I think I must've seen the wrong version of The Incredible Hulk. Sure, it starred Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, and William Hurt, and a big, angry green monster CGI-ed square in the middle of all the scenes. But the reviews I read online and in the local paper—which, by the way is something I rarely do—all talked about how awful this particular installment was. I thought for sure that they must be wrong, that it had to be better than the Ang Lee (seriously, people: Ang Lee directing an action film with a Marvel superhero!) take; and from where I sat today, I was right.

Edward Norton is the man. He's muscular enough in this one, without being over the top. I'm sorry, but Eric Bana is not dorky enough to play the half of the movie that the computer doesn't, that of Dr. David Banner. Norton's Banner strongly desires to find a cure, strongly yearns to be reunited with Betty Ross (Liv Tyler), and compassionately tries to protect the innocent and bring the guilty to justice.

The other folks didn't bring their A game, but I didn't think they needed to, really. Hurt, Tyler, and Roth played the parts that they were assigned, but the beauty of the movie really was the big green guy. This movie really was about the Hulk, and sub-leveled below that, it was about Banner coming to grips with being the Hulk. There are key pieces of dialogue—but they're involved in the flow of the script, not throwaway, as they are in some action movies. But the action isn't wasted and frivolous either, it moves the story along.

Speaking of which, one of the finer points of comic book moviemaking here was the juxtaposition of key plot "flashes" or stills, mixed in with the opening credits, which allowed us to learn "how we got here" without painfully backtracking over commonly known Hulkish origins.

The movie itself cuts off in just under two hours with two basic storylines having been accomplished: we've seen Banner race for a cure (and a reunion with Betty Ross) and we've seen Banner/the Hulk embrace their coexistence in the defense of the greater good versus Abomination. Still, having wrapped those two points into a neat package, we still watch as the Hulk bounds off into the distance; and of course, the crossover of Robert Downey, Jr. as Iron Man in the closing seconds lets us know that the green giant will be back.

From a spiritual standpoint, the development of Banner in respect to his relationship with his alter ego is what made the movie matter to me. Initially, Banner fights and fights against turning into the Hulk, and finally finds himself using the "curse" of the Hulk as more than a weapon of mass destruction. While my preview alluded to my point of view that the Hulk-related radiation was similar to sin (and Banner does tell Betty that he doesn't want to harness it, he wants to be cured), Banner never becomes Hulk out of purely selfish motivation. It's hard for me to say never, but it seems that the Hulk only emerges as a champion of the downtrodden. The Hulk appears to be a monster to those witnessing him, but he is in fact a green Christ figure. He's willing to lay it all on the line, for his friends first, and finally, his community.

The Incredible Hulk wasn't as witty or creative as Iron Man, but it was more entertaining than Prince Caspian, or Indiana Jones and the Nonsense That Followed. I'll be buying it, and the sequels and crossovers that follow. I can't wait to see The Avengers! But who needs witty dialogue, or long discourses on freedom and patriotism, when to keep it real, Hulk-style, you need a few bad guys, a disgruntled doctor and the battle cry, "Hulk smash!"