Tim Roth

‘The Incredible Hulk’ Jacked Up on CGI Roids, But Medusa’s in His Face

HollywoodChicago.com — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 22:01:00 -0700

CHICAGO – Technology has done double-edged service and disservice to the legendary Hulk superhero character from Stan Lee’s Marvel Comics.

In peering at the CGI-created ripped body of nothing remotely reminiscent of Edward Norton, the 2008 film iteration of “The Incredible Hulk” has a leg light years up on Lou Ferrigno’s character in the 1978 television series of the “The Incredible Hulk”.

Rating: 4.0/5.0

Then, Ferrigno only had the luxury of makeup. The rest was the real deal. On the other hand, Ferrigno – who treats 2008 audiences in a gasping reveal when he appears in a brief cameo in the new Louis Leterrier-directed feature film – is still the soul, spirit and most critically the face of the green-skinned behemoth.

Read Adam Fendelman’s full review of “The Incredible Hulk” in our reviews section.

View our huge, high-resolution “The Incredible Hulk” image gallery.

Aside from Ferrigno’s brief face time, he also lurks notably in the background as Norton’s voice when he gets royally pissed and transforms into the Hulk. When Norton fumes past his human limit, honing in on the Hulk character’s technologically enhanced face is awkwardly unrealistic and utterly painful.

It’s like gazing into the eyes of the sea nymph Medusa whose monstrous face could threateningly turn onlookers to stone.

While Hollywood’s big-budget technology department both strikes out and smashes a homerun with its revamped and roided-up Hulk character, Tim Roth’s altered ego gets the just-right royal treatment.

When Roth becomes the Abomination to rival the Hulk, the abominable baddie is so disgustingly repulsive and out of such reality whack that his CGI renovation plays perfectly.

The unbridled force of rage known as The Hulk on the streets of New York in an all-new, explosive and action-packed epic of one of the most popular superheroes of all time in “The Incredible Hulk”.
Photo credit: Rhythm & Hues

A monstrous new adversary known as The Abomination faces off with The Hulk in an all-new, explosive and action-packed epic of one of the most popular superheroes of all time in “The Incredible Hulk”.
Photo credit: Rhythm & Hues

Read Adam Fendelman’s full “The Incredible Hulk” review.

With Surreal Madness, Strange Boys Play ‘Funny Games’

HollywoodChicago.com — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 16:57:32 -0700

CHICAGO – Imagine a film with no redeeming or uplifting emotional qualities with evil that tortures the soul, squirm-inducing narrative elements and a relentless anxiety that practically has us – like the characters in the film – screaming for mercy. Imagine also that this film is excellent.

“Funny Games” is a shot-by-shot remake of writer and director Michael Haneke’s 1997 Austrian film of the same name, which now features American actors and their presumed sensibilities.

Naomi Watts from “The Ring” is Ann: the 30-something matriarch of an upper-middle class American family who’s heading for their vacation home. Her husband, George (Tim Roth), and son, Georgie (Devon Gearhart), are accompanying her. As the family approaches the heavily gated development, a murky apprehension is in the air as familiar friends offer tentative greetings.

Click here to read Patrick McDonald’s full review
of “Funny Games” in our reviews section!

Click here for our full “Funny Games” image gallery!

Naomi Watts in “Funny Games”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Naomi Watts, Michael Pitt (middle) and Brady Corbet in “Funny Games”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Universal Releases Two New High-Resolution Production Stills For ‘The Incredible Hulk’

HollywoodChicago.com — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 08:09:55 -0700

Universal Pictures on Thursday released two new high-resolution production stills for “The Incredible Hulk” as part of its 2008 preview.

The film, which is slated to open on June 13, 2008, stars Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth and William Hurt. The new photos are below. You can click on them for high-resolution versions.

Here’s the film’s official synopsis:

“The Incredible Hulk” kicks off an all-new, explosive and action-packed epic of one of the most popular superheroes of all time.

In this new beginning, scientist Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) desperately hunts for a cure to the gamma radiation that poisoned his cells and unleashes the unbridled force of rage within him: The Hulk.

Living in the shadows – cut off from a life he knew and the woman he loves (Liv Tyler) – he struggles to avoid the obsessive pursuit of his nemesis (William Hurt) and the military machinery that seeks to capture him and brutally exploit his power.

As all three grapple with the secrets that led to The Hulk’s creation, they are confronted with a monstrous new adversary known as The Abomination (Tim Roth) whose destructive strength exceeds even The Hulk’s own.

One scientist must make an agonizing final choice: accept a peaceful life as Bruce Banner or find heroism in the creature he holds inside.