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Monday, July 7, 2008
Were critics too harsh on ‘Hancock’?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
As a group, movie critics were all thumbs down on Will Smith’s “Hancock.”
The film earned a measly 37 percent approval rating on Rottentomatoes.com. At Metacritic.com, it earned only enough kudos to land just above the rank of “Drillbit Taylor.”
Pulitzer winner Joe Morgenstern of the Wall Street Journal was particularly unkind: “Any notions of demolishing black stereotypes — and what else could have possessed Mr. Smith to do this? — are dashed by the coarseness of it all, and by the narrative incoherence; a surprising plot twist turns a sloppy action-comedy into a totally different movie, and an even worse one.”
For all the negativity, “Hancock” still easily ruled the box office. In just five days, the film earned more than $107 million in North America. Its world box office so far: more than $185 million.
Moviegoers can smell a stinky movie. Note how each day’s box office for “The Love Guru” declined on its opening weekend, taking in $5.3 million its first Friday, then $4.7 million on Saturday and $3.8 million on Sunday. That indicates moviegoers spread the word that “Guru” was gunk.
Now, “Hancock” is certainly no “Iron Man.” It’s not even “Wall-E.” But I had an enjoyable time watching it. I liked Will Smith. I liked Charlize Theron. I thought Jason Bateman pretty funny. Sure, it seemed a little sloppy. But I think the performances helped pull it through the rougher moments.
What did you think? Did you like “Hancock”?
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