Hancock

We’re approaching another July 4th weekend which can only mean a few things – barbecues, fireworks and a Will Smith summer blockbuster. While the actor’s latest, Hancock, provides an interesting spin on the superhero genre, as well as some decent action scenes and laughs, it quickly loses steam thanks to some poor choices with the story and ends up being one of Smith’s weakest summer flicks.

Hancock (Will Smith) has many of the super powers we’ve come to know – he can fly, he’s fast, and incredibly strong. He just doesn’t have the attitude, or finesses, of a typical superhero. He saves people, but he’s isn’t concerned with how he does it, which usually ends up with millions of dollars in damage and a lot of angry Los Angeles citizens.

Superhero flicks have become a staple of the summer movie season, so it’s nice to see one that adds something to the genre. Early on Hancock is that movie, it’s different and still enjoyable to watch, with Will Smith’s portrayal of the disgruntled superhero fresh and often hilarious. Not only is the character different from the typical hero, but it’s also a type of role we don’t often see from Smith. Yeah he flies around and saves people, but he also gets drunk and threatens children and old ladies, which proves to be extremely entertaining.

Unfortunately, while the first twenty minutes are great, that’s about all you’re going to get. The movie starts to take a nose dive as soon as we’re introduced to Jason Bateman’s character, a publicist who wants to help Hancock clear up his image. Bateman’s character isn’t bad, but having Hancock change his image and become a friendlier hero takes everything that was different and interesting out of the character and the movie, and just turns him into a standard superhero.

The change in character also shifts the tone of the movie, as Hancock tries to discover who he is and deal with problems of the past. Audiences expecting a light hearted superhero comedy will probably be disappointed with the change, as it isn’t represented at all in the trailers or commercials. Change isn’t a bad thing, but with Hancock it’s so sudden and out of nowhere that it just stops the movie dead in its tracks. There are still funny moments, but the movie jumps back and forth between laugh out loud and just depressing. Hancock’s inner struggle might have worked if it was set up properly form the beginning. Instead it just turns into a movie that can’t decide on a genre.

There’s also a plot twist that comes about halfway through the movie. I won’t spoil it here but I will say it’s one that really shouldn’t have happened. It would have probably been better if it was saved for a possible sequel, but here it’s just slapped together and just gets in the way. You get the feeling that the only reason it happens is to provide action sequences, but even the resulting action is pointless.

Overall, Hancock has a solid beginning with decent laughs and a couple cool action scenes, but completely falls apart towards the end. It might make for a good rental, but isn’t anything you need to rush out and see.