I’ve never seen The Incredible Hulk before. Here’s what I thought.
My descent into the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues, and this time I was tasked with watching the 2008 film The Incredible Hulk starring Edward Norton and Liv Tyler. I had some thoughts.
1. Already it’s super weird seeing Edward Norton instead of Mark Ruffalo, but I’ll give him a chance.
2. This is quite the cinematic introduction. I feel like it’s a film of its own/the film I thought this was going to be. What the hell is this movie going to be about now?
3. Oh, hello shirtless Edward Norton!
4. King of watching The Muppets.
5. Two shirtless men. Maybe I’ll like this movie after all.
6. Wow HOW does this instructor do those belly rolls?
7. Oh no the blood! How is he going to find the tiniest speck of blood in this assembly line?
8. Well, I suppose I stand corrected! That looked way too easy.
9. Uh oh, someone didn’t catch the glass bottle!
10. Débora Nascimento: stunning
11. “You wouldn’t like me when I’m…hungry.” Yes, that’s the line!
12. Hmmm, who is Mr. Blue?
13. Is he really going to send his blood through the postal service?
14. Ahhh Stan Lee sighting!!
15. Omg Tim Roth in this movie!? This is gonna be good.
16. I wish Mr. Blue and Bruce were chatting via AIM. What do you think their offline message would be?
17. The technology might not be as advanced as it is today, but this snake cam sliding under the door was solid.
18. THE DOG, TIM!?!? ARE YOU INSANE???
19. It appears that everyone is sweaty in Brazil from the humidity. I might not want to go and explore this country now.
20. This movie loves its Brazilian neighborhood shots.
21. Remember to breathe, Bruce. You know what happens when you’re…hungry.
22. I’m so confused over what time of day it is in this chase scene. These people came into his apartment at nighttime, then as they’re chasing after him it looks like the sun has started to come up, and now as he’s running away it’s dark again. What is going on here?
23. Uh oh, someone is getting hangry. Looks like we have to go back to zero on the days without an incident count.
24. We don’t even get to see his transformation into the Hulk? Lame.
25. Watching that soda spill all over this factory is making me think about how sticky the floors must be.
26. They’re really teasing us with these coy shots of the Hulk. Let me see this bad boy!
27. Tim Roth is so shook to learn that Bruce and the Hulk are the same person. But, I mean, have you ever seen both of them in the same room at the same time? Exactly, so he shouldn’t be this surprised.
28. Also, Tim Roth’s character name doesn’t matter to me. He’ll just be referred to as Tim.
29. What a beautiful waterfall to wake up to. How the hell did he get to this forest in Guatemala though?
30. People really need to stop saying “home” when drivers ask them where they’re going. How would this guy know where your home is? OK, rant over.
31. I’d love to see a lot of professional tough guys pissing in their pants, as Tim said.
32. Alrighty I guess we’ll just have to accept the fact that he got to Guatemala somehow without explaining how!
33. And now he’s in Virginia. Any explanation? Nope.
34. OK, Bruce, this weird lurking around campus vibe is not a good look.
35. Liv Tyler is so beautiful.
36. Very bad continuity job — Betty’s hair goes from down in front of her shoulders, to behind her head, to down in front of her shoulders again.
37. Bruce is heartbroken seeing Betty with another man. I would be heartbroken seeing Liv hang out with someone other than me, too.
38. That’s a cute cameo from Lou Ferrigno. He IS the man!
39. This lab guy is so getting fired for letting the pizza delivery guy use a campus computer.
40. Does Mr. Blue sit at the computer all day long waiting for Bruce to message them?
41. Ty Burrell from Modern Family!
42. Liv is SHOOK seeing Bruce! Bruce is SO SHOOK TOO!
43. BETTY IS RUNNING OUT TO HIM IN THE RAIN!! I’M LIVING FOR THIS!!!!
44. I really like Edward and Liv’s chemistry on screen.
45. I can’t wait to see Tim as a Hulk.
46. Finally we get the Hulk transformation! And he’s very scary!
47. Imagine walking to class and seeing this entire ordeal play out.
48. Yep, there are two students recording this! This would be on TikTok in two seconds today.
49. How is there always a torrential downpour? It was sunny two minutes ago!!
50. Lightning strikes, Hulk throws a giant rock at the sky. Makes sense.
51. When he turns back into Bruce, how in the world are he and Betty supposed to get down from this cave?
52. I cannot believe Tim is still alive after that last blow.
53. Uh oh, I think Tim is going to get hangry, too.
54. Bruce and Betty got out of the cave but we didn’t see it happen! Shocked!
55. Sick watch, Bruce! Do you think he upgraded it for an Apple Watch or Fitbit?
56. OK, not going to lie, I was wondering if Bruce could get intimate. This scene answers my question. Poor Bruce.
57. Tim is back and ready for round three with the Hulk and so am I!
58. It’s insane that Bruce and Betty decided to leave their car in the middle of the highway. Don’t they realize the massive traffic jam they’re about to cause on top of the one already happening?
59. Would you rather ride the subway and transform into the Hulk or ride a taxi with that wild driver?
60. Mr. Blue wearing blue. Very on brand.
61. Oh dear lord, Tim’s spine is nasty! Great CGI work.
62. I bet no grad student has ever tried an experiment quite like this.
63. I think Mr. Blue is obsessed with Bruce a little too much…
64. These poor college kids have seen way too much this semester. First the Hulk fight, now the military pulling up on campus with guns.
65. Mr. Blue: “Why are you always hitting people?” YES!
66. Tim Roth always manages to play characters who are at level 100 at all times.
67. Big, scary, hangry Tim Roth is worse than I ever could have imagined. But why are they so coy about showing these monsters? Just show me what he fully looks like!
68. Finally we get a good look at him! Yikes, Tim.
69. If they tranquilized Bruce back on campus and took him out on a stretcher, how is he not asleep on this plane?
70. At this point this movie is basically repeating Iron Man. Instead of Tony and the Dude fighting, it’s Bruce and scary Tim. I smell a Marvel formula!
71. GET OUT OF THE STREET PEOPLE! HOW ARE YOU STILL RUNNING AROUND WHEN THERE ARE TWO MONSTERS ON THE LOOSE?
72. The best military aircraft available at the time and not a single bullet hits scary Tim.
73. You’re telling me all it takes for a massive fire to be put out is the Hulk clapping?
74. Oh my god that “Hulk smash” was SO LAME. I’m cringing.
75. Betty, you’re really going to tell Hulk to stop after scary Tim terrorized the entire city?
76. Well now that that fight is over, it looks like it’s time for Bruce to end up in some random place again with no explanation given to us! Oh look, I’m right!
77. It’s our friend Tony Stark! This was the most exciting part of the entire movie.
Overall Thoughts On The Incredible Hulk
Going from Iron Man to The Incredible Hulk was quite the downgrade. This film, although it’s another character origin story, is definitely not as lively as the former, mainly because of casting. While I think Norton is a fantastic actor, this role was not made for him. I’ve seen Ruffalo’s charming and humorous take on Hulk in later Marvel films, so it’s a shame that didn’t play out with this film. I did enjoy the supporting cast, particularly Roth as the villain. He never disappoints and was such a joy to watch.
The story basically took the Iron Man formula and ran with it – particularly the fight between the two monsters at the end – so there’s not a whole lot that stands out to me here. Another issue with the script is that it really glosses over the Hulk’s true origin story, which seemed like a far more compelling story to tell. The opening credits sucked me in, and I was quite disappointed that we didn’t get to see more of the experiment that led to the Hulk’s creation and what it was like when he first turned into him. The story that we got, instead, took itself so seriously and was a bit of a drag to watch at times.
The Incredible Hulk would have benefited from a better lead casting as well as a script revamp, but I learned plenty about this character so at least the movie did its job.
Rating: 2 out of 5
NEXT: I’ve Never Seen Iron Man Before. Here’s What I Thought.
About The Incredible Hulk
Scientist Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) desperately seeks a cure for the gamma radiation that contaminated his cells and turned him into The Hulk. Cut off from his true love Betty Ross (Liv Tyler) and forced to hide from his nemesis, Gen. Thunderbolt Ross (William Hurt), Banner soon comes face-to-face with a new threat: a supremely powerful enemy known as The Abomination (Tim Roth).
Watch The Incredible Hulk here.
