Well the film that I was anticipating the most this year is finally out. Ang Lee's "Hulk" is now playing in theatres all over North America and, I must say, it's not your typical popcorn movie. But being a film by an intellectual visionary like Lee, I wasn't really expecting it to be.

First off, I want to say that I liked it quite a bit for the most part. Ang Lee, not content to make merely a movie about a rampaging green monster, has opted instead to explore some serious underlying themes. In the end, "Hulk" has a lot more to do with topics such as childhood trauma, the oedipal concept of struggle between father and son, and humanity's eternal endeavour to defy nature (or God if you're a religious person) by using science and medicine to overcome one's own mortality and weeknesses. Oh, of course, Lee never forgets throughout the film that this is still a movie based on a comic book. There's the all-important action scenes, and one of the most memorable sequences is a lenghty confrontation between Hulk and the U.S army in the Mojave desert where the military uses tanks and helicopters against the rampaging beast. For me that's when the film---after more than an hour of mostly dialogue and character development (and few appearances by the not-so-jolly green giant)---finally truly became fun to watch. Hulk then leapfrogs his way to San Francisco where he causes more mayhem before calming down and turning back into Dr. Banner (Eric Bana) as the beautiful Betty Ross (Jennifer Connelly) comes to him. The special effects in this long action scene are quite good.

Also there's no lack of cinematography in this film. Ang Lee uses practically every camera technique imaginable to bring this dark tale to life. It truly is probably the most stylish "superhero" movie I've seen since 1989's Batman. Lee goes so far as reviving an old visual style which is now much reviled---the split screen effect. Only these are achieved in ever creative ways, sometimes deviding the screen into 3 and even 4 (!). This is done quite a bit throughout "Hulk"---almost to the point of being excessive, but not quite. Personally, that's one thing I didn't like much about the film. I found the split screen effect in fact rather distracting. But you have to give Ang Lee points for creativity.

In conclusion, I'll say this: "Hulk" is certainly worth the price of admission and you should be entertained. Just don't go see it expecting a mindless action movie, because, unlike the title character, Director Ang Lee is no unthinking brute.

RABID'S RATING: 7 HAIRBALLS OUT OF 10.

Until next time, folks!
RABID TRIBBLE (CL5)