HULK - HD DVD review

I had so much anticipation for Ang Lee's big screen adaptation of Marvel's "Hulk." The film starred Eric Bana, an actor I had been telling my friends would be one of the next great ones. I had watched "Chopper" and just been in awe of his performance. Of course, Ang Lee directed the wonderful "Sense and Sensibility" and a little Hong Kong classic "Wo hu cang long" which was released to us English speaking folk as "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon." With so much respected talent, it seemed like "Hulk" would be a slam dunk summer blockbuster and erase memories of "Godzilla." "Spider-Man" became a big screen sensation with Tobey Maguire and Sam Raimi. "Hulk" seemed like the next best thing.

Oh how my hopes were squashed. "Hulk" didn't turn out to be a complete disappointment, but it was no "Spider-Man" and it certainly was no "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon." The team of Bana and Ang Lee did no justice to Stan Lee's "Hulk" and I left theaters feeling cheated. After all, with a supporting cast of the beautiful Jennifer Connelly, the always captivating Sam Elliot and everybody's favorite scruffy veteran Nick Nolte, how could this film have went so wrong? Even Stan Lee and Lo Ferrigno stopped by for cameo roles as security guards. "Hulk" should have been the start of something wonderful. It should have catapulted Eric Bana into the stratosphere. It should have put Ang Lee far above Michael Bay and not into the same bucket as Paul Weasel S. Anderson.

Time has passed and I'm still a little disappointed, but have come to appreciate the film some. I certainly welcome "Hulk" more onto my screen than I do Ang Lee's "Brokeback Mountain." Eric Bana has been in a few good movies, but is not the megastar I expected him to be. The film is still too heavy on exposition, too light on action and too visually weak to tackle the amazing "Spider-Man," but it is far superior to "Aliens vs. Predator," another heartache for me. The HD-DVD packaging says "The larger-than-life Marvel Super Hero The Hulk explodes onto the big screen!" Well, he is now on my not-so-big screen and still doesn't explode, but I can now sit down and enjoy the movie with a bit of a smile and though I still think Nick Nolte's really bad hair is the best part of the film, I'm starting to appreciate the attempt to make the big green guy a Hollywood tent pole.

Eric Bana is Bruce Banner, a scientist who has a slight mishap with some gamma rays. His coworker and romantic interest Betty Ross witnesses the accident and doesn't understand how he isn't dead, but in perfect health. Banner may not have died, but the gamma radiation altered his DNA and put within him a beast that explodes into a gigantic green Hulk that loves to smash things. Nick Nolte is Banner's proclaimed ‘father' and has been subjected to gamma rays with a rather different effect. Banner gets upset and beats up Talbot (Josh Lucas) and becomes a menace to society that is tracked down by the military with planes, tanks and helicopters. Sam Elliot is General Ross, the father of Betty and a man who tells Bruce to stay the hell away from his daughter (if Sam Elliot told me such a thing, I personally would listen). Betty discovers that Bruce is the big green beast and becomes the caring heroine.

The problem with "Hulk" lies in its story and to some degree its visual effects, but mostly – story. Anything from dogs to ‘father' are gamma created villains for Hulk to smash. When Banner becomes Hulk, he becomes a brainless beast who is misunderstood and constantly chased by the military. Ang Lee and his team of writers decided that everything Hulk battled had to be just as big and ugly. Banner's eventual capture and captivity makes little sense. The suicidal transformation of Nick Nolte's character and eventual conflict is quite comical, but not in a comic book way. Ang Lee does make an attempt to bring heart to Bruce Banner and understanding to Hulk, but by doing so, "Hulk" becomes so overburdened with exposition and background information that the primary reason for such a film is lost – the Hulk is supposed to smash things and beat up bad guys. Never once does Bruce Banner say "You won't like me when I'm angry" or does Hulk yell "HULK SMASH!" The film tries to take itself way too seriously and it tries to add to much weight to a comic book character. Perhaps a darker toned Hulk with a defined villain would have been better. The film did not succeed and about the only chance for a sequel is if Paul Weasel S. Anderson decides to make "Hulk vs. Godzilla."

Video:
I pointed out that visual effects were a problem in the main body of this review, but never gave a full explanation. Here it is – the digital effects of "Hulk" border on cartoonish at times. The transformation of "Hulk" is digital, but barely better than what was seen in "An American Werewolf in London." The look of the blue shorts on the Hulk looks painted on far too computery (if that is a word). The effects never approach the real-world believability of those seen in "Spider-Man" and perhaps that is an unfair comparison, but my opinion remains that "Hulk" could have looked far better and the fight scenes, which occurred mostly in the desert or at night did not appear grand. Hulk smashes tank. Hulk smashes helicopter. Hulk smashes large gamma radiation-poisoned dog. Nothing every looked spectacular and even "Godzilla" was more impressive visually.

Fortunately, the HD-DVD release is very good. The 2.35:1 VC-1/1080p transfer is top notch and this is easily one of the better transfers released on HD-DVD. It may seem at times that I'm a spokesperson for Universal, as I continually praise their product. The fact is, they do an great job with their high definition releases and this is another gem on their crown. The color green looks great on this release and other colors are quite spiffy as well. Detail is ‘off the hook' and very three dimensional. Even the dark fight scene between our hero and the big bad puppy dogs looks wonderful with good shadow detail and black levels. Even though the movie could be called crappy, the release is superb. I can almost recommend a purchased based on how pretty the film is.

Sound:
When I looked at the technical specs of the "Main Feature" on the packaging, I was almost as disappointed as I was when I left the theater after seeing "Hulk" for the first time. Universal has been including Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtracks on some of their releases and I had anticipated that this HD-DVD would contain such a soundtrack. Sadly, the box listed only English, French and Spanish Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 sound. My disappointment subsided as I watched the film, as the included soundtrack was quite spectacular and everything smashed by the big green lug sounded great! .1 LFE bass was explosive and the high ends were sharp. All six speakers were busy when the soundtrack got as aggressive as the gamma radiated freak. Dialogue is clear and intelligible, even when somebody is simply screaming to get away from the angry green one. My favorite movie music man, Danny Elfman contributed the score and it sounded incredible.

Extras:
I purchased the film on DVD and its interactive content was as exciting as DVD got for its time. The content included on that 2-disc DVD set is retained in this HD-DVD version, but done so HD-DVD style. Living on one singular 2-layer platter, "Hulk" does not disappoint in its features. First and foremost, a Feature Commentary with Director Ang Lee. Ang Lee may not be the best English speaking director from Hong Kong, but he does an admirable job. Lee is very optimistic and pleased with his effort and this is painfully obvious in the commentary. It is a good listen and I admit to only spot checking it on HD-DVD as I had listened to it years ago on the DVD release.

The previously mentioned interactive content is provided as HULK CAM: Inside the Rage. This content is activated via the menu system and allows for viewing during the watching of the film. This is not done as slickly as Universal's U-Control supplements, but does keep with the standards set by HD-DVD and it works far more nicely than the previous DVD release. These materials offer very good looks at the making of the film and rivals some of the similar features on Warner Bros. releases.

Deleted Scenes are 4:3 mastered deleted scenes that run for six minutes in length and contains further development between Betty Ross and Bruce Banner and includes an additional scene with the Hulk from my childhood, Lou Ferrigno. Evolution of the Hulk is a sixteen minute chat with character creator Stan Lee. This is a very good supplement and should perhaps have been watched by Ang Lee. The Incredible Ang Lee is a fifteen minute tribute of sorts to the director. The Dogfight Scene looks at the fight in great detail for ten minutes between the big bad Hulk and the not quite as big doggies. The Making of the Hulk is a half hour long featurettes and is actually quite good. Finally, The Unique Style of Editing the Hulk looks at how the film tried to mimic the comic book. This runs for only five minutes and points out some things that were perhaps missed by viewers.

Closing Comments:
Technically speaking, this is a wonderful HD-DVD. Unfortunately, I still feel disappointed with the final product. The crew and cast had so much potential. Produced by Gale Anne Hurd. Directed by Ang Lee. Executive produced by Stan Lee. Music by Danny Elfman. Starring Eric Bana and including Nick Nolte's crazy hair. How could "Hulk" go wrong? Well, the digital effects were not as good as hoped and the story was too heavy and ultimately only hurt the story. Perhaps my disappointment in the story has created a negative bias towards the movie, but I've yet to run into somebody who proclaims to love this film. I've also not seen any hints of a sequel, though the final few minutes that indicated a possibility were easily the best moments of the movie. Picture quality is awesome. Sound quality is very good and borders on being awesome. Supplements are decent enough, though not as good as the very best releases. I always wanted more and I am happy to be an owner of the HD-DVD, but dammit, I still want more.