Hulk side
When ANG LEE announced he was going to adapt a comic book, everyone thought: ‘What. you?‘ Turns out
he was the perfect man for The Hulk. ~:
licrc arc tuo xtarx in thc hlockhuxtcr I
adaptation ol thc .\lar\cl comic hook. l’ltc
[In/k. ()nc ix a (‘(il ci‘cation. lltc olhci‘ a human. \cithcr ix an actor. 'l‘hc (‘(il xtar ix thc l5~lcct tall gt‘ccn hchcmotli \xhoxc raging angcr l'uclx a liinitlcxx xtrcngtli. which. in thc comic ot‘igittall} crcatcd h} Stan lcc and .lack lx'irh} hack in l‘HiZ. hax accountcd l'or morc maxx dcxtruction than tlic comhincd cl‘l‘ortx ol~ l’i'cxidcntx litixh xcniot' and junior. The human xtar ol' tlic lilm ix itx dircctor. :\ng lcc. thc xh). diminuiiw 'l'aiuancxc man \\ltt)xc‘ hod) ol' \xork. moxt particularly the glorioux martial artx romancc. (Tour/ting 'ligt'l; [Ill/(IV!) [Hugo/1. hax garncrcd him unixcrxal admiration.
Willi ('rom'limg 'ligt'r. lcc \xax crc‘ditcd \xith not juxt clmating martial artx action to xonicthing akin to claxxical hallct. hut alxo inluxing tltc ptilp gcni‘c \xith compch charactcrixationx and dcpth ol' l'ccling. Will] '/'/I(' Hulk. lcc hax donc xolttcllting ximilar. comhining the xupcr—poucicd xcnxationalixm ol thc comic \\it|i clcmcntx ol‘ (ircck tragcd}. \\ hat lic callx ‘Iix}c‘lititli';iiiizi'. Although the lilm hax a linc caxt in thc‘ :\uxtralian actor liric Bana t\\ho pla_\x thc tlic llulk‘x human ‘* "I
altcr cgo. Bruce Banncrl. ()xcar-\xinncr .lc'nmlc‘r M“ (‘onnclh and \c‘tcran pla_\'cr \ick .\'oltc. and oncc again l‘l‘tnidcx the chancc l'ot‘ I.c‘c‘ to “ink \\‘illt xL‘l'lPHH‘ilc‘l' .lamcx Scliainux. it’x thc director \xho'x thc dri\‘ing crcatnc l‘orcc hchind thix unuxuall) claxx_\ hlockhuxtcr.
“Ii/1c IIu/k ix an c‘\lcnxion ol‘ “hat I had alrcad} donc \xith thc (‘hincxc pulp) art.’ xa}x lcc. ‘Altcr xi\ tno\icx I got intcrcxtcd in digging into “hat I call thc “hiddc‘n dragon" thc \xild cncrg} hiddc‘n hcncath pulp art. In thix caxc il‘x thc art ol~ comic hookx.‘
.-\x a ho} gro\\ ing tip in 'I'aiu an. lcc rcad thc .-\mcrican xupcrhcro comic hookx. l‘rom ultoxc pagcx 'I‘lu' lln/k'x L'UltlL‘lllpttl';ll'lc‘\. .\'-.lI¢-n. Spider-lion and Darn/mil. haw alxo rcccntl) xprung to thc xcrcc‘n. lcc rcad. too. (‘hincxc comic hookx and .lapancxc manga hookx in tranxlation. dcxpitc thcm hcing prohihitc‘d h) xchool and h} hix parcntx. ‘l'w al\\a_\ x axxociatcd thcm \\ ith llltltlc‘lt plc‘axurc.‘ hc xa} x.
A puhcxccnt lcc rc‘ading comicx hchind thc xchool hikc‘ xhcd ma} not ha\ c apprcciatc‘d 'I'lu' Hit/k ax a metaphor l‘or hidden plcaxurc. hut thc lull} matured intcrnationall) t‘c‘nou'ncd lilmmakc‘r hax capitalixcd on that axpcct of thc xtripx. ‘lt takcx a B—mm ic genre or pulp art to harncxx
SIZED
that \\ ild c‘nc‘rg}. to c‘\poxc‘ that lltilk xidc‘. \Vltc‘lltc‘t' it'x \L‘\llitl rcprcxxion or
rc‘prcxxcd aggrcxxion that‘x hiddcn in our primal cxixtcncc.‘ l‘lL‘ xa)x. ‘lt'x \\ hat allo\\x tix to xur\i\c: aggrc‘xxion that dc‘alx \xith tcar. \L‘\llttl tlc‘\ll'c‘\. It'x thix xtthconxciotix that I’m \c'r) much into. I had a chancc to do a px}'c‘hodi‘;iiii;i. haxc‘d on thc‘ original prcmixc of thc xtor_\. ;\nd it lclt likc it \x'ax tinic‘ tor the to do a big mo\ic‘. Mark it in lloll}\\ood. hut xtill hc pcrxonal. I got cxcitcdf
'I'lic Hulk. it~ )ou think about it. hax got px) chodrama in xpadcx. Brucc Banncr'x mad xcicntixt lather conductx gcnctic c‘\pcrimcntx upon himxcll.
Miles Fielder
'I LOST IT A COUPLE OF TIMES - WHEN IT COMES TO CINEMA I HAVE HULK-
AMBITION'
tlic rcxultx ot \xlncli .uc umuttmgh paxxcd on to hix xon. \\'licn liannci xcntoi .tttcmptx to tccltl} hix inixtakc. a tcriihlc tiagcd} occuix and thc ho}
Star one: CGI
ix xcparatcd liom hix paicntx. lx’cptcxxtng tlicxc painl'ul mcmoricx. lii‘ucc gio\\x up to licconic a mild manncrcd xcicntixti llut \\ltcn hox c\poxcd to a normall} lcthal doxc ot gamma radiation during a lLtl‘UltllHl'} accidcnt. liix inlict‘Itcd gcttclicall} allci‘cd ccllx tclcaxc all that pcnl tip cmotional lur} lrom childhood. \xhicli manilcxtx itxcll' in tlic llulk. \ xcricx ol childhood tantrumx lolloxxx. pcrlcctl} cncapxulatcd in tltc claxxic phraxc lrom tlic lcc and lx'irh} comicx: 'llulk xmaxhl' Smaxh honxcx and carx. liclicoptcrx and tankx and. ax thc ioll_\ unhapp) gt‘ccn giant ix olitcn “out to hcllo“: ‘l’un_\ humanxl‘
‘I do liclicw c\c'i‘_\l\od_\ ltax a llulk xidcf \a_\x l.cc. "l'hc primordial. thc allct‘ cgo. thc comic hookx call it. \\c lia\c to co\ct' it tip. xo \xc can look at ourxcl\cx in thc mirror and rclatc to othcr pcoplc. lt cnahlcx tix to dcal \xitli xocial lilc. lint undcr xtrcxx. uxua|l_\ angcr. ncrxouxncxx or paranoia. it can c\poxc itxcll.‘
.'\nd lcc'.’ l)ocx xh_\ and rctiring .-\ng l.cc haxc a lltilk xidc'.’ '.v\x a dircctor. I turn naxt} \\hcn I want to gct xoinc rcxultx.‘ ltc xa} x.
.-\ctorx \\ho haw \xorkcd \\llll lcc. lrom both Mr [III/Ix and (Tom/mtg 'li‘c't'r. hold him in thc ltigltcxt rcgard httt conl'irni hc ix a hard takaaxtcr. lcc himxcll admitx to throning tantrumx on thc xct ol' l'lit' llii/k. kicking around propx tnot pcoplc. mind). ‘I loxt it a cottplc ol timch lic xa_\x. a littlc cmlxn'raxxcd. "l'liat‘x not likc mc in pct'xott. hut \xhcn it comcx to cincma l haxc llulk-xi/cd amhition. .-\ltcr l'd donc ‘llit' l/u/lx | \\ itlidrcxx hack to lltc pun} human |c\cl..
lt‘x laxcinating to ltcat' l.cc comparing hix llllllltlttlxc‘l‘ xcll' \xith thc giant. raging child that ix thc llulk. Hut \xhat hc tcllx mc nc\t ix quitc hilarioux. llc xa}x that dcxpitc uxing ('(il rathcr than an actor in gi‘ccn hod} paint to \ ixualixc lhc llulk. hc \xantcd to xhoot thc xccncx in tlic lilm in \\lllc‘lt thc grccn hchcmotli appcarx uxing rcal actorx. ‘l \\antcd a gcnuinc pct‘ltn‘tnattcc. not a cartoon pcrliirmancc.‘ I.c‘c‘ kncu \c‘t‘} littlc ahout (.(il. Ltlmtll lttm liotlicx and mmcmcntx arc mappcd out h} cotttptllct‘ hol'linx.
'.\I} approach \xax quitc innoccnt. \xhich turncd out to hc thc hardcxt.‘ hc xa_\x. ‘I had to xho\\ thc animatorx and xttmtmcn “hat I uantcd. 'l‘hc} put inc in a xuit and l turncd into thc llulk.‘
(‘an )0“ imaginc thix ti\ c and a hall loot. dclicatc—htinc-d. middlc-agcd ('hincxc man Lll‘c‘\\c‘tl in grcc‘n loam. xtoinping ahout thc lilm xctx. making lik‘c‘ ('harlcx :\tlax‘.’ .\lc ncithcr. ‘l \xcnt through xomc tltct'apctltic xcxxionx tor li\c monthx.' hc xa_\ x \\ ith a xmilc.
So. it turnx out 'I'lu' Hit/A hax iuxt onc xtar. .-\ng |.cc. thc man xtanding hcliind thc camc‘ra quictl} xa}ing ‘.»\ction'. uho ix alxo thc- gt!) dtcxxcd in loam. traxhing hix o\\ n lilm \L'l. .-\ng I.cc‘ xmaxhl
i‘mar two: Ang Lee
The Hulk is on general rampage from Fri 18 Jul. See review.
THE LIST 13