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HANCOCK | WILL SMITH AS A SUPERHERO

WILL THE GREATEST SMITH EVER DELIVER ANOTHER JULY 4TH FAVORITE?

In my opinion, no. At least not in Hancock.

John Hancock (Will Smith, Hitch) is an oft-drunk, homeless superhero who “protects” the city of Los Angeles by causing millions of dollars of damage while stopping crime. He is never praised for his heroics before he saves the life of down-hearted PR man Ray (Jason Bateman, Juno) from being crushed by a train, which Hancock levels off the tracks. Ray, who is failing at his attempts to persuade companies to give away medicines and other products to those who need it most for free, invites his hero home for dinner. When Hancock and Ray’s wife Mary (Charlize Theron, Monster) meet, we can tell something is up. Regardless, Ray finds that Hancock may be the big break he’s looking for as far as rejuvenating his career. He tells Mary, “Maybe I can’t change the world. But I can change this guy’s life.” 

Hancock is essentially the story of a real, modern superhero who deals with problems the everyday American man does: alcoholism, public humiliation, struggle to fit in. It makes for a very interesting plot line, but there are too many things that have to happen to make this film a realistic one. Early in the film, Hancock says that he is the last one of his kind. It turns out that he isn’t, which makes for a real cheesy plot turn.

All in all, I couldn’t really find anything redeeming about this film. With a name like Will Smith, I expected something that was really good. But I guess having high expectations let me down a lot. The only positive thing I could pick up was the performance of Jason Bateman, but that was just beyond average. The script was poor, the acting was poor, especially considering the quality of the actors. Smith, after coming off another character film in I Am Legend, couldn’t pull off the society outcast again. The directing was okay. The photography was good. But $107.3 million on the opening weekend to what Rotten Tomatoes has 36% of critics responded with positive reviews, with an average of 5.3/10 points? You’ve gotta be kidding me. I’d skip seeing it now, skip buying/renting the DVD, skip anything that has to do with this movie. If you want to see Will Smith in a great role, check out I Am Legend, Hitch, or Men In Black. 

Grade: C-