Hancock
July 13, 2008
Will Smith is strong as usual in a strange super-hero film that betrays its promise of dark comedy for an unpleasant mixture of ironic tragedy, leaving the remains of an entertaining first half spoiled by the uneven disappointment of a too heavy second. Smith plays the reluctant titular hero, a regular drunken Joe who just happens to be indestructible, though when he does fly into action, his stumbling heroics cause more damage than they do good, leaving him alienated from a Los Angeles that tires of his so-called heroic duties. That’s a good premise, and the first half hour, as Smith flies through the air, half asleep with a bottle in his hand, is filled with funny moments, and when Jason Bateman shows up to supply the troubled hero with a plan to dry out and create a better public image, the two actors naturally ply their comedic chops against each other. But then the film has to resolve itself (Who is Hancock? Why is he indestructible? Are there more of his kind?), and instead of sticking with the dark comedy, the script dives into an implausible mix of romantic tragedy and religious myth (involving Charlize Theron and the suggestion of God’s angels), abruptly ending at a scant 90 minutes with little explanation after a series of unsatisfying CGI laden fight scenes. The fault lies in the much toyed with script and director Peter Berg’s execution (I can certainly do without the highly annoying shaky camera school of filmmaking as well), it’s an unfortunate detour from what is a good premise, and given how good Smith is in the lead role, handled differently, it’s not beyond speculation that this character could anchor better films in the future.
by Adam Suraf