11/11/2008 - The Incredible Hulk: Alternate Opening (With Captain America)

Being the Incredible Hulk fan that I am, it's no surprise that I got the Blu-Ray on the release day, and I was not disappointed. Over 40 minutes of deleted scenes? That's like a whole new movie right there. There were rumors of the many cuts Marvel made to the movie to make it more fast-paced, and that these cut scenes were largely the creative contribution made by star Edward Norton. All I can say is I can see why Norton was reportedly displeased with the editing decisions made because most of these cut scenes were gold. I especially liked the stuff with Doc Samson... those scenes could have come from Peter David himself (my favorite Incredible Hulk comic writer).

If you had paid attention to all the trailers, you see that there was supposed to be a scene in the arctic. However, in the theatrical release, no such scene was shown. Everybody who read the novelization of the movie can attest that this was supposed to be the opening of the movie, where Bruce Banner goes to the desolate arctic to kill himself, only to be stopped by the Hulk. Now, I can understand why studio execs would be nervous by a scene where the main character tries to commit suicide, and looking at the movie as a whole, I find it would have been difficult to fit it in. As it stands, the theatrical opening works better.

However, with all the production that went into it, such a scene would not be lost forever and they included it on the DVD and Blu-Ray. What else is fascinating about this alternate opening is that there was a rumor of a cameo of Captain America, another Marvel superhero who would be the leader of the Avengers. For those who don't know the story about Captain America, you just need to know that he was a soldier in World War II who was given superhuman ability with a "Super Soldier" serum and was thought to have perished at the end of the war. In reality, he was frozen in the icy waters but still alive in a state of suspended animation.

The Incredible Hulk already had the cameo of Iron Man's Tony Stark in the movie, a reference to Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D., and the Super Soldier serum that created Captain America. In this alternate opening, though, you'll actually see the frozen body of Captain America himself... if you look carefully. It's a "blink and you miss it" moment, but it really brings everything together in preparation for that Avengers movie.

7/19/2008 - WORST Incredible HULK Toy EVER

Being an Incredible Hulk fan, not only do I collect his comic books, I try to collect some of his toys as well. In fact, when the movie came out, I had to suffer through some pretty bad Burger King Kid's Meals because they were offering toys that tied into the movie. However, even if I were a hardcore collector and had to get every Hulk toy out there, I would never NEVER get this one:



When you have a Hulk toy that smiles, that just shows that Marvel has taken their kids line of toys too far.

7/3/2008 - First TV Hulk Transformation

If you want my review of the new Incredible Hulk movie, here it is: it's great. Just like the Iron Man film, it's a movie that I wanted to see again right away in the theaters. Given today's movie prices and that I have a decent home entertainment system, that's a rare thing for me to say. It's just about the best Hulk movie you can make without the budget of Superman Returns. Every movie reviewer out there is comparing it to the first Hulk movie made 5 years ago by Ang Lee, and all I'll say is that it's much better this time around. Don't get me wrong, I actually liked the 2003 movie, but I can see why it turned so many people off. The writer and director of that movie were just being too ambitious in trying to explain how a creature of rage manifested himself out of a scientist. They did so with some respect towards the comics backstory, but most of the audience just weren't interested in that.

They wanted to see Hulk smash, and that's exactly what happens in this new movie. I kind of wish I didn't spoil the movie for myself by watching all the previews, trailers, and commercials, but a lot of what wasn't shown was still a joy to see on screen. The CGI for the Hulk left me initially unconvinced, but I soon appreciated it for its higher action dynamic. I thought that the Hulk's proportions seemed a bit on the skinny, but I did like the Sal Buscema-style hair. The Abomination's design deviated greatly from the one in the comics, but it does work in the movie. Watching the two of them fight is definitely not like watching Godzilla and Mothra going a it.

The best thing about the Incredible Hulk movie for me would have to be Edward Norton as Bruce Banner. I can't see anyone else in the role now, and this is coming from someone who wanted to cast a Hulk movie for years. Norton gave such a sympathetic performance that you couldn't help but root for him. It is much derived from the Bill Bixby's Banner from the old Hulk TV series of which much of this new movie is based. Why would they want this movie to be a throwback to a thirty year-old TV show? Well, it was actually pretty good for its time. Treating the Hulk story as a realistic sci-fi drama instead of a superhero fantasy movie was the smartest decision they made for the TV show. That's not to say there weren't superhuman elements or special effects. Just take the first transformation, for example. Even without computer graphics or morphing, it's pretty convincing:



And yes, I'm glad they included the "white eyes" in the movie.

3/5/2008 - Iron Man's Adventure

As I've said before, it has taken until this decade to translate Stan Lee's visions of superheroes and super powers to the big and small screen, and that's because the special effects have finally caught up because of computer graphics. The computer effects are mostly an aid to the real-life backdrops and actors on film, but sometimes you get purely digital presentation like the Pixar movies. While The Incredibles was cool, the superheroes weren't the well-established characters we know and love from the Marvel Universe. So what would a computer animated version of the Marvel heroes look like? This promotional video from Marvel gives us a good indication:



It's funny, I actually prefer the look of this Hulk to the ones from the 2003 movie and the upcoming movie. It really looks like a three-dimensional translation of what I see in the comic book!