MCU Sunday #2: The Incredible Hulk

 

 

 

 

Preface: As promised last year, I am reviewing every single currently available movie in what is known as the  Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) over the year 2024. These will appear once a week, in order of their release over that time period. This is the second installment. (Oh, and by the way, after I've exhausted all of the currently available MCU movies I will be rounding out the year with some of the other available movies made from the Marvel comics pantheon)

Notes: In each of the MCU installments you will be seeing references to two recurring events that occur in nearly every MCU movie.

Where is Stan Lee?: Stan Lee was the driving genius behind Marvel Comics.  He usually shows up in a cameo.  Sometimes these are so quick you gotta be sure you don't blink. Occasionally he gets a line  of dialogue.

And the Credits Roll: You should always stay in the theater for the credits when watching a MCU movie, because during the credits and at the end there is a teaser (or two) that is worth the wait.  Often they were a teaser for the next installment of the films.

MCU Sunday Part II

The second movie that MCU put out was for one of the characters that was already familiar to the audiences. The Incredible Hulk  was first brought to the TV media audiences in the 1970's TV series The Incredible Hulk, featuring Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno. 

According to a book I am reading, MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, the reason the TV series changed the name of the main character from Bruce Banner (as was his name in the comic book) to David Banner because the studios thought that "Bruce" made hims sound homosexual.  Not a very drastic thing really,and definitely not PC by today's standards but that was the mindset in the 70's.

The TV series lasted for 5 seasons (from 1978-1982) and even generated several made-for-TV movies.  There have also been some animated appearances of the Not-So-Jolly Green Giant.  Later, the first attempt at making the Hulk a cinematic hero came at the hands of Ang Lee. (Hulk (2003). Although that movie has a pretty good Rotten Tomatoes reception (6.2 out of 10), it wasn't one of my favorites. (See my review of that one, sometime later this year).

When Marvel Studios got it's hand in the actual production of this as it's second installment, they gave it a better turn. Edward Norton got the nod to star, although in later installments he would be replaced by Mark Ruffalo. (The story behind Norton's replacement seems to be that Norton was a difficult star to work with. There are others who say this story is not necessarily true.  I don't claim any knowledge of the truth however.)

Making the Hulk real, however, has not been so difficult, especially with the advent of CGI.  In the 70's you could coat a body builder like Lou Ferrigno in green paint and convince the viewing audience that Banner (Bill Bixby) had transformed to the big guy.  But the comic book Hulk was a lot bigger than the TV series could pull off.  

30 years later we have the benefit of computers to give us a Hulk whose size is more like the character from the comic book. It was also a lot easier to depict the amazing strength of the character.  Sure, Ferrigno could probably have pulled off most of the stunts he was performing in the TV series, but without help he would not have been able to do all the things the comic book character could do.

One thing you should know about this movie: If you are one of those people who generally come in after the opening credits, you will miss out, because the origin story is run (without the benefit of dialogue, admittedly) during the credits. (Not to worry, though.  It is encapsulated later in the movie.)

The Incredible Hulk (2008):

At the start of the film, we find Bruce Banner (Edward Norton), hiding out in Brazil.  He is on a quest to find a cure for his gamma radiation sickness.  He has gone over 150 days without incident. What that incidence is is not readily apparent at the outset, but it does have Bruce communicating, under the alias of "Mr. Green" (cute), with a mysterious "Mr. Blue" via the internet to find a cure.

 

 

 

Bruce receives a care package which has some flower that Mr. Blue suggests might help him. It is apparent by the communications that Mr. Blue is not fully cognizant as to the extent of Bruce's problem, because after Bruce tells him of the failure of the experiment Mr. Blue tells him he needs more data.

Bruce is working at the bottling plant of a soda company while in Brazil. There is an incident where he accidentally cuts himself and rushes to shut down production before his blood contaminates the production. But he misses one bottle which escapes and is sent along with the rest of the good batch to the USA.

Where is Stan Lee?: Stan Lee plays the unfortunate victim who comes across the contaminated bottle. He takes a sip and says "Wow!"

 

 

 

It is that incident in which the man comes down with gamma sickness that leads General Thunderbolt Ross (William Hurt) to discover that Bruce is hiding out in Brazil.  Ross has been searching for Bruce for some time.  Wanting to capture Bruce, Ross sends in a crack team of commandos, led by Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth).

 

 

 

But Bruce figures out what is happening and goes on the run.  And in the process, the days without incident reverts to 1.  He turns into the Hulk and does some damage to Blonsky's team.  

 

 

 

Blonsky initially thinks that Bruce has an ally. But after conferring with the general after his failure, Blonsky is given the rundown.  Bruce was working on a project that the General, unbeknownst initially to Bruce, was to create a super soldier, based off original experiments circa WWII. (Although not stated in this movie, it is obviously a reference to the experiment that created Captain America, I think.) The General helps Blonsky become more prepared for his next encounter with Bruce by giving him some low level injections of the same formula that Bruce had.

Meanwhile, Bruce returns to America and hooks up with his girlfriend Dr. Betty Ross (Liv Tyler), who just happens to be the General's daughter.  She helps him collect the data that he needs that was supposedly lost at the initial incident that created the Hulk.

But Bruce and Betty have been betrayed by Betty's current boyfriend and Banner is once again trapped as the General tries to recapture him.  Of course, in the guise of the Hulk, Banner once again proves  to be a formidable opponent.  Even an attack of a technologically advanced sound wave cannon fails to subdue him.  In the process of the battle the Hulk severely injures Blonsky. 

Eventually Bruce makes his way to the university where he meets the mysterious Mr. Blue who turns out to be Professor Sterns (Tim Blake Nelson) [who is dressed in a blue t-shirt... again, cute...] The professor tells him that he has developed an antidote for Bruce's condition, but that it may only be effective for one specific transformation.  The first attempt proves to be a success. But the professor reveals that he had previous test subjects using Bruce's blood samples. Bruce insists that the blood samples be destroyed.

Meanwhile Blonsky is on the hunt to find Bruce for another encounter.  This time it is a success. Bruce is captured and Blonsky forces the professor to inject what he got from Bruce into him.  The result is the anti-Hulk villain (finally) Abomination. (OK, so up to this point Blonsky was still somewhat a villain, as well as the General himself somewhat, but one really needs a super villain in these movies.) The Blonsky/Abomination doesn't  have the moral fiber that Bruce/Hulk has however and proceeds to do some serious havoc. Which causes Bruce to plead with the General to let him go so he can stop Abomination. And thus we get the ultimate battle. Destruction ensues.

 

 

 

And The Credits Roll: In this film, the teaser comes before the credits roll, actually.  Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr) approaches the General as he is getting drunk in a bar to tell him that a team is being put together. (A preview of the future which anticipates The Avengers.)

The Incredible Hulk  doesn't have quite the appeal in my opinion as the previous installment in the series. How much of that had to do with Edward Norton's  vision for the character (he was very involved in the shaping of this movie, part of the contract he had signed when he agreed to do it), I can't say.

This may be the reason why man say that if you are going to watch the MCU movies that it is OK just to skip over this one.  Being the completist that I am, I HAD to watch it.  But in retrospect I can say it won't deteriorate from the story line if you decide to jump to Iron Man 2 and leave this one on the shelf. The only thing you'll miss out on is the origin of the Hulk, and a fairly decent climatic battle.

 

Well folks, that's it for this session in the Marvel world.  Drive safely.

Quiggy