so what's the scoop on the new jolly green giant? passable, and definitely better than ang lee's misguided attempt. ed norton is surprisingly good in the role of banner. john hurt & tim roth deliver, despite thin writing devoted to their characters. liv tyler seems a bit distracted - not that she's given much to focus on - and she & norton have zero chemistry.the hulk itself doesn't look particularly real, but he acts more like the hulk i wanted to see. i especially liked the scene where he roars back at the thunder and throws rocks at lightning during a storm. it just feels right.
i appreciated the references to bill bixby's series, the in-joke reference to that series' catch phrase, the cameo from lou ferrigno, jack mcgee, and even the lonely man theme.
much as i love stan lee, unless there's something real for him to do, i don't want to see him in any more cameos. it's distracting & breaks down the suspension of disbelief this kind of movie requires (which - let's face it - is kinda like lifting a battleship with your penis sans viagra). it feels awkward & tacked on, like robert downey's scene with john hurt at the end. reminds me of the early days of tv, when the star of a given kids' show would come out after the show was over and tell us how wonderful malto meal was. they're selling cereal. they know it, we know it, and it doesn't belong in a movie that we paid 8 bucks apiece to see.
it's also too bad norton & co. didn't take a cue from kenneth johnson and keep hulk mute. ang lee's 2 words of hulk dialog should have been a big clue. hulk is elemental; making him talk actually makes him less interesting. (like charlie chaplin, harpo marx, and the cast of any show on the disney channel.)
i also hated the final meeting with 'mr. blue' & the rushed, awkward hint that he may play the leader in a future installment. listen up, hollywood: tent-pole movies shouldn't bke about selling us the franchise like a window jockey upsells fries. you can still make a mint by delivering quality, and float franchises. witness peter jackson and learn, for pete's sake.
worth the money to see? yeah - but make it a matinee.