK to be his next project and brought writer James Shamus along. Shamus has worked with Lee previously on THE ICE STORM and CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON.

Fans should rest assured that the movie is in good hands. Early drafts by other writers have popped up on the Internet and had ridiculous premises such as Hulk coming about as the result of a NASA project to colonize Mars and fighting, of all things, meter maids!

The ideas from these early drafts were almost completely discarded by Lee and Shamus, who basically began from scratch. Given Ang Lee's solid directing credentials with critically acclaimed and award-winning dramatic movies to his credit, there's no one who could bring a better perspective of the human tragedy that is the life of Bruce Banner.

While the 1970s TV show is fondly remembered by some, serious Hulk fans will be glad to know that the movie only borrows a couple catch-phrases from the TV series, relying far more on the character's comic book concept.

Let's be honest, this is a good thing. The TV show may have been fun for its era and budget constraints, but with absolutely no superpowered villains to fight, the TV Hulk faced no real challenges worthy of him and also rarely did anything that would cause him to be hunted by anyone outside of tabloid journalist Jack McGee.

Even though the movie draws from the Stan Lee/Jack Kirby concept of Hulk, there are differences. Gone, apparently, is Rick Jones, the teenager Banner rescued from exposure to a gamma bomb in the comic, a heroic act that led inadvertently to Banner's transformation into the Hulk.

Also gone is the somewhat silly "running out into a nuclear test blast site" concept; Ang Lee is keeping the plot of the movie, including how Banner initially becomes the Hulk, relatively close to the vest.

What is known is that some time will be spent setting up the backstory for young Bruce Banner, who apparently had an alcoholic, abusive father who beat both young Bruce and Bruce's mom, ultimately resulting in Mrs. Banner's death. Too afraid to testify against his father at the trial, Banner is immersed in an emotional cocoon, letting just about everyone walk all over him.

As an adult, Banner has become a brilliant scientist working for the military under General Thaddeus Ross, whose personality mirrors that of Banner's father ... controlling, aloof and abusive.

Enter Ross' daughter, who sees a gem of a guy underneath Banner's reclusive demeanor. They begin to fall in love, cracking Banner's emotional shell for the first time since his youth.

Some kind of "accident" happens - this is the part Ang Lee is guarding as a secret - and it involves Banner saving Betty (rather than Rick Jones). The accident comes at the same time Banner's emotions are starting to free themselves and as his control on his emotions loosens, the accident leads to physical manifestations of his decades-repressed anger. Eventually, he becomes the Hulk and goes on a rampage as General Ross vows to destroy the creature and Betty stands ... as she did with the meek scientist Banner ... as the only one who feels for or potentially understands the creature.

While further details remain under wraps (thank goodness!), it's clear Lee and Shamus have a solid handle on Banner. While the characters and concept rely heavily on the Stan Lee vision, the inclusion of all the "abusive father" stuff indicates that the filmmakers have studied the Peter David decade-long run on the comic.

Fortunately, Ang Lee isn't attempting anything as ridiculous as David's FUTURE IMPERFECT storyline, which used an older, eviler Hulk who had become a world dictator as the main villain.

Instead, Banner is the sympathetic hero while ... from the sound of things ... Hulk himself will for the most part be the misunderstood villain of the piece. Rumors of Hulk doing battle with "hulked-out" dogs have been confirmed by the director, and there may be another gamma-powered creature for Hulk's final battle, but all the footage we've seen indicates the bulk of the film will concentrate on Hulk being hunted by the military and the media.

Straying away from Peter David and Stan Lee, Ang and Shamus' vision seems to be focused on using the Hulk as a way to flesh out the theme of Banner's repressed emotions and emotional release. If this theme is carried out well, HULK could become the first Marvel Studios film to not only be respected as an action flick, but as a deeply-layered emotional drama - something Lee and Shamus are already known for.

Presently, our biggest concern is the casting. Nick Nolte as Banner's father is a solid choice, but Sam Elliott seems a low-rent choice for General Ross. Josh Lucas as Major Glenn Talbott is fine since all Talbott represents is a General Ross-approved rival to Banner for the affections of Betty Ross.

The best casting choice is the lovely Jennifer Connelly as Betty Ross. Not only does she have solid dramatic acting credentials (A BEAUTIFUL MIND) but she has done superhero movies before, the dismal early 90s flick, ROCKETEER, in which she was the sole bright spot.

The biggest risk is the relatively unknown Eric Bana, who is cast in a lead role here for the first time. While his C-level celebrity status probably made it easier and cheaper to sign him to a multi-film deal, we're still a bit disappointed that early rumors of Johnny Depp as Banner never came to fruition.

Still, if anyone is capable of getting star-level performances of unknowns, it's Ang Lee. He saw the potential in Katie Holmes before she was cast in DAWSON'S CREEK and became a household name, using her in THE ICE STORM. And Zhang Ziyi was a newcomer when Lee cast her as the princess in CROUCHING TIGER...

Still, Holmes was buried in an ensemble piece and Ziyi was surrounded by Michelle Yeoh and Chow Yung Fat. The most prominent star capable of taking some of the spotlight off Bana is the CGI Hulk being created for the film by George Lucas' Industrial Light and Magic effects studio.

Time will tell...

While the recent DAREDEVIL did a good job of translating comic fans' favorite scenes to film, the biggest criticism has been that the emotional backgrounds of Elektra and Kingpin were given the short shrift. All early indications are that this will not be the case with HULK.

It would have been easy for Universal to hand HULK to a Michael Bay-type action director and get a film that's all spectacle and no depth. They chose a less traditional path that is riskier but could pay off big-time.

With the choice of Ang Lee, Universal has a chance to capture some of the same "magic in a bottle" that fueled last summer's SPIDER-MAN to blockbuster success as a film that not only appeals to comic fans (younger males) and action fans (older males) but female moviegoers as well, who will be drawn not only to the love story between Banner and Betty, but the emotional complexity and inherent tragedy of the characters.

June 20 is going to be a good day to be a Marvel fan ... or the biggest disappointment in Marvel movie history, if somehow this flick fails to deliver the goods. With Ang Lee on board, it's hard to imagine the latter actually happening.

"Y2Craig" Craig Hansen
Contributor, Kikizo Movies