A Super Action Comedy

Ten years ago I was asked to attend an audience testing of a movie called, Very Bad Things. It was billed as a “black comedy” starring Christian Slater and Cameron Diaz. Now, mind you, I grew up with Heathers, one of the most bizarrely dark comedies every filmed and I had just enjoyed There’s Something About Mary a few months prior. Needless to say, I was eagerly excited about the opportunity. I called up eight of my friends and we all caught dinner prior to the show. And it was this very evening that made me hate the director, Peter Berg, for nearly a decade.

Don’t get me wrong, as an actor, I had nothing but appreciation for him. His work in The Great White Hype and Copland was great, and his minor role as an SD-6 agent in Alias as well as his small part in Collateral are equally entertaining. The man can act. However, films like The Rundown and Friday Night Lights (I can feel the hatred coming) just didn’t do it for me. I’ve tried to watch each on repeated viewings and they’re just not good films. I can’t help it.

And then the previews for The Kingdom hit, and I lost all hope for Berg as a director. I, personally, thought that The Kingdom looked like one of the worst movies ever made about a war. However, I ended up seeing it and I actually liked it quite a bit. So much so that a purchase was in order. And above all, The Kingdom had me excited about his upcoming film; Hancock. Once that trailer hit, I was nearly sold. I thought the concept was incredibly original, and with Will Smith playing the lead it looked like it would be solid gold. Not to mention Jason Bateman reteaming with Berg, how could it be bad?

Plot: Hancock is set in modern time and stars Will Smith as a superhero who just happens to be very super, and very little hero. He could care less about humans in general and only intervenes when he feels he has no choice but to help. He is, as they say over and over, an “asshole”. Until he saves the life of Ray Embrey, a public relations specialist (sort of) who sees reimaging Hancock as a great way to establish himself as well. The city of Los Angeles is a hotbed for criminal activity and though Hancock’s tactics may be quite rough around the ages, the city still needs him. Things get a little tricky for both Ray and Hancock, and soon their lives become a complicated mess that becomes the focus of the entire second act.

I’ve already touched base on my thoughts of Berg as a director and though he’s had some horrible films in the past, he’s been doing a fantastic job making up for it as of late. The Kingdom is an exceptional action film and Hancock, though somewhat flawed, serves as a good example of what Berg is capable of. I know some critics have really been attacking the film hard; however, general audiences seem to be eating it up. My screening had applause at the end and you could tell throughout the film that the audience genuinely cared about the characters involved. That says a lot about Berg’s ability behind the camera and the film certainly gives us a glimpse to what we have to look forward to with Berg’s upcoming re-visioning of Dune.

I actually thought Will Smith’s acting was right on. He did a good job of selling us on how flimsy of a hero Hancock really was. He plays this role well, knowing exactly when to take it over the line and when to withdraw. There are several scenes involving Hancock’s prison sentence that are specifically what I’m referring to. In the prison scenes, Smith’s attitude and mannerisms sell the character very well. He hates his surroundings and while he may feel a strong desire to leave he’s forced to face reality: people hate him. He wants to improve his image and this is the best chance he has of doing so. There is a lot of character work being done here and Smith’s acting abilities deserve all the credit.

Jason Bateman, as always, plays his role to perfection. This guy has been picking up scripts left and right lately and he really dives right in to his role. It’s no wonder he continues to get work and if he continues the streak that he’s on he will become one of the best comedian actors working. His timing is impeccable, his sarcasm is right on the money, and his ability to play the role of a father or geek is uncanny. Putting him together with an angry, pissed off superhero was just downright brilliant.

As a whole, Hancock is very entertaining if not a little weak at times. There is no real villain and there is never a real sense of threat throughout the film. Hancock seems to be invincible and even when the situation appears too tough, you know he’s going to pull through. The backstory to the characters is interesting, though not fully fleshed out enough to make one think too hard about it after the initial viewing. As it stands, it’s a fun ride and it’s nice to see Berg finally getting his stuff together. While a little crude at times, Hancock is certainly fun for a family weekend out. As is the norm with any Will Smith film.