The Incredible Hulk (film)
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For the 2003 film, see Hulk (film). The Incredible Hulk
The Incredible Hulk is a superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character the Hulk, set for release on June 13, 2008.[3] It is directed by Louis Leterrier and stars Edward Norton as Bruce Banner, Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, William Hurt as her father General Thunderbolt Ross and Tim Roth as the villainous Emil Blonsky, known in the Hulk comics as the Abomination. The film follows Banner as he flees the pursuit of General Ross while attempting to find a cure to rid himself of the Hulk. When Blonsky personally volunteers to be injected with Banner's gamma formula to aid Ross in his capture, he becomes an even greater monster, and Banner must accept his inner beast to defeat Blonsky.
After the 2003 film Hulk, Marvel Studios reacquired the rights to the character, and writer Zak Penn began work on a reboot that would be much closer to the comics and the television series. Norton rewrote the script after he signed on to star, severing all ties to its predecessor by retelling the origin story in flashbacks and revelations. Filming of principal photography mostly took place in Toronto, Canada in 2007, and the film's crew went to great lengths to reduce the production's carbon emissions. Letterier's direction aimed to make the monsters look more realistic and frightening. He redesigned the Abomination, who in the comics is a reptilian KGB agent, into a mutant soldier with bony protrusions.
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Premise
Scientist Bruce Banner is a fugitive in South America trying to cure the condition that turns him into the Hulk. He is being pursued by the U.S. Army, led by General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross and Emil Blonsky, who wants to use his power. Blonsky is a soldier on the special forces team led by Ross, and after a one-on-one confrontation with the Hulk, Blonsky is humiliated. He volunteers to be a test subject of one of Ross' tests with Banner's formula. This causes a transformation in Blonsky, and he uses his new monstrous form to attack the city and draw out Banner.[2]
Louis Leterrier said that he planned to show Bruce Banner's struggle with the monster within him.[4] Producer Kevin Feige added the film would explore "that element of wish fulfillment, of overcoming an injustice or a bully and tapping into a strength that you didn't quite realize you had in yourself".[5] Avi Arad also said the film would be "a lot more of a love story between Bruce Banner and Betty Ross".[6]
Cast
Edward Norton as Dr. Robert Bruce Banner / The Hulk: A genius scientist who, because of exposure to gamma radiation coupled with childhood trauma, transforms into the Hulk when stressed or enraged. Eric Bana turned down reprising the role, as he viewed the first film as a one-time opportunity.[7] Gale Ann Hurd recalled Norton's portrayals of duality in Primal Fear and Fight Club,[8] while Norton reminded Kevin Feige of Bill Bixby, who played Banner in the TV series.[9] Lou Ferrigno, who played the Hulk with Bixby, remarked Norton "has a similar physique [and a] similar personality".[10]
Norton was a Hulk fan, citing the first comic appearances, the Bixby TV show and Bruce Jones' run on the comic as his favorite depictions of the character.[11] He had expressed interest in the role for the first film.[12] He initially turned down the part for this film, recalling "there [was] the wince factor or the defensive part of you that recoils at what the bad version of what that would be," as he felt the previous film "strayed far afield from a story that was familiar to people, [...] which is a fugitive story". When he met Letterier and Marvel, however, he liked their vision, and believed they were looking to him to guide the project. Thus, Norton rewrote the script.[13] "Norton's script has given Bruce's story real gravitas," Letterier said. "Admittedly I'm not the most adult director, but just because we're making a superhero movie it doesn't have to just appeal to 13-year old boys. Ed and I both see superheroes as the new Greek gods."[2]
Lou Ferrigno voices the Hulk. He also has a cameo in the film as a security guard who is bribed by Banner with a slice of pizza.[14] Subsequently, Leterrier publicly offered him to voice the character at the 2008 New York Comic-Con.[1] Liv Tyler as Betty Ross: Bruce's girlfriend, whom he is separated from due to his condition. Tyler replaced actress Jennifer Connelly, who portrayed Betty Ross in the 2003 film Hulk. Tyler was attracted to the love story in the script, and was a fan of the TV show, because of the "humanity and what [Banner] is going through".[11] Tyler and Norton spent hours discussing Bruce and Betty's life before he became the Hulk.[15] She said filming the part "was very physical, which was fun",[16] and compared her performance to "a deer caught in the headlights", because of Betty's shock as Bruce's unexpected return into her life.[15]
"There's a thing in Hulk of the Prometheus myth: it's tapping the story of stealing fire from the gods and being burned by it [...] When you think about Banner's driving motivation, part of what was interesting to me was a sense of guilt, a sense of having monkeyed with nature. He's applied a certain arrogance to his work and assumed he can master forces that maybe aren't meant to be tinkered with casually, and he's driven by [...] wanting to put the genie back into the bottle. [...] There's a certain blowback to messing with nature." —Norton on the subtext of the Hulk[13] Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky: An aging soldier serving under General Ross in the United States Army Special Forces who becomes a monster while pursuing the Hulk. The character is known as the "Abomination" in the comics, but Zak Penn considered this name too silly, and he will only be referred to as Blonsky on screen.[17] Roth took the part to please his sons, who are both comic book superhero fans. As a teenager, Roth was a fan of the TV show, and he also found Leterrier's ideas "very dark and very interesting". Roth started watching the 2003 film to prepare for the part, but stopped as he did not want to be caught up in the controversy over its quality, and to compare himself to it.[18]
Leterrier is a fan of Roth's work, and felt "it's great watching a normal Cockney boy become a superhero!",[2] but Marvel and Norton were initially reluctant to cast him.[19] Before he was cast in Punisher: War Zone, Ray Stevenson was in discussions for the role.[20] Roth found it tough playing Blonsky: although he constantly chases Banner, Roth could not work out because he had to portray Blonsky's aging that foreshadows his desire to become the Abomination.[15] Cyril Raffaelli performed some of Roth's stunts.[8] Roth enjoyed the motion capture, which reminded him of fringe theater, and he hired his trainer from Planet of the Apes to aid him in portraying the monster's movement.[15]
William Hurt as General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross: Betty's father, who has dedicated himself to capturing the Hulk. Letterier cast Hurt because "Ross is more physical, more explosive in this movie, and no actor goes from zero to 100 as well as William."[2] He compared Ross to Captain Ahab.[19] The Hulk is Hurt's favorite superhero, and his son is also a big fan of the character. Hurt found production very different from the typical "pure anxiety" of a studio movie, finding it more akin to an independent movie.[21] He described Ross as "humiliated by Hulk's conscience: he actually sees and recognizes that it's more developed than his own, even though he's a patriot and a warrior for his country. He's sacrificed [much] for that purpose, but at the expense at times of his humanity — which he occasionally recovers."[22] Sam Elliott, who played Ross in the first film, would have liked to reprise the role, noting it was odd seeing someone take his part, "but I'll be looking forward to seeing this one".[23]
Additional cast members include Tim Blake Nelson as the scientist Samuel Sterns,[24] and Ty Burrell as Banner's psychotherapist Dr. Leonard Samson.[19] Michael K. Williams appears as a soldier: Norton wrote the role for him because he is a fan of The Wire.[25]
Robert Downey, Jr. cameos as Tony Stark in a post-credits scene, after starring in Iron Man. He did it as a favor to Marvel Studios, which he acknowledged as a smart move, because when he was promoting his film he would also have to mention their other production.[26] Hulk co-creator Stan Lee makes an appearance in a scene which Kevin Feige claimed "the whole plot of the movie hinges on".[14]
Development
The Incredible Hulk is influenced by the TV series of the same name. Above is Edward Norton, and below is Bill Bixby, both sitting in a similar machine.At the time of the release of Ang Lee's Hulk, screenwriter James Schamus was planning a sequel, featuring the Gray Hulk. He was also considering the Leader and the Abomination as villains.[27] During the filming of Hulk producer Avi Arad had a target May 2005 theatrical release date.[28] On January 18, 2006 Arad confirmed Marvel Studios would be providing the money for The Incredible Hulk's production budget, with Universal distributing,[29] because Universal did not meet the deadline for filming a sequel.[30] Marvel felt it would be better to deviate from Ang Lee's style to continue the franchise, arguing his film was like a parallel universe one-shot comic book, and their next film needed to be, in Kevin Feige's words, "really starting the Marvel Hulk franchise". Producer Gale Ann Hurd also felt the film had to meet what "everyone expects to see from having read the comics and seen the TV series".[15]
Leterrier, who enjoyed the TV series as a child and liked the first film,[15][8] had expressed interest in directing the Iron Man film adaptation. Jon Favreau had taken that project, so Marvel offered him the Hulk. Leterrier was reluctant as he was unsure if he could replicate Lee's style, but Marvel explained that was not their intent.[31] Leterrier's primary inspiration was Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's Hulk: Gray (a retelling of his first appearance). He replicated every comic book panel that he pinned-up during pre-production, from the many comics he browsed, in the final film.[8] Peter David's run is also referenced in the film.[32]
The first screenwriter, Zak Penn, said the film would follow up Hulk, but stressed it would be more tonally similar to the TV show and Bruce Jones' run on the comic. He compared his script to Aliens, which was a very different film to Alien, but still in the same continuity.[12] Penn wrote three drafts, before departing in early 2007 to direct The Grand. Norton, who had rewritten previous films he starred in, wrote a new draft, which pleased the director and the studio in establishing the film as a reboot.[33] Leterrier acknowledged the only remaining similarity between the two films was Bruce hiding in South America,[8] and that the film was a unique reboot, as generally audiences would have expected another forty minute origin story. Leterrier felt audiences were left restless waiting for the character to arrive in Ang Lee's film.[34]
Norton explained of his decision to ignore Lee's origin story, "I don't even like the phrase origin story, and I don't think in great literature and great films that explaining the roots of the story doesn't mean it comes in the beginning."[11] "Audiences know this story," he added, "[so] deal with it artfully." He wanted to "have revelations even in the third act about what set this whole thing in motion".[13] Instead, editor Kyle Cooper, who also created the Marvel logo (with the flipping pages) and the montage detailing Iron Man's biography in that film, edited together a three-minute opening flashback to the Hulk's origin.[14] Norton's rewrite also added the character of Doc Samson and made references to other Marvel characters,[35] while writing out Rick Jones and toning down S.H.I.E.L.D.'s presence.[15] Norton rewrote scenes every day.[18] Ultimately, the Writers Guild of America decided to credit the script solely to Penn.[36]
Marvel chose the Abomination as the villain because he was the most famous enemy, and because he would be an actual threat to the Hulk, unlike General Ross.[37] For the Abomination, Letterier updated his KGB background from the comics, making him a soldier. The character acts as Banner's foil: "a fighter, he’s a machine, he’s a very effective, cool-as-a-cucumber soldier that is over the hill – 38, 39 years old – has finished his life as a soldier, should be a Colonel by now and has never accepted that failure. He loves being a fighter, loves being on the field."[19] Roth concurred the Abomination from the comic was rooted in the Cold War.[18]
Filming and editing
Filming began on July 9, 2007.[9] The Canadian shoot included Toronto, Hamilton, Ontario, CFB Trenton,[38] Vancouver, British Columbia and Belleville, Ontario.[39] Afterwards, there was a week-long shoot in New York City and two weeks in Rio de Janeiro.[38] The Incredible Hulk joined Toronto's Green-Screen initiative, to help cut carbon emissions and waste created during filming. Producer Gale Anne Hurd hopes the film will be a symbol of the drive to encourage less pollution from film productions. Norton used a hybrid vehicle on set.[40] Leterrier had to direct four units with a broken foot.[2]
During editing, Norton and the producers had a dispute: he and Leterrier wanted a running time near 135 minutes, while the producers wanted the film to be under two hours. This was made public, and rumors spread that Norton "made it clear he won't cooperate with publicity plans if he's not happy with the final product".[41] Norton dismissed this, "Our healthy process [of collaboration], which is and should be a private matter, was misrepresented publicly as a 'dispute', seized on by people looking for a good story, and has been distorted to such a degree that it risks distracting from the film itself, which Marvel, Universal and I refuse to let happen. It has always been my firm conviction that films should speak for themselves and that knowing too much about how they are made diminishes the magic of watching them."[42] Liv Tyler found "nothing really crazily different" between the two cuts.[43]
Effects
The CGI Hulk faces down Tim Roth. Norton provided motion capture for the character.Leterrier had planned to use prosthetic makeup and animatronics to compliment the computer-generated imagery that was solely used in the previous film.[44] Norton and Roth provided motion capture for their characters, and filmed their fights on a stage with 37 digital cameras.[2] Leterrier cited the motion capture potrayals of Gollum and King Kong by Andy Serkis (from The Lord of the Rings and King Kong) as the standard he was aiming for.[31] Leterrier hired Rhythm and Hues to provide the CGI, because of their skills in character animation. Industrial Light & Magic worked on the 2003 film.[45] Image Engine spent over a year working on a shot where Banner's gamma-iradiated blood falls through three factory floors into a bottle.[46]
Leterrier felt the first Hulk had "too much fat [and] the proportions were a little off". He explained, "The Hulk is beyond perfect so there is zero grams of fat, all chiseled, and his muscle and strength defines this creature so he’s like a tank." Dale Keown's artwork of the character was an inspiration.[31] A darker shade of green skin was applied,[47] and his size does not increase as he becomes further enraged,[11] staying at a consistent height of nine feet.[47] Leterrier cited An American Werewolf in London as the inspiration for Banner's transformation, wanting to show how painful it was for him to change.[48] As a nod to the live action TV series, Banner's eyes change color first when he transforms.[49]
Edward Norton's eyes turn green as he transforms to the HulkLeterrier changed the Abomination's design from the comics because he felt the audience would question why he resembled a fish or a reptile, instead of "an über-human" like the Hulk. Instead, his hideousness is derived from being injected multiple times into his skin, muscles and bones; creating a creature with a protruding spine and sharp bones that he can use to stab. His green skin is pale, and reflects light, so it appears orange because of surrounding fire during the climactic battle.[19] The character also shares Roth's tattoos.[50]
The make-up artists who worked on X-Men: The Last Stand created Blonsky's gradual transformation.[18] Zak Penn said they approached his mutation as "not [being] used to having these properties. Like he's much heavier, and we talked about how when he walks down the sidewalk, his weight destroys the sidewalk and he's tripping. [It's all about] the humanization of these kinds of superhero characters, showing the effects physics may actually have on [them]."[17]
Music
Main article: The Incredible Hulk (soundtrack) Marvel has bought the rights to "The Lonely Man Theme" from the TV series. The piano piece was composed by Joe Harnell and was used over the end credits to represent Banner's never-ending search for inner peace.[15] Scottish composer Craig Armstrong visited Seattle to compose the score with Leterrier, aiming to create a truly iconic theme for the character. Marvel were so proud of the score that they decided to release it as a two-disc soundtrack.[51]
Marketing
"We know the Hulk from 2003 didn't satisfy the fans, and we had to acknowledge that. We emphasized the passion that fans still have for this character and that this is the movie people have always wanted." —Stephanie Sperber, executive vice-president of Universal Studios Partnerships[52] Universal and its promotional partners hope The Incredible Hulk will be to Hulk what Batman Begins was to Batman and Robin. Special effort was made to promote the story as having a romance and an actual antagonist, and the title was used for promotional puns (such as 7-Eleven's "Incredible Gulp" slurpees, and "Incredible Dad" themed Father's Day gifts at Kmart). Burger King will also promote the film, and General Nutrition Centers will use the title character as a role model for strength training.[52] Hasbro created the toy line, due for release on May 3, 2008,[53] while Sega released a video game on June 5, 2008.[54]
The film was promoted in a special episode of American Gladiators on June 9, 2008. Hosted by Hulk Hogan and featuring Lou Ferrigno, the episode features a Hulk theme, with the gladiators using Hulk hand gloves when competing, while the audience will receive free merchandise.[55]
Sequel
Samuel Sterns, played by Tim Blake Nelson, was introduced to set him up as a villain in a future film, where he would become the Leader.[15] Norton said, "The whole thing was to envision it in multiple parts. We left a lot out on purpose. [The Incredible Hulk is] definitely intended as chapter one."[13] Leterrier would also like to return.[8]
In addition, Marvel Studios is keen to have Norton reprise the role in an adaptation of The Avengers (schedule for release in July 2011). Iron Man director Jon Favreau said "[Marvel is] pretty clear on wanting to do it with the actors who’ve established the roles or to not do it at all."[56] Leterrier would pit the Hulk against Iron Man because, "after being chased for so many years, [he] would lose it".[15]
