I love Will Smith and will most likly continue to support his work but my question is why is it that in majority of his film where there is female supporting role, they can't have that role filled by a black woman. There are some many talented black actresses out there that don't seem to be working like Gabrielle, Sanai, Regina King hell even Jada. Does Will Smith not hold enough power in hollywood to demand a black leading lady? Or would the be panned for being a tooo black movie? Or has he sucumbed to 'that's just the way it is in hollywood?" I myself am tired of seeing our black actors consistantly placed with either white actress, spanish not that I don't support interracial love but black love or romance should not be something that is tabu. And if actors such as Will Smith would use some of his clout to, maybe the Hollywood politics will see their movie would not flop from having a black man loving or falling in love with a black woman on the big screen.

Good point, tayja76, but in I Am Legend Salli Richardson played Smith's wife.  In Enemy of the State, Regina King played Smith's wife.  In Independence Day, Viveca Fox played his wife.  In The Pursuit of Happines, Thandie Newton played his wife.  All of these women are considered of African descent. Are you sure you've been watching Will Smith movies?

Tayja, I think that you must be confusing Will Smith with Wesley Snipes.  Either that, or you are just having a blind "hater-fit" because of this one time with Charlize Theron...

I enjoyed the movie ! I no longer go to films and expect the Black stars to address political and social issues. I have evolved and I am mature enough now to just go view films and enjoy the craft and the film making..Sometimes for me it is good taking off my Black Man Activist Real Life costume and simply enjoy the moment..

I need that space and down time...

Once in my personal evolution I viewed America as a 24 Hour BIG BEN RACE CLOCK where white folks had FXCKED up the world for 23 hours and 45 minutes and as a Black man I had only 15 minutes to fix the world. and my time was ticking tic, toc,tic, toc....Now I know that  the Big Ben Clock revolves around the universe 24/7 and I have the rest of time to make a difference..

I need the space and down time time....

F..k what the hell, why do african americans get angry so quick?

Actually, I've enjoyed the movie.  My real problem is with the critics & Hollywood itself.  First of all the question should be asked of this movie specifically where are the black women?  I mean it is pretty obvouis the movie is a metaphor for race relations in America, particulally how America views and deals with black men.  Did no one else notice the first scene where a white child urges Hancock to be the "hero" he knows him to be while at the same time being reviled by his childish behavoir.  Does the NBA or NFL come to mind?  Grown men who are seen as heros for their exploits on the court/field while at the same time being condemned for their off the field behavoir.  Think about his first "heroic" of the film, confronting 3 asian youth while holding a 40?  I know it wasn't really a 40, but you get my drift, hopefully?  There is much more, but in the interest of time my final question to Hollywood is why cut the kiss?  Have we not yet come to the point where a black man can kiss a white woman on screen?  I'm not pushing an interacial agenda, just wondering when America is going to grow up.  Don't slip on this movie the is much more going on than meets the eye.  

there was more that meets the eye in the film. I caught the little bit about why his head was bashed. remember they were in miami in the late 1920's early 1930's thats a pretty heavy note about mixed race relationships and america's past with that. I for one loved the movie but felt it could have been developed a little better. I am a huge Will Smith fan! and being in a mixed race relationship myself was happy to see that little bit addressed. I felt that the kiss wasn't required, Charlize and Will showed it was more than "just physics" causing their proximity. If they weren't together then how could they do that fight, and then her reminding him of how he got his scars. And she was the selfish one, she wanted an "acceptable" family, and to live forever.

Ok Keith, when I'm wrong I'm wrong yes he has had many african leading ladies in his films. I think my frustration with the movie industry is that when was the last time you saw a black film about black romance and I mean celebrating black love. With positive views on black women, not just a movie that in all the black actress had what ten or fifteen minutes of screen time. I go and spend money at the movie theater in hopes of supporting my black films, artist and actors and I would love to see more of me represented. The more of me represented is not rolling the neck, the eyes, talking slang, have about four kids, gold digger and over weight. And if you throw Halle back at me I will will become all of those things above :) Love Halle but she is not the end all and be all of black women and hell they can't even seem to put her in a movie where she is with a black man and it's a positive relationship. Again nothing against interracial relationships, heck give me a single Brad Pitt and I would be on him like.. well white on .. well you know. But feeling the void of black romance not being protrayed and no I'm not talking about Meet the Browns or Why Did I Get Married they to me are more let me teach you a lesson films than romance film.

The plot twist was cool. It was the explanation that got me. The proximity thing, Will Smith is the protector, made in pairs, blah, blah, blah. I enjoyed the movie though. That Jason Bateman is hilarious.

Keith, shame on you for spoiling the movie like that.

@brian07

I see that reading between the lines is your part-time job. I need to bring you on my first dates. I love it!

I found this movie very entertaining and I thought the Charlize Theron twist was really excellent and totally unexpected.

Brian07 – I don’t see how this movie is a metaphor for race relations in America.  I think you’re reading way too much into it.  Sometimes, a cigar is just a cigar.  I also don’t understand your comment regarding the NBA and NFL.  What’s wrong with admiring players for their skill in their given sport but finding inappropriate behavior off the court, uh, inappropriate?  Being a good ball player doesn’t mean you can drink and drive, use illegal drugs, be violent, etc., off the court/field without consequences.  And he was holding liquor when he met the Asians because he was an alcoholic.  This was a central element of the Hancock character.  And a kiss would have been wrong because Charlize was married and married to a man who had become his friend.  Maybe that’s the reason and not because it’s not OK to show an interracial kiss in 2008.

To everyone bemoaning the lack of "black love" in movies. 1) Tyler Perry plays on this unrecognized need of black women to be seen and loved, but it always takes place in his cookie cutter "light-skinned man rescues the hapless abused black woman" formula 2)..in the words of the great philosopher and sociologist Richard Pryor...we gotta start making movies.  Hollywood exists to entertain, not push a transformative social agenda (unless there's a buck to be made) or reflect the elusive "truth" about people of color.  Support your local black film festivals.

oh no!!!! he is into Scientology !!!

Tom Cruz is a nut bar because of it.

i heard bad reviews of this movie too, but i still want to watch it.

i hope his next movie is back to his greatness and that he drops the Scientology.

AND we do need Afro American women playing more lead roles.

Arcane!

Thank you!!!

To my friend shoesietart:  First of all I think Bill, Hillary & Monica would beg to differ with you re: the cigar.  Putting that aside, never said there was anything wrong with people critizing negative behavoir.  I just drew an obvious parallel.  Also about the lack of a kiss, I would have raised the issue except that later in the movie in a confrontation between Hancock & the wife, he mentioned the passionate way she kissed him.  As for the Asian/African American thing, if you don't see it, try referencing media from the 1990s for example: "Boys in the Hood".  I could go on, but I won't.    

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The movie was okay not great but okay. I didn't think he would curse as much as he did, but my bad for not knowing what i was getting myself into. It was a movie that many people will look at differently as we are all differently and view the simplest things into complex matter. However, I didn't need to see the kiss, nor did i need to see the alcohol. Black men get so much flack as it is for chasing white women and drinking way to much. To each his/her own do ur thang I didn't need to see it. If there was a racial twist or hidden message, what I saw is this; black men as viewed by others, are always seen as misfits to society and that is what the movie showed, but also that he could contribute if he stayed focused. It is what black men are always told from the begining of time. "You don't look like everyone else because God made you special, you just have to adapt and fit in, work harder than everyone else". That is what i saw in the movie along with some others i don't care to elaborate on. I do enjoy Will Smith as I do Tyler Perry movies.  Arcane you are so right why does the woman have to be down and brought out by a good man, or an ex-con or whatever. Where are the Love Jone's.

OF course it was cartoonish...duh a superhero. The peoblem with this movie was the lack of script and good comedy and a story with twists and turns.If you actually watch this movie count how many long pauses of no dialogue or slaptschtick there are. Those are the holes in this movie. Ican only rate it OK. I support you Mr. Smith but this was not up to your standards of acting or story/script.

I thought the movie was decent. Not perfect, but not as bad as some of the reviews I read. I thought the plot twist was pretty clever, though I feel like they could have done more with the love triangle.  Really, they could have done more with pretty much everything. The villain, the origin story, why he was such an a-hole. Its like all that stuff got edited out. As it stands, its a 2.5 star movie, but there's probably at least another star sitting on the floor of some editing suite somewhere.

Hancock is for the children..

It is time for our youth to understand that we have Black Super Heroes also.  The old comic books or should I say the new internet comic books that our children are reading, need to encourage through an image they can relate to and to encourage to our children in their younger lets play age, that yes we can be super heros too..What Will Smith/Hancock has done is they kept the children in mind..keep their fantasies alive of themselves. Encourage their young age positivly and playfully; give them something to relate to, as opposed to a Superman comic that looks nothing like my children.

This is to encourage our children...

Tayja, has it occured to you that Mr smith might have no problem with Ms Theron in the leading role? I understand that there are talented black actreses out there but at what point will it be ok for you that a black actor has a white leading lady? We are working towards a society of equals right?