Are The Critics Wrong?

Rating: 9/10 (14 July 2008)

I find myself in complete disagreement with the critics and their take on HANCOCK, Will Smith's (I AM LEGEND) latest Summer release. I'd heard all kinds of drastic problems with Hancock, which kept me away from the theater. Most notably that the latter half of the film sank it to obscure and muddy waters, and thus made it a bomb. Again, I couldn't disagree more.
If you're looking for the standard Hollywood fodder and its take on superheroes, then I might see where you could run into some snags. But if you're looking for a bit of a twist on the superhero image, then you're in for a treat.
Anybody who watches TV or has gone to the movies in the past few months knows Hancock's premise: a drunken superguy (Smith) is lost amongst humanity. He knows not where he came from, nor how he's supposed to fit in with people who are so different from himself. He tries to do good, but more often than not does millions of dollars of damage in the process, incensing the Los Angeles population. Roads tore up. Highway signs obliterated. Monuments defaced. Train cars derailed. It's all a bit much for our wayward (and intoxicated) hero. Until one day he meets up with Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman, SMOKIN' ACES). Hancock saves Ray's life in that infamous train scene that many of you have probably seen in the trailers. What results is a friendship of sorts thanks to Ray's chosen profession (pubic relations). Convinced that he can clean-up Hancock's messy image, Ray convinces the superman to ease up and fit in. In the meantime, he suggests that Hancock go to prison for his many warrants, and Hancock eventually agrees. The idea for this is twofold. First is that it'll keep Hancock out of trouble (with the exception of one episode of cranial-rectumitis); second is that the crime rate in L.A. will go up and people will demand his return.
Intermixed with this is Ray's family and how they interact with Hancock. Ray's little boy Aaron (Jae Head) is lovingly appreciative of Hancock, and this helps show cracks in Hancock's otherwise indifference toward ...everything. But more interestingly is how Ray's beautiful wife Mary (Charlize Theron, IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH) deals with Hancock's sudden arrival. Not giving away too much, I will say that this surprise ...well ...surprised me in a good way.
The story arc is excellent in that the focus is never on Hancock's superpowers but on the man himself and how they affect him and those around him. It is this "human" element that shows director Peter Berg's ability to take a solid action film and put its focus squarely where it belongs: on the people, not the powers or the special effects (although both of these are done very well). And speaking of story arcs ...
It was refreshingly revolting to watch the "asshole" comment that Hancock so loathes come full-circle, right up to the very ending credits in the film. I was laughing myself silly at the end (Hint: stay until the credits are nearly finished rolling).
Comments about the "funny first half" and the "serious second half" of the film just didn't jive with me as a criticism. The film had laughs throughout, with spikes in dramatic flair (appropriately) and some nice doses of science fiction/fantasy that held a cohesive whole.
Perhaps I'm prejudiced because of a few insider things that I know about Mr. Berg, but putting that aside, I've found that almost all the film's he's directed to be very human (I'm being repetitive, I know, but bear with me a moment). From Friday NIGHT LIGHTS and it's focus on the members of the team and not the sport itself to THE KINGDOM, which showed us the internal struggles of the war in Iraq and not the war itself, Berg has a good eye for what makes cinema an effective medium. And the people seem to agree with him, even if the critics  on this one  do not (coming in at a cool 37% approval rating). People are speaking with their wallets, and Hancock was #1 at the box office until this last weekend when HELLBOY II finally knocked it off the top. But it's still holding strong at #2, ahead of WALL-E (97% approval), KUNG-FU PANDA (88%) and THE INCREDIBLE HULK (68%). Perhaps the critics should take another look?