The Incredible Hulk (2008) or, Hulk 2: The Hulk vs. Abomination!

5/20/2024

The Incredible Hulk (2008) or, Hulk 2: The Hulk vs. Abomination!

♥♥♥

A seemingly shameful co-star Edward Norton stands in the shadow of his incensed monstrous alter ego on this very dark poster for Louis Leterrier's The Incredible Hulk

Bruce Banner has isolated himself in Brazil, where he is nevertheless discovered by the US military, who are eager to use his gamma-induced mutation for weapons purposes. Banner's attempts to squelch his green fury fails, and he instead finds that he has to fight the Russian-born madman Blonsky.

The Incredible Hulk is written by Zak Penn (Elektra (2005)), based on the Marvel Comics character created in 1962, and directed by Louis Leterrier (The Transporter (2002)). It is a kind of reboot of the character, following Ang Lee's Hulk (2003).

On the back of the unfair reception of Lee's fantastic film, it must be said that Leterrier's fanboy appeasement version here is not a gamma ray better.

There's great action, good-looking effects and some neat cast choices: William Hurt (The Village (2004)) as the cynical general is on-point; Liv Tyler (Ad Astra (2019)) is dishy, - but lacks the depth Jennifer Connelly supplied in Lee's film, - and Edward Norton (Primal Fear (1996)) and Tim Roth (The Misfits (2021)) as his enemy are good.

The Incredible Hulk is very cheesy and has thin spots, (as when Hulk towards the end quells a helicopter fire with a clap), and the monster battle climax lacks dramatic air. But it is an entertaining spectacle.

Louis Leterrier: 2013 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED VI]

Now You See Me (2013) - Cocky stars trapped in empty construction

2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]
2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]
2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess

Clash of the Titans (2010) - Leterrier's CGI-stuffed remake is surprisingly good

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 137.5-150 mil. $ (different reports)

Box office: 264.7 mil. $

= Big flop (returned 1.76-1.92 times its cost)

[The Incredible Hulk was released 6 June (Colombia) and runs 112 minutes. Norton, who was not Leterrier's first choice for Banner, was very active in the making of the film, writing his own script, disagreeing with the actual film's ending and runtime, and eventually got denied credit for this writing. Shooting took place from June - October 2007 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, California, Virginia, New York, New Jersey, British Columbia and in Ontario, including in Toronto. The film opened #1 to a 55.4 mil. $ first weekend in North America where it spent another 2 weekends in the top 5 (#2-#5), grossing 134.8 mil. $ (50.9 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 15.1 mil. $ (5.7 %) and Mexico with 12.6 mil. $ (4.8 %). The film also reportedly made at least 80.3 mil. $ on the North-American home video market alone. Roger Ebert gave the film a 2.5/4 star review, equal in rating to this one. The Banner/Hulk character was subsequently laid to rest until The Avengers (2012) and its sequels, then portrayed by Mark Ruffalo, but has not had a character-focused feature since The Incredible Hulk. Leterrier returned with Clash of the Titans (2010). Norton returned in Pride and Glory (2008); Tyler in Super (2010); and Roth in Skellig: The Owl Man (2009, TV movie), Sea Wolf (2009, miniseries) and theatrically in King Conqueror (2009). The Incredible Hulk is fresh at 67 % with a 6.20/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

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Donald Sutherland has passed away

Born in Canada, Sutherland battled polio as a child. His first credit was in Suspense (1963, TV-series) and his first film was The Castle of the Living Dead (1964). Later credits in his remarkable career include The Saint (1965-66), The Dirty Dozen (1967), M*A*S*H (1970), Kelly's Heroes (1970), Klute (1971), Don't Look Now (1973), 1900 (1976), Casanova (1976), The Eagle Has Landed (1976), Ordinary People (1980), A Dry White Season (1989), JFK (1991), Outbreak (1995), Fallen (1998), Virus (1999), Fierce People (2005), Pride & Prejudice (2005), Lord of War (2005), The Hunger Games (2012), The Undoing (2020, miniseries) and many more. He passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

Roger Corman has passed away

Born in Detroit, Michigan, Corman had a sprawling, intellectually hungry life as a youth and young man before arriving with his first film in 1955, Five Guns West. He would follow that with titles such as Apache Woman, It Conquered the World, Attack of the Crab Monsters, Teenage Cave Man, A Bucket of Blood, House of Usher, The Little Shop of Horrors, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Intruder, The Raven, The Terror, The Masque of Red Death, The Tomb of Ligeia, The Wild Angels, The Trip, Bloody Mama and many more. As a producer he was behind almost 500 films. Arguably among the most important filmmakers of the 20th century, Corman passed away at age 98. R.I.P.

William Friedkin has died

Born in Chicago, Friedkin accrued TV credits prior to his advance to the big screen as the director of Good TImes (1967), The Birthday Party (1968), The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968) and The Boys in the Band (1970) before his major breakthrough, The French Connection (1971), for which he won his only Oscar. He followed it up with the even bigger smash, The Exorcist (1973), arguably the best horror film of all time, for which he was Oscar-nominated. Later credits include Sorcerer (1977), Cruising (1980), To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), Rampage (1987), Rules of Engagement (2000), Killer Joe (2011) and The Devil and Father Amorth (2017, documentary). Friedkin passed away at age 87. R.I.P.

Louise Fletcher has passed away

Born in Alabama to deaf parents, Fletcher got her first credits in late-1950s TV-series.She took a 10 year-long sabbatical to devote her time to motherhood after the release of A Gathering of Eagles, but then came back and soon saw her career's most important part, as Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), for which she won her sole Oscar. Later credits include Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977), The Lucky Star (1980), Brainstorm (1983), Two Moon Junction (1988), Cruel Intentions (1999), A Perfect Man (2013) and many more. Fletcher passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

Jean-Luc Godard has passed away

Born in Paris, France, Godard lived much of his life in Switzerland. He wrote for French film criticism magazine Cahiers du Cinema and became foundational for the New French Wave that inspired new waves in scores of other countries across the world with his Breathless (1960). Later credits include A Woman Is A Woman (1961), Vivre Sa Vie (1962), Le Petit Soldat (1962), Contempt (1963), Alphaville (1965), Pierrot le Fou (1965), 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her (1967), Weekend (1967), Every Man for Himself (1980), King Lear (1987), Century of Cinema (1995, documentary), Goodbye to Language (2014) and many more. Godard died of assisted suicide at age 91. R.I.P.

Wolfgang Petersen has died

James Caan has died

Caan was born the son of Jewish immigrants from Germany in New York. He got his start on TV in the early 1960s. His credits include El Dorado (1966), The Rain People (1969), Brian's Song (1971, TV movie), The Godfather (1972), - for which he earned his only Oscar nomination, - Slither (1973), The Gambler (1974), Funny Lady (1975), Rollerball (1975), Silent Movie (1976), Hide in Plain Sight (1980), - the only film he also directed, - Thief (1981), Misery (1990), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Bottle Rocket (1996), Eraser (1996), Dogville (2003), Elf (2003), Las Vegas (2003-07), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009) and many more. Caan passed away at age 82. R.I.P.

Jean-Louis Trintignant has died

Born in Vaucluse, France, Trintignant's theatrical debut as an actor was in If All the Guys in the World... (1955). Later credits include ...And God Created Woman (1956), The Seven Deadly Sins (1961), Inferno (1964), A Man and A Woman (1966), My Love, My Love (1967), A Man to Kill (1967), The Great Silence (1968), Z (1969), The Assassination (1972), Three Colors: Red (1994), Amour (2012), Happy End (2017) and many more. He also wrote and directed two films in the 1970s. Trintignant passed away at age 91. R.I.P.

Ray Liotta has died

Adopted from an orphenage at a young age, Liotta got hooked on acting in high school. He had various TV credits in the late 1970s and early 80s, with his film debut in The Lonely Lady (1983). Later credits include Something Wild (1986), Field of Dreams (1989), Goodfellas (1990), Cop Land (1997), Hannibal (2001), Blow (2001), Narc (2002), John Q (2002), Identity (2003), Observe and Report (2009), Youth in Revolt (2009), The Details (2011), Killing THem Softly (2012), The Place Beyond the Pines (2012), Shades of Blue (2016-18), The Simpsons (2018, TV-series), Marriage Story (2019), The Many Saints of Newark (2021), Black Bird (2022, TV-series) and many more. Liotta passed away at age 67 in his sleep while on production in the Dominican Republic. R.I.P.

Philip Baker Hall has died

Born in Ohio, Hall didn't start acting until he was 30. His long list of credits include Zabriskie Point (1970), Miami Vice (1987, TV-series), Midnight Run (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Cheers (1993, TV-series), Hard Eight (1996), The Rock (1996), Air Force One (1997), Boogie Nights (1997), Seinfeld (1991-98), Rush Hour (1998), The Insider (1999), Magnolia (1999), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Bruce Almighty (2003), Dogville (2003), The Zodiac (2005), Zodiac (2007), Curb Your Enthusiasm (2004-09), Mr. Popper's Penguins (2011), Modern Family (2011-12) and many more. Hall passed away at age 90. R.I.P.

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5/20/2024

The Incredible Hulk (2008) or, Hulk 2: The Hulk vs. Abomination!

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