viber_91
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Does anyone have the interview that Will did with Jay Leno back in
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Rating: *******''**
When Hollywood tries to make their own superhero movies, they tend to fail. Whether it’s something silly like Meteor Man or Unbreakable, comic hero style movies that don’t have a comic to fall back on tend to underperform.So when Sony Pictures decides to bring out Hancock in what has critically and domestically been *the* greatest summer for superhero films, you’ve gotta’ wonder what they’re thinking.
There are no long-time readers of Hancock like their are for Hulk, Iron Man, Batman or even Hellboy. So no naturally built-in audience, save the one that loves to go see Will Smith movies. Frankly, I’m on that list. I love Will Smith. Six Degrees of Seperation showed us all that he had serious acting chops, I’ve been a supporter. So I can forgive things like Wild Wild West or Men in Black II.
If Hancock is to succeed in the best superhero movie summer ever, it damn well better deliver something unforseen. The good news is…it does. Hancock, above all other things, is interesting.
What is Hancock About?
The first time we see Hancock in the film, he’s drunk off his ass. Sleeping on a park-bench, empty bottle of whisky on the hard concrete, he’s roused by a young boy. What’s the young boy want? He wants Hancock to get off his ass and go be a superhero.
To his credit, Hancock does just that.
In what is probably the toughest sell in this entire film, audiences are asked to not only see Will Smith as a jerk, but also to like him along the way. Does he save people? Sure. Does he have any regard whatsoever for property or moral responsibilities? Absolutely not.
In one day alone, Hancock is responsible for causing of $9 million in damage to downtown LA. So you can imagine how the people feel about him. For Hancock, the feeling is mutual. He can save the people, but he doesn’t have to like them. At some point, you think, “Well, they should just be glad he’s chosen to be a hero rather than a criminal!” but that’s a thought that would never cross Hancock’s mind. Because deep down, no matter what, he likes saving people. It’s his duty.
He’s just not very good at human interaction. Enter Jason Bateman. Bateman’s job is to give us an in to Hancock, to show us what is truly great about the character, and to assist on his struggles to change the city’s perception of him.
Most of this you should have gotten from the trailer. But what you don’t necessarily get is how amazing Will Smith is when it comes to playing the disconnected, unsatisfied and tormented Hancock.
Does Hancock work?
Smith’s big eyes, usually smiling or pleading in most roles, turn cold and harsh in this film. He stops a train and proceeds to conduct the rabble-rousing by local citizens as if it were some orchestrated movement he’s heard a million times before. He dares people to push his buttons, and when they do, he pounces. Hard, quick, and without a single bit of reservation.
And that’s when you realize that casting Will Smith was the best thing that could have happened for this film.
When you’ve got a character, who for all intents and purposes, is supposed to be completely unlikable, how can audiences identify with him? Simple - you cast Will Smith, and there’s a natural charm that grabs the audience. He’s got the hero gravity, that special draw toward him where even throwing a young boy far up into the stratosphere (to catch him a few minutes later) will make you laugh.
Throughout this entire film, my smile was ear to ear. I was having a blast, first with the Hancock who was a jerk, then with the Hancock who’s trying to be the hero everyone else wants him to be. And then especially through the subtext and plot reveals that come along, that you never, ever expect or see coming. Not in a million years.
If you think you can figure out this movie, you can’t. You won’t. You can get hints, you can maybe pick up on this here or that there, but when the final revelations are given to audiences, you’ll be as surprised as anyone else.
For that, I’ve gotta’ thank writers Vincent Ngo and Vince Gilligan, who have created an entire mythos, backstory, and history for this character that you’ll never figure out before hand, and do a great job of revealing it without too much useless exposition. Much of it comes through in subtext or in action, not from soliloquy’s standing atop a huge building as some mindless villain promises Hancock that he’ll “rue the day” or some such crap.
Hancock brings a new and interesting spin to superhero films. While not 100% original by any means, to see this level of sophistication and depth in a superhero backstory that doesn’t have 40+ years of comic history and writers to draw from is exciting.
What’s Wrong with Hancock?
The music, time and again, is completely off the mark.
Our first introduction to Jason Bateman’s character had my eyebrows cocked as I tried to decipher the purpose. From that point on, the music is entirely hit and miss. When Hancock’s being a badass superhero? It’s on. When the Sanford and Son theme song suddenly pops up? It doesn’t. All in all, the score is just too present, too heavy handed and too out of sync with what we’re actually feeling, versus what the composer is trying to make us feel.
Hancock feels edited. Extremely. While there’s nothing specifically I can point out to say, “This would be better if it were longer…” or “I wish I had more of that,” I can say that during the film I felt we were sometimes cutting too soon or things were being left out. Most of it has to do with pacing. A montage of Jason Bateman and Charlize Theron’s character’s smiling and snuggling in bed comes out of nowhere, but does fit who those characters are. It just needed some ramp up - and you can say that a lot of times about Hancock.
It never drags. Never gets slow. Never gets boring, but sometimes, you wish it would take a breath and let you see these character’s you’re liking so much.
Sometimes, though, Director Peter Berg struggles with tone. Switching from this story to that story, the attitude of the entire film can switch a little too far from what we’ve experienced before, and it can be jarring. Part of this could be a music thing, as the music’s often trying to cram an emotion you don’t want down your throat, but the tone problems have to be addressed. They are distracting here and there.
Best things about Hancock?
One of my favorite things about this film is that it isn’t underwritten. Never, at any time, do I feel the writer’s didn’t take into account a characters true feelings, motivations or life-story.
Everything is a tapestry in this film and there’s so much more beneath the surface of the people we see on screen. Which leads to some of the problems with the editing, where you know there’s more going on, but you just aren’t given that glimpse into it.
Charlize Theron is fantastic. From the first moment she’s on the screen, you get something from her and you wonder what the payoff’s going to be. Then, when it finally happens, it’s such a surprise and different from what you’d built in your head, you’ll be reflecting back on the not-so-subtle clues all throughout the film.
Bateman is wonderful, and it’s nice to see him play this role. If there’s one good thing about Arrested Development, it’s that it brought Jason Bateman back into the consciousness of filmmakers, so we can see his interesting interpretations on characters and share in the joy he brings to the role. There’s an innate goodness to his character that comes through in everything he does, and Bateman nails it.
Will Smith just brings it. In scene after scene, he does what you want him to do, so much so that above all actors in the film, he transcends being Will Smith and instead becomes Hancock.
Imagine how much damn talent it takes to do that? To be one of the biggest stars in the world, and to still be so good that you can get audiences to believe you when you’re playing a whisky-slurping ragamuffin superhero? Kudos to Smith.
Finally, the directing. Peter Berg’s an interesting guy, and he’s made a really interesting movie. Action scenes are handled perfectly. The character interactions work well, and the world is alive. Not as deep or as big as say the New York of Spider-Man, but when it comes to the circles surrounding our main characters, they’re fleshed out and we can imagine them really existing.
Berg takes the characters where they need to go, and brings from them the performances needed to get so much deep, powerful subtext off the paper and into the hearts of audiences. I can’t applaud him enough for that.
Oh, and the CG is actually really good. Occassionally it looks bad, but most of the time, I didn’t even think about it - it was just as real as anything else in the movie, which is exactly what you want.
Closing Thoughts…
Hancock isn’t a perfect film by any means. It tries to find its footing, stumbles a bit, and eventually stands on top of that building, hands in a fist, placed firmly on its hips, chest puffed out and ready to take on the world.
Hancock makes me want more. A sequel? Maybe, I’m not sure. But there are probably a few prequels in this badboy that could really rock us all and be even more interesting than this film itself. All in all, I can’t figure out any reason for you to not go see Hancock, unless you just hate having fun at the movie theatre.
http://bleutuna.com/qmanning/2008/06/28/ha...w-75-out-of-10/
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For Typhoon and all those who missed it and want it in better quality than youtube, here ya go!
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I'm recording the show to my computer right now. So it should be up on youtube in a few hours...
Viber, could you perhaps also upload it in high quality to sendspace or something ?
I'm waiting for a re-run but it doesn't look good, so I can't record it most likely. It would be great if you could.
absolutely, I'll upload it to sendplace!
Here's the youtube vid, C'mon will, a world tour, NOW!!!!!
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I'm recording the show to my computer right now. So it should be up on youtube in a few hours...
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New review (found it on a swedish movieforum, no idea where it's from tho...)
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Charlize on Jimmy Kimmel Live:
http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=KKszKyZr0g4
http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=cOuko8dqExI
And the episode with Pete Berg on Jimmy Kimmel is up here (Only for USA tho...):
- just click on Jimmy Kimmel and then on the pete berg pic. Just for people in the US, so it would be really nice if someone could record it and upload it to youtube or something!
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Thanks a lot Viber, shame they didn't talk much about Hancock, didn't even show a clip.
Jonathan asked a good question like what are you gonna do after Seven Pounds, looked like Will
was going to answer (maybe refer to Empire) but shortly after that he talked about the 5 months off.
yea, It was nice to see will in a little more calm way than on Letterman and Leno where it seems like he drank 20 redbulls before the interview.
But it seems like Empire will be his next movie, and i heard that it's going to start filming in early february...
here's some info, not much tho...
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Rating: **********
First of all, I must comment on Will Smith’s performance. The man has proven he is the most bankable movie star in Hollywood over the years, but his performance in Hancock also verifies that he has a level of charisma not even Hollywood’s biggest heavyweights combined could ever achieve. Viewers will be pleased to hear funny one-liners that are generally expected from a Will Smith film. (my favorite line is Hancock’s retort to an overweight man who tells him he should be sued.) Will Smith also mixes the perfect amount of comedy and drama that had the audience in tears from both elements.It should also be noted that Jason Bateman was also a welcome presence on this project. Although, cast as the straight character, Bateman still is able to be the lovable scene-stealer viewers have grown to be fond of over the years. Although, Charlize Theron was slightly under-used in this film, there was no denying that she had great chemistry with Smith. A lot of subtext was used with her character and she proved that even though her role was significantly small for an Oscar winning actress…it definitely wasn’t a thankless one.
I also must really commend writer Vince Gilligan and director Peter Berg for providing viewers with a dose of ingenuity that even the most anticipated movies of this year could not even muster. Hancock strays far away the typical superhero movie, yet it is able to stay true to certain rules. For instance, Hancockdoes have a form of Kryptonite that weakens him and he does have a back story full of pathos. (Like most superheroes do.)
Peter Berg must also be inspired by acclaimed director Michael Mann, (who also serves as one the film’s producers) because the film had a very somber and serious look to it. (It reminded a lot of Miami Vice and Collateral) In addition to the film’s slick veneer, the special effects used in the movie were outstanding to say at the very least. In fact, I would go as far to say that they were the best effects I have seen in a movie all year. When Hancock crashes lands on the sidewalk, stops trains with his body, even when he throws a beached whale back in the ocean, I couldn’t help but think how real everything looked. They were no poorly done CGI gophers, green superheroes, or cartoon-looking vampires. It was a pleasant surprise to see special effects that had some weight to them for a change.
On the downside, the movie throws the audience an unlikely twist involving one of the characters halfway through the movie. This turn of events drastically changes the mood of the movie and it clashes with the upbeat energetic and creative first half of the film. Although, I don’t want to spoil the twist, all I can is that if the filmmakers have opted to make the character in question a villain instead of what they became in the film, I think that would have made the film far more intriguing and it would have closed up many of the plot holes riddled through out the film.
There were also definite pacing issues with the movie. Some parts moved slower than they should have and some parts moved far too fast. In fact, there is a henchman in the movie that comes back into the picture and the audience is supposed to buy he is the film’s main villain at the film’s denouement. (A little hard to believe if you ask me.)
However, the film’s biggest error in judgment is that it is marketed for the wrong audience. Anyone who is expecting a genuine superhero film is in for a huge disappointment. Hancock is a hybrid of many different genres and it not the light action comedy fans will be expecting. In fact, I truly believe this movie should have been rated R. Sure, the film gets away with a lot for a PG-13 film, ( I had no idea you could say the word, as*hole that many times!) yet it still felt like a watered down version of the movie it should have been. Smith’s character should have been far more vile at the beginning of the film before he transforms into the ultimate superhero. I pictured him as a dirty old man hitting on under-aged groupies, instead of the lovable as*hole (the ultimate oxymoron) the film made him out to be.
Overall, Hancock was a refreshing change from the cookie-cutter superhero films we have been getting lately. It is not made for everyone, (as I could tell from the snooty critics were not happy) but it will please viewers who are looking for something different than the mediocre comic book films that have been constantly thrown at us. Although it’s far from perfect, it is still a solid and a fairly entertaining effort from director Peter Berg. In the words of John Hancock, “Good job.”
http://www.moviesonline.ca/movie_review_detail.php?id=10624
- I have never been this intressted in a movie, never! The reviews are jumping from 2/10 to 4.5/5 and everyting in between. I've never seen so extreme reviews for a movie, some say it's one of the worst movies of the year, and some say it's great. It seems like it will eather suck hard, or be really great. I hope I'm one of those who think it's great, but right now, I have no idea what to think of this movie. But I can't wait to see it!
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Rating: 4.5 / 5
Superheroes have been jumping out at us from the newsprint page for so long now that it's easy to forget there's no rule stipulating they have to be born in the comics. But it's a nice surprise when some new and mighty force for justice (and entertainment) can come swooping out of the silver screen to capture our imaginations."Unbreakable" is a great example, though much more understated than the most recent entry into that all-new hero territory: "Hancock."
Now, I'm a giant comic book geek -- both in height and scope -- so I ought to warn those of you unfamiliar with my particular peculiarities that I tend to fall in step behind anyone who can fly, bend steel with their bare hands or otherwise pull off wearing a cape...
So yeah, I loved "Hancock." It was exactly what it needed to be... and then some.
For an admittedly obsessive nerd such as myself, it's refreshing to step into a superhero flick with no idea where it will take you.
John Hancock (Will Smith) is an alcoholic, grubby misanthrope who also happens to be nigh invulnerable, ridiculously strong and able to fly. While he does have heroic impulses, his crass and unconcerned methods have the public seeing him as nothing more than a massive pain in the ass. Enter: Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman). Ray is a public relations agent who decides to shape Hancock into a respectable hero after Hancock saves him from becoming railroad kill. Ray's wife, Mary (Charlize Theron) is none to keen on this and harbors a pronounced dislike for the, er... hero.
There's action, and even a comic-style villain after a while, but the meat of the movie is in Hancock's interactions with the Embrey family.
What can we say about Will Smith at this point, really? The guy knows how to be a hero, whether it's the cocky new guy from "Men In Black," the isolated survivor struggling for sanity in "I Am Legend" or the pissed and emotionally crippled superman of "Hancock." Solid all-around.
Jason Bateman, however, may not be known to many of you. For the uninformed, I will tell you this: the man is goddamn hilarious. He starred in "Arrested Development," which is one of the funniest shows ever canned by a network, and I'm thrilled to see his name up on the marquee of a summer blockbuster alongside someone as huge as Will Smith.
And speaking of which, the humor is excellent. Rather than forcibly inserting gags into the story, the humor comes from the characters themselves (gasp!). Oh, genuine fun in a movie theater, how I've missed you. Wait... didn't I see you at "Iron Man"? And "Indiana Jones"? And --
Nevermind that. It's been a good summer for moviegoers who let themselves have fun.
There are other 'props' and 'kudos' and whatnot that I'd like to hand out, but it would involve spoiling at least some of the plot, and I'd rather it not come to that. It'll have to suffice to say that there's plenty of badassitude to go around. And "Hancock" definitely wins the award for most offbeat uses of superpowers.
See "Hancock" if... y'know what, individual taste be damn'd: just see "Hancock"!
http://www.inkkc.com/thaddeus/blog/1132&am...s-%22Hancock%22?
Where does an 800-lb. gorilla sleep? Anywhere he wants.That old joke also applies to L. A. resident John Hancock (Will Smith), a self-appointed super-hero who possesses superhuman strength, invulnerability, and the power of flight. He’s also a surly drunk with no consideration for property damage or the feelings of other people. To the city of Los Angeles, he’s more of a hazard than anything else, and no one seems to be able to resist telling him that he’s an asshole.
Meanwhile, Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman) is a PR specialist who is trying to do his part to save the world by convincing corporations to improve their public image through charitable works. When Hancock saves Embrey’s life – and receives jeers from the crowd of bystanders, rather than praise – Embrey decides to return the favor. By helping Hancock gain acceptance as a real hero to the city, Embrey hopes to help the man who can most help the rest of us.
This movie has a terrific premise, a good script, and exactly the right actors. Unfortunately, director Peter Berg seems to have been the wrong choice for this project, and it’s his touch on the film that keeps it from being a truly excellent summer movie. The hand-held, documentary-style camerawork that served Berg well when he directed The Kingdom strikes the wrong tone and completely fails to support the film’s comedy. The movie’s funny, but in the hands of a different director the exact same scenes could have been hilarious.
Another let-down is that there are several aspects of character and story development in the first half of the film that are hardly paid off at all. For example, when Hancock finally gets the call from the Chief of Police, when he’s finally validated as a superhero who is needed and wanted, we don’t get to see the conversation at all – the audience is denied getting to see the hero in his moment of triumph. The film also ignores opportunities to show the development of Hancock’s character. Instead of giving us a scene that reveals something about this heard-hearted character being broken down and rebuilt as a responsible hero, we’re given scenes of him silently staring at walls, as if that’s supposed to communicate his internal processes.
I know, I know – it sounds like I’ve forgotten that Hancock is just supposed to be a 4th of July weekend flick. A fun ride that’s shallow but enjoyable, seen then forgotten, like Armageddon, War of the Worlds, or Wild, Wild West. But that’s just it. One of the real surprises of Hancock is that there’s much more to this film than the trailers and previews have lead you to believe. This film has been marketed as a comedic take on superheroes – perhaps in the same vein as My Super Ex-Girlfriend – but there’s a real mystery behind who Hancock is. Ultimately, this film builds up a potential mythology as strong as what’s found in traditional comic books (you know, the ones getting made into blockbuster movies every year).
It’s truly a shame that Hancock clocks in at only an hour and a half long. If it had been given a full two hours to fill out the first half of the story, it could have been really terrific – even with the handicap of Berg’s directorial style. As it is, Hancock may not have lived up to its potential, but is still a good, enjoyable movie. If you go see it over the holiday weekend just looking for a fun diversion, you’ll probably end up getting even more than you expected.
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Hancock - the most honest super hero movie I've ever seen
Hancock is Los Angeles’s drunk, low-flying sometimes hero. With all the exciting aspects of an action movie, sparkling comedy and a heartfelt plot, Hancock is the most honest super hero movie I’ve ever seen."Why is it honest"
John Hancock (Will Smith) flies around Los Angeles, protecting innocent people from criminals and disaster, when he could be bothered or wasn’t too drunk. Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman), public relations specialist with a big heart, is one of the people Hancock has rescued from tragedy. It was a lucky connection for each, because Hancock had earned a reputation for being a drunk bastard, whose reckless rescues often seem worse than the danger and Ray can’t get his idea to save the world off the ground. Mary Embrey (Charlize Theron), Ray’s wife, hates, and Aaron Embrey (Jae Head), Ray’s son, adores Hancock. Ray, Mary, Aaron and Hancock struggle to repair Hancock’s reputation by making him a hero worth admiring.
It is no simple feat to make a character multi-dimensional, but to make him supernatural and believable is no less than applause worthy. Writers Vincent Ngo and Vince Gilligan should be credited for creating a character, Hancock, rich in complex emotions, veiled under an alcoholic veneer, which shields him from his sheer loneliness and protects him from the hate spewed on him by the public. In the beginning of movie, it is hard to like Hancock, even when he is mid-heroic act. As the movie progresses, so does Hancock. He grows, he learns and he tries. Ngo and Gilligan’s accomplishments don’t end with Hancock himself.
Hancock the character was not the only great part of Hancock. The comedy leaves the audience in high spirits, so the moments of sincere tenderness and disturbing scenes land especially hard in the laps of those watching.
I won’t be ruining it for you to tell you there is a surprise so huge in Hancock, it couldn’t fit in a fridge. The entire audience gasped and sat in stunned amazement as the plot unfolded in a way none of us saw coming. Calling it a jaw dropper would not be an exaggeration.
Will Smith is sinfully sinful as Hancock. He gives such a raw dirtiness to Hancock, but does not make him unlovable. Smith’s comedic timing was flawless. His attention to the emotional details at the end of the movie make Hancock worth the audience’s forgiveness.
Charlize Theron goes toe to toe with Smith in a thespian tug of war that ends in a tie. Her performance brought tears to my eyes and made my heart break. Theron should be locked up for how often she steals the scene in Hancock!
Jason Bateman is no slacker either. His wide-eyed, bushy-tailed enthusiasm portrayal of Ray cheers up the audience when it’s his turn on screen. Look to Bateman to make you laugh more than any other actor.
Hancock has sensational visual effects. There is no shortage of explosions, destroyed streets, and buildings falling down. In the opening scenes there is even a scene inspired by the Flintstones but done with such great visuals, there is nothing stone aged about it. I had completely suspended my disbelief, lost myself in the story and became entranced in the visuals.
Heck, even the music is good. There is a song in Hancock with all of the brass a super hero deserves but is fresh and original.
When the music, acting, writing, and visuals all come together to become one great movie, not separate things from each other, the director should take all the credit. Peter Berg’s direction in Hancock is deserving of merit and earns my acclaim.
My only complaint is the shallow villain. While his part is small and simple, it was not given the same care the other characters were and there was a missed opportunity to create another layer of depth.
I have had serious problems with typical tight wearing super heroes and their tactics. The tax payers have to clean up after them, they are never accountable to anyone once they kill and the topic of loneliness is often ignored. Hancock addresses all those points and does it in a way that leaves the audience nearly in tears, high from laughter and wanting to know more.
Hancock is heartfelt, funny, abrasive, and fantastic with eye candy that captures the audience and doesn’t let go. Don’t miss Hancock. It’s time well spent.
http://laraemeadows.livejournal.com/63481.html
Hancock subverts the superhero genre
Rating: *****
Will Smith saves the world – again, the new twist this time being his outrageously un-PC hero.Hancock (a stubbly, grouchy but never less than utterly loveable Smith) is an alcoholic bum of a caped crusader who crashes into the sides of buildings, drunkenly exposes himself to children and causes so many millions of dollars of damage his rescued victims generally wish he hadn't bothered.
'I can smell the liquor on your breath,' hisses one. 'Well, that's cos I've been drinking, bitch,' Hancock raps back.
It's a real joy to find such naughty laughs consistently subverting what looked like just another squeaky clean, one-dimensional family-friendly superhero movie.
But no sooner has the drama dipped a toe into potentially deeper, certainly darker, adult waters, it pulls frustratingly back from the brink.
Hancock's glossy road to redemption is never truly in doubt as soon as nice-guy spin doctor Jason Bateman offers help in the form of a much needed PR makeover, introducing Hancock to suburban values via his caring wife (Charlize Theron) and adorable little blonde son.
Alcoholism is deployed merely for (very) comic effect as the story stumbles awkwardly. As it lurches between 'alternative' comedy, serious-issues drama and formulaic blockbuster schmaltz, it feels like the script itself has had a pint too many. That said, it's enormous fun, with chuckles aplenty.
And if the CGI is iffily cartoonish, it proves rather appropriate. A brilliantly crazy, if amusingly botched twist two-thirds in proves so totally off-kilter bonkers, it finally sends the movie plummeting off the cliff like a flailing Wile E Coyote.
http://www.metro.co.uk/metrolife/film/arti...mp;in_page_id=9
Tonight, He Comes…Hancock
Rating: **********
Hancock has the kind of premise that you wonder why it took so long for someone to put it on the big screen. With the plethora of comic book movies coming to cinemas this decade, it was only a matter of time before we were given a tale of a washed up superhero, drunk and lonely, being berated for his destruction rather than praised for his bravery. Alan Moore delved into this realm with his graphic novel Watchmen, (for which it seems Zach Snyder has not massacred turning it into a film itself), and Pixar's The Incredibles touched a bit on the subject with the disbanding of heroes by the government, however, here is something different. This guy doesn't hide his identity or pretend he is something he's not. No, he lets it all out on the line and most of it is unflattering and just plain rude. Jaded from the lack of respect he receives, John Hancock finds that he'd rather wallow away in solitude than try and make people like him. Sure he will still go out and help where he can, while making 9 billion dollars worth of damage, but when he's done, it's back to the bar and the bottle, his only friends in the world.All that changes with a chance meeting of a down-on-his-luck public relations man. Caught a second from death as a train barrels down on his car, Hancock swoops in and saves his life, while harming many others in the process. Seeing an opportunity to get back into the big leagues, Ray Embrey decides to make his hero his new client. By having this freak of nature turn himself into authorities for the warrant out for his arrest due to the multiple fines and disturbing the peace charges, Ray thinks that a little time away from the city will show the people how much they need him. While incarcerated, crime goes up 30% in just five days, people start to worry as the criminals begin to feel invincible, and, to top it all off, Hancock gets a little quiet time to himself so that he can rework his image. Dealing with anger issues and alcoholism on the inside, Ray also begins to work on his personality, turning him into a civil person, or at least as close as he can get, (when you see Hancock's smile for the camera, you'll understand what I mean). Once the city comes a calling, his rebirth will allow him to be ready to take control as someone the public can trust, rather than hate.
Ripe for comedy, the fact that Ray is played by the immensely talented Jason Bateman and Hancock by Will Smith, the film delivers on the funny. I always assume when Bateman gets on a roll that a lot is improvised, and once again I wouldn't be surprised if that's the case here. The two build a fantastic rapport and the sarcastic wit flies back and forth. What is refreshing amidst this comic bent we expect is how good Smith is as the jerk. This guy has made a name for himself as the blockbuster hero, modest and heroic to a fault, never showing a selfish bone in his body. Here, however, he is egotistical, self-absorbed, and downright mean. It's like how I felt watching Russell Crowe chew the scenery in 3:10 to Yuma, watching a great actor play against type is like discovering them all over again. Smith is one of the best out there and he doesn't disappoint.
As a whole, it really is just about these two guys, becoming business partners and friends as they ride the waves to success. I don't want to leave the rest of the cast behind, though, and must make mention of Charlize Theron. After reading an early synopsis, when the film was still titled Tonight, He Comes, I had her character pegged into a certain place. I was completely wrong and surprised to see where her role goes as she plays a very crucial part to the story. I will admit to never really getting all the hype around her, (no I have not seen Monster yet, it'll happen eventually), but she is very solid here as usual, I don't dislike her, I just don't see the unending praise. Also, like every Peter Berg film of late, this thing is chock full of cameos, (you'll even see the director himself, hearkening back to his "Chicago Hope" days in a split second scene). I mean, when you get director pal Michael Mann and writer Akiva Goldsman to poke fun at themselves in a board meeting, you know this guy enjoys what he does and invites his friends along for the ride.
Despite all that works for it, the film doesn't quite do its premise service. If the writers would have stuck to the comedy element and continued on that path, I think the story would have benefited. Instead, Hancock attempts to be bigger then it is. Without any real villain to root against, (the only bad guy is actually Hancock himself as he tries to turn his life around), there isn't really anything to create a worthwhile climax with weight. Instead we are shown a chance coincidence and how the stakes of that event hold the lives of two of our leads in the balance. The situation wants to be dramatic—hence the slow-mo visuals—but ultimately becomes a bit out of place if not obvious. It all works OK, though, mostly because the film itself is very slight and devoid of true plot. The evolution of Hancock is a rapid one and at barely an hour and a half, there's not much room for more depth. The laughs are big, however, and the film entertaining, so as a popcorn summer tent-pole, Smith will most definitely deliver some big numbers, even though he's going against that cute little Pixar robot.
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Another one:
B-
Will Smith plays anti-hero Hancock in director Peter Berg’s against-the-grain superhero movie that features a tricky plot revelation to put a fresh spin on its storyline. Alcoholic lay-about Hancock doesn’t remember much about his past as he goes about intervening on random crimes and accidents with a recklessness that has won him few supporters around Los Angeles. That is until Hancock saves public relations exec Ray Embrey (well played by Jason Bateman) from a speeding train. Ray returns the favor by insisting that Hancock enter prison and go into a rehab program before returning to public life as a more responsible citizen and law enforcer. "Hancock" is a smart post-modern superhero movie with a civic-minded heart. Charlize Theron spices up the fun as Ray’s doting wife Mary, who knows a bit more than her husband about what makes Hancock tick.It takes a while for its allegory about the ravaging side effects of certain well intentioned but selfish people on the ecology and those around them, but its theme of responsible citizenship is unmistakable. Will Smith’s Hancock is a gifted individual who takes his powers for granted because he’s forgotten their source. Contrary to the superhero genre formula that front-loads the how and why of a character’s abilities, "Hancock" dives into the deep end of what this contrarian guy, who can stop a speeding locomotive with his body, is doing with his life. Sleeping on public benches with a hangover and cursing out young kids is not the way most of us want to see our heroes behave. Newcomer screenwriters Vy Vincent Ngo and Vince Gilligan ("Home Fries") have fun refolding the superhero format to contain messages and ideas that raise as many questions as they address.
"Hancock" is an action/adventure dramedy where its characters connect with the audience in an understated way. There’s an element of curiosity in its characters’ emotional motivation that keeps the action engaging. When the rehabilitated and newly suited Hancock takes over for embattled police officers at a bank heist standoff with hostages, it’s his intentionality as a concerned and accountable person that buoys the comic-laden set piece. In spite of its attention to grand spectacle, the movie doesn’t demand the same kind of audience expectation that movies like "Iron Man" and "The Hulk" do. What it does accomplish on a gratifying level is promising less and delivering more. It’s a rarely seen feat that crucially involves a commercial trailer that uniquely doesn’t give away the whole plot as most trailers do. Still, its double-secret weapon is Jason Bateman as a liberal hammer attempting to inspire corporations to give away products free of charge to the people that need them most. In return the company obtains the use of a cheesy heart-shaped logo alerting the public to that firm’s commitment to helping humanity. Even here though the movie raises a subtle question about how far Ray’s stroke of genius should go.
For a robust action story about three people from very different backgrounds attempting to make a positive influence on their world, "Hancock" is a step in the right direction. I don’t think the filmmakers have reinvented a genre so much as they have introduced a new set of rules. Is "Hancock" better than "The Hulk"? You bet.
http://filmcritic1963.typepad.com/reviews/...06/hancock.html
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New review:
Rating: *****
Anyone who's watched a movie adaptation of a comic book will be familiar with the scene of the crumpled city street in the wake of supernatural heroics: the spurting fire hydrants, dented skyscraper, crooked lampposts and overturned cars and buses that might or might not still contain crooked human bodies.If you're like me, you'll watch these scenes in a state of inconvenient conflict. It's obviously terrific that the supervillain has been vanquished and the heroine/party of schoolchildren has been saved, but at what civic cost? And who foots the bill?
These are questions that many summer blockbusters might view as pedantic, but they're ones that Hancock goes some way towards addressing.
Eighty years after waking up in hospital with a bump on his head and a newfound invincibility with no idea how he acquired either, Hancock still thwarts crooks, but he spends most of his time passed out on public benches, soaked in bourbon.
The citizens of Los Angeles are displeased, especially since learning that his last bit of crime fighting caused $9 million worth of damage. But his fortunes turn around when he saves the life of Ray, a motivated public relations man who thinks he can help change Hancock's image in the public eye.
Ray's character - a PR on a moral mission - is a tricky one to believe in, particularly since his corporate 'dream' (some rubbish about free products and a heart logo) isn't sketched out. However, the fact he's played by Jason Bateman - who exudes good-heartedness in every role - helps. 'Ray is the Bono of PR,' says a colleague, by way of introduction. 'I think Bono is the Bono of PR,' replies Ray, and there's a very real sense that Bateman is continuing here where he left off in his role as Michael Bluth in the brilliant, fast-talking sitcom Arrested Development.
Ray has quite a task on his hands, as his wife (Charlize Theron) reminds him ceaselessly. Not only must he change Hancock's general attitude, he must get him to stop drinking and launching small, irritating children into the clouds when they mouth off at him.
The early moments are about as close as you get to seeing the dark side of Smith, but when Hancock is reunited with a fellow superhero, the movie, much like the recent Iron Man, loses its wit and becomes a CGI battle across the American skyline.
What follows is loud and spectacular, but it gets away from the more interesting original questions Hancock seemed to be asking, such as how lonely would life be if you were invincible. I'd have liked to have seen more of Bateman and Smith bouncing off one another, in the way Smith and Tommy Lee Jones were still allowed to do even during the most adrenaline-fuelled moments of Men In Black.
Putting them into a life or death cosmic battle and turning the LA sky an apocalyptic black adds a superficial sense of pace, but it wastes a chance for a good buddy com that deploys two stars at the peak of their powers. Hancock's world might have been a sad, soulless place at the beginning, but by the end it looks depressingly similar to every other one inhabited by his superhuman movie peers.
Verdict: An initially thoughtful look at a superhero that gradually loses its mind
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/revie...ng-baddies.html
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Another review:
If you’ve been searching around for reviews of Hancock, the new superhero flick from director Peter Berg which stars Will Smith, Jason Bateman and Charlize Theron. Chances are you came upon the blasting the film took in the Latino Review a month ago. I’m not sure what movie they were watching, but the studio has definitely made some cuts since then. The R rating has been dropped to a PG13, which in this case probably helped the film.If you’re looking for a superhero film, let me warn you, Hancock may not be what you’re looking for. I suggest catching Iron Man or the Hulk again, or if you can wait, Batman and Hellboy will be here soon enough. There are superheroics in Hancock, often with hilarious results, but it’s not the meat of the movie, or even what drives the film forward.
Hancock is a movie about people first and foremost. The best way I can describe it in comic terms is where all the other hero flicks (excluding Hellboy) are primarily Marvel and DC associated. Hancock comes off like something from a good indie publisher or DCs Vertigo line. It doesn’t need to follow the superhero script but dabbles in it just enough where I could understand the movie confusing some people.
Hancock does make quite a turn in the 3rd act, and I applaud their decision. This film could have easily become an afterschool special treading down a safe and easy road of personal redemption or failure. It could have heavy handedly beat us down with yet another message of responsibilities and heroics. Instead we got a superhero movie with no super villain, no end of the world scenario and no real gimmicks.
The basic story is this. Will Smith is John Hancock, a being of extraordinary powers who drinks too much, feels compelled to do good, but is too angry and lonely to care how.
As an aside, I’m not sure if Smith or director Peter Berg had planned on evoking an image of our own returning vets, but I kinda got that vibe. Regardless of your feelings on the War, and I think most of us are in the same frame of mind. Men and women are sacrificing everything. Many who do return home find they have no home to come back to, losing their jobs and their families, they are greeted with scorn and contempt for taking part in an action too few support. If nothing else they deserve our compassion. I’ll get off the soapbox now.
Hancock meets Ray Embrey a Public Relations man who wants to save the world, but can’t get any backers for his pet project since it requires corporate sacrifice. Ray devises a way to clean up Hancocks image, which of course requires personal sacrifice on Hancocks part. Hancock reluctantly agrees, and that’s about all I can tell you without giving anything away.
I will tell you this though. The trailers downplay Charlize Therons role in the film, but the story of Hancock is definitely about 3 people. Most hero films spend as much time if not more introducing villains and telling their origins than they do with the actual hero. (did we really need Green Goblin in 3 Spiderman films?) Problem is most of the villains origins just aren’t that interesting. Since Hancock has no villain they spare us the exposition and give us more of what we want. Screen time with what may be 3 of the most charismatic screen presences today.
Will Smith has proven he could carry a film on his own and his turn as the besotted Hancock allows him to be as funny as he is tragic. What do you expect from the only guy on a tv sitcom you ever wanted to hang out with.
Jason Bateman always delivers and he has great chemistry with Smith. The scenes where he is training Hancock to be gracious are hilarious. You really believe this regular Joe has the force of conviction to stand up to an omnipotent being and tell him like it is.
I could write chapters on Charlize Theron. She always surprises me, and I almost never recognize her from one role to the next. Her turn here as Rays wife Mary is as heartbreaking as it is surprising.
Hancock has its share of action sequences, some of which are too hastily edited, but that seems to be the trend these days. The effects are great and have an as rooted in reality feel to them as they can. (Why didn’t the Hulk leave potholes whenever he jumped?) The script is tight, and while the story does take a sharp turn if you just ride it out you’ll find it’s a novel approach to an old concept. Just don’t expect to come away with more answers than questions. There are some very funny moments and if I had to categorize, I would consider Hancock a superhero dramedy. Just don’t expect a laugh riot from beginning to end.
Overall I recommend Hancock to anyone looking to go beyond the summers popcorn fare to a more adult thinking mans superhero flick.
http://allthecoolgeeks.blogspot.com/2008/0...unken-hero.html
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New positive AICN review:
There's another review on the same page, but that was just a short rant about how bad Will was, and that the movie sucked... No real info...
hahaha...:D
I laughed out lout when I read your post viber:)
"Look and read carefully this glowing and positive review of Hancock....there's another one but that one is negative so who gives a s**t about that? " :)
I love how "objective" we all are on this forum about Will's movies :D
I do the same thing just in case anyone takes offence in what I just wrote.
Cheers
Haha, well... I'm still hoping that this movie will rock, right now it seems like the big plot development halfway through is just something you'll either go with, or you won't. But that second review on AICN was quite bad, sure, hancock could be a big pile of crap, but saying that "this movie was one of the biggest pieces of **** I've ever seen" and that Will is "laughably bad" as hancock doesn't make the text a real review. Atleast variety and HR had some deapth to the text and could explain why...
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New positive AICN review:
I'll tell you this much: it's a very satisfying movie.You're going to come out of it feeling like you've just spent a worthy ninety odd minutes in a cinema. I know that shouldn't sound like high praise, but I've sat through a few too many eye gougers this year, and any movie that makes me glad I made the effort has automatically done its job.
Part of this is to do with the fact that this is the exact right perfect time for this movie. This is a time where the general public is so used to the idea of superheroes and origin stories that a -- let's face it -- largely unknown character like Iron Man can still draw people in because they understand how it all works. It no longer matters if they have a childhood connection to the character, or he's steeped so deeply in pop culture that everyone kind-of remembers what his symbol looks like. The Superhero Movie is a genre unto itself, and Hollywood is now in a position to start its postmodern examination of its characters.
Just as twenty odd years ago the comic book industry was ready for "The Dark Knight Returns" and "Watchmen", the movie industry is now ready for HANCOCK and, well, WATCHMEN. From the very opening of HANCOCK, we're shown the equation without any unnecessary fanfar: our world + superhero = this movie. Got it? Good. HANCOCK, shockingly, treats the audience with some respect, which is one of the reasons that the first twenty minutes or so is so damn flawless.
I'm actually going to start talking about Jason Bateman first, because to me, this film was as much about his character as it was about him. Bateman has shamelessly stolen nearly every film he's appeared in recently (which is particularly good news if you're sitting through MR MAGORIUM wishing something would come along and entertain you...). JUNO (as with "Arrested Development") managed to avoid this by somehow finding actors who operate on the same level. There's something great about seeing Bateman interact with the Charisma Force that is Will Smith, especially when Smith is doing some of his best blockbuster work in a long time. Looking back over Smith's filmography, I'm surprised to discover that the last film of his I truly enjoyed was MEN IN BLACK. (It says something for the man that he can keep appearing in films I dislike and I can keep citing him as an actor I love.) Similar, the oddly underrated Charlize Theron takes a role that could have so easily been utterly ridiculous, and grounds the slightly-silly plot developments through sheer force of, well, talent.
The problems with HANCOCK are also its strength. It suffers from having too many great ideas. Highlighting this is the fact that these great ideas are realised really well. The concept of a superhero who answers to no one? Tick. A superhero willingly submitting himself to jail and self-help groups? Tick. The story of redemption? Tick. All of these "what ifs?" are handled with expertise. The only thing that lets them down is that they seem to jump too quickly from one to the another. There's not enough bridging work. Like the DVD you're watching it on randomly skips every sixth chapter.
That's the only thing that stops this Very Good Movie from being a Great Movie. Well, actually, I had some problems with the score. Most of it is excellent (kudos to the John Williams SUPERMAN throwback), but far too many scenes feel as if composer John Powell was constantly being given the note: "It's good, but can you give it 70% more whimsy?". It's a bit too light in scenes where it shouldn't really be light, and it's more of a distraction than it should be. But, like I said, most of it is excellent, and, as should always be the case, the excellent parts are the parts you don't usually notice.
HANCOCK is, like its titular character, not without its flaws. (Oh, snap! Can I have a job now, Variety?) It is, however, very, very good, and it's not going to leave your head the moment you leave the cinema, like so many other big films. At a time where blockbusters suffer from easy dismissal by being wedged between other blockbusters, HANCOCK actually benefits from squeezing between IRON MAN, INCREDIBLE HULK and THE DARK KNIGHT by sort-of cleansing the palette and showing you these guys from a different point of view. And for that reason, love it or hate it, it's a film that's definitely worth seeing.
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/37230
There's another review on the same page, but that was just a short rant about how bad Will was, and that the movie sucked... No real info...
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All the reviews are saying the same thing.. The reshoots obviously didn't work. I wonder what the tomatometer is gonna be. I'm expecting less than 50%
Now thats not true, did you even read the reviews posted here? Apart from the variety and hollywoodreporter, the last 5 reviews has been more positive than negative (comingsoon.com gave it: 8,5/10 and hollywoodtoday.net gavet it 4/5)...
the tomatoemeter is about 40% right now, but it only has 5 reviews.
I think that about 50% will think this movie was bad, and the rest will think it was ok or good, just hoping I'm one of those people who will think it's good.
I'm posting this one again cause I think that this is the best "review" yet, no spoilers, and he knows that movies are all about what YOU as a moviegoer thinks of it. The critics can say what they want, but It's you'r own review that's the most important.
Based on the early test screening reviews of Hancock... reviews of a film that is different in many ways from the one being released into theaters... I kind of understand the general negativity surrounding the film.But that’s why test screening reviews are a load of ****.
I’m not going to review the movie now, but while there are still some shaving bumps, this is easily the most ambitious action script of the summer to date, solid in ways that none of the failed movies that some are amusing themselves by comparing it to never were, and while it’s probably not a good bet to surpass I Am Legend at the box office, it is not only a likely hit, but it is likely to be one of those films that grows in importance (as important as action movies can be) in retrospect.
The thing that is odd, from this seat, is that the film is, once again, so Peter Berg. For me, Berg has become one of the great genre directors of his generation. His films embrace the silliness and the over-the-top of genre, but he goes to a darker place in the characters he makes films about and in that, delivers films that have all the action but speak to an adult, thoughtful sensibility.
So yes, it is possible that I am reading this wrong commercially. It would be par for the course in my experience with Berg. Will Smith assures a big opening. So it will be Berg’s biggest film. But will it be commensurate with Smith’s recent history?
I really don’t know.
The film is mouthy enough to become a sweetheart for the teens. It’s not a superhero movie in a conventional geek-wetting way. By the end, you realize, that they are really doing a different genre altogether, using superheroism as background metaphor. But Hancock is a superhero who does what a real human being might expect to do with these powers… far more honestly than, say, Iron Man. That said, a big part of the appeal of Iron Man was the hero fantasy that audiences identified with. If you want to identify with Hancock, you are going to have to put yourself through a bit of self-examination.
By the end, the closing conventions of superhero movies like Spider-Man and Batman are very much intact. But the road to that end is far more demanding of the audience.
But this is no Wild Wild West. Not even close.
And if you want to see the movie the way you should, be very, very, very careful of reviews because one major spoiler is significant enough to the story that critics will have a very hard time not giving it away. And for me, that moment when you realize that you don’t know what they are going to do with the third act is one of the great movie experiences… especially in a genre film. (I knew exactly what would happen in the late second act before the movie was 10 minutes old... and was pleased to anticipate it.)
Of course, that complexity and the pre-release negativity will probably lead to a phalanx of mixed reviews. Rise above. Clean your mind. The movie may be better than you expect or worse, but do try to embrace the experience of having that experience for yourself. If you want to know what’s going to happen before you see a movie, there is always episodic television.
"Seven Pounds" is next.
in Will Smith Movies
Posted
I've heard that the trailer would be in fron of Mamma Mia, July 18th... Maybe it was on this board...