Hancock: Frankenstein

Official Site: Hancock
Director: Peter Berg
Writer: Vincent Ngo, and Vince Gilligan
Producer: Akiva Goldsman, James Lassiter, Michael Mann, and Will Smith.

Starring: Will Smith as John Hancock, Charlize Theron as Mary Embrey, Jason Bateman as Rey Embrey, and Jae Head as Aaron Embrey(IMDb). Rated PG-13.

What I expected Hancock to be was a funny superhero movie involving a beatnik character who lacked the grace of traditional superheroes, and we see this absence of finesse in the way Hancock captures the evildoers, and even in his somewhat crash landings. And to some extent Hancock was a exactly that. Hancock does not know who he is or where he comes from; he can only recall waking up in a Miami hospital, and when the nurse in the hospital asked him for his "John Hancock" he kept that name, but after meeting Mary Embrey, he later gained an understanding of who and what he is, and this makes Hancock more than just the average superhero.

Hancock was very entertaining but unexpectedly dramatic. The dramatic element seemed to balance well with the comedic element of the film. The transition between the funny parts and the dramatic parts were great, and it's commendable how those two key elements of the film were managed nicely, equaling to a film that had more than just action, but emotional content as well. However, because Hancock was unexpectedly dramatic, it may disappoint those who were expecting a hardcore comedic action movie; while there was action in this film there was also a fair degree of drama. Even though this movie was primarily advertised has an action comedy, the dramatic element was not bad at all. In closing, the immortal and historic twist in the film made Hancock somewhat of a distinct superhero movie.

The major problem with this film is the absence of a clearly defined plot. Hancock did not have a well defined goal in the film. Hancock was a crime fighter, but he was not going after a certain villain that was threatening to destroy the human race. Although the film did not have a well defined plot, it did have closure. At the end of the film, movie-watchers understood who Hancock was and why he was so grumpy. Metacritic.com indicated this film received mixed reviews, and Rottentomatoes.com indicated 57 fresh tomatoes to 102 rotten ones. This film was entertaining; I give it a C+. Stay tuned, Movieporium.blogspot.com.