'Hancock' Reviews - Twist Revealed!
Warning: LOTS OF SPOILERS AHEAD, so proceed at your own risk.
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I just read a few reviews from a number of people who have seen test screenings of possibly the biggest movie this summer with the world's biggest star in Will Smith, Hancock, and the vast majority are negative. Some overwhelmingly so! You can read my spoiler-free review HERE, otherwise keep reading for more of the juicy stuff!
There's a major plot twist that happens about midway through the film, which you'll either hate, or simply go with. It's shifts the tone of the film considerably; but apparently, without it, the film would simply be traveling in circles. Not good!
The trailers are certainly misleading, because this is less an action movie and actually more of a love story - a love story between Will Smith's character (Hancock) and Charlize Theron's, with the super-hero bits operating more as background material.
The film really should have gone with the R-rated version, and included a lot more of the "mature" content than was apparently cut out of the film to ensure a PG13 rating to reel in the younger demographic. I guess that explains the re-shoots (SEE my Hancock In Ratings Trouble? post from last month for more on that).
Ok, so here's the big Hancock twist revealed halfway through the film:
At this point, I think we all know what the one-sentence synopsis of the films is - a hard-living superhero (Will Smith) who has fallen out of favor with the public, falls for the wife (Charlize Theron) of the public relations professional (Jason Bateman) who's trying to repair the superhero's image.
The midway twist? Charlize's character is a superhero too!! But no one knows this - not Hancock, and not even her husband, Jason Bateman. She reveals her powers in a scene when she and Hancock are alone, and he tries to kiss her, when she suddenly picks him and throws him out the window of her house, sending him flying several hundred feet, before finally slamming into a car's windshield.
Wait, there's more!
Charlize's character later reveals that she and Hancock (Will) are descendants of Gods. She also reveals that they were once husband and wife! We also find out that they are each others respective kryptonites. The more time they spend together, the weaker and more mortal they become, so they need to stay apart. Apparently, she was at the movies with (Hancock) 80 years ago. They were on the road to mortality when Hancock saw a man getting mugged. Hancock intervened and got knocked in the head causing him to loose his memory, and Charlize's character decided to disappear from his life because the world needs one hero -- Hancock!
That's it - the end :o)
You can read one entire spoiler-filled review HERE at AICN. It pretty much runs through the entire film, so, again, read at your own peril. I should point out that it is a month old review, and this was from a test screening, meaning, some things could change before the film opens on July 1st, in 11 days. However, I don't think a major plotline like the "Charlize Theron as superheroine" bit will change.
Ya know, as I watched the trailers, before reading these reviews, I did wonder what the film was really about. The trailers and clips show him performing various super-heroic things, but not much more. I always knew that there was a love story in there, and I did also wonder why none of it is played up in any of the trailers. But I realized that the studio releasing it (Sony I believe) wants to make it seem as accessible as possible to as wide an audience as possible, so, it makes sense to silence that part of the story, and instead play up the action sequences. That's just the nature of the game, I suppose.
So, over all, nothing terribly special! I'd catch a matinee or wait for the DVD!
Brahahaha!!! That's it? I'll still see it thhough, just for laughs Lol! But who knows? I might be pleasantly surprised.
Um... OK.
I'll see it - in fact, that it's not a typical super-hero movie (though it was never touted as being a 'typical' super-hero movie) makes it the more um... intriguing. A love story... with a bad-boy super-hero... and super-hero descendent of gods or, not so much descendents as reincarnations of Egyptian gods/godesses love story...? Sounds a bit like they're stretching, but hey.
I guess it remains to be seen how it's executed and whether this is sheer folly or creative genius. I generally like to make up my own mind, regardless of what critics' opinions might be, but the word so far seems to be folly.
I guess even Will Smith is entitled to the odd turkey, though, if this does, indeed, turn out to be a misguided venture, it'll be really expensive turkey.
I really wasn't planning on seeing this anyway, so reading the spoilers was kinda fun. I can feel the pressure even though I'm not Will Smith or the studio releasing it. Doesn't Will have some Oscar-bait film coming up in the fall?
Will Smith is a best actor ever but i feel movie Hancook is minimum successful. This is a very bad story. I have seen this movie one time only. Thanks.
I haven't watched this movie. but I heard from some friends that the movie is bad. I will give a change and I will watch it.