If Hancock's last half hour was even half as good as its first hour, it would probably be Will Smith's best movie since 2004's I, Robot. As it stands, though, it becomes another fun, yet disposable and ultimately forgettable, summer spectacle that is surprisingly limp of special effects. The movie can be compared to the Lakers-Celtics game 4 in the NBA Finals this season (I think it was game 4, could be wrong) whereas the Lakers were up by about thirty or so, only to have the Celtics come back within a few points. The Lakers still won, but barely and not nearly as impressively as they began.
The same holds true for Hancock. It begins with promise, with a deep, brooding superhero who no one seems to like and creates more collateral damage than he's worth. Hancock seems to relish that he's publicly hated, yet privately wishes he was indeed cared for. It hinges on emotion and the conversations between characters are often more entertaining than the action.
It's when we discover the "truth" about Hancock's abilities that things go very bad very fast, and the laughable origin, and the way it is "discovered" feels more like an excuse than a reason. It's really bad, and, in all honesty, ruins the rest of what starts out as an excellent film. It's a complete turn-around that I didn't see coming.
Stephen King wrote recently in an article that he hates when directors and authors feel the need to "explain" everything. I didn't agree with him then, but I do now, for Hancock would've worked much better if it concentrated on the boy-to-man storyline which worked so well for the first hour and abandoned its "origin" story that so dampens the film. We DON'T NEED to know why Hancock has superpowers, and we don't care, and never once questioned it during the movie. It feels like Peter Berg fell out of the director's chair near the film's third act and was replaced by an intern.
So, even though it's last act is disappointingly hollow and nearly kills the movie, Hancock is still high in entertainment value and well worth seeing...at least the first hour of it.
Score: 7/10
