By JOSEPH CRAWFORD
Crashing in a drunken stupor on to our DVD shelf this Christmas, it's Will Smith in the less than elegant: Hancock.
Promising Smith's loveable charm, a barrel of laughs and enough special effects to make you dizzy, this super hero movie looked to be an easy going "no brainer" with...well it's Will Smith!
What's not to love!
Unfortunately, there's plenty.
The city is in trouble. Gangs are running riot and crime is on an all time high. To make things worse, the people's only saviour is Hancock: an alcoholic loser.
After saving the life of public relations official Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman), Hancock agrees to Ray's proposal to try and change his image and be a better hero.
The transformation involves a (rather pointless) trip to prison, followed by a deep journey into why he is the way he is.
A very simple premise made difficult by something this type of film shouldn't possess: a deeper plot.
An unexpected interruption by Charlize Theron complicates the plot with an unconvincing love story. At the beginning it had all the innocent enjoyment of Spiderman.
To then throw in an under-explored plot reminiscent of The Hulk and all the misery we got from that, it just seemed wrong.
With little or no interaction between characters, the emotional sub plot was lacklustre and failed to evoke any attachment. It's as if they completed the film and then realised "whoops! We forgot chemistry!"
The ending left much to be desired with several unanswered questions and a disappointing fight with the villain.
It is so frustrating to see something simple and enjoyable ruined by the director's burning desire to make this more than a high concept family movie.
No, we can just add a few grams of melancholy, a teaspoon of annoying shaky-cams and a sprinkle of ludicrous back-story to poison Smith's reputation and confuse audiences everywhere!
Smith is a talented actor, but the role demanded too much for the type of film we all thought it would be.
It was supposed to be a light hearted, tongue-in-cheek, displaying a clumsy super hero who will ultimately better himself.
Instead we get a miserable hour of Hancock moping around before he steps up to deliver an anti climatic ending. All the funny bits, it seems, were shown in the trailers.
I found Bateman extremely annoying as his comedic style paled in comparison to Smith, making him a disposable asset to the film's plot and humour (what little amount there was).
However, all is not lost.
Where films like Hulk (the first ugly attempt) and Hellboy (spawning two disasters) didn't show enough of the heroes' powers, Hancock delivers.
It was very satisfying watching a super hero abuse his powers and actually do things you want him to, like skewer a car full of criminals on a 500ft building. Causing a train wreck, botched landings etc.
The special effects are impressive, but to say "Smith at his best!" would be a major misjudgement.
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