I went to see I Am Legend just because Will Smith was in it, and I've seen just about every Will Smith movie there is. I own just about every comic book or superhero movie of the last decade, and even suffered through (just my perspective!) Wanted, because I hoped it would be worth it. So, with a mathematical equation that states Hancock equals Will Smith plus superhero, you just have to count me in for the ride.

Obviously, if you've seen one of the one billion takes of the Hancock trailer during a sporting event or reality television show, you know that Hancock is no ordinary superhero. And so far, millions of people have spent millions of dollars to go see the film, so they must be following my mathematical equation. Still, you have to wonder if this kind of superhero can really work for the average American. As a comic book fan, the movie delves into territory that I've often wondered about&ellips; for heroes, and for Jesus.

What happens when Superman gets tired of saving the world and wants to jet off with Lois and let it all be? Superman II gives this one a shot, but taking it a step or mile further, to Jesus, The Last Temptation of Christ's final hallucination gives it a shot (with Jesus and Mary.) But Hancock gives us (I think) a fleshed out version of what it might look like if our heroes had a bad day or week or month.

We often criticize people in authority or people we look up to more harshly when they bomb. Athletes certainly get the royal treatment when they fall down: look at Michael Jordan's gambling, Michael Phelps' DUI, or Alex Rodriguez's pending divorce for examples. Presidents have taken heat for improprieties that get laughed off in the corporate world. The list continued. So what happens if superheroes decide they're going to do whatever they want, and everyone is powerless to stop them?

Of course, Hancock will explore all that with tongue firmly planted in cheek. It's a July 4th movie with Will Smith, it will have equal dashes of humor and action, spunk and silliness. But if the choices of Smith of late tell us anything (The Pursuit of Happyness, I Am Legend), Hancock will be nothing short of entertaining and character-building. We're bound to be pushed and prodded, and in the end, we might just learn something about how we view our heroes and how we view ourselves.

Will we find out that we have a hero inside of us or will we find that we don't need another hero?