Hancock: Not Your Average Superhero

When I watched Hancock in the trailers I expected a crazy movie with a crazy protagonist similar to The Mask. I was not disappointed Hancock is in no way your idealistic superhero. He isn't Superman, the Hal Jordan Green Lantern or the Barry Allen Flash. He is a liquor drinking, woman grabbing, property destroying, crime fighting son of a gun. He was a menace to the society he wanted to protect.

Needless to say, there was not much love given to John Hancock by the people of the city of Los Angeles. While one may be at awe with his superpowers such as flight, invulnerability and superhuman strength, the millions of dollars worth of property damage he causes could not be discounted. In the comics and cartoons it is okay for superheroes to use property to vanquish bad guys but not in the real world.Hancock is an antihero similar to the likes of Stone cold Steve Austin and Bart Simpson. He is good at heart but it doesn't show in his exterior. He tries to do good but leaves a wake of destruction in his path. As much as Hancock is commendable for his intentions, the property damage cannot simply be ignored. The worst part of it is no one could arrest Hancock despite the countless number of subpoenas since no one has the power to arrest him.

A turning point however in Hancock's life is when he saves the life of Ray Embrey, a public relations spokesperson. Ray is so grateful that he offers Hancock his services and vows to clean up his tarnished reputation. He represents Hancock now and he teaches him how to act more like a superhero. He even gives him a uniform similar to that worn by the X-Men.He then meets Ray's family. Ray has a wife named Mary. He also has a son from a previous marriage named Aaron. While Mary seems to dislike Hancock, Aaron is a mark for (big fan of) Hancock.

While Hancock does encounter a bunch of baddies throughout the film Kenneth "Red" Parker Jr. stands out as the most important villain of the film. He is one of your psychotic people better suited to Batman. He is just an ordinary human however with no special powers.Mary Embrey later plays a more significant role in the second part of the film. The tone of the whole movie also shifts into a totally different direction. The second part will show more of who Hancock really is and about his past. Well enough of that as I do not want to spoil anything here.

-Extras--

''Superhumans:The Making of Hancock'' - This is your standard behind the scenes featurette. Nothing special here.

-''Seeing the Future'' - This is the part where they show some scenes before it is touched up with computer generated material.-''Building a Better Hero''- This part deals about the film's visual effects.

-''Bumps & Bruises''- This part deals with the effects used on Hancock's flying and his feats of superhuman strength.-''Mere Mortals: Behind the Scenes with "Dirty Pete"''- This is a short featurette on Peter Berg, the film's director.

-Trailers

-Video-

Aspect Ratio2.40:1Anamorphic Wide Screen transfer

-Audio-

Dolby digital 5.1

-Edition-

Rated Edition

-Cast-

Hancock - Will Smith
Ray Embrey - Jason Bateman
Mary Embrey - Charlize Theron
Aaron Embrey - Jae Head
Eddie Marsan - Kenneth "Red" Parker Jr.

The Verdict

Watching Hancock is like watching a two-in-one movie. The first part was absolutely fun to watch with a lot of comedy, fun and profanity. The second part however was a whole different story. It was very dodgy to say the least. The movie also suffers from a problem with story continuity as many things do not make any sense and many questions about Hancock are left to be explained. I do not know if it was intentionally left out to make room for a sequel in the near future.I believe the film could have gotten top props had they just made the whole film like the first part. Will Smith has been known to play comedic parts very well as shown in his previous stints in Men in Black and Bad Boys. They did not have to do the 360 degree turn they did in the movie.

Will Smith's performance was stellar throughout the film as he is a versatile actor. He has starred in inspirational films such as The Pursuit of Happiness. He has also done comedies such as Hitch. He has done action in Independence Day. He has done drama as well in I am Legend. Charlize Theron was a bit underutilized here but I was glad she was in the film as she is an excellent actress and is excellent in the looks department as well. Jason Bateman's role did not require a lot of heavy acting as he was merely a spokesperson and cheerleader for Hancock. Nevertheless Jason did a solid job.

I was a bit disappointed that the film did not introduce any villain that had powers that rivaled Hancock's. I watched a lot of Superman films and cartoons and having superman beat up a bunch of thugs and bank robbers is not that thrilling. After all they could never win. The most they could do is live another day by escaping. The same applies to Hancock. Could they not have introduced super powered humans, aliens or beasts to give our hero a workout?Hancock without the fun anti-hero personality is basically your generic superhero. His powers of flight, superhuman strength and invulnerability could be seen in countless superheroes such as Captain Marvel, Superman and Prime. He doesn't even have any unique super powers. They should have given Hancock something that is cool and would require spectacular visual effects.

The film may be fun to watch but does hint a bit towards profanity and sexuality. There is also violence in the film. I would not recommend this for the kiddies.Despite the shortcomings of the film, I would still recommend this for viewing. The first part makes it worth renting or borrowing but the second part and the lackluster extras shoots down its worth in owning unless you can get this at a bargain price.