The Incredible Hulk
It’s interesting to see, just a couple years before Superman, how inconvenient it was to create superhero stuff and hard it was not to be dreadful. Hulk aged terribly. But, if we exclude elements like TV slowness typical for 70s and bad effects, this pilot is relatively good written and directed. Outside of USA this was a movie theater ran feature film. As such, it is not good. It’s not just those effects, I’m sure they tried hard.
Today, superhero genre is usually in trilogies or expanded universes. The first movie is always some kind of tragedy that leads to building of a character. Then in later movies, the character gets dark and reaches his potential during the battles against greatest foes ever. My god, this pilot has like two (well, three) deaths and super-depressing end. Although it feels like the comics, if I have watched this in theater I’d get out disappointed and sad.
A big plus is homage to modern Prometheus, good old Frankenstein’s monster, because the first thing Hulk does is meeting a little girl by the lake. Instead of a killing instinct, Hulk has good intentions but the girl frightens and falls in the lake. He tries to help but gets shot in the arm by the girl’s redneck father. One more proof that Americans should not be allowed to carry guns around. Poor Hulk!
SERBIAN:
Zanimljivo je videti, samo par godina pre Supermena, koliko je bilo nemoguće napraviti nešto superherojsko a da ne bude jezivo. Hulk je užasno ostario. Međutim, ako izuzmemo elemente poput televizijske sporoće tipične za sedamdesete ili jezive efekte, ovaj pilot TV serije je prilično dobro napisan i režiran. Van Amerike, ovo je bio bioskopski film i, na žalost, kao takav nije baš dobar. Efekte ne vredi ocenjivati, verujem da su se trudili.
Danas su superherojski filmovi uglavnom u trilogijama i onda prvi film bude jedna velika tragedija, te izgrađivanje karaktera. Tek u drugom situacija postaje mračna za našeg junaka, dok u trećem ide veliko oslobađanje sa verom u sutra gde ni jedna prepreka nije prevelika. Ako ovaj pilot TV serije pogledamo kao igrani film, prvi u nizu, sa dve (to jest tri) velike smrti i depresivnim krajem, premisa stripa biva ispoštovana, ali da sam film gledao u bioskopu izašao bih razočaran i smoren.
Mislim da je veliki plus igra sa modernim Prometejem, dobrim starim Frankenštajnovim čudovištem, jer prvo što Hulk uradi je upoznavanje sa devojčicom na obali jezera. Za razliku od čudovišta Meri Šeli, Hulk želi da pomogne nakon što maloumnica uskoči u jezero od straha i počne da se davi. To što ga njen otac upuca puškom u ruku je samo još jedan dokaz da Amerikanci možda ne bi trebalo da poseduju puške i dozvole da ih nose sa sobom. Jadan Hulk!