Take heed, all ye who have since grown out of those childish superhero-worshipping days! I implore upon you enlightened souls to watch Hancock!
Yup, fellow mortals who barf at the sight of flying men in tights, Hancock is the movie to watch, primarily because it's not your typical superhero movie. In fact, it actually scoffs at superhero stereotypes. The slogan says it all: Hancock, not your average superhero.
And what a choice for an actor to play the lead role: Will Smith! I loved this guy from Day One when he was still in those confused-teenager-rapper-brotha-in-the-hood stages of his career. Now, the movie gods have bestowed superpowers on him and he's flying like a drunk (Wait: he really IS drunk!) gull on amphetamines, whizzing over Los Angeles and creating damage on anything he touches. No bit of sarcasm here: Will Smith's got the Up-Yours personality really down pat as Hancock!
I understand that this movie will be receiving mixed reviews, considering that there are those who still adhere to the principles propagated by the likes of Batman and Wolverine. Oh heck, let them stick to the boring run-of-the-mill superheroes -- I'll have Hancock any day!
Audiences will be seeing Hancock doing more damage than good -- but it's not really what he intends. Well...yeah, he intended for those mishaps to happen, but let it be said that the whole point underneath those careless adventures was noble in nature. There were a bunch of gun-toting kids racing along the freeway -- Hancock skewered their car to a building's spire. A guy was stuck in the middle of traffic, and his car was about to be pummeled by a train -- Hancock smashed the train to a stop and one-handedly flipped the doomed guy's car over to avoid the crash. (Well yeah, he could have flew upwards carrying the car with him, but that's not his style.) He drinks like there's no tomorrow, his mouth is in desperate need of soaping, and he has the remarkable ability to send even school kids flying to the heavens upon utterance of the word, "asshole." Yes, Hancock's an asshole, and that's why I love him! Let the angsty Bruce Wayne and the lovestruck Peter Parker beat that!
In the middle of the movie, the same guy Hancock saves from the train mishap tries to "remodel" his image from good-for-nothing drunkard with superpowers to the superhero everyone will be calling for. In one scene, Ray (the PR guy from the train mishap) brings Hancock to his house and shows him covers of superhero comic books. Here is their gem of a conversation:
Ray: (Holding a comic book with a flying superhero) What comes into your mind when you see this?
Hancock: Hmmmm...homo.
Ray: (Shows next comic book cover) What about this?
Hancock: Homo in red?
Ray: (Shows another comic book cover. Superhero in picture has wavy blond locks) How about this?
Hancock: Norwegian homo?
If you are into political correctness, Hancock is not the movie to see.
Ray's wife, Mary, has surprises of her own. She is introduced in the movie as a woman who dislikes Ray's sudden connection with Hancock. I don't want to reveal what happens next, only that Mary apparently has a stronger connection with Hancock than her husband. Oh, and I should mention that the role of Mary is played by the beautiful Charlize Theron. This gal has one weather-altering secret that only Hancock will be able to bring into light.
Unlike other superhero movies with a climactic fight-to-the-death scene toward the end, this does not happen with Hancock. Instead, one will find a mortally-wounded Hancock doing the only thing he knows to save the one woman who mattered to him in his entire life -- leave her.
Like I said, this isn't your typical superhero movie. They usually get the girl in the end. Hancock doesn't. Nonetheless, all's well that ends well. Roll out the credits.
All you Martial Law babies out there who would like to reminisce "the good, the true, and the beautiful" would really appreciate this.
