Green is the color associated with envy, money and Kermit. There are certainly fewer than six degrees of separation between any of these elements and The Hulk, the darkest, most contemplative movie ever drawn from the pages of comic books. It is the serious side of pop culture and in its pursuit of depth, meaning and poetry elevates its pulp lineage to new dramatic heights, sometimes at the expense of the kinetic fun associated with this film genre.
The temptation is strong to invoke the old saw that insists a silk purse cannot be made from a sow’s ear. However, the better analogy is that director Ang Lee and his creative associates are involved in an experiment of cinematic alchemy - turning the equivalent of lead into gold. Some might disagree, but my analysis of the result is a qualified if very expensive success.
The Hulk, whose origins date back to a Marvel comic of the early 1960s and a television hit of the late ‘70s, is the embodiment of frustration and repressed emotion. However, as a result of a genetic experiment and exposure to seemingly lethal levels of radiation, he will involuntary transform into a monstrous incarnation of pure physical fury. It is the character’s release and emotional escape hatch.
In providing some credence for the Jekyll and Hyde duality, the screenwriters have gone to extraordinary lengths to establish a scenario steeped in scientific and psychological horror. The lengthy backstory involves military scientist Dr. David Banner whose radical genetic experiments are about to be curtailed and, desperate to prove his theories, begins to employ his only available human guinea pigs - himself and his infant son. He is the contemporary mad scientist challenging the supremacy of a divine creator.
However, it has its costs. Driven to the brink, Banner snaps and is tossed into a mental hospital. The boy is adopted and told both his biological parents are dead.
When the action resumes, Bruce Kessler (Eric Bana), aka Banner, is a research scientist mining the very areas his father had tapped three decades earlier. His inability to express himself has ended his romantic relationship with co-worker Betty Ross (Jennifer Connelly) and imperiled the status of the research project. Circumstance will abruptly alter all aspects of his life.
First, there’s the accident that irradiates the scientist, then there’s the appearance of a mysterious character that turns out to be Bruce’s father (Nick Nolte). Then things just get messier. Betty’s father - General Ross (Sam Elliott) - was the base commander who tossed David Banner into the booby hatch and threw away the key. And Betty’s new suitor Glenn Talbot (Josh Lucas) just happens to be the head of corporate military research and keen to appropriate her work with Bruce and adapt it for combat situations.
The script is brimming with dramatically potent possibilities and steadfastly strives to connect all the dots. The hurt and betrayal Bruce feels toward his father is mitigated by his need for family and emotional bonding; Betty, too, has issues with her father, especially her feeling that his sense of duty takes primacy to her personal needs. And Talbot, the personification of all that is evil in the military-industrial complex, asserts his jealousy and rivalry toward Bruce to extremes.
With such a full palette of vivid dramatic colors it’s easy to forget this is a fantasy with equally rich antecedents that reference Beauty and the Beast, King Kong and Frankenstein among others. The Hulk is a force of nature, albeit one engineered by man. He is raw energy encased in a 10-storey body rippling with biceps that are the envy of every Mr. Universe aspirant. He is impervious to bullets, possessing a super elevated sense of self-preservation and buried deep within his bulk has a beating heart.
The connections between the temporal and extraordinary elements aren’t always organic. Unlike its comic book brethren, there is no super villain to match The Hulk’s power, only flawed human beings incapable of seeing beneath his green skin and beyond the physical devastation resulting from his explosive rage. It is one giant, complicated metaphor.
While the technical achievements of the film are often stunning, its true success derives from human contributions, particularly its central cast. Bana, on the strength of two film performances, is one of those acting chameleons capable of blending in or breaking out as befits the situation. He understands the Jekyll/Hyde relationship and informs each of his incarnations with a tie to the other.
Connelly is a uniquely clever performer, adroit at layering in the shades and tones of a character often absent from the page and Nolte is simply Nolte, one of the great screen actors whose brooding presence in this film explains a great deal about self absorption, misguided beliefs and ruthless manipulation. That said, Sam Elliott’s role never quite gels, reined in by an interrupted character arc.
The effects harken back to the stop-motion wizardry of Ray Harryhausen exemplified by such films as The 7th Voyage of Sinbad. It takes some getting used to and accepting Bruce Banner’s alter ego but ultimately there’s an intelligence that overcomes all reservations.
Ang Lee definitely set the bar high in tackling The Hulk and it seems almost petty to carp about its length, the generally intrusive quality in the manner split screen is employed or the weaknesses in the truly comic book elements of the yarn. But the film is of two minds that when combined never quite convince despite the thoughtful, meticulous attention of its creators. To quote another famously misunderstood creature, it’s not easy being green.
A Universal Pictures release of a Valhalla Motion Pictures/Good Machine production. Produced by Gale Anne Hurd, Avi Arad, James Schamus, Larry Franco. Director, Ang Lee. Screenplay, John Turman, Michael France, Schamus; story by Schamus, based upon characters created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Camera, Frederick Elmes. Editor, Tim Squyres. Music, Danny Elfman. Production design, Rick Heinrichs. Costumes, Marit Allen. Visual effects supervisor, Dennis Muren. Stunt coordinator, Charlie Croughwell.
Eric Bana (Bruce Banner), Jennifer Connelly (Betty Ross), Sam Elliott (Gen. Ross), Josh Lucas (Glenn Talbot), Nick Nolte (David Banner).
Reviewed: June 18 , 2003
