HANCOCK

"Ain't you supposed to be doing something?"

You would think that Los Angeles would be grateful to have a superhero saves lives and fighting crime but you don't know Hancock (Smith). Spending most of his time drunk and when he does try to save the day he usually causes more damage to the city and the people he saves, Hancock has become more of a liability than a hero. When he saves Ray Embrey (Bateman), he promises to turn his fortunes around and turn all his negative PR into a positive by making the city realise that they need him.

The idea of a superhero who doesn't want the responsibility of his powers is certainly a premise that can be played on but it is just a shame that the people behind 'Hancock' didn't just stick with that premise.

The resurgence of the comic book movie has seen many a hero hitting the silver screen but seldom have we seen a superhero that doesn't really want to use his powers, well, for anything. Hancock is a man who is invulnerable to bullets, knives and anything else the bad guys can throw at them, has unbelievable strength, can fly and doesn't grow old but for him this isn't a gift, it is a curse. When he is asked to use his powers for the greater good, Hancock usually end up causing more destruction than he would if he hadn't intervened. This made the Los Angeles authorities make public enemy number and insist that he give himself in. Unfortunately there is no prison that can hold Hancock and he continues to live on the streets of LA, almost like a bum, spending most of his time drunk. This all changes when he meets PR man Ray Embrey and unfortunately this is where the film changes as well.

Seeing Hancock try and make amends for all of the damage and mayhem he has caused under the instruction of Ray draws you into the movie. The montage of news reports and YouTube videos highlighting some of antics are very funny and make the character's try at redemption all the better but it is the revelation as to why Hancock has his powers that is a very unwelcome twist.

The introduction of Charlize Theron's character Mary Embrey and the revelation that comes with this almost ruins the movie. The comedic start and the excellent chemistry between star Will Smith as Hancock and Jason Bateman's Ray Embrey is transformed into melodrama for no apparent reason. The film could have easily continued with a hero struggling to realise that his powers are a gift and not a burden but instead and for some reason this is a trait with all superhero movies, they decide to deal with the origin of Hancock's powers and the repercussions of this. It would have been far better just to leave this as a mystery of nature and just have the comedic duo of Smith and Bateman continue with the super powered antics.

What could have been a great film has unfortunately been transformed into mediocre superhero drama. While the performances and the effects are first rate, as you'd expect from a Will Smith movie, but the twist in the plot really lets the movie down and makes it just a good watch and not a great hero movie, which it so easily could have been.