tomgillespie2002 In a few decades, cinema-goers will look back and dub these times the golden age of superhero movies. Of course, they are still going strong, but 2008 was the year it all really kicked off, with three key movies in the genre, two of which helped kick off Marvel's Cinematic Universe. The year saw one of the very best superhero films, The Dark Knight, although for a comic book adaptation it keeps its feet very much grounded. Nolan's movie will always be loved, and so it should, but elsewhere Marvel were planning on doing something never before achieved by a major studio: to truly bring a comic-book universe to life. Iron Man came first, and was a bigger hit than anybody expected, propelling Robert Downey Jr. from a risk with heavy personal baggage to one of the highest paid actors in the business. This was followed up by The Incredible Hulk, a film now with a reputation as Marvel's runt of the litter. Yet, despite the fact that Edward Norton was eventually replaced by Mark Ruffalo as mild-mannered scientist Bruce Banner, the black sheep label is incredibly unfair.The origin of Banner and his alter-ego the Incredible Hulk was attempted back in 2003 by acclaimed director Ang Lee, and while his desire to literally bring the panels of a comic-book to life was admirable, Hulk was an absolute bore, failing to add any dimension to its central character and struggling to bring the Jade Giant convincingly to life with special effects that simply weren't advanced enough at the time. Director Louis Leterrier's 2008 semi-reboot sort-of accepts Lee's introduction, and starts its life with Banner already living with the unexpected effects of his exposure to gamma radiation. Hiding out in Brazil away from the clutches of General 'Thunderbolt' Ross (William Hurt), Banner is searching for a cure, spending his downtime working in a bottle factory and keeping his heart-rate below 200 beats per minute to keep the angry brute inside of him at bay. Ross views Banner and his powers as property of the U.S. government, and wants him captured in order to harness his abilities to create an army of unstoppable soldiers.It's a simple premise, but one that compliments the character. Ang Lee tried to find deeper themes in Banner's story, but it just didn't work, and when Hulk finally smashed, it either came far too late or was shot in darkness. It doesn't take long for the transformation to take place in Leterrier's movie, and when notorious Royal Marine Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth) shows up with his army pals, the special effects don't disappoint (although they are dated by today's standards), allowing Hulk to smash and batter with coherency. It isn't all brainless action however. When Bruce inevitably leaves his hideaway to return home, he reconnects with his former flame Betty Ross (Liv Tyler), who also happens to be the General's daughter and dating nice guy Leonard (Ty Burrell). It's here Banner hopes to connect with his contact 'Mr. Blue' and cure his affliction, while side-stepping various attacks by General Ross and an increasingly powered-up Blonsky. While I prefer Ruffalo, Norton is an excellent Bruce Banner, and it's fun to wonder what could have been had he stayed in the role, although it's difficult to imagine him trading quips with Chris Hemsworth on an alien planet. The Marvel universe seemed to go on ignoring its existence before Hurt's Ross turned up again 8 years later in Captain America: Civil War, but its importance in the creation of this now-massive world shouldn't be underestimated. I still remember the goose-pimples as Tony Stark swaggered into that mid-credit sequence

patanellar Wow. Just wow. I never thought I could fall asleep during an MCU movie, but now I have. What was Marvel thinking, casting Edward Norton as Bruce? He was terrible. I'm glad Mark Ruffalo plays him now. All in all, stay away from this film.

pavanbhartt A reeboot of the Hulk franchise, this time connected to the MCU, The Incredible Hulk is not a perfect film but delivers perfectly at what the film is attempting to do. Make no mistake, this is a hardcore action movie. The highlights of this film are when the beast is unleashed. The Hulk is a complete badass (for lack of a better word). This movie is filled with suspense and tension as Bruce Banner, played sombrely by Edward Norton, is on the run. This is a character lead film and Edward Norton does a great job making a sympathetic lead. This whole movie is practically a love letter to the Incredible Hulk show from the '70s. All in all, a very entertaining movie with a surprise cameo from Iron man himself!

Minahzur Rahman I think it was a good Incredible Hulk movie. I would see this again if I had the time since there's aren't many good Incredible Hulk movies strangely. The story or plot was good and interesting to follow. I really liked the action scenes. But what I am truly disappointed about is that there hasn't been a sequel, and I don't understand why considering how popular the Incredible Hulk is in the Marvel Universe. It's getting to the point where it's pretty embarrassing considering the ending. When I saw the ending, I was actually excited for the "sequel" to come, but that hasn't happened since, and probably never will. It's five years too late for my liking. I'm not happy since this movie looks wasteful. It looks like the Hulk had the easy ride or something compared to his other superhero counterparts. Someone such as Iron Man and Captain America had three movies whereas Hulk has only one movie to show. There should've been three movies for Hulk by now. Anyway, The Incredible Hulk is one of my favourite movies within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.