Christopher SoallHancock, I didn't even see it coming
July 4th 2008 12:11
Despite my disdain for the gun-ho, 'we save the world' attitude many American films convey, I do, so much, look forward to the release of the next big American action blockbuster. Add to that my love of Will Smith and you can see why I was so enthused about 'Hancock'.
Perhaps having a baby and neglecting my first love - the cinema - has put me off my game, but I didn't see the twist coming. SPOILER ALERT I will be talking about the plot of the film, ahead. Just giving you a heads-up.
I picked up the anvil-subtle hints that Charlize Theron's Mary was clued-in to Hancock's past, but when she was revealed as also being super-human (for lack of a better description) the film leapt from the Superhero genre into something else entirely... or so I think.
It is my interpretation that the socio-religious climate at the moment leaves the audience more open to the idea of 'Angels' or 'Gods' as Mary describes them. Prior to the revelation about her character, Hancock was just a superhero, but the addition of another character like him creates the need for a redefinition of what he is/ they are.
It is rare in a superhero film that the hero will have an ally who is like-gifted. The fact that the protagonist is, at their core, alone is one of the defining characteristics of a superhero. (Excluding, obviously, groups of superhero - The Fantastic 4 leap to mind.) Introducing Hancock to someone like him redefines him, he's not a lone hero, he is one of a group of Gods.
Clearly, I have leapt to this theory, but if you've followed me so far please keep hopscotching along with me just this little bit further.
Is it possible this kind of plot swing in a hero film is more acceptable now that the world is less religious in general? Without getting into a religious debate about that validity of Scientology and other contemporary religions, the decline of the more ancient religions - where views about Gods in black pleather who walk among us are categorically dismissed - has made this sort of story more acceptable to a cinema audience. I'm thinking this will possibly be the first of many hero movies to make the leap from identifying the heroes as unexplainably gifted to defining them as Gods.
Sure, to some extent, heroes have always been painted as Gods, but I feel like this film has done it differently... Am I wrong?
{NB. I loved this movie! If you have not yet seen it, do so soon.}
Perhaps having a baby and neglecting my first love - the cinema - has put me off my game, but I didn't see the twist coming. SPOILER ALERT I will be talking about the plot of the film, ahead. Just giving you a heads-up.
I picked up the anvil-subtle hints that Charlize Theron's Mary was clued-in to Hancock's past, but when she was revealed as also being super-human (for lack of a better description) the film leapt from the Superhero genre into something else entirely... or so I think.
It is my interpretation that the socio-religious climate at the moment leaves the audience more open to the idea of 'Angels' or 'Gods' as Mary describes them. Prior to the revelation about her character, Hancock was just a superhero, but the addition of another character like him creates the need for a redefinition of what he is/ they are.
It is rare in a superhero film that the hero will have an ally who is like-gifted. The fact that the protagonist is, at their core, alone is one of the defining characteristics of a superhero. (Excluding, obviously, groups of superhero - The Fantastic 4 leap to mind.) Introducing Hancock to someone like him redefines him, he's not a lone hero, he is one of a group of Gods.
Clearly, I have leapt to this theory, but if you've followed me so far please keep hopscotching along with me just this little bit further.
Is it possible this kind of plot swing in a hero film is more acceptable now that the world is less religious in general? Without getting into a religious debate about that validity of Scientology and other contemporary religions, the decline of the more ancient religions - where views about Gods in black pleather who walk among us are categorically dismissed - has made this sort of story more acceptable to a cinema audience. I'm thinking this will possibly be the first of many hero movies to make the leap from identifying the heroes as unexplainably gifted to defining them as Gods.
Sure, to some extent, heroes have always been painted as Gods, but I feel like this film has done it differently... Am I wrong?
{NB. I loved this movie! If you have not yet seen it, do so soon.}
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