Hancock, the story of a man who has all the powers of superman...but is very destructive, an alcoholic, and frankly...an ass hole.
Hancock is what it's supposed to be, a big special FX summer block buster staring Will Smith, but behind the obvious lies an average movie, very generic and really, nothing special, on the outside it looks like a decent movie, but, sadly, it is not, it's predictable from start to finish, it starts with Hancock, drinking and being homeless, and leaving a huge mess in his wake as he causes more colateral damage than any other super hero I've ever seen, obviously this would be superman drunk. so Hancock saves a man,Ray Embery played by Jason Bateman, who is trying to have big companies contribute to noble cause, with little sucess, so Hancock saves his life and he wants him to get his life back on track and become the hero he's supposed to be, and right about there you can pretty much tell what's going to happen like when we meet Mary Embarry, played by Charlize Theron, who obviously knows him, lots of plot line later Hancock goes to prison, stays there, and doesn't really develp as a character at all, like the Alchoholic anonimous plotline that could have been used to show Hancock over come his alchoholism, it's basically just a montage that lasts entirely too long, so than the cheif of ploice calls Hancock and wants him to help, Hancock becomes a hero, YAY, than the obvious plot line emerges that Mary does indeed know Hancock, in fact, she has the same powers as him...oh and she can totally control the weather appearently. so one of the criminals that Hancock subdued comes back and I guess acts as the villain, tries to kill Hancock after he is shot, and the bullet actually hurts him, and it is revield that Hancock loses his powers when around his female counterpart, so he has to get as far away from them as possible, than it has a very generic super hero ending where it leaves itself open for a sequel, farther showing how bland and uninspired this movie is, it's not well written, and all the actors, especially Smith and Batemen, who I know are truly tallented, don't deliever in this movie, it's not a bad movie...but it is by no means good.

C-

Pros: good action and specail FX.

Cons: unoriginal, uninspired, badly written, predictable and there is no real point to the plot, no antagonist, and no real reason to see it other than Will Smith is in it.

!!!!!WARNING. This review contains spoilers, if you haven't seen the movie, turn back now or face the ramifications of your unwise decision!!!!!

SO! Ironman 2 came out today, I saw, and I gotta get my two cents in about the most anticipated sequel of the year. Well, here is the 411, it's good, Really good. Is it better than the first one? Maybe, it's at least as good as Ironman 1, so no worries, it isn't a let down by any means.

So, The film picks up pretty much right as the first movie ends. It shows a sickly old man watching as Tony Stark reveals to the world that he is Ironman. The old man tells his son that it should be him there. Who is this son you ask? Why is Ivan Vanko AKA Whiplash brilliantly played by Micky Rourke. The into is pretty cool, it shows Vanko building his own version of the arc reactor, much like what Tony built in Ironman 1..in fact exactly like it. After that we see Tony land at the Stark Expo, a big convention in NY that shows off all the new tech in the world. We see Tony more full of himself than ever, but behind the arrogant jerk is a man running out of time. The device he built to sustain his life is slowly killing him and he can't find anything that will replace it. On the Flip side Pepper and Rhody are at their wits end with Tony's antics, the US government wants Tony's Ironman armor, and Vanko is out for blood, and with the help of Tony's main competitor Justin Hammer, Vanko stands a chance of ruining Stark and his legacy....oh and Nick Fury (SAMUEL MOTHER FUCKING JACKSON)is trying to recruit him fort the avengers initiative.

Lets get down to business. The Story is solid. There is a lot going on and it's hard to keep up with if you don't know anything about Marvel comics and the universe it contains, but, as a fan of the comics, it's great. There are several plot lines but, unlike other movies that have lots of subplots jammed in *cough*Spiderman3*cough* this one works well. This story is really about how Tony is suffering from the consequences of revealing to the world that he is Ironman. Everyone and their brother is out to get him, his relationships with his closest friends are strained and Tony is dying. He has a lot on his plate and not a lot of time left. It's really a story about the 2nd and 5th amendments and how vengeful and jealous jackals are always trying to tear the hero down. The writing is good, no real complaints there, though there was a little too much comedy and not enough serious moments. Even in the most serious of situations there was some kind of Joke thrown in. This isn't really bad but, this movie isn't a comedy, it's a drama at the end of the day. One thing I really enjoyed about the first film and what I REALLY enjoy about this movie is that it is VERY grounded in the Marvel universe. There are major references to Captain America and Thor in this film and S.H.I.E.L.D plays a huge part. You can really tell they are building up to the avengers here, and that's a very good thing, it is making me more excited for the avengers than I already am. Finally, the action in this film is outstanding. Every action scene is suspenseful, exciting and downright awesome. The two Fight scenes with Ironman and Whiplash are outstanding. They really bumped the scale up to 11 out of 10. Coupled with great sound and special FX and the lack of a shaky Camera (I'm looking at you Micheal Bay) I can't complain about anything when it comes to the action in this film. A lot of film makers could learn from this.

Now, the writing is good, how about the acting? Well never fear folks, Robert Downy Jr. owns this movie like he did the first one. His portrayal of Tony Stark is spot on. It is so obvious that there is no other actor who could play this character. He's funny and an arrogant narcissistic douche bag that you some how care about.

Micky Rourke comes in as the bad ass villain Ivan Vanko AKA whiplash (though they never call him this in the movie) He is very underplayed, which is good. The Russian villain has been done so many times that it's usually just horrible, but Rourke plays it brilliantly. This man is scary, he looks like he could kill me with his pinkey finger let alone two electronic whips that can cut through anything.

Terrence Howard sure looks different in this movie...wait...what's that..Ohhh..he was replaced by Don Cheadle...well He is great, Hell, probably better than Howard was. Personally I wasn't crazy about Terrance Howard to begin with, and I really like Don Cheadle as an actor. He plays the conflicted Rhody very well. You can tell he is split between his loyalty to his best friend Tony and his loyalty to the US military. When he inevitably delivers the Ironman Mark II to the military and learns what they are planning to do with it, you really get the sense that he knows he messed up. As War machine he's great, he compliments Stark very well in this movie and I have no problem with this recasting.

Sam Rockwell as Justin Hammer, Tony Stark's evil little Doppelganger manages to be more of a douche bag than Stark himself...and that's a good thing. This guy clearly lacks the moral compas that Tony has and that's why he aligns himself with Vanko. This guy really steals the show, he has a sense of humor just like Tony's except he's nowhere near as brilliant, he's just a sleazy business man who has a lust for power.

The rest of the performances are also very good, Gwyneth Paltrow is a great Pepper pots, it's clear she is fighting her feelings for Tony. Her role in this movie is clearly bigger and for good reason, we get to know a lot more about the character and I really care for her, more so than before. Scarlett Johansson is a fantastic Black Widow, she is clearly a bad ass and really makes my jaw drop every time I see her in action because of how awesome and...well..hot she is. Jon Favreau who is both directing and playing Happy Hogan is about what you would expect, He works very well for the part. Finally, we have Nick Fury. What can I say, my eyes lit up when he finally showed up in the movie. It's basically Sam Jackson playing himself but, I don't mind because somehow it fits the character. He is a fairly large role but it's nothing too significant, and I'm very glad to see him here, can't wait to see him in other Marvel movies!

So! Ironman 2 is a great movie, it's as good as the first movie and a must see for anyone who enjoyed the first one or just likes action movies. Oh! and be sure to stay after the credits for a treat, trust me it's worth it!

Verdict: B+

Pros:
Great story
Good writing
Good acting
Amazing action scenes
Grounded in the Marvel universe with lots of references.

Cons:
if you aren't a fan of the comics, might seem a bit over crowded for you.
Sometimes there is too much comedy, the movie doesn't really take itself seriously enough.