I like Will Smith; you like Will Smith; all God’s children like Will Smith; why Will Smith even likes Will Smith – though for Will it may be less of a stretch sometimes than for us. To wit – Hancock. This movie doesn’t quite make you lose the will to live; but it sure puts a strain on your will to like – Will.

Hancock is the comic book hero with no comic book. The first post-modern super hero perhaps in that he contradicts all the conventions: grunge-scruffy, ever-stubbled, grumpy, frequently drunk and such a crap flier that he can’t take off or land without chewing up chunks of the ground beneath him. Hancock is an out of control Jumbo jet with no wheels, leaving a trail of demolished landing strips in his wake. None of this makes any sense, scientifically or otherwise it’s just a slapstick joke to explain why everyone is so pissed off with him. In fact Hancock’s comic book genre isn’t the super-powers super-hero at all: when ostensibly trying to help a beach-stranded whale that he just hurls it out to sea sinking a yacht, it’s Dandy and Beano stuff.

OK, once the penny dropped I was up for some laughs and happy to see if Desperate Dan Hancock might get up to some genuinely amusing jolly japes. The whale gag wasn’t bad but they over-killed that in the trail. Cue script conference: “now look guys we gotta get people to care about this guy; well it’s Will Smith, so how hard is that?” There is nothing direr in movies than to see the results of Hollywood product-mongers desperately trying to blow some hot air into a lead balloon. Its not a bird, it’s not a plane, it’s a poor emotionally troubled super-hero, not in touch with his emotions and just needing someone to believe in him. Cue Ray Embury (a likeable Jason Bateman), PR Executive - well where else would a drop-out, suicidal super-hero look to for emotional advice other than Public Relations? It’s not what you do Hanky, it’s the way that you do it. Ray, saved from death-by-train by Hanky, in gratitude, with all the zeal only a true PR Executive can muster, decides to brush up Hanky’s image – let the people see that the immortal, bulletproof, fireproof, everything proof super-hero is hurtin’ inside – he hasn’t found himself. Never mind Hancock, what planet are the writers of this tosh from?

Ray has a beautiful little son Aaron and an even more beautiful wife Mary. Now ask yourself - you’re a nice but geeky kind of guy with a gorgeous wife, so who would you least want to invite into your house to be around your beautiful wife? Will Smith that’s who. Not only that but the stud-meister is also a kind of God with God-like powers. Ray’s dogged niceness segues effortlessly into cosmic stupidity. And sure enough, something pretty intense is going on every time Mom-and-apple-pie Mary meets the eyes of ‘I’m hurtin’ Hanky’. You just know there’ll be tears before the night’s out and it’s gonna be a field day for brickies, carpenters, road-menders et al across LA as Horrible Hank transforms into Happy Hanky, busting up the place on the way.

Hancock is persuaded by Ray to go to jail and serve his time for past mayhem, clean up, say nice things to people and wear a distinctly retro stretchy leather suit. One of the coolest actors in the business, Will of course knows this gear looks cool though he indulges himself in wearing it by having Hank complain bitterly and refuse to. Well ever since poor old Superman got stuck with his Y-fronts outside his tights looking like John Major at a rap concert, we can’t blame image-conscious actors, or super-heroes from having contractual control over the super-suit. At least chilled Will don’t need a pecs-double. All his own work.

Anyway, now coolly clad and choirboy polite, our hero begins to find his inner self. He gets some help with his provenance and his presenting distress symptoms, in a plot twist that though it blows the movie out of the water, does create an excuse for a CGI-action-packed last half hour. Those heart-warming, steel-melting looks between marvellous Mary and no longer solo Han, are explained with a mid-stream tone-switch, eliciting not so much “you’re kidding” as “what the heck…go for it. Who cares?”

Cue much ad-hoc building demolition – for all his super-powers, the inventive genius of the doorknob or the window-catch appears to have passed Hancock by – countless autocides, and a tip of the narrative cap to Rider Haggard and the downside of immortality, and we end with a typically Will Smith tongue-in-cheek ending, with post-credits coda.

A bit of fun – but less than it could have been if they had really stuck with the superpowers as a burden theme. Black Smithy’s charm and charisma just about carries it. But star quality is a bit like a bank account – keep drawing on it without making any deposits, and you end up bankrupt. Way to go yet with Will, but this untidily wrapped package only just got to us without unravelling completely.

Great review, Z - as usual, saving me money by convincing me not to go watch this film. I heard the director talk about it on the radio recently and my inner geek - thought to be dead by obviously just suppressed - felt somewhat scornful when he went on about how having a drunk, slobby, etc, super-hero was a new twist. Because, despite my memory these days being about as robust as Tony Blair's conscience, I'm sure super hero comics covered this ground as far back as the late 60s/early 70s. I mean, who could forget Howard the Duck? Well, all right, you have, but I'm talking about the comic, not the film, the former being very funny and ironic. Even Ben Grimm had his anti-hero moments, and didn't Speedy hit hard drugs and Tony Stark the bottle way back when Will Smith was just a twinkle in a PR man's eyes?

Terry

Zettel - I don't like Will Smith particularly.

<Added>

Read the title of your thread and was wondering how he'd pulled off playing Anthony H. Hancock, then realised I'd got it wrong.

Someone suggested I go see this today

Great review as ever!

Sarah

Terry, Jem, Sarah

Problems with my computer and the site - so previou efforts to acknowledge your kind comments went astray. I guess what is frustrating about movies like Hancok is that all the professionalism goes into the CGI and action set-ups when a bit more, inexpensive thought and effort into the basic idea and the screenplay could have made something much more interesting - and entertaining. The idea of being unpopular because you have super-powers is credible enough, and why should we immediately assume that having the powers must make the possessor want to exercise them well. Without being pompous about it the scenario where almost unlimited power is in the hands of someone whose emotional intelligence and character has not caught up with the powers possessed has plenty of possibilities for modern resonance.

The deficienies of these in a sense lazy films themselves , parallel this deficiency in us - the lack of wit, imagination, thinking things though, ends up a bit of a mess. There was a good premise here, despite my teasing, a good cast, and judging by the credits the equivalent of the population of Milton Keynes helping to make it, but truly did they labour to bring forth a lamb not a lion. A missed opportunity. The dearth of excellent films isn't because not enough films are made - its because veryone is content to churn out an average or ordinary film and not take the trouble to make them good or even very good.

regards all - if don't have to have a story and want to see something unusual - try My Winnepeg if you're near London.

Z

I wanted to see My Winnipeg but today is the last showing and I'm going to have to miss it. Rats! I have a chance to see The Beat That My Heart Skipped next week with The Alliance Francaise. Do you know of this film? It's not new.

Jem - BTMHS - supperb naturalistic French thriller. Pretty dark but very real. The French make some of the best 'gangster' mvies because they are intrinsically interested in the live-by-the-moment, everything up for grabs at any time tension that the way of life involves. BTMHS is a remake of an earlier film - but in this occasion a v. good one. Enjoy.

Z

I can't bear Will Smith. At least I can't bear that character he plays in every single movie he's been in.

The only thing I ever liked him in was Six Degrees of Separation.