It's probably fair to say that a vast majority of people disliked Ang Lee's Hulk because it did not meet their expectations.  The first thing that comes to mind when one thinks of the green goliath is that he is an unstoppable monster capable of great destruction.  Stan Lee's genius of having him originate from an angry human, makes such imagery seductive, mining that release every person feels when they can't take it anymore.

But Ang Lee was not so much concerned in having such physical destruction come to life on the big screen.  His matters were more intimate, dealing with subjects such as repression, megalomaniacal fathers (General Ross and David Banner) with their obsessions, and their own children (Betty and Bruce) which they left by the wayside.  His story was character driven, looking at these familial and inner conflicts, with the jade giant representing an awesome catharsis in rebelling against such trauma.  This was Greek tragedy stuff, fascinating for adults, baffling for fanboys.

In Louis Leterrier's reboot (as no one seems to be sure if this is a remake or not), one need not worry about such complicated questions.  Gone are the whys or hows, here it's all about the whoas.  Every character is a marvelously functioning perfunctory machine (exlcuding Bruce Banner but only barely), as actors such as Tim Roth (envious of Bruce), Liv Tyler (longing for Bruce), and William Hurt (angry at Bruce), are reduced to plot points.  Edward Norton does a splendid job as a man being hunted down by the military, but compared to the depth of Eric Bana's dillemma in Ang Lee's version, you never really feel sorry for him.

Despite these shortcomings, I have to admit that the movie is thrilling.  I too longed to see Hulk lay devastation, to do what many of us secretly wish in our bouts of frustration, and with this film the wait is over.  The film rightly captures the Hulk's me-against-the-world resistance against a relentless U.S. Army.  In an impressive sequence midway through the film, the army applies a sound strategy (cue empty laughter), which makes sense against an adversary that is pretty much invulnerable to physical attack.  The film's final battle between the Hulk and the Abomination through Harlem, is bravura (finally I got to see his thunder clap!).

An additional bonus is the film's most spectacular shot, which isn't in any of its action sequences, but at its beginning.  It's an aerial view of Cidade de Deus (City Of God), a massive city slum (portrayed in the great movie of the same name) in Rio de Janeiro.  So amazing is it's presence that it pretty much becomes the film's richest character.

As for the Hulk himself, his envisioning is a mixed blessing.  The Leterrier version is technically superior, with more detail and texture, utilizing a somewhat lighter green scheme that allows audiences to see more of the Hulk's physique.  This version is also smaller than the Ang Lee version, lending a bit more plausibility (for lack of a better word).

But as for his persona, this Hulk is more of a beast.  The wonder of Ang Lee's version was that he represented the Hulk as a childlike id, pretty much incapable of willfully harming people directly (no one remembers him saving a pilot from crashing into the Golden Gate Bridge), and retaliating as a child would when having a tantrum.  His power was represented in his physically abilities (wondrously leaping miles through Arizona's monument valley), not in what he would reduce to rubble.  Leterrier's Hulk is far less restrained, crippling Brazillian goons, pulverizing a soldier's skeleton, and just barely resisting his bloodlust in this film's final battle.  What many Hulk fans forget is that he isn't merely a monster.  As Roger Ebert says in his review, "if the Hulk were never Banner, he would be like Godzilla, who tears things up real good but is otherwise, dare I say, one-dimensional."

As of this writing, where I stand on this is something I'm not prepared to answer.  I will give it credit though.  It is not trying to be the rich character-driven film that Ang Lee's film was.  Louis Leterrier is a master at squeezing every ounce of excitement out of his movies no matter how preposterous their plots may be, which is why he was the correct choice to helm this one.

But that does not change my belief that Ang Lee's gem was the more intelligent, more thoughtful, more insightful film.  If it didn't exist, The Incredible Hulk would have my vote.  As of now I'm undecided.  The adult in me says it's worth 2 stars, my inner child would gladly give it 3.  I'm on the fence.