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'The Incredible Hulk'

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BY RAFER GUZMÁN | rafer.guzman@newsday.com

June 13, 2008

It opens with shots of lab equipment and squirming cells, and closes with a battle between two roaring behemoths.

Haven't we seen this movie already?

Well, yes and no. In 2003, Universal Pictures and Marvel Studios released "Hulk," starring Eric Bana as the bottled-up Bruce Banner and Jennifer Connelly as his soul-soothing woman. Director Ang Lee gave the film a dark polish, but it misfired at the box office. Now, the studios want to "reboot" the story and start afresh.

It's not nearly fresh enough. Liv Tyler replaces Connelly, a superfluous switch of beauties. The new villain is an ambitious soldier named Blonsky (a greasy-haired Tim Roth), who covets Banner's power. And Edward Norton, as Banner, is oddly sullen; faced with disaster, he looks merely peeved. Lee's moody style gets blasted away by Louis Leterrier, of the harmlessly trashy "Transporter" flicks.

The new "Hulk" targets insiders rather than general moviegoers, skipping the creation myth to leave more time for action. There are several sly jokes, including one about The Hulk's mysteriously rip-resistant pants. (Norton, shopping for trousers in Mexico: "Tienes mas stretchy?") And Lou Ferrigno, the Hulk of the old television series, returns to voice the green giant and pop up in a cameo.

The first film's main problem dogs this one as well: A dull story (the script comes from Zak Penn, of the "X-Men" films). The villain is big and loud, and Banner has a good heart, but neither makes for an interesting character. As hero and nemesis do battle - at night, in New York, as usual - there seems little more at stake than property damage.

After all these years, the best "Hulk" remains the television series. The ongoing, endless premise was ideal, with Bill Bixby drifting across America searching for peace but invariably battling injustice. A reluctant hero with an ever-receding goal, the old Hulk was somehow satisfying. Perhaps, in a weird way, he just won't fit into a two-hour movie.

Box-office Marvels

In terms of crushing box-offices, The Hulk has been outdone by many of his Marvel brethren. Here's a short list of Marvel's domestic grosses, according to BoxOfficeMojo.com:

SPIDER-MAN (2002) The original ranks as the 7th- highest-grossing film of all time. (The two sequels rank 10th and 15th, respectively.) $403,706,375.

IRON MAN (2008) Robert Downey Jr. helped turn this lesser-known Marvel character into a blockbuster. $289,741,611 (to date).

X-MEN: THE LAST STAND (2006) The third time was a charm for this franchise. $234,362,462.

FANTASTIC FOUR (2005) Invisible Woman, Mr. Fantastic, The Thing and Human Torch made a good box-office combo. $154,696,080.

HULK (2003) The Ang Lee version ultimately passed the $100 million mark, but was largely considered a disappointment. $132,177,234

"Spider-Man" and its sequels are among the 15 top-grossing films of all time.

PLOT Scientist Bruce Banner tries to extinguish his inner monster, even as he’s hounded by a military that wants to harness his power. (PG-13)

CAST Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, William Hurt

LENGTH 1:54

PLAYING AT Area theaters

BOTTOM LINE The in-jokes and cameos are amusing but not so the unimaginative plot and typical action scenes. Hulk tired!