Hancock proves, yet again, why you should never listen to movies critics

Rating: 7/10 (21 July 2008)

I've always been suspect of grown men and women who make a living criticizing the creative endeavors of others while having never created anything themselves. I happen to be a pilot and was for a time a flight instructor; to criticize the flying abilities of others one first had to become a pilot themselves. Everyone has a right to their opinion about movies, art, literature of course, but to make a living at it just seems tawdry to me. I mean, how does one become an expert at criticizing the work of others, especially if they themselves have never done that type of work.
I usually take the fact that a movie is panned by critics as a sign that I may want to see it. The reverse is sometimes also true, if critics gush over a movie it oft times turns out to be just awful; Hidden Dragon Floating Tiger or whatever the name of that horrid movie was comes to mind, as does The English Patient, and more recently; Lions for Lambs...
Anyway, I have to admit that I went in to Hancock wondering if this time the formula wouldn't hold up and the critics would finally be right about a movie because the previews didn't look that good. The movie turned out to be very entertaining and the perfect movie for a hot humid summer weekend, it was funny, entertaining and had some great action sequences. Was it deeply thought provoking, of course not, it wasn't meant to be. It was fun, and that's what we went to see it for, to be entertained. The casting was perfect, Will Smith was, once again, fantastic, ditto for Jason Bateman, possibly one of our most under appreciated actors, and Charlize Theron was funny and believable and, as always, beautiful.
The posters on this site who have burned up the message boards talking about this being a racist movie either didn't really pay attention to the story line, or they just need to get a life. I suspect it's probably a little of both. Some people probably went into this movie looking for a racist element and would have found it no matter what. Lighten up people, and find something more constructive to do with your time, and your minds.
This is a great summer movie, its fun and entertaining and that's all it is, go see it.