The Incredible Hulk (2008) reviews

Does a good job of introducing Bruce Banner as a character and explaining the existence of Hulk without relying on huge amounts of science babble. Edward Norton was really good in this, a shame he didn't come back for The Avengers but Mark Ruffalo is a solid replacement.

Hollywood has always failed to live up to Lou Ferigno's TV Hulk, and although this is the best Hulk film I've seen it's still not the most gripping of tales. It's interesting in that the film itself is not about Bruce Banner becoming the Hulk, so much as about how he attempts to bring it under control – an important task if he is to work in a team when the Avengers assemble. Edward Norton is a class actor so I was sad to read that he was not reprising the role in the Avengers film. Some good action scenes although the uberhulk villain is a bit OTT.

The Incredible Hulk is the underrated black sheep of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It gets a bad reputation as being among the weaker entries in the MCU, but it's a lot better than you think it is. After all, it's the first film where you understand that these characters live in the same world, via Tony Stark talking to General Ross.