Hulk

Die Details in Hulk sind erfrischend und innovativ. Als Ganzes ist der Film aber widerspruchsvoll. Viele ausgezeichnete (nicht nur actionreiche) Szenen und die lobenswerte psychologische Dimension verwandeln sich im Laufe der Zeit in einen dramaturgisch unausgewogenen und unübersichtlichen Gulasch. In der zweiten Hälfte des Films hätte man sich nicht so sehr mit dem "Familiendrama" befassen sollen. Die Filmemacher hätten sich mehr auf die famose Action und das Abenteuer konzentrieren sollen. Dann wäre der Film ein Hit gewesen. Die Actionszenen in der Wüste sind großartig. (08.07.2003)

A family drama and a comic book story – do they even go together? Yes, if a capable director takes it on, which Ang Lee undoubtedly is. Ironically, I enjoyed the much criticized first "action lacking" half the most. Thanks to the imaginative direction, the clever editing and the interesting division of the image into multiple windows, I was not bored for a moment. My enthusiasm waned a bit during the botched scene with the mutated dogs, but the subsequent moments in the Nevada desert satisfied my libido again. The tank demolition scene in particular was awesome. During the lengthy dialogue between father and son at the end, boredom began to take over, but certainly not fucking boredom, as one unnamed critic stupidly wrote. Oh, and one more thing, Hulk’s purple shorts were really nasty :) (11.10.2003)

Instead of proper psychology, we get a lot of verbal filler, and instead of exciting action, we only get digital ridiculousness in the desert. Ang Lee wanted to take the untrodden path, but he took a wrong turn with this film because it is simply impossible to carry a nearly two-and-a-half-hour colossus only with conversation. The formal games (editing, split-screen) get stereotypically boring after a while and don't suit the film at all. It's as if someone was adding their own psychedelic insertions to it in Lee’s editing room at night. The cast is excellent, and Elfman's ethnic-themed soundtrack is very nice, yet this whole farce still takes a downward turn given that the main villain doesn't show up until ten minutes before the end... in a comic book movie! Oops! (15.07.2007)

An adaptation of a comic book that was a little before its time. It was one of the first to favor psychological aspects over action. Both elements are here and both great, although the low-key part is central point and the pillar carrying all of Hulk's weight. Eric Bana made the most of his opportunity, Jennifer Connelly is enchanting as usual and the rest of the cast fits its roles too. The only downside is that it is so strictly divided into a long psychological section at the beginning and pure action at the end. Better balanced blending might have improved things. (25.07.2007)

This is not an action comic, this is a deeply penetrating drama about the split personality and the consequences of one's own sins. And a little bit of a comic. What Ang Lee unleashes in the final half hour is a psychological bomb and the redeeming sacrifice from Betty helps cleanse the soul of the viewer. It's a shame that the majority of them were not yet prepared for such an experience at that time. (18.06.2005)

In the confrontation with the flood of television and film production, it is necessary to weigh every minute, and one friend puts forward the theory that if the film does not interest him within five minutes, it is not worth watching. I broke this rule and gave the Hulk a whole thirty-five minutes, but he didn't offer me much for it. He simply didn't impress me with anything, maybe except for the charm of young Connelly, and that's a bit too little. Too slow start and dialogues overly psychologizing the comic story were not right for me. I cannot evaluate the whole movie, but from what I have seen, I wouldn't give the Hulk more than 40% for the overall impression... (06.05.2007)

At the time, Hulk was quite misunderstood and maybe it still is. The psychological comic adaptation was not positively accepted by the audience although I don’t get why. Ang Lee layers the atmosphere and brilliantly develops the personalities of the characters, Bruce Banner, Banner’s father, Betty, General Ross and only then does he focus on the action. The interesting thing is that even in the action scenes he doesn’t forget to think about the motivations and psychology of the characters. All their actions have a purpose. The action in itself is amazing (The Hulk vs. the dogs or the battle in the desert are genius). The cast is also excellent, especially Nick Nolte and Eric Bana. Thanks to those two, the final dialog was amazingly intriguing. I’m so sorry that the second Hulk is going to be shot with different creators according to a different template. If it was up to me, I would just keep developing the promising concept created by Lee. But who am I to be giving advice to the bosses in L.A., right? (27.04.2007)

Was, fünf Sterne? Diesem langweiligen Film? Sehen Sie richtig? Ja, Sie sehen richtig! Hulk ist meiner Meinung nach perfekt. Ang Lee hat wahrscheinlich Folgendes gedacht: Wenn ich schon einen Comic drehe, dann sollte es auch wie ein Comic aussehen… Und so hat er aus der Leinwand Seiten eines Comics gemacht. Das Bild ist in Rahmen und Panels aufgeteilt. Das Einzige, was den Figuren fehlt, sind die Sprechblasen über ihren Köpfen. Lees nächstes Husarenstück besteht darin, dass er aus einem Comic, in dem es nur um Schlägereien geht (90 % der Hulk-Geschichten), beinahe einen psychologischen Film gemacht hat, ein Drama von Vater und Sohn, eine Beschreibung einer Familientragödie. Die Handlungsszenen, die Dialoge usw. sind durchdacht. Man kann über sie nachdenken, es ist nicht nur ein dummes Kauen des Textes. Die Actionszenen sind überwältigend und einfallsreich (die besten Momente sind der Panzerwurf und der Kampf mit den Hunden). Was will man mehr? Ich nichts. Eine der besten Comic-Adaptationen. Warum? Weil sie anders ist. (18.06.2009)

Ang Lee went about this cleverly, constructing his Hulk as a psychological spectacle rather than an "action eye candy comic book romp". You can feel the unconventional qualities and the attempt at resonance, which deserve credit at the very least for its audacity. Some of the flashbacks may come across as unnecessarily drawn out, but by the end I felt that everything fell into place well and I fully appreciated the rather dense psychological part of the story. But I have to be honest and say that I can't imagine a similar take on a comic book movie today – given the flood of over-stylized and extremely successful Marvel movies (which I also enjoy a lot, but in a different way), it seems almost impossible. (25.07.2018)