Hancock
Will Smith, Charlize Theron, Jason Bateman
Director: Peter Berg
92 Minutes
Sony Pictures
2008
Rating: M15+

Probably intended to be not much more than a simple action/comedy, Hancock more-or-less delivers and may be simply described as 'short and sweet'.

John Hancock (Will Smith) is, for the lack of a better word, a superhero. He can fly, he is strong, he is bullet proof and he is a drunk. Although he fights crime - in a sense, very successfully - he leaves a trail of destruction in the process, making him a contemptible individual (to put it nicely). One day, he saves Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman), a naïve idealist working in public relations and unlike most others, he is very grateful to Hancock. Wanting to see Hancock continuing to fight crime and to have the public to be grateful and accept him, Ray strives to help him.

Will Smith (I Am Legend, I, Robot) is his usual self, with his naturally casual and sharp delivery. Nonetheless, being unique, he displays signs of loneliness and emotional weakness. Smith seems to deliberately play his character with an ambiguous mixture of attitudes very well: on the one hand, Hancock is clearly lonely, self-loathing, craving for attention and acceptance with his spectacular stunts; and on the other, despite being despised by the public, he nonetheless, out of some sense of duty, feels compelled to act. Jason Bateman (The Kingdom, Dodgeball) is also naturally sharp. He plays the idealistic and sincere 'public relations guy' (if any exists) with conviction. Charlize Theron (North Country) is Ray's wife, a caring mother and housewife who does not seem too fond of Hancock. While the chemistry between Smith and Bateman was very natural, the chemistry between those two and Theron was somewhat awkward. No doubt it was intentional at times but perhaps it could have been better.

The cinematography by Tobias A. Schliessler (Dreamgirls) and editing by Colby Parker Jr (The Kingdom) and Paul Rubell (Transformers) was generally well done. Unlike Peter Berg's previous film The Kingdom, this was much more visually balanced. There was the appropriate use of quick cuts and handheld for the action sequences, giving the film a frantic and gritty feel without being disorientating. The CG effects, while not the best, was adequate and served its purpose in enhancing the action. The music composed by John Powell (The Bourne Ultimatum) was probably too bombastic and could have had less presence.

As light entertainment, essentially an action and slapstick comedy, it is reasonable. Obviously the humor may be seen as a bit lewd but the narrative does touch on, albeit mostly in a shallow manner: responsibility, good use of one's abilities/gifts, loneliness, purpose, mortality, and what most will overlook, ungratefulness. Perhaps it would have been better if the story delved into those themes more, not necessarily overtly, but subtly, still allowing the audience to treat the film as light entertainment but adding some depth for those who want to explore those themes and the characters. Also missing are some details behind the mythology of the character of Hancock. It is intentionally mysterious initially, the character himself does not know his own origins, this helping to captivate the audience. However, by the final act, the audience generally has an expectation that certain expositions be made and it does not deliver entirely satisfactorily. Overall, Hancock is a not a bad effort insofar as it is a simple superhero flick - it is fun, fast and highly energetic but lacks some depth, even for a piece of light entertainment.