Hancock

The previews for HANCOCK looked great. Will Smith is just fun to watch in all his movies, so that alone seemed promising. And the trailers showed very clever scenes that depicted the irony of a super-strong and indestructible man who lacks self-respect and motivation. So the show really sets you up for some expectations like maybe it was going to be something like the Incredibles where the superheroes come to terms with who they are and how to fit into society. And in part, this movie did address that issue.

But this movie is really about something else. It is a clever depiction of the psychologically accurate phenomenon of being attracted, even compelled, to be in the very relationship that causes us the most emotional pain and psychological difficulty possible. The theory is that no matter who you marry, you turn that person into your mother or father or whoever it is that represents the conflicted and unresolved relationship from your youth. There are predictable consequences. This movie shows that phenomenon, including some of the dangerous consequences, in a unique but psychologically accurate way. The ending was lacking, however. It felt like they just had to come up with an ending and were no longer concerned about making it true-to-life, psychologically speaking.

I liked watching the movie. It could have been much better had it carried it's message authentically through to the end. I would rent the dvd and watch it again, probably. I think most will like it.