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Comics aren't just for kids. I tire of explaining this to my friends who see me day in and day out with a comic in hand. Comic books are just a powerful form of storytelling than a lyrically driven song or a compelling novel or a three and a half hour epic motion picture. Comic books aren't limited by deadlines, actor availability, budget constraints; they�re limited only by the writer�s imagination and the artist's capabilities. Now, that can be either a good or a bad thing. For the mainstream comic audience, we're dealing with characters that have been around for 40 years or longer. That's a long time, especially for characters that�ve pushed the boundaries of their universe for that long of a time once or more a month. It becomes harder and harder to make, say, Spider-Man interesting over a time period that long. What HASN'T been explored in Spidey's life? Yet, month after month, I'm pleasantly surprised by what they have to offer. Otherwise, I wouldn't be coming back. Do I read these comics for explosions and spandex? No, not at all. I read them for one thing you don't see in most movies or TV shows. That in-between time where the superhero must cope with their day to day life while dealing with world threatening problems. Ask anyone who reads comics. They're favorite issues are usually going to be those one shot stories exploring a characters drive and ambition. Why they do what they do. How they keep it secret from their loved ones. How they manage a full time job in-between beating the crap out of evil doers. For examples of the mastery of this, check out any of Brian Michael Bendis' work on the stands now in Daredevil or Ultimate Spider-Man. Comics are so much more that what they're given credit for.
Since then, comic book films have exploded in the mainstream. Every comic book property has been optioned. From Ghost Rider to Iron Fist. A Superman movie has been in development hell for years now, as has a new Batman movie. We've had Spider-Man, Daredevil, two Blade movies, and two X-Men movies and are awaiting League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Punisher, and even the Fantastic Four. Even some of the obscure independent comics have been given the opportunity of mainstream appeal. For instance, last years The Road to Perdition and Ghost World. It's a treat for any and all comic book fans and I hope the industry flourishes as a result.  In just under one week, we await another film based on the four color world of comics. The Hulk. This movie has had some controversy since last January when some of the first images of the CGI Hulk were revealed during a commercial spot on the Super Bowl. The CGI of the character has been called too fake. It doesn't look real. It looks plastic. There isn't enough dust gathered after jumping over the distance of a mile. It bounced when it landed. How can something that big bounce? I haven't watched the film myself. It's very tempting knowing that the work print of the Hulk is just one click away on my cable modem, but what keeps that temptation in reserve is that a movie like this is meant to be seen on a screen 600 times bigger than my monitor with loud ass digital sound. It's not meant to be seen without a score like the work print. I also understand that this version floating around on the 'net isn't fully edited. It's unfair to the people that put in two years of their lives putting this film together that it gets circulated unfinished like this just weeks before it's release for all the critically enlightened geeks of the world to tear apart. Sad. What I have seen of the Hulk looks absolutely amazing. Just look at the close up of the Hulks face (above). Look at the lazy eye. The inconsistencies. This isn't just some CGI character. The expressions of the face on all of the pictures and clips released are amazing. This CGI character is acting. It's conveying emotion better than any handful of young "actors" working in Hollywood today. If Gollum is the Pacino of the CGI world, The Hulk is the Deniro. What bothers me most about the criticism the CGI of the Hulk is getting is that people seem to be missing the point. The backbone of a good movie is not special effects, and everyone who loves movies knows this. The man directing this movie is an artist and a very experienced filmmaker. This is the guy who brought us Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. That movie was a brilliant and beautiful film. Sense and Sensibility is the only Merchant Ivory film I've seen that I actually enjoyed (Hugh Grant aside). And don't forget the Ice Storm, a much overlooked film from a few years back with a great ensemble cast about families coping in the post sexual revolution of the mid seventies. The movie is worth checking out for the opening sequence alone; a pre Spider-Man Toby Maguire reading an old Kirby issue of The Fantastic Four. Early reviews that I've skimmed of the movie tell that this is not an action adventure film many are expecting, but a deep rooted character driven film about a man who has given into his rage after so many years of concealing it. It goes back to the roots of the character....the Dr. Jeckyl/Mr. Hyde meets Frankenstein aspect of the Hulk. More drama than explosions and chases. I guess many would be disappointed in that. Not me. As a matter of fact, it makes me want to see it that much more. If I wanted an average action comic book movie, I'd watch Daredevil again. (Which angers me so much. not that Daredevil was that bad (altough it was pretty bad), but just because it COULD'VE been SO DAMN GOOD!!) What I want out of a "comic book movie" is a film that conveys just what it is I read every month in the actual pages of a good comic. I want a movie that takes a character that I've grown up with and explores them in a way that M. Night Shyamalan did in Unbreakable. No major comic book property that's been released on the silver screen has achieved this thus far. My hope is that The Hulk will do just that. |
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