All in all... Entertaining

Rating: 6/10 (10 July 2008)

You know how Gotham City loves Batman, and how everyone in New York City is a fan of Spiderman? Have you ever wondered what a superhero would do if everyone hated him and everything he does goes unappreciated? You're not alone, and Hancock is here to answer our question. Hancock is a movie about an alcoholic superhero, John Hancock, played by Will Smith (I Am Legend), who everyone hates because he does more damage than good. He then saves the life of a Public Relations representative; Ray, played by Jason Bateman (Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium), after which Ray decides to help Hancock change the society's image of him. Ray's wife, Mary, is played by no other than the always beautiful Charlize Theron (Monster). Truth is; the less you know about this movie before going in to watch, the better. So is the movie any good you ask? Hancock is directed by Peter Berg, remember him? He is the genius that brought you last year's The Kingdom (also starring Jason Bateman). The guy is a really good director. The movie is very well directed and there are some really amazing shots in there. It is written by Vince Gilligan (Creator of TV series Breaking Bad and Co-producer of TV series The X-Files) from an original story by Vincent Ngo. Not trying to sound like I know more than I actually do, but this is where the little flaw of the movie is. Let me explain. I've read Vincent Ngo's original script, "Tonight, He Comes", and it is amazing. When it was rewritten into Hancock, Vince Gillian changed it a little, and personally, I think it did more harm than good (ironically, so does Hancock). Also, I think this movie is marketed very wrongly. It is being marketed as a comedy Superhero Movie. If you go in with that mindset, you sure are going to be disappointed; because for a superhero movie, the action sequences weren't that many. So if you want to really enjoy Hancock, I suggest you go in with the mindset of watching a Comedy - Drama in which the main character just happens to be a superhero. Do you really want me to talk about the acting in this? I mean, the fresh prince himself is the main character. We all know Will Smith can win an Oscar by just making a cameo. Well, maybe not; but he is very good. Charlize Theron is probably not going to win an Oscar for this like she did for "Monster", but that is not to say she's not amazing. And Jason Bateman: Funny as always. Even the extras in this movie weren't bad! If you were to divide Hancock into three parts, I'd give: the first part 4.5 out of 5 stars, second part 4.5 out of 5 stars and 3 stars for the third. This is because the third act is lazy and felt really out of place. Too many unimportant things happened and there wasn't enough development or attention to the important ones. That being said, the movie still lets you go with a smile on your face; just make sure you stay after the credits. So what's up with that Eagle? Don't know the Eagle I'm talking about? Go watch Hancock... you know you want to.