Starring Will Smith, Jason Bateman, Charlize Theron

Rated PG-13 for some intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, and language.

Hancock is the story of a drunken superhero who manages to mess things up as he saves people. Soon the entire city wishes Hancock would just stop helping as he causes lots of damage the city has to pay for. Hancock saves a public relations man and to return the favor, he vows to turn Hancock's image around and make the city cheer him on.

It's an interesting idea and although original, it's still a superhero movie, so it has those quintessential superhero moments. This isn't a bad thing though, as it brings a breath of fresh air to them. Hancock is played superbly by Will Smith however it appears that Smith struggled with the weak material. There's lots of times, the movie gets everything so worked up, but gives Smith so little to do that you feel his amazing talent is being wasted. Jason Bateman does a great job here and adds a nice touch to the comedy. Charlize Theron plays Bateman's wife who is untrusting of Hancock. The two do an excellent job of sparring on screen and I wish there was more of it.

The special effects are pretty standard for a blockbuster of this size with a budget of 150 million. There's nothing we haven't seen before, but all the same, it works to propel the story along. The story is a bit thin at times and although we have no gapping holes, there are definite places where the audience could use some more explanation or detail. I was actually quite blown away by how much different the flick was than what I thought it would be. There are things in it that flip the switch and change the forward progress of the flick. This is interesting to see in a 'superhero' movie. It manages to have romance, drama, comedy, and action all in one without completely causing chaos.

Hancock is a fun ride with talented actors/actresses. I highly enjoyed it and would recommend going to watch it this holiday weekend.

Don't forget, Wall*E and Wanted both just came out last week and are both still going strong. Check out the reviews for them on the Gazette's features page. All of these flicks are playing at Cinema 3 in McCook. Check out www.fridleytheatres.com for more info and showtimes.