Whenever Will Smith stars in a movie, audiences flock to the theaters. His last hit “I Am Legend” was number one at the box office for weeks, and now Smith’s new release, “Hancock,” will be monitored by Hollywood moguls in order to see if Will Smith is, as he and others say, unstoppable.

   I was very disappointed after seeing the film. Will Smith's superhero film offers silly action fantasy for kids, star-crossed romance for their moms, and expensive special effects for teens. There's gross-out comedy for the screamers in the theaters, and it goes overboard with violence. But for those who like their shootouts bloody, and a feel-good ending, you‘ll be happy. It just seemed to me that the movie’s pace was not plotted out well and the action overpowered the plot and writing. That being said, I doubt that anyone who sees the movie will be happy with all the facets of the film or the film’s beginning to end.
   One of the major plot problems is that the movie’s writers manage to keep too much information from the audience for too long in the film. What should have taken about 20 minutes to be revealed takes over an hour, and it was an uninteresting hour to boot.
   It seems for once, Will Smith took a role that he didn’t quite know the character or superhero himself. In “I Am Legend” you got the feeling that Will Smith knew his character, loved his country, and his family. In “In Pursuit of Happyness,” (yes, that’s how it’s spelled), Smith had a tremendous plot and wonderful scenes with his son. Well maybe that explains it all. Hollywood has had a rule never to work with children or animals. I’ve only worked with animals and wouldn’t attempt to work with kids. But Smith is now spoiled I guess, after working with his own kids in his last two hit films.
   The tagline that the studio used to get reviewers to watch the film is as follows: “A hard-living superhero who has fallen out of favor with the public enters into a questionable relationship with the wife of the public relations professional who's trying to repair his image.” Smith may have to do some more image repairing. He’s good, the movie’s OK, and I give it one of five stars. It’s not worth your hard-earned money.
   But Virginia Madsen, Alan Alda, and Matthew Broderick are all excellent in Terry Kinney’s “Diminished Capacity.” A Chicago journalist (Broderick) suffering from memory loss takes leave from his job and returns to his rural hometown, where he bonds with his Alzheimer's-impaired uncle Rollie (Alda) and his old flame (Madsen). Quickly a plan is hatched for the trio to head to a memorabilia convention in the city, where Rollie hopes to sell a rare baseball card that has gained the attention of local ne'er-do-wells intent on scheming the old man out of a potential fortune.
   Where the previous movie lacks pacing and excellent writing, this film makes up for it. Broderick and Alda have incredible scenes in which Alda should be nominated for an Oscar and Broderick is now seasoned as an actor after spending years on the Broadway stage and honing his craft.
   Madsen is sensual but likeable and fun. The film is rounded out by wonderful players like Dylan Baker, Tom Aldredge, and Bhavna de Montebello. It’s a heartwarming film that you should expect a tear or two, maybe more, to come down your face, but it is one of Alda’s best. Broderick is equally as good in it.  This warm comedy gets five of five stars.