 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Thursday, August 28th
|
|
|
 |
| |
| Movie Forums :: Reviews :: Hancock |
|
Posted on 7/03/08
Hancock
| Sponsored Links |
|
|
|
|
| Rating... |
|
| Poster |
|
|
Have you ever heard the depressing statistics about the number of people who win the lottery, only to wind up broke within five years? Superhero John Hancock (Will Smith) has a lot in common with those people. He can fly, has tremendous strength, and is nearly invulnerable, but rather than count those blessings, they have made him complacent, vulgar, and a drunk. His good fortune has made him careless, rather than grateful.
That's the premise of Hancock, and it's the type of setup that makes for a better trailer than a movie. Still, it's a fun idea and would seem to be slam-dunk entertainment, but it can't leave well enough alone. The more it fleshes out its world, the more we wish it hadn't.
The film opens abruptly with a chase sequence. Police are pursuing criminals of some kind, and Hancock is laying on a bench, surrounded by empty whiskey bottles. He's prodded into action by a small child and "saves" the day. The only problem is he causes $9 million worth of largely unnecessary damages to do so. The district attorney, fed up with his carelessness and hundreds of ignored subpoenas, issues a warrant for his arrest.
Shortly thereafter, Hancock saves the life of one Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman). Ray, as it turns out, is in public relations: something Hancock could use a bit of help with. Ray brilliantly suggests that Hancock willingly give himself up and enter prison, to show the public just how much they need him.
Hancock is a much better character in theory than he is in practice. On the surface, Smith would seem to be a great choice for the role, but it turns out that he's entirely too likable. Hancock is the good guy, to be sure, but the film is about his gradual transformation from selfish to selfless, a meaningless process if we like him to begin with. Too many of Hancock's missteps are the result of bad luck, or a response to provocation. He's careless, but he's not contemptible. We know from the get-go that he's a good guy, which means we have to wait around for the rest of the characters to realize it. Needless to say, anytime a movie has to catch-up to its audience, it's in trouble.
There is an interesting wrinkle about halfway through the film that generates some amusement and threatens to give the film some depth. I found myself suddenly interested in where the story might go, but disappointed as soon as it started going there. There are some genuinely odd developments in the third act, and a number of seemingly arbitrary rules are introduced as we begin to learn about Hancock's background and origin. I'm reminded of the midi-chlorians in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace: the whole thing was better left unexplained.
What's genuinely surprising is that much of the action is so very forgettable. There's no centerpiece action sequence or grand confrontation. When you really boil Hancock down, all you're left with is Will Smith being a funny, likable guy who gets to deliver lots of cocky one-liners. That's plenty enjoyable as a compliment to the excitement, but isn't a substitute for it.
Ultimately Hancock's biggest mistake is overthinking. Anyone in the theater liked what they saw in the trailer, and wanted more of the same. As it turns out, the trailer was half the fun, and the film tries to get by on laughs at the expense of thrills. It sets its sights higher than perhaps its premise can take it, and tries to shoehorn a convoluted mythology in around its characters. Don't they know that we just wanted to see Will Smith as a superhero for awhile?
» Latest Reviews
» More Reviews in "Action/Adventure"
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
