Why Edward Norton Was The BEST MCU Hulk | Video Essay |
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 ก.ย. 2024
- Today, I reflect on Edward Norton's time in the MCU and explain why he's a far better Hulk than Mark Ruffalo. This character has been utterly embarrassing over the past few years, so let's discuss when he was actually good........ #hulk #shehulk #worldwarhulk #secretwars #wakandaforever #edwardnorton #markruffalo #mcu
"Hulk Was The WORST Part Of Avengers Endgame" - • Hulk was the WORST par...
The reason why Edward Norton left the MCU because he wanted to explore Hulk and Bruce banner's character in detail and wanted to take the character in a serious direction but MCU rejected that.
Disney hate strong masculine serious alpha males
@@alsimmonshellspawn6021 for nowadays, it's true.
What's your source?
@@MorrisMeynolt check it out on internet
@@alsimmonshellspawn6021 Well guess what. Number one Disney is a PG company & Elon Musk is now a thing so say goodbye to the wokeness
Norton was the truer version of the Hulk, an uncontrollable monster of pure rage.
Ruffalo's was like a giant, dumb baby.
MCU ruined the character.
I wholly agree with your take here! 💯
Norton didn't give shit when it came to rage. ERIC did. You believed it when he cried or growled. Norton just did the "green eyes" and "oh no I can't stop it" face.
The 2003 Hulk movie was way ahead of it’s time. Hulk was not just a misunderstood guy with anger issues but a physical manifestation of his trauma. The acting, the story, the effects and transitions *chefs kiss.
2003? That one...is...just awful. It had Banner on the run from the government...and that is pretty much *everything* it has I common with the comics.
Absolutely everything else is like the world's most underwhelming acid trip.
@@brendonw456 thats the ONLY thing it had in common with the comics?
@@NoHandlzz Oh yeah.
Him dealing with the turmoil caused by his destructive side? Gone. The people who are hurt by Hulk are all actively trying to wrong and harm him.
Isolation? Well this version of Bruce has like...a day of that, so there isn't anything to explore.
Hulk himself barely even appears.
The mutated dogs. Omfg the dogs...
His dad's horribly mutilated backstory.
Hulk fighting a freaking cloud. Before "Old man yells at clouds", we had "Hulk smashes clouds"
I guess...Betty was okay? Idk, this movie fell into obscurity for good reason, and I haven't voluntarily turned on that hot garbage in ages.
@@brendonw456it bothers me that people praise the 2008 Hulk movie as if it was actually that good if I remember correctly the 2008 movie was almost all Hulk being chased by the army anyway, plus the Hulk was much less strong than the 2003 version, plus the background of traumas and the message of fighting against them is much better than Hulk beating up a version of the abomination that came out in the last moments of the movie. plus the 2008 version was a bait in its trailers because we all thought it was a continuation of the 2003 one.
@@brendonw456 Technically you are right. However, at the end (in spite of that incomprehensible fight scene) it FELT like Hulk. Everyone was only interested in what they could get out of him. Hulk didn’t have a friend. There was purpose for Hulk’s action/destruction. There was nuance to fighting. He didn’t destroy and kill wantonly. He considered others’ lives. He shook the tank operators out of the tank. He saved the fighter pilot when he would have crashed into the bridge.
Yeah the dogs were random and lame. Many of Hulk’s adversaries were born of the same “gamma” processes that Hulk was so that is a tip of the hat to the source material.
I thought if they could combine aspects of the first two Hulk movies and reference the source material more directly, deeply and responsibly it would have been best. It is rather frustrating having been a fan since I was a wee lad.
Edward Norton hit the comic book Banner perfectly.
This current hulk, makes me angry.
I'm trying to contain myself because I tend to rant on this topic. You're 100% correct. There was so much subtle storytelling and world building with this movie, it doesn't deserve to be where it is on the MCU tier list and Norton knocked it out of the park. He knew exactly where he was going with this character.
One of the MCU's biggest casualties IMO
i don't really read comics, but ed norton made me fall in love with hulk
And rural made it seem like you are watching a strongman Shrek
Norton's version of Hulk is THE best its just pure anger savage Hulk exactly what Hulk is.
Agree bro. And the struggle he has to go through everyday just told back his anger
@@777kerokeropi4 Exactly.
Edward Norton's Hulk is definitely the most underrated, my personal favourite.
That was probably what Norton was fighting about, the quality of the character.
I agree 💯
1 Edward Norton
2 Mark Ruffalo
3 Eric Bana
Eric Bana
Edward norton
Mark ruffalo
Norton was absolutely badass as the Hulk. And, Norton's Hulk was actually TERRIFYING in that 1st scene. The build-up to the first transformation was brilliant!!
Yeah. The first time I say Norton's Hulk rage out all I could think was "Holy crap, that's terrifying!"
Watching Ruffalo's Hulk rage out, was like, "Hey, that's pretty cool, right?"
@@CaptainKirkDiggler i agree that Edward Norton's transformations into the Hulk was terrifying and exactly like the 80's TV show. I was not impressed with Rufallo's Hulk transformations and after Marvel making it worse by making this hulk a big joke. Edward Norton's Incredible Hulk is still the best Hulk on the silver screen.
he went from the incredible hulk to the incredible joke
THANK YOU! Finally, somebody recognizes the greatness of the 2008 Incredible Hulk was it the greatest movie? No! But to me, this one is a lot closer to the Bruce Banner/Hulk than any of Mark Ruffalo‘s appearances and I do agree his best one was in the first avengers film!
In all honesty, Nortons version is enjoyable for me because I was a child when the late Bill Bixby was on TV with his Incredible Hulk along with Luke Ferrigno that’s another reason I’m biased towards Norton film because it felt like almost a tribute to that show!
The Incredible Hulk is actually my favourite MCU movie. Glad to see more and more people appreciate it now
I've always Been a fan of the 2008 Hulk & never changed
Amen 🙏🏼
Banner is a haunted man and Norton played that to the T.
He also reminded me a lot of Bill Bixby's performance.
the thing I loved the most about norton hulk is one small dialogue hulk said at the begening fight scene ( leave me alone ) that means he is not just a monster who wants to fight and rage, he is just protecting himself.
@@sornagedl4407 Well said. Another great point.
I really like Edward Norton's portrayal of Bruce Banner and the Hulk. He shows his inner conflict within himself like Jekyll and Hyde.
Ed was more like Bill Bixby. That's what a lot of people appreciated about him, and he did it without trashing the famous line, "You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." Instead, he played it like a regular guy still trying to learn Portuguese, and that was a brilliant subversion. Not only did it help to humanize Bruce, but it gave the audience some idea of how long it had been since he'd said the woods. Also, the pizza delivery scene. When Lou stands up from the security desk, and you see Ed's face visibly jump back in fear for that fraction of a second, that was peak MCU comedy.
Ed Nortons Hulk and the film he was in are severly slept on, its criminal. Not only is that movie pretty dang good, but Norton was actually clearly passionate about the serious nuances of Hulk as an allegory for both Prometheus and Jekyll/Hyde
I liked Edward's hulk because he was a scientists always searching/looking. Always on the run from himself in search of solace in solitude rather than isolation.
Norton was also a comic fiend. He loved comics
I have been saying this for years now, The Incredible Hulk would never be scared of Thanos. Yes, Thanos may have beaten him with the stones but the moment Banner senses that Its Thanos or his Minions attack, The Incredible Hulk would have forced the transformation and attacked Thanos the first chance he gets. HULK IS THE STRONGEST THERE IS. : Hulk vs Wolverine
Exactly
The Incredible Hulk is the ideal and original concept of hulk, who he is, and he should be
Edward Norton was the perfect live action movie adaptation of Bruce Banner, in my opinion. Marvel Studios (looking directly at Kevin Feige) screwed him over. The thing about Norton is that he is not only a remarkable actor, but a damn good writer. And Marvel Studios wasn't interested in Norton's input. Mark Ruffalo is a weak sauce interpretation of Bruce Banner.
Bruh there was nothing more badass to me than Hulk fighting Abomination in the old Hulk movie. Hulk is an extra at this point in the MCU.
Edward Norton is a better Bruce Banner and the incredible Hulk looks better, ripped and more monster than the Ruffalo-Hulk... In my opinion.
Nah Edward as hulk is best and mark as banner is best
Debatable. Mark Ruggalo's performance as Banner is way Banner.
Another thing The Incredible Hulk got right that the rest of the MCU didn’t is making Hulk and Banner visually distinct. The MCU Hulk is just Mark Ruffalo but big and green. Norton’s Hulk actually looked monstrous and far from what a normal human would look like.
Edward Norton's Incredible Hulk is the best Hulk ever to be seen on the silver screen. Everything about this movie is exactly how Bruce Banner would act if he was on the run, hiding from the US army, finding a cure for himself. The stress and the huge amount of fear that he can lose his temper and transform into the monster and put people in danger. That's what the Hulk is all about and this movie captured all of that. The Hulk looks amazing in this movie, loved those lit up green eyes when he transforms ( a nod to the Hulk tv series back in the 80's). We at least got this one movie. I hope to live to see a "sequal" or a " reboot" but that is highly unlikely to happen now Disney owns Marvel.
I’ve been telling people this! I hated mark ruffalo, even in the avengers. He always felt cringe to me. Everytime he got serious it sounded like he was confused, and every time he wanted to hulk out it was felt forced.
Look at the fear in Norton’s eyes when the he’s getting bullied by the group in the bottle factory. The tension he builds.
Mark Ruffalo was just body transforming in his scene.
Fine but that's not the thing, Mark Ruffalo plays Bruce banner AMAZINGLY well.
Yes the things you don't like...are his literal charector, hers SUPPOSED to be super smart, polite, confused and a little weirdish guy.
@@The_muslim_maurauder nah. Ruffalo was too loud. Constantly spitting out too much exposition about himself. Always threatening people with the Hulk.
Granted, a lot of it wasn’t his fault, but he barely defined Bruce Banner.
I have always thought this. I was so mad when they switched to Mark Ruffalo
we should all write fan mail to Edward Norton, I just love how much public respect from fans he has over ruffalo it’s so funny.
Glad to see Nortons hulk getting some love! I remember being obsessed with this movie growing up
I love Edward Nortons Hulk. The performance of was amazing, the story told you the misery he was forced into by being a fugitive, and the hulk was treated like the threat he was meant to be.
Ruffalo in Avengers 1 was GREAT. He was smart and avoided conflict but was NOT a pushover. He stood on business when he felt called to do so, which gave this HINT to others that you do not want to push this guy. I like THAT hulk/banner dynamic the best
Yeah Black Widow pulled up on him and he was cool as a cucumber and was actually the one with the power in that situation. A cunning mfer. Then after that they made him a big dumb goofy ass character. A disgrace.
@@AtracBreezy yep
Ed Norton is the best Hulk hands down 😊
We need Edward back then maybe we would have gotten Planet Hulk
They gave Hulk that disney treament.
It's sad to see it.
Just like Star Wars .
It’s torture watching new hulk
The Incredible Hulk 2008 is very underrated
Your confused about over vs under!
@@timnoyb2431it's definitely underrated
Marvel made me hate the Hulk. Used to be my favorite superhero even above batman.
Edward Norton made hulk my 2nd favorite hero (no one can top spidey as my no.1 lol)
In my ideal mcu, Edward Norton is still Bruce Banner and Andrew Garfield is their Spider-man
Edward Norton's physique also matches the physique of Bruce Banner in the comics.
You mean the human character or the Hulk character .But if the human then yeah they match
Also... lou ferrigno, the OG hulk makes a cameo.
And for a brief moment you get the 1970s lonely man music.
Nort is the GOAT hulk
Yes, he was. Most comic accurate Bruce Banner and Hulk.
I don't about this one, most comics don't translate well to real scenes
I preferred Edward Norton the best, because he's the most savage Hulk of all than Mark Ruffalo.
I agree with you 100% Edwards Norton HULK was is the best ever. Bring him back please. The HULK died long ago, the current Hulk is a FRAUD.
Norton managed to merge Hulk and Will Graham together
What sucks even more about this is that Edward Norton's Hulk story was held back, so much was cut away.
I absolutely agree with every point in this Video we went from The Incredible Hulk to the incredible joke 😢
Eric Bana. Seriously, the 2003 movie includes Banner's abusive childhood - something the later Hulks lack, that tragic element that precedes the advent of the Hulk. It is an important element to the character, because it is why Savage Hulk is the way he is.
The main problem with that movie was the pacing - but its rendition of Hulk was pretty spot on.
At last, some recognition for the Incredible Hulk movie. It's a really good dark and tragic movie, and Ed not only portrays an original heroic figure (his heroism comes from his sense of sacrifice, of responsability, boldness and cleverness), but he also had his say on the screenplay to make it less cartoonish and childish, to make a great adult genre movie.
Ruffalo's line "I'm always angry"in Avengers doesn't bother me though. I always felt that it means that Bruce can hulk out when he wants (and then, if he let him come out, he controls him a bit) but not that he can't transform when he doesn't want to anymore.
Sure, his portrayal comes to be less and less horrific and scary after each new film, and that's why Incredible Hulk got him at his best, most thrilling moments, but it's not a problem, it shows that Bruce get further in his quest for self-control. It's not the principle that is bad, it's the execution (the fact that his quest is poorly narrated)
Honestly, every frame of ed nortons Bruce looks like he's in deep and unspoken pain, pain he can't express or he'll hurt people, perfect for the huĺk
Mark ruffalo was great in the first avengers. Every movie and series after, he gets worse and worse. Hulk from the incredible hulk is the best hulk.
Even the design of hulk is waaaaay better than what the mcu has done
Nortons Hulk from top to bottom we need back all the way!!
I’ve said it for many years. The Incredible Hulk is the best Hulk.
Imagine Ed Norton as an antagonistic Maestro
Is Betty ever mentioned in the sequels?
The isolation Bruce suffers and his separation from Betty is what made Norton Hulk/Banner compelling.
Plus, I do not ship Bruce with Natasha.
@theashwoodfaerie Good to know she will return.
2008 Incredible Hulk was the real deal ☠️
Never gonna forgive them for giving away arguably the gretaest Hulk story to Thor.
I agree 100%, Norton is my favorite Hulk, but looking at how MCU has ruined the Hulk (and Thor!) over time, maybe it was good that Edward Norton was spared that same humiliation (instead, ruffalo will take most of it).
The hulk is one of marvel’s biggest fuck ups Edward nortons hulk should’ve never been touched imagine Edward Norton’s planet hulk
Edward Norton hulk. Amazing
To be fair, the Norton movie did end with him gaining some control so that checks out
Edward Norton Hulk should've joined the Avengers
The Incredible Hulk is Actually when you think about it is One of The Best Marvel Movies
That's because they approached the characters with respect rather than turning them into a bunch of dumb fuck quip machines for the sake of appealing to the lowest common denominator
Bit ranty but I miss when Marvel actually made good movies like Spiderman 2, the Thomas Jane Punisher and Howard the Duck (ducks as tomatoes and cabbages are thrown at me for the last one)
I dont think world breaker hulk is possible with ruffalo's hulk.
We need Norton's version of hulk in secret war and he's gone berserk
2003 hulk is a marvel movie about hulk, 2008 is a marvel movie about bruce banner and because of that his hulk is good. 2012 is a marvel movie about the avengers. From then on they just made marvel movies about marvel
I've been saying this since the beginning! Edward Nortons Hulk movie is the best! Glad to see you and all the other Marc Ruffulo fan boys finally come around to reality!
They made Hulk another cheap joke in the avenger series, Hulk should be frightening not a joker
Glad to hear some more support for Incredible Hulk. I loved the strong emotional core it had - I felt so bad for him the whole time.
Yes, I loved Edward Nortons. He needed a trilogy. Hulk should've been a loner, never fitting in. Never becoming smart hulk. The best MCU hulk is hulk in the first avengers because he was just an extension of the Norton Hulk.
Ruffalo Hulk always had consistency problems… but just like Thor, I fully blame Taika Waititi for turning Hulk (and Thor) into a joke. He took two complex characters, and turned them into silly haha “dude bro” characters… just because they’re two of the strongest Avengers. What a surface level understanding of the characters… then again, he never claimed to be a fan of the comics, and openly said he didn’t use any source material in his films.
Taika Waititi not only ruined Hulk and Thor, he changed the aesthetic of the MCU from a cinematic drama that arched through years of development… into a quirky self aware/self deprecating serial of films where flashy colors, endless attempts at humor, and over the top CGI spectacle took precedence over the overarching story, the drama, and the cinematic aesthetic.
Ragnarok (for some reason) did so well that it convinced Bob Iger (of current day Disney) to enforce that all future releases going forward must mirror the energy of Taika’s Ragnarok… to recapture the money Ragnarok made again and again and again… and thus, we’re now seeing just how far the MCU has decayed since then… it’s only now that Disney’s realizing Taika’s style isn’t working anymore… so they’re experimenting with No Way Home, Werewolf by Night, Daredevil Born Again, and other upcoming projects. Drama and tension are slowly making a comeback to the MCU, and I’m actually excited for it!
I always preferred Norton’s Hulk, idc what anyone says that movie fucking rules. Not saying I don’t like Ruffalo’s, I actually loved the way he was in the first avengers movie. However they completely butchered his character starting with how he was in AOU. His character in the first movie had a level of confidence in himself, he didn’t want to hurt anyone but he let it be known that he would not be pushed around. Ruffalo played him so perfectly in the first movie but they just took the Whedon formula and ran with it like with the others. I hate the way he is now and now we may never get to see that Bruce Banner or the classic savage hulk ever again
Ed Norton respected the character completely. That was the rub with the control freaks at Marvel
I wish this hulk movie had potential to grow into a series like the spider man series (with tobey McGuire). I saw similar vibes in the tone of nortons hulk with McGuire’s spider man. The whole point of a superhero movie is the tone and personality of the main character . 2008 hulk was more believable and could have been expanded upon.
Exactly. Some say Ed wanted to do something like that and explore Hulk and Bruce properly but MCU didn't let him.
Great Video! Maybe it's just the Norton fan in me but I have always liked his Hulk (and the movie as well, despite it's flaws.). I think the issue with Ruffalos' Hulk stems more from the writers than from Ruffalo himself. He is just playing the part someone wrote for him. As stated, he's not bad at all in the role, they have just relegated his character to comic relief and plot points.
I could not agree more. No matter how hard he tries, Rufalo cannot play dark or brilliant, and is supposed to have both. Ed Norton did a great job, showing intelligence and darkness, but so did Eric Bana. Bana's movie has grown on me, (from trash to ok) but Bana's performance was excellent. But Norton, was perfect as Banner. Problem is, and the reason why I believe they moved on without him is Norton is infamously difficult to work with.
norton was hard to work with apparently because he wanted more themes from ang lees movies while the mcu wanted more action since the lack of action in the ang lee"s . i persoally think ang lee had better story telling and yeah he was a bit extra with the comic edit. ill always wonder what it wouldve been like if edward norton got the movies to blend between that level of storytelling and action.
Without Norton’s Hulk, the “that’s my secret” moment doesn’t actually hit very hard
It is my dream to direct a Hulk movie.
Official or not, I’d love to have a Hulk that has a massive impact on anyone or any place he goes.
A timid man turned beast that is actually scary to see.
To me norton captured the jekyll&hyde of banner&hulk and hulk has always been that to me, the marvel jekyll and hyde
Isn't it funny how we hear a tale such as Norton wanted to change the script so he was hard to work with, etc... we paint him in a negative light almost but upon the last 10 years you realize that there are no writers in film... And then you realize that they and the producers were actually problem.
Combine the 03 and 08 Hulk movies and you have a perfect hulk movie. Bana and Norton both had their faults but they atleast felt like an actual attempt at Hulk.. whereas Ruffalo is completely unrecognizable as the character and always was (for the most part).
Size, strength, reflexes, healing factor, running speed, jumping height, & jumping distance of 2003 Hulk combined with the anger, aggression, fighting style, physical appearance, & overall design of 2008 Hulk. Combine all that with Hulk's true power in Avengers Assemble & Hulk's moveset in The Incredible Hulk Ultimate Destruction & you make the perfect version of Hulk.
@@forrestannis909Fuck no 2008 Hulk is the worst looking Hulk ever designed.
I always thought Mark Ruffalo was a serious downgrade from Edward Norton. Norton is one of the greatest actors of our generation, and really, one of the best actors of all time. He excels at dual roles where he switches personality (Primal Fear, American History X, Fight Club etc.), whereas Ruffalo is basically just a bum who can't act. So Norton's casting as Bruce Banner was perfect. Norton took the character of Bruce Banner seriously, and his Hulk is a great film (box office performance does not correlate with quality), and Norton's Hulk pays homage and respect to the Bixby/Ferrigno TV show.
I wouldn’t say Ruffalo can’t act, he was good in Shutter Island and Foxcatcher
I love Ed Norton Hulk, his movie is great and unfairly underrated.
Edward Norton hulk is better than mcu Ruffalo
Norton's portrayal feels like an updated version of the 70s TV series which I love dearly. The refrences in the '08 movie really say so and I know others thought the same thing. His pain... the struggles he goes through... in the 70s show he had to live with those consequences too. All parallels! It's what I love about the character and I absolutely agree with everything you pointed out.
Great video. Much love 🤙
Edward Norton's HULK would be way more interesting if he after all that was captured by the avengers and later joins them, that would be the perfect character development for him instead of Mark Ruffalo's hulk
Mark Ruffalo in that first movie was amazing. But they absolutely turned him into a complete joke.
I have always thought Norton portrayed Banner best and enjoy that movie alot; I think Bana was ernest in his portrayal and deserves another shot with a better script; I think Ruffalo did well at the start and began to phone it in due to contractual obligations
Agreed
Norton is the Hulk
Ruffalo's hulk has been turned into woke trash. Or rather shrek
I fuckin' agree edward norton is the best hulk
Finally someone else gets it. The Incredible Hulk was the best and helped established the MCU.
The downfall of Hulk in not Mark Ruffalo's fault, it is Marvel's. He has no control over the plot or the character development.
I couldn’t agree more with this entire video. Norton‘s Hulk looked so great, then Marvel cast Ruffalo and turned the Hulk into more of a gorilla. They introduced Skaar son of Hulk at a barbecue lunch in a backyard? Professor Hulk was a fail. The Hulk persona has now been lost. And now they’re going to introduce red Hulk? Less is more. The Hulk is the strongest one there is, except in the MCU..
i always thought that 2008 hulk was the best hulk, i grew up on that movie and im glad to see ppl are starting to agree now 😭
Mark rufalo is the reason hulk is no longer one of the top three most popular characters who happens to be my childhood rolemodel.
Norton was the best and let’s consider the hulk design was superior in every way. It was like the character jumped out of the comics and onto the screen. Ruffalo’s is caveman turn joke ,just ruffalo cgi green and bulky in a shit way
Mark Ruffalo looks like a disney princess hulk
Ruffalo’s hulk look like a gorilla.
Norton’s Hulk is better, stronger, and more Comic Book accurate
😂😂 stronger? Nope weak hulk
@@eaglemgtow2789 so you are a dumb ass? Norton’s Hulk continues to grow stronger. He also grows in size giving him a size advantage.
you are spot on. what always bothered me was they changed the actor, but completely forgot the original storyline from this great movie. they got it right with the incredible hulk (better than hulk), but never continued his movie's great storyline. just sad.
I honestly think they wanted to distance themselves from the hulk dogs...
@pooboobob that was 2003, incredible hulk was 2008
i totally agreed with you . Edward Norton will always be The best Hulk of all time. it's like Tobey Maguire as Spidey. old is good, better. Old is Gold.
Ed Norton was perfect period