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(About Our Ads) "THE INCREDIBLE HULK" (2008) (Edward Norton, Liv Tyler) (PG-13) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Moderate Moderate Extreme *Moderate Extreme Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Moderate None Heavy None Mild Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Moderate Moderate Moderate Moderate Extreme QUICK TAKE: Action/Adventure: Years after a self-experiment has left him prone to turning into a hulking monster when angry, an on-the-lam scientist hopes to find a cure for his malady, all while trying to avoid military personnel who want the secrets of his altered genetic makeup. PLOT: Five years after a self-experiment left Bruce Banner (EDWARD NORTON) with gamma poisoning and a tendency to mutate into a hulking monster whenever his heart rate gets above a certain number, the scientific researcher is hiding out in Brazil trying to find a cure. He's on the lam since American Army general Thaddeus Ross (WILLIAM HURT) wants to use the secrets of his altered genetic makeup for military purposes, with that most likely coming from an unwelcome autopsy. Since Bruce has been so good at eluding him, Ross has employed legendary military commando Emil Blonsky (TIM ROTH) to find and capture him. He nearly does, but wasn't informed of or prepared for The Hulk transformation that leaves many soldiers wounded or dead and Blonsky awed by what he's seen. After escaping from him, Bruce heads back to the States where he encounters his former girlfriend, Betty Ross (LIV TYLER), who just so happens to be the general's daughter, and later meets up with researcher Samuel Sterns (TIM BLAKE NELSON) who thinks he might have a cure for him. As they hurry to implement that, they must contend with Gen. Ross' perseverance in capturing Bruce, especially now that Blonsky has also been genetically altered, a tactic that eventually turns him into an equally hulking monster known as The Abomination. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? If they're fans of the comic book, superhero movies, and/or anyone in the cast, it's a good bet many will. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13 For sequences of intense action violence, some frightening sci-fi images, and brief suggestive content. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: EDWARD NORTON plays a scientific researcher who's been on the run for five years, eluding Gen. Ross and others who are after his unwanted and nearly uncontrollable ability to mutate into a hulking monster. He hopes to find a cure for his malady, and ends up hooking back up with his former girlfriend, and they briefly fool around. LIV TYLER plays his former girlfriend, a cellular biologist who's moved on with her life after his disappearance years ago, and thus is torn when he reappears. That's especially true when she sees how her father is trying to capture and/or kill him for future military gain. She does what she can to help Bruce, and they briefly fool around. TIM ROTH plays the military commando employed by Gen. Ross to find, capture and/or kill Bruce. Realizing his physical prime is behind him, he becomes entranced by the potential of mutating his own genes, and thus becomes a power-hungry, fearsome monster in the process. TIM BLAKE NELSON plays a scientific researcher who wants to help Bruce, but also sees broad applications for the mutation. WILLIAM HURT plays Betty's father, an Army general who will stop at nothing to attain the secrets of Bruce's mutation and use that for future military gain. He smokes cigars, briefly drinks, and uses some profanity. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this action flick that's been rated PG-13. Profanity consists of an incomplete "s" word, while a handful of other expletives and colorful phrases are also uttered. An unmarried couple is briefly seen fooling around on a bed, but they stop before anything explicit occurs. Various men are seen shirtless, while the side of a man's bare butt is seen in a shower. Violence consists of enormous humanoid monsters battling each other (brutally) as well as humans who try to use all sorts of weapons against them (with some bloody results, but nothing terribly graphic). Those scenes, moments of peril, and the sight of the monsters might be unsettling or suspenseful for some viewers. Various characters have varying degrees of bad attitudes. Some of the action and other behavior might be enticing for kids to imitate, while one characters smokes (cigars) and briefly drinks a lot (in one scene). Some tense family material is present. If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those concerned with bright flashes of light on the screen, some of that occurs from lightning and then later there's some of that from inside a chopper that's just crashed. For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, there are varying amounts of camera movement in the film. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE We see Gen. Ross drinking in a bar (along with others) and he appears a little intoxicated while twice telling the bartender "Reload" (pour him more, which he quickly downs). BLOOD/GORE During the opening credits, we see brief views of the gamma experiment that went awry, transforming Bruce into The Hulk. While we don't see the latter per se (but do witness a guard shooting a handgun at him), we see the results of his destructive rampage, including damaged equipment (and later photos of property damage) and various dead or wounded people, some of them bloody (face, hand, etc.), including Betty (we later see her in the hospital, bruised with dried bloody cuts). Bruce accidentally cuts his finger in a factory assembly line, and we see a close-up of the drop of blood as it falls away from him (and later see his cut finger with a little blood on it). Bruce then stops the line and finds and wipes up the drop, not seeing another bit of blood on the neck of a bottle, or it then mixing with the beverage that's been bottled. Later, a miscellaneous character (played by Stan Lee) unknowingly consumes that while drinking from the bottle. Doing blood work on himself, Bruce pricks his finger and puts the resultant blood on a slide. We see a blood sample in a vial. About encountering The Hulk, Blonsky tells Gen. Ross that the latter will have a lot of professional tough guys "pissing in their pants." The Hulk has various small bloody cuts on his body following his battle with the military. A miscellaneous soldier has a bloody nose and mouth following an encounter with The Hulk. After a rough encounter with The Hulk, Blonsky looks quite bad in the hospital, with his face all bruised and cut and his fingers looking black and red. Betty hears the sound of Bruce vomiting, and he then shows that he's retrieved the previously swallowed removable computer drive (we don't see any vomit). We see Blonsky's spine growing out from his back (protruding from under the skin and thus no blood, but still gross looking). We see many vials and other containers of blood that Samuel has replicated from Bruce's initial sample. Samuel prepares to try a cure on Bruce, but states it could be deadly. He then has Bruce strapped down and then applies an electric shock to his forehead. That causes the Hulk transformation to begin, with Bruce's skin getting all veiny and distorted, etc. The Abomination strikes Samuel, bloodying his head that then starts to pulsate at the wound area. A miscellaneous man's face is bloody following a helicopter crash. After battling The Abomination, The Hulk has various small bloody cuts on his skin. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE General Ross wants Bruce captured and/or killed so that he can get his hands on the genetic mutation he hopes the military can use to create nearly indestructible soldiers. Blonsky is just doing his job at first (to capture or kill Bruce for the above), but becomes increasingly power hungry when he sees the physical benefit of being injected with the mutation. As a result, he eventually transforms into The Abomination and kills (and tries to kill) others while causing a great deal of property damage and destruction. A factory worker purposefully bumps into Bruce in the locker room. Later, he harasses a woman who works there. Bruce intervenes, is called a "gringo," and the bully then shoves him and tries to do that again before their boss separates them. After stabbing a female military officer in the back (we don't see the impact or know if she's just wounded or dead), Blonsky mockingly states that the woman was "an annoying bitch." FRIGHTENING SCENES Scenes listed under "Violence" and/or "Blood/Gore" may be unsettling or suspenseful to younger viewers and/or those with low tolerance levels for such material. Blonsky is given injections and is told they'll be painful, especially one that will go into the bone. We first see two large needles go into either side of his neck (no blood) and after he's turned upside down while strapped to a table, an equally big one is inserted into his back, causing him great pain, particularly when we hear the crunch of the needle penetrating what's presumably his spine. Samuel prepares to try a cure on Bruce, but states it could be deadly. He then has Bruce strapped down and then applies an electric shock to his forehead. That causes the Hulk transformation to begin, with Bruce's skin getting all veiny and distorted, etc. Betty then implores Samuel to apply the potential antidote and it works, but Bruce is limp after that and Betty briefly thinks he's dead, but he then comes to. The sight of The Abomination, a huge and menacing monster with something of a craggy exoskeleton, might be unsettling and/or scary to some viewers, particularly younger ones. Realizing he must battle The Abomination (but unsure if his Hulk cure was permanent or temporary), Bruce purposefully falls from a chopper and plummets toward the city below. He panics when the elevated heart rate doesn't immediately turn him into The Hulk and he smashes into the street below. When he emerges, however, he's in Hulk form. GUNS/WEAPONS Machine guns/Handguns/Grenades/Missile: Carried and/or used to threaten, wound or attempt to kill others and/or cause property damage. See "Violence" for details. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: An incomplete "Oh sh*t," "Gringo," "You won't like me when I'm hungry," "Get rid of the damn dog," "This is a whole new level of weird," "Pissing in their pants," "Pissed off and ready for round three," "Are you out of your mind?" "Zip it," "How are you feeling, man?" followed by the response "Like a monster," "She's an annoying bitch," "What the hell was that?" "Sweet" and "Booyah." The stunts, fighting and other action might be enticing for some kids to imitate. Bruce's breathing control trainer repeatedly undulates his abdomen. We see miscellaneous graffiti. Blonsky sports some tattoos. Bruce swallows a small removable computer drive (to keep it hidden from Gen. Ross' men). A cabbie drives like a madman through the city, swerving and speeding, etc. Samuel acts out the motion of flipping a coin, catching it, and putting it on his wrist. JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) A heavy amount of ominous, suspenseful, action-oriented, and heavily dramatic music plays in the film. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY At least 1 incomplete "s" word, 5 damns, 1 crap (although it might have been "crack"), 1 hell, 3 uses of "Oh my God," 2 of "Oh God" and 1 use each of "G-damn" and "My God." SEX/NUDITY During the opening credits, there's a brief sexy view of Betty on a bed or just reclined, but it's just a brief and incomplete view, and certainly nothing explicit. We see Bruce shirtless. We see Bruce and his trainer, seated and shirtless, while doing breathing control exercises. We see some shirtless men in a factory locker room. Bruce barely avoids Gen. Ross' men and briefly ends up in a woman's apartment below him where he finds her in just a towel (nothing explicit is seen). We see Bruce shirtless in post-Hulk mode. We see Betty and Bruce meet in the rain. While her shirt is wet and clingy, nothing explicit is seen. We see an overhead view of Betty in some sleepwear (a nightgown or lingerie with straps -- we see just the chest area above the sheets, but nothing explicit). We see Blonsky shirtless as he's about to be injected. Betty shows a little cleavage. We see Bruce shirtless in post Hulk mode (Betty wakes up next to him, but presumably went to sleep alongside him while he was still in Hulk mode). We next see him in the shower (a head and shoulders shot, followed by an overhead view of him reacting to a flashback -- partial butt seen -- and then curled up on the shower floor, a view that shows the side of his bare butt). Betty and Bruce passionately kiss (he's shirtless) and we next see them doing the same with him lying on top of her (she's clothed) on a bed, with her partially bare leg up along his side. He then notices his climbing heart rate (which means he could turn into The Hulk) and thus stops. He says they can't do this, but she says it's okay as she wants to. He then says he can't get excited and she replies, "Not even a little excited?" Nothing else sexual happens. We see Blonsky shirtless after he's all healed. We see Blonsky shirtless. We see Bruce shirtless. SMOKING Gen. Ross is seen smoking cigars several times and at others holding or having unlit ones in his mouth. TENSE FAMILY SCENES Betty is upset that her father, Gen. Ross, is ordering his men to try to capture and/or kill Bruce (including as The Hulk). Upset about how her father has acted, Betty tells Gen. Ross, "Don't ever speak to me as your daughter again." TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Genetic experimentation and resultant mutations. The quest to create a super soldier. General Ross' quest eventually causing his adult daughter to tell him never to speak to her again. VIOLENCE During the opening credits, we see brief views of the gamma experiment that went awry, transforming Bruce into The Hulk. While we don't see the latter per se (but do witness a guard shooting a handgun at him), we see the results of his destructive rampage, including damaged equipment (and later photos of property damage) and various dead or wounded people, some of them bloody (face, hand, etc.), including Betty (we later see her in the hospital, bruised with dried bloody cuts). We see Bruce and his trainer, seated and shirtless, while doing breathing control exercises. The trainer then twice slaps Bruce (to get him angry and see if the breathing can calm him down). A factory worker purposefully bumps into Bruce in the locker room. Later, he harasses a woman who works there. Bruce intervenes, is called a "gringo," and the bully then shoves him and tries to do that again before their boss separates them. We see a dog with a sedative dart in it (fired by Gen. Ross' men). Blonsky fires one into Bruce's dog as well as many into Bruce's bed, thinking he's in it, but then sees that he only hit a decoy. Gen. Ross' men chase after Bruce through a Brazilian city's narrow streets and buildings, including jumping from building to building. During this, one pursuer takes a wrong step and falls a long distance (landing hard on the pavement/street below), while darts are fired at Bruce. Bruce ends up back in the factory where he works and then runs into a bully coworker and his buddies who also give chase. Bruce flips one and hits another, realizing he must control his heart rate lest he turn into The Hulk. The bullies then grab Bruce and he hits one, but they push him back against some fencing. A military dart then lands in one man's clothed back, dropping him, while Bruce turns into The Hulk. As that, he throws the main bully through all sorts of factory items, while military sedative darts are shot at The Hulk, but simply bounce off his thick skin, which also holds true for machine gun bullets fired at him. The Hulk throws someone aside, while more machine gun fire hits The Hulk, as does a grenade explosion. The Hulk then slides an enormous factory tank toward others, with one soldier racing to get out of its way, but his foot gets caught on it and he's yanked away. Blonsky then shoots The Hulk but to no avail, with The Hulk then throwing a huge piece of factory equipment at Blonsky, smashing the catwalk near him, leaving him barely holding onto that. The Hulk then uses another huge piece to smash through a wall, allowing him to escape. Blonsky is given injections and is told they'll be painful, especially one that will go into the bone. We first see two large needles go into either side of his neck (no blood) and after he's turned upside down while strapped to a table, an equally big one is inserted into his back, causing him great pain, particularly when we hear the crunch of the needle penetrating what's presumably his spine. A military vehicle smashes into civilian ones while storming a university campus to chase Bruce. Bruce finds himself trapped on a glass-enclosed bridge of sorts between two buildings, into which tear gas is shot. As he tries to hold his breath, he spots Betty elbow one soldier but another then tackles her. That makes him angry, he turns into The Hulk, and smashes through the glass bridge. Machine guns are fired at him but do no harm and he overturns one vehicle, smashes another, and then uses that to smash a third (all as the bullets keep flying). He sends the engine of another flying toward others, resulting in an explosion, while Blonsky shoots grenades and then his handgun at The Hulk. The Hulk then tries to smash Blonsky with two huge chunks of metal, but the newly enhanced Blonsky manages to avoid them. That's followed by two large vehicles firing some sort of sonic waves that pummel The Hulk, but when he sees Betty being manhandled, he overcomes the pain and distress and bashes and splits one of the vehicles, using that to smash the other. Blonsky then tries shooting The Hulk with a machine gun again, but after he taunts The Hulk by asking if that's all he's got, The Hulk kicks him back hard across a field and against a tree. We later see a very bad looking Blonsky in the hospital, with talk that most of his bones were pulverized by that double blow (kick & hitting the tree). Back on the field, an attack helicopter opens fire on The Hulk who uses his body to shield Betty who's run up to him. The Hulk then throws something that damages the chopper, causing it to crash. Its rotor barely misses the two, but the fiery wreckage does not, with The Hulk again shielding Betty from that impact. After it passes, he carries her limp body away (she's okay later, while The Hulk has various small bloody cuts on his body). When Betty comes to, she's surprised to see The Hulk and thus pushes him away, causing him to hit his head on a low, rocky overhang (played for laughs). We see the military arriving at Samuel's lab building and a sniper preparing to shoot Bruce. A shot is then fired, but it's a sedative dart that hits Bruce in the back. Just then, Blonsky enters, throws Betty aside, and grabs Samuel by the face. He slaps and then knocks him unconscious. After stabbing a female military officer in the back (we don't see the impact or know if she's just wounded or dead), Blonsky mockingly states that the woman was "an annoying bitch." He then holds a gun on Samuel and then lifts him up the chest, wanting the researcher to inject him with the mutation. After Samuel does, Blonsky turns into The Abomination and strikes the researcher, bloodying his head. The Abomination causes all sorts of chaos and property destruction in Harlem, including smashing and tossing cars and other property (causing some explosions), all while machine guns are fired at him. During this, a vehicle runs over a fire hydrant and a military vehicle smashes into various cars. A missile is fired at the monster, but he catches it and it explodes, but does him no harm. He then bashes and smashes various vehicles while chasing the military vehicle that's racing away backwards and crashes into other vehicles. The Abomination then hits and flips a cab, picks it up, and smashes it down onto the military vehicle (presumably killing those in it). Realizing he must battle The Abomination (but unsure if his Hulk cure was permanent or temporary), Bruce purposefully falls from a chopper and plummets toward the city below. He panics when the elevated heart rate doesn't immediately turn him into The Hulk and he smashes into the street below. When he emerges, however, he's in Hulk form, and he and The Abomination then battle on an epic scale. The latter has the earlier advantage while striking and throwing The Hulk about, but the former smashes a car, splitting it in half, and then uses those halves to bash and pummel The Abomination repeatedly, followed by some hard punching. Yet, The Abomination then knocks The Hulk back and runs off, with a military chopper blasting him with machine gun fire. Following some moments of that, The Abomination runs and grabs the chopper by its landing rung, with The Hulk jumping on him and getting punched in the process while dangling below him. The two of them and the chopper end up crashing onto a building top where the two beasts continue to battle (with brutal blows by fists and being bashed into things), while leaking fuel from the chopper is ignited and causes a flash fire (with Betty, Gen. Ross and others inside the downed chopper). The Hulk then claps his hands together to create a powerful gust of wind that blows out the flames. The Abomination then hits The Hulk with a huge chain attached to a massive chunk of concrete, and tries to hit the chopper with the same, but The Hulk intervenes, saving the humans while wrapping the chain around The Abomination's neck. After stabbing something large into The Abomination (no blood), The Hulk goes to deliver the death blow, but Betty stops him, leaving The Abomination battered, wounded and exhausted. Reviewed June 9, 2008 / Posted June 13, 2008