Hancock

The Taming of the Dude

Although Will Smith’s Fourth of July blockbusters are usually family-friendly action comedies, Hancock is not. It is, in no way, a family film.

The trailers for Hancock never showed what the plot was about. All you could gather from them was that Smith was playing a homeless superhero. And once you see the film, it makes complete sense why they didn’t explain anything more.

Halfway through film, the movie’s plot derails from the typical tracks (much like the one in the film that crashed when it hit Hancock) in a fun, secret twist – a twist that alters the changes the direction and tone of the film. The movie moves from comedy, to drama with comedic elements.

And while this is the moment where Hancock lost the attention of most of its viewers, it is also the same moment that Hancock proved itself as an original, creative new take on the superhero genre. It makes it’s a more natural, human and moral story.

The trailers don’t only trick you by not telling you the plot, but they play it off like it’s Will Smith’s movie – but it’s not. This is just as much a story about Hancock as it about the characters played by Jason Bateman and Charlize Theron.

Bateman’s character is an unapologetic public relations pusher who gets thrown into the story when Hancock rescues him when his car gets stuck on the tracks of a nearing train. Looking for a break, he offers to do PR for Hancock, boosting his public image and giving him “superhero” status. Theron plays his perfect wife.

Through the course of the film, you know just as much – if not more – about their characters than you do about Hancock’s. In the way of acting, they do just as good a job – if not more – than Smith.

If you don’t mind a little vulgarity, some tough PG-13 violence, and if you’re a fan of fun action, Will Smith, Jason Bateman or Charlize Theron, then Hancock is for you.

Photo credit: Columbia Pictures