Blu-Ray/Movie Review: The Incredible Hulk

 

This is the 2008 reboot of the live-action Hulk starring Edward Norton, Tim Roth, William Hurt, and Liv Tyler. It was also the second entry into the MCU (which was not, at the point it came out, assured to be as long-lasting and prolific as it became). This is not a sequel to Ang Lee's version of The Hulk (which is pretty widely panned, and mostly for good reason). I think that Eric Bana and Jennifer Connely did a good job in their roles and were the only good things that movie had going for it, but the screenplay was weird, and the CGI Hulk looked very fake. This, thankfully, pretends that version never existed. The purpose of this movie is twofold. The first was to help establish the MCU and set up the eventual Avengers movie. The second was to bring a movie version that paid homage to the series and the comic. The movie included the requisite Lou Ferrigno cameo and a posthumous cameo of Bill Bixby via a clip played on TV.

I think Norton did a great job as Bruce Banner in this movie. It is unfortunate that he was replaced (although I do think Mark Ruffalo did a fine job as Banner in The Avengers), although if the rumors of Norton being difficult when it came to making this film are true I can see why he was. Norton did a great job portraying the conflicted nature of Banner and the frustration and fear that the character feels. I also think he has fairly good chemistry with Liv Tyler, who played Betty Ross, which was necessary given the role her character played in the story. The movie does set up a possibility of a sequel, but obviously, Marvel has put higher stock in the Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor franchises (and the Avengers team-up movies). Whether a sequel to this movie ever gets made, and if so whether it continues the story started here remains to be seen.

I think the CGI Hulk is far better in this movie than it was in the Ang Lee version. I think it was one of the things that detracted from that version of the movie, but the technological advancements in CGI have come a long way, and while the Hulk does not look totally realistic, it looked a lot better. Ferrigno has gone on record saying he thinks that Hulk should be played by a real person, but given that the Hulk is supposed to be 9 feet tall, that is just not practical. If you notice in the film, while Ferrigno is substantially bigger than Norton, he is not that much taller. And they would have had to go back to the tricks used to film the series, like cutaways and filming Ferrigno (or some other actor) from below to make him look taller. A CGI Hulk just works better. Especially for the battle scenes. There is just really no way they could have done any of the battles (especially the end battle with Abomination) without the CGI.

The A/V quality of the Blu-Ray is outstanding. The special features consist of some behind-the-scenes material, making of documentaries, deleted scenes, and trailers. In all, if you are a fan of the Marvel series of movies, while this movie is not as strong as the first Iron Man or the Avengers movies, it is on par with most of the other MCU movies and is definitely worth the time to watch and adding to your physical media collection (if you have one).

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Red Dragon

 

“Red Dragon” rounds out what ended up being a trilogy of Hannibal Lecter movies starring Anthony Hopkins in the starring role. 2002. This is a prequel to the iconic 1991 movie Silence of the Lambs but was made after the sequel to Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, which was made in 2001. This is also a remake of the 1986 movie Manhunter with the same storyline which starred Brian Cox as Lecter. This one co-stars Edward Norton as Will Graham, the FBI agent who originally captured Lecter. We see how Lecter was caught at the beginning of the movie, and then for the rest of the film, he is in the familiar dungeon-like cell that we see him in Silence of the Lambs. This movie centers around a serial killer that is nicknamed The Tooth Fairy. Graham comes out of retirement to work the case and enlists Lecter's help to catch the Tooth Fairy. Lecter serves in much the same role as he does in Silence of the Lambs, but has a much different dynamic with Graham than he did with Clarice. The rest of the cast is rounded out by Ralph Fiennes, Harvey Keitel, Emily Watson, Mary-Louise Parker, and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

For those who get the blu ray, the A/V quality is very good, with a lot of great cinematographic shots. The extras include several deleted, extended, and alternate scenes, over an hour's worth of making-of, and behind-the-scenes featurettes (that range from a minute or two, to about forty minutes, an FBI profiling feature, and two commentary tracks on the film, one by the director and writer and one by the composer.

Overall, the movie is good, but not as good as Silence of the Lambs. I would say it is on par with, or a bit better, than Hannibal. I think having Lecter in the advising role especially given Anthony Hopkins' age, works better. All of the actors did a great job with their characters with Fiennes and Philip Seymour Hoffman really standing out. So, even though it is not as good as Silence, it is still worth checking out.

4k-UHD/Movie Review: The Incredible Hulk

 

The Incredible Hulk was the second movie released in what would become the massive MCU. Iron Man had been a big hit, but it was not at all clear that the MCU would evolve into the huge franchise that it ultimately become. This movie, both in tone and in terms of the cast feels very disconnected from the rest of the MCU. This movie starred Edward Norton as Bruce Banner/The Hulk and co-starred Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, William Hurt as General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross (who would be the only actor from the cast to be included in the rest of the MCU), and Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky a commando that General Ross brings in to capture Banner. The movie eschews that typical origin story, showing everything the audience needs to know about the set-up in the opening credits. Then we see Bruce hiding in Brazil trying to find a way to cure himself of The Hulk. I will not spoil the rest of the movie for anyone who has not seen it, but it is a good blend of action and drama and ends in a huge monster fight at the end of the movie.

For those who get the 4k disc, the movie looks and sounds great in the UHD format. It is a definite upgrade from the regular Blu-Ray version. The cinematography really pops, especially the landscape in Brazil, in the UHD format. This is a two-disc set. The UHD disc just has the movie, which can be played with the commentary track with director Louis Leterrier and Tim Roth. The commentary is pretty good, but Leterrier and Roth do tend to go off on a lot of tangents. The rest of the extras are on the regular Blu-Ray disc, and those include an alternate opening sequence, about 40-minutes worth of deleted and extended scenes, a 30-minute making-of documentary, and four other featurettes that range from just over six minutes to just under thirty minutes. There are also several u-control interactive features. So, if you like going through bonus features, this gives you a lot.

While the movie does get shit on a lot, it is much better than it gets credit for. I personally like it better than the Ang Lee version of The Hulk, which had only been released a handful of years prior to this one. The CGI had come a long way since that movie, and the CGI Hulk looked a lot more realistic. Of course, there was still a debate going on whether they should CGI The Hulk or use a real actor, a-la Lou Ferrigno from the TV series. Using a CGI Hulk works a lot better (in my opinion) because they can actually make him nine feet tall and do not have to shoot him from below or with a special lens to make the actor look bigger as they did with Ferrigno. The movie has a lot of easter eggs that reference the TV series from the Danger sign, the "lonely man" theme, a reference to David Banner, and more. Lou Ferrigno had a small cameo (as well as being able to voice The Hulk, which he did not do in the TV series), and they found a way to include Bill Bixby (who of course had passed away by the time the movie was made) for a split second. 

Marvel was definitely still finding its legs with this movie. There was not a post-credits scene, but the final scene of the movie did act to further the MCU storyline. If you watch the movies in chronological order, this is actually the fifth movie in the sequence behind, Captain America, Captain Marvel, Iron Man, and Iron Man 2. In release order, this was the second movie that was released later the same year as Iron Man, and it was not a foregone conclusion that The Avengers story arc would ever pan out. Personally, I like Norton's portrayal of Banner more than I like Ruffalo in the role. Not that Ruffalo is bad, but I just think Norton's version is better. Rumors have it that Norton was a huge pain in the ass during the production of the movie, including insisting on making his own re-writes, which ultimately led to him being replaced. Obviously, the MCU survived without him, but I would have liked him to stay in the role. The movie was clearly setting up a sequel that never panned out, and at this point probably never will. But, if you have seen the trailer for She-Hulk, you know Tim Roth is being brought back in some capacity, so it is possible that more characters can be brought back. It is probably the most overlooked MCU movie, but it is very good and worth watching.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: American History X

 

American History-X is a 1998 film about an ex-neo Nazi member played by Edward Norton named Derek Vinyard who joins a group of white supremacists led by Stacey Keach's character Cameron Alexander after his father is shot and killed by gang members. He becomes more and more violent under Alexander's tutelage and ends up killing a man and being thrown in prison. While in prison he befriends a black man and ends up reforming himself, and when he gets out he attempts to free his younger brother Danny (played by Edward Furlong) from Alexander's influence.

The movie is very well written and well-acted. Norton, who has a track record of great performances, gives one of his best in this movie. The movie has a strong supporting cast including Beverly D'Angelo, Avery Brooks, Elliott Gould, Ethan Suplee, and Fairuza Balk. It is in part a story of indoctrination into domestic terrorism (which is as relevant today as it was back then, if not moreso), reformation, and redemption. Norton plays a conflicted character very well, feeling sad about letting go of really the only friends that he has in order to save his brother, and prevent his brother from making the same mistakes he made.

For those who get the Blu-Ray, the movie looks and sounds good in HD. Of course, the movie is not special effects-laden so it is not necessarily a must-get in the HD format, but it does have a nice video transfer that is a big upgrade over the DVD version. The extras are very minimal, just deleted scenes and the trailer for the movie. Hopefully, sometime down the line a version will be put out with a commentary track and/or making-of documentary, but given how far we are removed from the movie's release and the physical media release the chances of that are probably small.

Overall, this is a grim and gritty film that tackles a very tough subject head-on. It does not try to glorify Noton's character at all, making clear that even the reformed version of Derek is a flawed person. It is very well written and acted, and if you are a fan of dramas this is really a must-see.