Having portrayed so many nice guys, Will Smith must have relished the opportunity to assay a completely different character: a misanthropic superhero. John Hancock is a boozy bum who lives on the streets of Los Angeles, employing his Superman-like powers periodically, with little regard for any unintended consequences arising from their use. In saving the life of a public-relations man (Jason Bateman) whose car is stuck on railroad tracks, Hancock derails the entire train, causing untold thousands of dollars in damage. But the grateful PR guy decides to return the favor by giving Hancock an image makeover that will endear him—temporarily, at least—to L.A.'s populace. While that's a pretty good premise for a comedic superhero movie, scripters Vincent Ngo and Vince Gilligan unfortunately drag in a nonsensical subplot regarding Hancock's origin and his unusual rapport with his benefactor's skeptical wife (Charlize Theron). In fact, this subplot commandeers the film's second half and introduces a sobriety very much at odds with the lighthearted tone established earlier. Still, director Peter Berg's Hancock is reasonably entertaining, thanks to the compulsively likable Smith and droll Bateman. A strong optional purchase. [Note: : Available in either unrated or PG-13 rated versions, or a “2-Disc Unrated Special Edition”, DVD/Blu-ray extras include 16 minutes of “Seeing the Future” pre-visualization segments, the 13-minute “making-of” featurette “Superhumans,” a “Bumps and Bruises” featurette on stunts (11 min.), an 11-minute “Home Life” featurette on building the sets (11 min.), and production featurettes on “Building a Better Hero” (8 min.), “Suiting Up” (8 min.), and “Mere Mortals: Behind-the-Scenes with ‘Dirty Pete'” on director Peter Berg (4 min.). Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is an on-set visual diary picture-in-picture track and BD Live functionality. Also included is a bonus digital copy of the film. Bottom line: a decent extras package for a flawed superhero flick.] (E. Hulse)
Hancock
Sony, 92 min., avail. in PG-13 or unrated versions, DVD: $28.99, Blu-ray: $39.95, Nov. 25 Volume 23, Issue 6
Hancock
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As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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