[on film]

Worthwhile Anime:
DVD release of Batman: Gothic Knight delivers in the face of the summer blockbuster [more]

Intriguing and Fresh:
Hancock gives comic-book films a new punch

By: Anghus Houvouras

*** stars (out of four)

I just want to put a few myths to bed. This August marks my fourth anniversary as film critic extraordinaire for encore. To some, it might seem like longer. To me, it feels like just yesterday I grabbed the torch from Dan Krauss and started running with it. In that time the reactions to my reviews have ranged from elation to anger. I don’t see much middle ground. I suppose, like a lot of my reviews, I’m a take-it-or-leave-it kind of guy.

Folks sometimes perceive me as “bitter,” “angry” or “rage-filled.” I can be all those things and worse, I suppose. However, what needles me most is the perception that I’m a hater of film—which is far from true, especially proven after looking back at my most recent reviews.
Each and every summer, I am traditionally geared up to tear into bloated, thinly-written CGI jerkfests. However, this year I have actually enjoyed the blockbuster season:

Iron Man: 4 Stars
Speed Racer: 4 Stars
The Strangers: 3 and a Half Stars
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: 3 Stars
Incredible Hulk: 3 Stars
Wall-E: 3 Stars

The only film I unabashedly hated this summer was The Happening. (And if you didn’t hate The Happening, I question your ability to logic.) Even the middle-of-the-road stuff like Wanted and Sex in the City was still entertaining enough to give a pass to. In fact, I can’t remember a summer that boasted so many films worth

recommending. There seems to be something for everyone out there right now, in a rare seasonal situation where there’s enough quality films to cover all four quadrants.

Speaking of four quadrants, it was time for the inevitable summer Will-Smith release. He’s “owned” the July 4th weekend since Independence Day blasted its way to box-office dominance in 1996. Since then he has assembled an interesting filmography of box-office hits with relatively few stinkers on his résumé. Bad Boys 2 and Men in Black 2 were pretty awful, and iRobot was as bland as dry Melba toast, but very few adjectives can encompass the painful experience that was Wild, Wild West.

Most Will Smith films are easily summed up by using his favorite catchphrase, “Aw, hell no!” and adding the subject of the film thereafter.

iRobot: “Aw, hell no, robots!”

Men in Black: “Aw, hell no, aliens!”

The Pursuit of Happyness: “Aw, hell no, poverty!”

Hancock would be: “Aw, hell no, superheroes!”

It’s an interesting take on the genre, far from any traditional superhero film. For one, this film isn’t based on a pre-existing comic-book character. Hancock is an original character, a superhero who isn’t really comfortable with his role in the world. He’s the typical man-child, a super-powered being who can do almost anything, yet feels isolated from those he tries to protect. So, what does he do? Drown his sorrows at the bottom of a bottle of Jack Daniels, of course.

Hancock’s best efforts to fight crime result in untold damage to the city. At his best he’s a reluctant savior; at his worst he’s a threat to every man, woman and child who is unfortunate enough to get in his way. Despite his best intentions, Hancock is reviled by the public. Only one man seems to get him, one of those saved by his misguided heroism: Ray Embery (Jason Bateman).

Ray is an idealist in a cynical world. He still sees the best in people, and sees Hancock as a perfect opportunity to combine his inner desire to make the world a better place as well as build himself some publicity. His wife, Mary (Charlize Theron), has an aversion to Hancock, illustrated by a strange look on her face every time he’s around. It’s the worst kind of foreshadowing, the kind of acting characterized by master thespian Joey Tribbiani as “Smell the Fart” acting. We know from the moment she appears onscreen (looking ridiculously hot) that she holds some kind of secret. It’s about as subtle as a sledgehammer to the crotch.

Ray convinces Hancock to go to jail to prove how much he’s needed. While drying out he begins to wonder if the plan will work and deals with a number of angry convicts who, for some reason, confront him despite the fact that he has super powers. It’s amazing how dense many of the villains are in this film. The guy is super fast, can fly and has massive strength, yet people walk up to him and threaten him with freakish regularity. Eventually, Ray’s plan works, and Hancock is released to try and stop a bank robbery gone horribly wrong. Just as Hancock begins to get the recognition he deserves, a new wrinkle comes to light as secrets are revealed, loyalties are tested and a lot of money is spent blowing stuff up real good.

What I like about Hancock is simple: It takes the superhero formula and turns it on its ear. Will Smith, as usual, is incredibly likable, though he plays the most unlikable character in the film. The role is not an easy one to play, as Hancock is a self-loathing guy who has trouble fitting into society. Much like his recent work on the uneven I Am Legend, Smith brings a sincerity to a part that could easily degrade into self-parody. Everything about Hancock feels grounded in reality, which is probably why I enjoyed this little universe that the director, Peter Berg, created.

This is not the usual superhero film with pastel colors and the bad guys landing safely on the ground when punched. Hancock is a brutal film, a pugilistic look at heroes. When Hancock punches a bad guy, he hits the wall, shattering glass and concrete. When a bank robber threatens to activate a detonator that will kill dozens of people, he cuts off the guy’s arm. Superman he ain’t—but there’s something about the brutality of Hancock’s heroics that makes the film different.

The first two acts are infinitely better than the last act, which kind of falters and ends up with the most textbook of resolutions. Yet, I still think the film offers something worth seeing; it’s not nearly as bad as the critical drubbing it’s getting.

The special effects are amazing, the visual style engaging, and Will Smith brings the same energetic presence that improves in nearly every project in which he’s involved. Jason Bateman is, as always, excellent. It seems odd that Bateman vanished for almost two decades, and now we can’t go three months without seeing him as part of a major project. He brings a sincerity to Ray, the one guy in the movie who seems to believe the world and Hancock are worth fighting for.

Hancock is an unconventional film that feels like a bookend to M. Night Shymalan’s Unbreakable, a film I greatly enjoyed. What it shows is the opportunity for original superhero films not rooted in the continuity of comics, an idea that I find intriguing.