HANCOCK: A VIEWPOINT

HANCOCK GOES "FLY" IN HANCOCK (2008)

This film had talent on its side, so you would think that they would “score” a lttle more for their fans. Not the case, alas. Will Smith right now is at his professional peak. He wasn’t bad either. I’ve liked Charlize Theron since I first saw her in Mighty Joe Young. She was strikingly cute and pretty, a flukey throw-back to the days of Screen Goddesses, which are nearly forgotten, now, as Hollywood made a “U Turn” to pick up the “gal in the street” look for its female leads. More and more, Hollywood actresses began to look like Sean Penn in drag. Not good! Yet, critics should be more objective. “Will, we hardly knew ye.”

What’s wrong with this film? It’s hard to “put your finger on just one thing.” The story is goofy beyond belief, but that isn’t by itself a necessarily bad thing. The key concepts are incredible and implausible, yet that does not necessarily “deep six” a film–it might add to the fun. The various scenes are linked together by “faith, hope and charlty” as much as anything else. The script wasn’t terribly written, and yet, some damn “egghead” might decide to make it a class project, scheduled for dissection at Script Writing 101. The film had an obvious sense of humor–but why weren’t people actually laughing? I won’y fault the acting of the primary players, but a lot of this film seemed to be more akin to “mugging for the camera” than acting. There was professional direction of the photography, lighting, camera angles and the like, and these cannot be held accountable for the film’s failure. The fact that there was a certain staleness to some of the scenes may have been a contributing factor. Although Will Smith is liked by moviegoers, I guess the thought of him as a derelict super-hero just didn’t “click.” Further, there may be some sort of psychological transferance from crowds gathered to “boo” and “hiss” and “diss” “John Hancock in the movie body to the passively observing viewing audience. Then the moviegoer says irately, “I don’t like the way he’s behaving! That’s not the Will Smith I know.”

I missed the opening of this flick but gather that it focused on the derelict “street” persona of John Hancock. Hence, the “down and dirty” (and “hungover”) awakening on typical day in his life. If I’m correct that would be good, as this film is about an “awakening” by Hancock and a “make-over” as well.

The Big Capsule: “John Hancock” goes about his days with reluctance and loathing, partially anesthetized by hard liquor. He looks derelict. He looks like he may stink. His clothes are worn and suggest that, if he’s not a “street person,” he must be preparing to do some repair work under the truck. He’s brings a confrontational attitude to the victims of crime, those standing by as ewitnesses, as well as the perpetrators thereof. His gestures in behalf of people often present a kind of “Pyrrhic Victory” to those saved from disaster, as he invariably squashes their car, or knocks a big hole in their house or shop, destroys a tresured item, and the like. One of the clever touches in this film is to render his landings from the sky as invariably destructive to the road. I don’t believe I ever saw that touch before. Hancock has no friends. He is different and alone. One of the premises of this film is that he is “acting out” an internal discalm. So, what’s gnawing on his Id? Well, for one, he doesn’t even know who he is. His name “John Hancock” came about when a cop or hospital official asked him to “put your John Hancock on this form.” Smith’s character signed, “John Hancock.” You see, folks, according to the film, he couldn’t remember at that time who he was or where he came from. Bummer. Does hr have a “soul-mate” out there? Let’s face it! Deep down John Hancock is a little sensitive. When people call him names such as “asshole,” he’s not sure that it isn’t his name. NOT KNOWING!!! It’s killing him. At least he can fly. There is an implication in this film that when the world starts getting him down, John Hancock flies up on the “roof” (moon). Therefore, the moviegoer must watch this “insecure” anti-hero. However, there is another storyline that has been brewed up by the diligently typing writers, The ultimate “nice-guy” and his family. They are an All-American Family, except that she’s a crypto-hero. She bends forks, flies, and so forth, when she wants to. Ray and Mary Emrey are an attractive middleclass family, possessed of a stand-alone house, nice kid, nice car, nice neighbors, and so forth. Ray believes in “love.” It’s what the world needs now. He is trying to sell the idea to American capitalist pigs. Give back to the world community most of the loot you’ve wring out by hand. Has he lined up Condoleezza to be the world community spokesperson? Well, no, not exactly. He does have a nice logo: A heart variation. The capitalist executives think he “nuts.” He drives homeward and gets jammed tight in a line. Rush hour! His real problem is that he’s parked on a railway crossing aand a train is coming. what to do? He drives back and forth, banging into cars only a foot or so from his fenders. Why, you ask, doesn’t he just open the door and run as fast as he can away from the imminent collision? Folks, that’s you and me. In this film the people await the arrival of Hancock, employing in the meantime “me-firstism” and vanity to ineffectively deal with a given situation. Guess what? Hancock shows up, picks up the car, and tosses it away from danger, but creating new peril in the process as the car comes to a halt upside-down on top of another car. Fortunately, no one was injured. This leads to the usual group denounciation of Hancock by people observing the potential disaster. The man in the stuck car, Ray Emrey (Jason Bateman), comes to Hancock’s defense,  calling him a hero. Then he is inspired. He asks Hancock to consider a personality “make-over.” He gives Hancock his card. Email me–or just drop by. This initiates a mentoring of the hero series of scenes. Hancock has some past legal problems, but sense no one can arrest him, no one tries. Hancock does drop by, as he flies Ray and his totaled car back to Ray’s. Mary and the boy are home. The moviegoer knows right off that there is some Mary-gram being sent out that reads: Stop! You’re not welcome, Ray won’t have any show of inhospitableness. He invites Ray to eat dinner. Now, it should be added that Hancock is pretty strapping-looking for a street derelict. He brings a healthy appetite along, roo. Now, almost from the outset the moviegoer suspects some kind of relationship had existed between Mary and Hancock, if only in her dreams. Charlize is excellent at connoting this relationship with her eyes and feature generally. Hancock seems to be attracted to her, also, for reasons beyond the norm–but which he couldn;t put his finger on. Good-guy Ray suspects nothing. Incredibly, he doesn’t yet know that his wife is so strong and “different” that you stick a knife or fork in her, and the metal bends. She feels nothing. Hit her on the head with a baseball bat, and it splinters. She feels nothing. How could he have not stumbled upon this aspect of the woman wirh whom he sleeps and who bore his son? (And what about the genetic structure of the boy?) Food for thought–except in this movie. The moviegoers suspicions about these two (Hancock & Mary) pans out. But before the revelations come pouring forth concerning these “different” folks, let’s mention that Ray has so won over Hancock to his personality make-over, that Ray has agreed to “do time.” There, Ray “cleans his system of booze, practices his three point shot, and shoves convict Matrix’s head up convict Man Mountain’s butt. It’s an unusual special effect. I’m not sure that it helps one’s film ouevre’s ranking. Ray also arranges to have constructed a neat hero outfit, including an eagle, which seems to be favored by Hancock. “Tis said: clothes make the man. Now, Hancock can look the part, and he’ll be able to hold his head high at gatherings of heroes. As crime goes up, the crimes of Hancock seem mere foibles, and authorities want him released to thwart heavily-armed bank-robbers, led by “Red” Parker (Eddie Marsan), which he does in a relatively lengthy scene. Meanwhile, the relationship between Hancock and Mary heats up to a kiss, a physical fight wherin Hancock realises that she’s more like him than like ordinary humans. All this presses on his “I gotta know who I am” button. Mary then tells him: You’re an angel. The startled viewer exclaims: “Say what!?!” That’s what we are to believe, folks. However, not only are they immortal angels, but they are paired angels. At one time there were many (the heroes of classic myth?) such angelic pairs, but they have all died, excepting Hancock and Mary. She recounts at one point the wounds he suffered on his body, while rescuing her from travail. (It’s not clear why she would need his help, being incredibly strong and able to fly.) One possibility is that because proximity seems to cause them to weakon, maybe the humans had a window of opportunity. Soon enough Ray learns about his wife’s gifts. He’s cool. Now, “Red” Parker and a few convicts have escaped prison and are gunning for Hancock. Mary gets seriously wounded (weakened by too much Hancock), and Hancock himself is weakoned. He and Mary have been too close! They drained their angel dust from each other. Ray is helpless, as the medical people try to keep Mary from going “flatline.” Twin deaths? What this situation needs is a hero. Hello? Hello? Is there a hero in the house? Yes! And dig! He’s dressing the part.

All rights reserved. Gobigfoot, 2008.