Hancock
Hancock
(2008)Rated PG-13 for profanity and sci-fi violence.
Running time: 92 minutes
Studio: Columbia Pictures
Film Review by Kam Williams
Fair (1 star)
John Hancock (Will
Smith) is a superhero who has fallen out of favor with the
public, and for good reason. First of all, he can usually be
found passed out with a bottle of whiskey in his hand, draped
across a bench in downtown L.A. He routinely antagonizes
pedestrians, behaving no differently than a typical bum living
on Skid Row, whether cursing curious little kids for waking him
or trying to molest attractive women as they pass by.
And when he springs into action as his crime-fighting alter ego,
Hancock tends to cause more trouble than he’s preventing. For
instance, there’s the time he drunkenly intervened during a
televised police freeway chase (reminiscent of O.J.’s) and
overreacted after the abusive Cholos inside the white SUV called
him an ’a-hole.’
The epithet makes him lose his temper the way the Three Stooges
did whenever they heard ’Niagara Falls.’ So, he impaled their
auto on the spire high atop the Capitol Records building,
ruining one of the skyline’s most recognizable landmarks in the
process.
The cleanup of that messy arrest cost the city $9 million,
prompting the fed-up chief of police (Greg Daniel) to urge the
disgraced superhero to leave town. Just as Hancock hits rock
bottom he is offered a chance at redemption by Ray Embrey (Jason
Bateman), a man he rescues from a car sitting on the train
tracks at a railroad crossing and about to be slammed by a
locomotive with a full head of steam.
Grateful Ray just happens to be a public relations expert who
diagnoses that all his well-meaning savior really needs is an
image overhaul. So, he brings Hancock home to meet his wife (Charlize
Theron) and young son (Jae Head), before convincing him to try
alcohol and anger management counseling, and to don a superhero
outfit, so that he can at least look the part.
The trouble is Hancock has a very big secret, which if divulged
here, would entirely spoil the picture for the reader. Suffice
to say that he’s suffering from amnesia, so he himself is
initially unaware of the rabbit about to be pulled out of the
hat.
In a summer blockbuster season boasting several spectacular
comic book adaptations in Iron Man, The Hulk and Wanted, the
last thing we need is a spoof of the superhero genre so
unpleasant and unfocused. The fatal flaw is the fact that the
protagonist isn't even likable.
Who would opt to cast the ever-charming French Prince against
type as a surly, foul-mouthed misanthrope? Nobody wants to root
for an a-hole (there I called him one, too) who refers to women
by the b-word, bullies children and makes a pass at the spouse
of the only guy willing to help him.
Equally-annoying is the awkward, improbable and terribly twisted
plotline which can only be comprehended with the benefit of
20-20 hindsight once all the pieces of the puzzle have finally
been revealed. I’m not even sure how I would explain the
resolution to an inquiring child incapable of such contorted
mental calisthenics.
For better or worse, Will Smith is a name long associated with
July 4th blockbusters. Unfortunately, Hancock is more on the
order of Wild Wild West, than Independence Day or Men in Black.
don't expect to laugh more than five times and you won’t be
disappointed.