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House review of Hancock (2008)

Will Smith is a great actor, when I think of the roles he has played over the last decade, I can’t name another actor who would also be able to pull them off. Before I get shot down, I’m not saying that this is necessarily the case, but if there is another actor who can box like Ali one week and become the date doctor the next then be sure to let me know.

In his new film, Mr. Smith is a superhero come borderline alcoholic who has been blessed with superpowers unmatched by any other. Despite looking like a depressed bum who wouldn’t look out of place on the streets nursing a bottle of Strongbow (which I suspect is an attempt by the director to stimulate character sympathy), Hancock stops catastrophes and makes himself a nuisance on the crime scene. He is an all or nothing gun ho kind of guy; he does whatever it takes to get the job done, and if that means that the cars, trains and buildings get destroyed in the process of rescuing the damsel, then ‘oops, my bad’. The last time he caught a handful of criminals, the city shopping bill came to just shy of the $10 million mark, quite an impressive total if I may add. But Hancock doesn’t care what people think…

Enter Ray (Jason Bateman) who finds himself in a tricky position – he is just about to get run over by a train, but, of course, Hancock comes to his rescue. In an effort to win over the people of LA, Ray subsequently makes it his objective to transform Hancock’s tarnished image as payment for saving his life. His wife, Mary (Charlize Theron), is convinced that the superhero is a lost cause and discourages Ray’s project, but to no avail. The question is, can Hancock become a modern day Clark Kent?

I thought I had signed up to an action packed comedy that allowed me to forget about being serious for the short time that the film runs for (90 odd minutes). Unfortunately, I was wrong, as the film transformed into a completely different, more serious, perspective. A film with an identity crisis is never an attractive prospect; imagine watching an episode of the office where you are suddenly expected to take Ricky Jervais seriously. It doesn’t really work, which is a shame, because the concept of a superhero struggling with his identity to the point of alcoholism has significant potential and I predict will be revisited.

The special effects, like the movie as a whole, are uneven. You have scenes where the effects are really quite impressive allied with those that leave a lot to be desired (the flying scene?! Oh dear…!).

Charlize Theron puts in a good performance and Will Smith does the best with what appears to be a very confused script that has been chopped and changed significantly – possibly under pressure from the impending release date.

In summary, this is not the expected Will Smith film of action and comedy and at the same time it won’t satisfy the deeper ‘camp’. It is confused, as am I. I won’t rush out to buy this on DVD when it is released.

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Film Rating: 5.1/10 (18 votes cast)

Reviewed by Paul
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