The world of fiction is neither lacking disenfranchised anti-heroes nor tongue-in-cheek smashiness, yet “Hancock” stands in sharp relief against the backdrop of love affair with all-powerful beings. For one, it gracefully shies away from taking itself too seriously without losing it’s footing in reality, a feat that was muddled on opposite ends of the spectrum in recent blockbusters such as “Spiderman” and “The Incredible Hulk”. Even more impressive is the fact that international superstar Will Smith is kept at bay, fitting into the story nicely rather than having it built around him. No doubt, he steals the show delivering his trademark wit with a new-found bitter aftertaste, but the real star here is the steady hand of director Peter Berg.
Keeping himself quietly under the radar his contemporaries have covered in brightly colored blips, Mr. Berg trudges forth making some of the most important American films within the Hollywood system. His track record is short but glowing, from the too-dark-for-comfort comedy “Very Bad Things” back in 1998 to the more recent so-action-packed-everyone-missed-its-message “The Kingdom”, he has proven himself adept at bouncing between genres, blowing tons of shit up, and keeping his audience generally satisfied if not a bit rattled. “Hancock” is no exception, going against every archetype thrown at crowds over the past decade while keeping the action fresh and bloody.
Instead of the film being the requisite origin story of our scruffy, drunken and misbegotten Hancock, Mr. Berg, with writers Vy Vincent Ngo and Vince Gilligan, have chosen instead to make the deconstruction of a hero. Rather than a dorky teen getting zapped with magnificence coming to terms with his new-found powers, Hancock is instead a thirty-something bum who has honed his abilities enough to use them, just not to use them properly. Mr. Smith looks a bit different than when we last saw him in “I Am Legend”. Sure he’s got a haircut that’s a bit new and different, but the lengths he has gone to channel this character have changed his physicality in a way that is difficult to describe but wonderful to experience. I almost didn’t recognize him in some scenes, which is impressive since he is one of the most recognizable stars internationally. He still fights the forces of evil, but there is no mention of who he is or why he can fly, smash, throw, and retard flames. Instead we see his daily travails in the court of public opinion, a public who hates him and would rather he didn’t try to fight crime in such an un-thought out manner.
Enter the PR guy, Ray Embry, played with the usual comedic restraint by Jason Bateman. You can tell that Mr. Berg is a real Hollywood guy because of all the easy jokes tossing a publicist into a hero film might elicit. As a favor for saving his life, Ray offers to take Hancock on as a client to soften his image, but it is clear that he wants to do more than just help Hancock out. Ray is on a mission to make the world a better place through an ill-fated charitable marketing ploy he has come up with, and he sees the opportunity to make at least Los Angeles safer by improving the erstwhile hero. Just as he spun gold out of Mark Loring in the otherwise business-as-usual “Juno”, Mr. Bateman has found a way to convey an incredible character in Ray. He believes in Public Relations so much, that he really believes he can save the world by molding Hancock into an image of his design.
Rounding off the award-winning cast is Charlize Theron as Ray’s wife Mary. Sporting a rather plain (for a room full of gorgeous women) blond looks, she is a loving wife with some obvious skeletons in her closet. For the sanctity of plot we are left in the dark throughout the first half of the film about her past, though we are beaten over the head with reasons to look out for her, such as shots that linger on her for too long or glances we notice for no known reason. Mr. Berg really paints the whole femme fatale thing on her nicely; we are just waiting to see how she is going to screw everything up.
I don’t want to spoil the second half of this film for anyone, but I have to say that the climax, in which we witness the undoing of Hancock and his choice to put himself back together, is deeply moving. Hancock is an immortal with no reason to live. It is refreshing to see a well developed character make the core choices that define him under the guise of an action-packed laugher.
All overblown intellectualisms aside, it was great seeing shit blow’d up, jerky kids being knocked around, and Ms. Theron getting her skank-face on. Cheers to you, “Hancock”, for giving us what we’ve always wanted: unapologetic schlock with a heart of gold.
