Synopsis: Maxwell Smart is on a mission to thwart the latest plot for world domination by the evil crime syndicate known as KAOS. When the headquarters of U.S. spy agency Control is attacked and the identities of its agents compromised, the Chief has no choice but to promote his ever-eager analyst Maxwell Smart, who has always dreamt of working in the field alongside stalwart superstar Agent 23. Smart is partnered instead with the lovely-but-lethal veteran Agent 99. Given little field experience and even less time, Smart – armed with nothing but a few spy-tech gadgets and his unbridled enthusiasm – must thwart the doomsday plans of KAOS head Siegfried.

Review: Would you believe the summer movie comedy season just got a lot Smarter? Steve Carell proves he’s the king of laughs. He’s hilarious.

Acting: There is no question that Don Adams and Maxwell Smart are interchangeable. It’s almost impossible to imagine another actor in the role, which is why Carell has made all the right choices, choosing to take his Max in a different direction. This is no imitation at all, but a fully fleshed-out, bumbling guy with dreams of his own. Carell is very funny trying to deal with gadgets out of his, er, control – using code language, getting his signals mixed up and trying to be a decent partner for the much smarter 99. Anne Hathaway gets to act tough for the first time in her career and makes this 99 a bright woman who is obviously light years ahead of all her male colleagues. Both stars skillfully handle the considerable physical humor required here. After scoring in his surprise family hit The Game Plan, Dwayne Johnson continues to show his comic timing as the superstar agent who is grounded against his will. Stamp and Borat’s sidekick Davitian are amusing caricatures but stuck with rather one-dimensional, over-the-top villain roles. Arkin is perfectly cast as the beleaguered Chief, while James Caan as the U.S. President has little to do but does it well. Bill Murray’s cameo in a tree trunk just lays there.

Direction: Director Peter Segal’s experience working with comedians like Adam Sandler and Eddie Murphy clearly pays off here, as he guides Steve Carell to one of his best screen performances against daunting odds. People always have built-in expectations for pre-sold properties like a Get Smart, but Segal wisely uses the source material to make it work for two kinds of audiences: those who loved the TV series and those who have never heard of it. Key to the success of this adaptation is taking the characters and placing them in big-action set pieces. What was an amusing weekly sitcom is now suddenly competing favorably with summer blockbusters, delivering stunt-filled sequence after stunt-filled sequence. In fact, there is almost too much action, but fortunately Carell and company know how to bring it down to earth at just the right moments. The screenplay by Tom J. Astle and Matt Ember catches the flavor of the old TV series, retaining much of what we loved – including Smart’s famous catch-phrases (“Missed it by THAT much!”) – but craftily updating it for today’s more sophisticated moviegoers. They got the blessing of the show’s famous creators Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, who served as consultants. That can only be a good thing.

Bottom Line: Hollywood.com rated this film 3 stars.

Synopsis: There are heroes. There are superheroes. And, then there’s Hancock. With great power comes great responsibility – everyone knows that – everyone, that is, but Hancock. Edgy, conflicted, sarcastic and misunderstood, Hancock’s well-intentioned heroics might get the job done and save countless lives, but always seem to leave jaw-dropping damage in their wake. The public has finally had enough – as grateful as they are to have their local hero, the good citizens of Los Angeles are wondering what they ever did to deserve this guy. Hancock isn’t the kind of man who cares what other people think – until the day that he saves the life of PR executive Ray Embrey, and the sardonic superhero begins to realize that he may have a vulnerable side after all. Facing that will be Hancock’s greatest challenge yet – and a task that may prove impossible as Ray’s wife, Mary, insists that he’s a lost cause.

Review: Will Smith and a great cast are unfortunately not enough to make Hancock anything more than a soaring disappointment in this summer’s superhero movie sweepstakes.

Acting: They call the Fourth of July “Big Willie Weekend” because Smith has been responsible for opening so many blockbusters during this time frame, including Independence Day, Bad Boys and Men In Black, among others. The moviegoing public obviously loves him (so do we) and he’s coming off two strong recent performances in I Am Legend and The Pursuit of Happyness. On the surface, the role of Hancock – a complicated, reluctant superhero who is all ‘tude – fits right in with the rest of the resume, but despite the star’s best efforts, Hancock comes off a little too contrived and affected. Will’s charisma is going to have to work overtime for eager audiences to completely buy this character. An abrupt tonal shift halfway through presents a strong challenge to Theron, who suddenly isn’t who she appears to be at first. Credit must go to this fine actress for making the awkward transition Mary Embrey seamless. And thank God for Jason Bateman, whose innate charm and ability to play comedy makes Ray, a guy in a REAL quandary – the most likeable of all the main stars as he is caught in a “Twilight Zone” of superhero antics.

Direction: Actor-turned-director Peter Berg (The Kingdom, Friday Night Lights) is all flash and style with Hancock. He moves his shaky camera right up into the stars faces and back again, awkwardly shifting the tone from comedy to maudlin drama and trying to ramp up a story that just doesn’t make a whole lot of narrative sense. Films about comic-book superheroes are a dime a dozen in the summer months, and audiences have shown they can easily suspend disbelief if they have a protagonist to root for. Berg’s failure here is to present Smith in such a way that we don’t care. The movie is full of botched opportunities, with the whole arc collapsing as the thin screenplay recklessly takes off in unexpected directions – including a ridiculous scene in which Hancock goes to prison (for no good reason) that gives new meaning to the term “butting heads.” Not only do sequences like this seriously challenge the viability of the film’s PG-13 rating, they test our patience for all its worth. Even though there are some nice special effects and its faults do not lie in our stars (we still love you, Will), Hancock does not set off the kind of fireworks you may have been expecting this Big Willie Weekend.

Bottom Line: Hollywood.com rated this film 2 stars.