comment #1

giantman says ...

That picture freaks me out as well and I totally agree with the feeling the article gives. In the end though, what matters is what is on the screen and I'm willing to wait and see, this one intrigues me - it is either brilliant or stupid. And isn't that what being on the edge is all about?

comment #2

Rich S. says ...

"And in the movie, I play the last man alive on Earth! Everyone else is dead! And vampire mutants prowl the city thirsting for my blood! I tell you, it's a laff riot!"

comment #3

Walter Sobchak says ...

"So it's basically this: Will Smith, some classic, well-placed catch-phrases, a shit-load of noise and eye-popping CGI. Eh? Eh?"

"I like it. I really like it. What's it called"?

"Hancock."

"Nice. Kind of has a 'Cloverfield' sound to it. And once we build product recognition it can be simply 'H'. I can see it. 'Smith...H...Summer 08!' Call Tamara in. I think we've got something."

comment #4

actionman says ...

The article has only made me want to see this film even more. This is not going to be a cookie-cutter action flick and it sounds about as edgy as the pg-13 rating will allow.

Considering this has been a Michael Mann passion project (in one form or another) for the last decade almost, I am more than excited at seeing an edgy superhero film that arrives with a Mann stamp of approval. Before him, this was Tony Scott's, and I remember when I was working for him (about 6 years ago), I read an early draft of this script by Vincent Ngo. I remember saying to myself (and this was before the superhero movie explosion) that this would be just about the most different take on the whole genre. And even though there have been numerous re-writes, Ngo's core ideas are still in tact. We'll see how the final product turns out, but the addition of Peter Berg only heightens my excitement.

The film has always been a dark send-up of the entire superhero movie mythology, while also adding a level of over-the-top action to the proceedings.

Cieply's article makes the film out to be flying under the radar, or as under the radar as a big-budget summer movie like this can

comment #5

K. Bowen says ...

My favorite moment in an Akiva Goldsman script is the moment in Cinderella Man where Russell Crowe walks into the ring, and the ringside radio annoucers describes everything, including the crowd reaction for the audience. Um, we can see what the crowd is doing. That's the miracle of cinema. You can actually see things happening.

comment #6

vansmith says ...

there wont be any mid air sex scenes, or flying while drunk. it will be cute, but there will probably be a 'what might have been' feeling when you leave the theater..

comment #7

frank2,5 says ...

check out the int. trailer @ http://www.sonypictures.se/doc/trailer.jsp?tl=HANCOCK&pd=2008-07-18&dir=hancock
that should give you a better idea of what they mean when they call hancock "superhero flick that pushes limits in terms of the main character's behavior"

comment #8

MickTravis says ...

"Too many people laugh in that man's presence. Smith himself,now that you mention it, laughs and smiles too much also."

I didn't mention it -- you did -- but I whole-heartedly agree.

Laughing and smiling are just a way of puttin' on airs, tellin' people you're better than them. Far too many people laugh and smile nowadays. What the hell are they so happy about?

And why does beer always have to be served so cold? Doesn't anybody realize that some people like it warm or even hot? Jeez!

comment #9

berkguru says ...

will smith is a putz

movie looks dumb - if most people were given super hero powers they would be out raping and pillaging and satisfying all of our animal desires

only one that remotely portrayed that accurately was Kevin Bacon in the Hollow Man but that took Paul Verhooven to make it happen

comment #10

vansmith says ...

it does look dumb, even the CG, throwing the whale like that is funny in theory but it looked cheesy. and the wise cracks you know there are plenty. i wanted to see him and charlize get it on..

comment #11

JohnCope says ...

Goldsman is a horrifying hack and his continued employment says everything that needs be said about the state of Hollywood. His script for Batman and Robin, just as a for instance, is atrocious grabage and one of the worst pieces of writing ever committed to the screen. He should be hoisted up at the Burning Man festival.

comment #12

lesterg says ...

I'm still getting a major Last Action Hero vibe off this film, but I'm certain it will be more successful than that.

comment #13

diesel says ...

I think there's no denying the fact that almost everything Smith touches of late becomes gold, and so wiill this. I liked the first trailer better though. Guess it was the music.

I remember an interview Letterman did with Smith where Smith called Tom Cruise a genius. Two times. If not three. That made me doubt the man.

On another note, the Blu-ray copy of Zodiac Director's Cut was is released in Sweden tomorrow. My copy's already been dispatched. Amazon.co.uk has a release date of Sep 1. Amazon.com doesn't even list a Blu-ray copy.

comment #14

actionman says ...

I am not an Akiva Goldsman fan at all, though a few of his projects have been entertaining (Constantine, Mr & Mrs Smith, I Am Legend, The Client, Cinderalla Man, Starsky and Hutch). He shot be beaten for his work on Batman and Robin, Lost in Space and The Davinci Code).

What excites me about the project is the involvement of Peter Berg and Michael Mann.

comment #15

actionman says ...

Meant to say he "should" be beaten, not "shot" be beaten...

comment #16

corey3rd says ...

what was golden about Wild Wild West?

comment #17

Balthazar says ...

I would say that Akiva is the Anti-Christ, but I'm fairly sure that, by definition, the Anti-Christ has at least a little talent and creativity up his sleeve.

comment #18

sutter kane says ...

However you feel about Will Smith personally, if I were him (two best actor nods, dozens of movies over $100 million, and arguably the most bankable movie star in the world) I'd be smiling and laughing a lot, too. I kind of get the vibe Jeff's talking about, but give the guy a break. I'd be more weirded out if Smith was Sean-Penn-morose all the time.

comment #19

BurmaShave says ...

Akiva Goldsman- 1, Peter O'Toole- 0

comment #20

Gabriel says ...

"My favorite moment in an Akiva Goldsman script is the moment in Cinderella Man where Russell Crowe walks into the ring, and the ringside radio annoucers describes everything, including the crowd reaction for the audience. Um, we can see what the crowd is doing. That's the miracle of cinema. You can actually see things happening."

I don't know if this was in the script - I'm guessing it was - but I loved the part where they talked for 10 straight minutes about how Paddy Considine's character is staying in Hooverville.

Cut to: Next scene, with a title card reading "Hooverville".

comment #21

High Chaparral says ...

As a book, The DaVinci Code was only a few INTs and EXTs away from being a script.

And still Goldsman fucked it up.

comment #22

Arizona Joe says ...

Akiva Goldsman is part of a Hollywood cabal of self-satisfaction and mediocrity. It sells and perpetuates itself.

comment #23

SaveFarris says ...

"but all I got out of it were a bunch of pretending-to-be-concerned-or-thoughtful comments from a lot of smug over-paid people who ride around in pricey cars."

The Barack Obama Experience!!

comment #24

Edward says ...

Not to defend Akiva Goldsman, but in regards to K. Bowen's posting about Cinderella Man. The announcer would be describing everything, because he's broadcasting to a radio audience.

comment #25

Josh Massey says ...

Akiva Goldsman is a godawful stain on Hollywood, ... but. From being around Smith just a little bit, I can tell you I've never met a guy who absolutely electrified a room the way he does. I don't mean to overstate this, but people just got happier when he was around. It's what a lot of people (used to) say about Bill Clinton. Just an energy.

comment #26

Radewart says ...

Jeff's hating on Smith for laughing and smiling is pretty petty. It feels like the weird outcast high school kid hating on the captain of the football team. Jealousy is an awful thing Jeff.

comment #27

Radewart says ...

Plus Obams wants Smith to play him in a movie.