Funniest thing about going to see Mongol was the fifteen year old peanut at the ticket counter saying “you do know this has subtitles”. To which I replied, yes mate, I can read. I was in a crap mood as I went all the way to Highpoint to buy Pan’s Labyrinth and couldn’t find it. What a crappy day it was so far! As I headed towards the exit, still fuming at my DVD-less adventure, I checked to see what was showing at the movies. Mongol started in ten, so I got a ticket, a massive popcorn combo (mmmmm) and sat down hoping it might lift my mood. It did.

It also played on my shit mood. You see this movie presents to you the childhood and growth of the man that would become Genghis Khan. This guy sure did suffer many an injustice; his dad was murdered, his clan was robbed by former friends, his future wife was taken from him. He just had a rotten old time of growing up in a culture that is so wonderfully different to anything I had seen on screen. Comparisons to Braveheart are obvious here, as Temudjin (as he was known in early life) grows up in a world ruled by Khans - the ‘cheifs’ of their little communities, who are either at war with each other or foreign invaders.

The greatest thing about this movie is the fact that its unlike anything you have seen before. Yes, its similar to what you have seen, but the scenery, the actors, the music, the story and the feel, are so wonderfully different. It is a Russian movie that is shot entirely in the Inner Mongol regions of China and also in, would you believe it, Kazakhstan (cue Borat). The mountains and the snow are the same kind you see everywhere, but its how they are shot that took my breath away. The actors, all of differing nationalities, but all from that region of Asia, were fantastic. Especially the little dude who played a young Temudjin.

Genghis Frog dudes!

As I have already mentioned Braveheart, I must also mention how that is a comparison that, if positive, means a movie is good. This movie was good. In Braveheart, the culture was something familiar, the history was somewhat familiar. In Mongol, it was so fresh and new for me. The fact that Braveheart showed a very western way of affection between people, the world that Temudjin lived in was ruled by very strict and unwavering codes of conduct. Of course, being a subtitled film, hearing their language while reading what they said and being able to enjoy the visuals, lent much to the charm of the film. As much as I tried to predict what was going to happen, I couldn’t.

And as much as I tried to put myself into Temudjin’s shoes and was screaming at him to just ‘bloody kiss her!’ or ‘just bloody attack him!’, the fact that he didn’t, was all the more satisfying. This movie, much like The Orphanage, will be missed by many, overlooked in favour of movies I wouldn’t even bother watching on a hungover Sunday on Foxtel. Such a tragic waste of awesome experiences.

Even if you didn’t like Braveheart, or epic, character driven movies are not your thing, this is a movie to put on your to-see list. Its full of beautiful imagery, magical music and wonderfully different cultural features. It certainly put me in a good mood, and the drive home was filled with imagining how awesome the next two Mongol films will be. Thats right, this is the first of a planned trilogy, and no, the ending doesn’t suck. Just go see it, its worth it.

// Mongolian beef is awesome.

There seem to be two kinds of people in the world: people who saw Ang Lee’s version of a very Bana-rific Hulk and didn’t think the franchise needed a rejig and those that did. I fell into the former category, because despite some oddness to the over the top ending, I enjoyed the film for a few reasons. I like Eric Bana and thought he brought a good level of intensity to the role. Jennifer Connelly is gorgeous, and it brought a different kind of interpretation than most comic book movies. The Incredible Hulk starring our neo-nazi-hulk Ed Norton, was, from all comic book nerd reports, much more faithful to the ‘cannon’ of Hulk. So, whats the big deal?

It seems that this new re-imagining of the big green monster is just what the doctor ordered for all those people out there still sleeping in Hulk pyjamas. For me, it was, a fine example of a movie studio being both close to the core of what the obsessed fans wanted, as well as being very approachable for the uninitiated such as myself. I cannot help but compare this latest offering with that of the superb Iron Man. Both films were pretty much made by Marvel Comics FOR Marvel Comics fans…and a few billion normals.

I thoroughly enjoyed the ride that was this new Hulk movie. It was a spectacular adventure, with all the required action set-pieces building to a somewhat fitting finale. Edward Norton is a great actor, and he made the most of this role; it was obvious he dug the whole thing. Liv Tyler was as to be expected of a female lead in this kind of movie - hot, vulnerable and desperate. Tim Roth hammed up the sickly bad-guy role under the command of William Hurt. All in all the film hit the mark pretty much perfectly. Every box was ticked. Every ‘i’ was dotted and the ‘t’s were crossed. And I think this is where my problems with it stem from.

This is what I reckon
the next Hulk ‘re-imagining’
will be.

Yes, the film was of the highest production quality, and oozed class, skill and craftsmenship in its making. But, and this is a big but, the movie followed the course of comic book movie success a little too close. Take Iron Man, and compare it with this movie. On a surface level you have a good guy (Stark/Banner) who creates some power (suit/gamma) and invariably needs to control it to overcome a bad guy who has taken it upon himself to use sad power against the goodies (Stane/Abomination). What made Iron Man a far more enjoyable experience for me was it combined both stunning action and excitement with plenty of laughs. Hulk was exciting and enjoyable, it just didn’t make me laugh. And unfortunately, not laughing, or even really connecting in anyway to the characters, mean that this A-grade prime-quality Hollywig steak just missed out.

// Liv Tyler has a huge mouth.