The Incredible Hulk (2008)

And so the anomaly in the series. The Incredible Hulk. Well it wasn’t bad. In terms of set and direction it looked excellent, and the visual effects far surpass those of Iron Man, despite being made in the same year by the same people – presumably because they are so essential in forming the brilliant Hulk and Abomination. The plot is also generally decent (though perhaps not towards the end), as the Hulk always has been a little more original than the other members of the Avengers Alliance. The opening sequence was thoroughly confusing but well explained later, and the scene in the bottle factory looked good, while the Brazilian favellas worked well for a slightly less clichéd chase scene. Bruce Banner (Edward Norton)’s experimentation with chemicals and the microscopic examination of the cells’ mutation was another highlight in terms of direction and VFX. This film also includes multiple battle scenes of course. The first, in the factory, was good though I expected them to get tedious further into the film. Surprisingly I was wrong, and they did in fact get bigger, better and more enthralling with each one. It was also partially because of these that the action-filled film has such a good control of pace – though admittedly the search for the data and Betty (Liv Tyler)’s discovery of Bruce’s return was all very rushed, while writer, Zak Penn has also been successful in getting the balance of humour right for the film. The very ending was also very good and clearly leant itself to a sequel. I did wonder what became of Leonard (Ty Burrell), but otherwise it was effective and nice to see something different from the classic ‘happily ever after’. While the visuals and scripting were good however, I was disappointed with the casting. Norton was decent but nothing special, and the same applies to Tyler and William Hurt (General Ross). Burrell was also irritating as Leonard. The only two actors that really impressed me were Tim Blake Nelson (Samuel Sterns), of whom I wish I could have seen more, and Tim Roth (Emil Blonsky) who was – in stark contrast to the rest of the cast – absolutely spectacular.