Speaking of pacing, it's impossible not to mention Ang Lee's Hulk from the previous life. Released in 2003, Hulk came out riding the wave of excitement sparked by the smash hit Spider-Man. With a massive budget of over $130 million, it only brought in just over $200 million at the box office. Financial loss was inevitable, and the reviews weren't kind either.
To be fair, the film wasn't actually that bad. Its problem was simply that it was too flat.
Some blamed the movie's runtime of over two hours, but think about it—plenty of well-received movies run that long or even longer. Clearly, length wasn't the real issue.
So what went wrong? Why did a film based on a wildly popular superhero—Hulk, with his massive fan base—end up becoming a stain on cinematic history?
The answer is simple: poor pacing. The opening dragged too much, and there was none of the action the audience came for. People watch superhero movies to feel a rush. Look at The Avengers—fight scenes or witty banter popped up every few minutes, keeping the tension balanced and the audience glued to their seats.
Silence followed the same philosophy. With just a short opening, Laila once again left critics marveling at her directorial skill. They were convinced: if this was only the beginning, the rest of the movie was sure to be even more spectacular.
And they were right. Just look at the audience's expressions—completely absorbed, not even blinking.
At this point, the big screen shifted to a sweeping shot of a beach.
A line of clear footprints trailed up from the sea. The camera followed them to their end, where they led to a man sprawled out on the sand in a spread-eagle position.
His shirt was open, and he looked like he'd just been fished out of the ocean. Yet despite his bedraggled appearance, his face—unforgettable at first glance—remained so strikingly handsome it could make knees go weak.
Far from diminishing his allure, the wetness of his clothes added a touch of wild, disheveled sex appeal.
A close-up drew excited gasps from the audience. Even Laila found her mouth going dry. She couldn't resist sneaking a glance at the person beside her.
That glance? Bad move—Roy caught her in the act. He gave her a teasing wink and reached for her hand.
The heat of his pheromones hit her like a wave. Even after all this time together, Laila's cheeks flushed pink. She squeezed his hand in return, silently marveling at how ridiculously high her standards must have been in her previous life—how else had she gone all those years without once falling for someone?
She'd seen her fair share of pretty boys and seasoned heartthrobs during her time in the entertainment industry. So why had none of them ever made her heart race? Back then, she'd chalked it up to overexposure—too many beautiful faces had dulled her senses.
Now she realized: she just hadn't met the right person.
Back on the big screen, Roy stood up after the close-up, checking himself and his surroundings. Then he whistled and, looking utterly at ease, began walking toward the forest beyond the beach.
The beach was beautiful, the sand shimmering like gold under the sun. But at its edge loomed a far less inviting sight: dense woods. Dark, damp, overgrown with unappealing vegetation, and echoing with eerie, indescribable sounds.
Roy didn't want to enter the forest, but after surveying the area earlier, he knew he had no other choice. Unless he could spot a passing ship and flag it down, he had to find food and shelter before nightfall. More importantly, he still wanted to locate the wreckage of the plane. Even if there was only a slim chance, he needed to find the object he came for.
The deeper he walked into the forest, the thicker it became. Just as he was searching for food, Roy noticed something unusual—a rope lying on the ground where it had no business being. If the sunlight hadn't hit it just right, making the cord gleam silver, he probably wouldn't have noticed it at all.
A man-made object on an uninhabited island—especially something seemingly harmless that could be deadly in the right hands—wasn't something to take lightly.
Roy followed the rope carefully. The more he saw, the more alarmed he became. It led to a delicately crafted trap—designed to lure prey in and capture it without causing fatal injury.
He had never seen a snare so intricate yet so simple. Just a piece of cord and some common natural materials, yet it could easily take down small animals and birds.
Someone was here. And not just anyone—someone skilled, likely stranded on this island for the same reasons he was.
That realization made Roy's grin deepen. He was the type who thrived on adrenaline, especially when it involved danger to his life.
"Can't wait to meet him," he muttered, licking his lips as he skirted around the trap and headed deeper into the forest.
"Cool!" That was the word echoing most frequently from the audience.
Whether it was the glinting silver line, the trap-setting technique, or Roy's devil-may-care smirk in the face of the unknown—sexy as hell and just a little unhinged—it all made people want to yell, "So damn cool!"
Anyone who had seen the trailer already knew this was a dual-protagonist film. And judging by the craftsmanship, it was clear who'd set those traps—the second male lead, that mysterious Eastern man.
So even though Leslie had only appeared in a few scenes so far, his character was already vividly etched in the minds of the audience. His mystique, intelligence, and calculated methods… There was no better word for it—he was just cool.
With a dual lead setup, Laila wasn't about to delay Leslie's proper entrance for too long. But she did craft a brilliant first encounter: Roy would pretend to fall into one of the traps to lure the man out.
No one likes the idea of an unseen danger lurking in the shadows. Bringing it out into the open is always safer. So Roy deliberately triggered the snare and waited.
And it worked.
From the shadowed canopy overhead, the very man who had caught Roy's eye back on the plane finally appeared.
Their meeting was like fire and steel—two forces colliding with intensity. Both were on high alert, guarding their secrets, each trying to probe the other for information.
As the two men began their dance of wits and deception, a new crisis emerged.