Hero Wanted (2008)

10 Comments

1. 

   rlange-3 from United States
   30 Mar 2012, 6:48 pm

   I usually like the leads and the acting wasn't too bad but the plot andscripting was too ridiculous to hold your attention too long,especially for the last 20 minutes. I just wanted it to be over.

   The junior bad guy just shows up in a bar and demands a meeting fromone of the really tough guys. Who promptly dumps the woman he is withto listen to junior. And what is the message? That junior wants to meetthe next day. Wow.

   So they meet the next day and after some tough talk they decide to pulla bank job based on some information from some guy that only Juniorknows. Why? Because Junior insists "he knows all the security androutines". It's hard not to ask whether guys this stupid can make itout of their teens.

   And then after Gooding has killed a few of them, instead of justtracking him down and putting a bullet in his head they kidnap a littlegirl. Why make things so complicated? Apparently the only reason is tomake us loathe them even more, but it comes across as another exampleof just too dumb to believe. A cheap ploy by a film that tries to takeitself way too seriously. And we haven't even gotten to the shootout,where a guy yells stereotypic tough guy lines, then escapes the halfdozen cops that are shooting at him by getting up and walking into thenext room where he can take on the hero one on one. Or the reprise ofthe little girl. By that time I had the sound on and the video off andwas reading email, waiting for the dumb thing to be over. I gave it aheartfelt 3. For Liotta and Gooding to be involved with this turkeyshould be an embarrassment to them both. Good grief.

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2. 

   nexusreaver from United States
   30 Mar 2012, 6:48 pm

   What I loved about this film was its seamy gritty portrayal of man'sdarker side. It is rare for a movie to probe that area of human nature.The happy-go-lucky Hollywood ending has become so cliché that itappears nobody wants to delve into the tragic aspect of life. But as aperson who has lived in that reality for most of his life, I very muchappreciate when directors, writers, and actors are willing to explorethe lonely sadness, the vulnerability behind the hard mask, the hotdesire for vengeance, and even the hopeless drive towards suicide thatdefine a part of what it means to be human. The Law brothers clearlywere writing with that intention and I applaud them for it.

   What I disliked about this film was that despite covering such a rarelyexplored side of human nature, the Hollywood clichés sporadically brokethrough. The early action sequences were perfect: short, explosive, andtight. The final action sequence, on the other hand, fell into standardformat: big long shootout, hero outruns some bullets, cops show up andthe extras get shot, bad guy runs off and the hero gives chase leadingto a final confrontation, etc. In fairness, however, big points need tobe given for lots of unorthodox things. The primary antagonist roleswitched three times as each was killed off. And as mentioned inanother review, there was great attention to detail with regard toreloading guns and such, which I assume is a credit to director BrianSmrz's vast experience as a stunt man.

   Ultimately this picture seemed like it was being pulled in twodirections. On the one hand it seems to have been written as a verydark examination of a troubled character seeking revenge, and even morepoignantly, his own death. And similarly it seems the director had someuncommonly good ideas for the film. But then somewhere along the way,the film kept being pulled back to standard action movie hackneyedthemes and theatrical devices. And, of course, the out of place happyending had to be tacked onto the end (and yet even that had a darknessto it). It's as if the producers and the writers were constantlyfighting with the director stuck in the middle, and only a fewvictories to each side.

   My opinion follows this duality. I loved the story that was underneath.I survived the parts added over it that seemed so untrue to its nature.The acting was fine to good, and it'd have been a pretty good film ifthe final action sequence and the last minute hadn't ruined it.

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3. 

   Claudio Carvalho from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
   30 Mar 2012, 6:48 pm

   While grieving the death of his beloved wife, who drowned in a caraccident, the garbage man Liam Case (Cuba Gooding Jr.) becomes a herowhen he saves a young girl from a wrecked car on fire. Years later,Liam has a secret crush on the bank teller Kayla (Christa Campbell) andwhile in the bank with her, there is a heist and one of the fivethieves shoots Kayla and Liam. When he recovers, Kayla is in a deepcoma and he chases the killer; but the gang has a dark secret aboutLiam and goes after him seeking revenge.

   My first impression of "Hero Wanted" was not good, with the confusednon-linear story and a disappointing conclusion. However, joining thepieces of the puzzle that compose the story later, I found it areasonable film, at least the intentions of the writers are good. Butthe tag-line says that "the road to hell is paved of good intentions"and the screenplay does not work well. Cuba Gooding Jr. is and performsa charismatic character that finds redemption only after going to hell.Apparently his friend Cosmo Jackson died, but this character is simplyforgotten in the end of the story. My vote is six.

   Title (Brazil): "Herói" ("Hero")

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4. 

   hattonej from United States
   30 Mar 2012, 6:48 pm

   I was pleasantly surprised with the movie. Seemed to me to have a Bmovie feel starting out. It does seem like everyone is into the timeshifting plots these days, but once I realized it everything elseseemed to follow. I found myself trying to anticipate the nextconnection of pass and present. Cuba Gooding Jr. did a good job ofportraying a man tortured with his pass and present. I do have to takeexception to the bar scenes though. I'm not sure that Ray Liota neededto bulk up for the part but he did. Jean Smart had me kind of wonderingwhat was going to happen in the apartment scene. Although there ispredominately a U.S. cast, I think the feel of the movie was offbecause it was filmed in eastern Europe. Straight to DVD but worth thewatch in my opinion.

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5. 

   sheilacarr46 from Australia
   30 Mar 2012, 6:48 pm

   i have just watched this movie expecting a lot more than i got! it isamateurish and an insult to all movie goers intelligence. i expected somuch more from Cuba Gooding. What is it these days with movie makerstrying to be clever with their time shifting. I have no troublefollowing their efforts at trying to be clever but find it unnecessaryand boring.The flawed hero idea and revenge concept never hits the markand while most of us enjoy a good old revenge movie this one doesn'tpull it off. It felt like a B movie and in the end thats what it was,save your money and don't waste your time with this one. Shame on CubaGooding for making it

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6. 

   JoeytheBrit from www.moviemoviesite.com
   30 Mar 2012, 6:48 pm

   This daft DTV effort benefits from the presence of the ever reliableRay Liotta but has little else going for it. I wonder if this is thekind of future the young Liotta saw for himself when on the set ofScorsese's Goodfellas: a succession of mostly lame and formulaic crimethrillers with few redeeming features.

   Cuba Gooding takes centre stage as Liam Case, a garbage man who enjoysthe kind of luck that would have most people reaching for the prozac;his wife and kid drown in a car crash from which he is unable to savethem, and the new woman of his dreams ends up with a bullet hole in thehead that sends her into a coma. Director Smrz unwisely chooses to playwith the chronology of events for no apparent reason other than he'sseen it done before and evidently thinks its cool. It used to be cool,now it's become dull through its over-use by directors who don'trealise it's nothing more than a gimmick with the shortest of shelflives.

   Fortunately for Smrz he doesn't have to hold his hand up to theincreasingly ridiculous twists inserted into the story in an attempt tokeep the viewer interested. Case has to be one of the most patheticheroes we have seen in a long time. The guy actually thinks the bestway to get to know that woman of his dreams, who happens to be a bankteller, is to get his friend to stage a robbery so that he can play thehero. I mean, come on, that should be the pitch for a comedy not a'serious' thriller.

   As the film grows increasingly lost, the writers throw every clichéthey can think of into the mix and, in the end, we end up with a youngkid talking and thinking like an adult while holding a gun on the badguys.

   This is weak and lazy film-making in nearly every way imaginable.

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7. 

   derirre357 from Germany
   30 Mar 2012, 6:48 pm

   This comment may contain spoilers !!! I liked this movie a lot. Thereminds me of a few others – "Before the devil knows You're dead" and"Death sentence" come to mind. The non-linear structure of the moviemakes the story looks more clever than it actually is. I found it OKthough, nothing to complain about. The acting is solid for the genre.There are some unrealistic moments – major injuries have much lessereffect on the guy who sustained them… On the other hand I liked verymuch the gunplay because in real life not many people are good shots,especially when in combat situation i.e. when the target is in factshooting back. The characters were reloading often enough, the slideswere remaining in rear position after the last shell has been ejectedand shooting both guns simultaneously resulted in hitting nothing.Cool. There is even a moment where a guy is teaching the main characterhow to shoot and tells him "forget about the movies…. now support thebottom of your gun with your left hand and don't pull the trigger..squeeze it!" I actually thought that the movie was gonna pretty bad andI was pleasantly surprised. Definitely worth watching.

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8. 

   FFAxDAVID from England
   30 Mar 2012, 6:48 pm

   There are no great surprises in this,but i did overall enjoy itnon-the-less.

   Before i watched it i had read a review on here referring to it asnothing more than a B movie,and that cuba should never have agreed todo it,but it is better than that-not a great deal admittedly,butdefinitely better. The story is told in flashbacks a lot,which is overused these days,but it does have the effect its supposed to withoutbeing confusing.(however because its so linear in its style it doesn'tleave any great surprises. Its a watchable film with OK acting and OKscript,which is a lot better than a lot of the stuff around these daysso i was happy with it and gave a reasonable 6 out of 10,missing 7 onlybecause it was reasonable rather than actually good.

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9. 

   (bob-rutzel-1) from United States
   30 Mar 2012, 6:48 pm

   Liam Case (Gooding) is shot and left for dead during a botched bankrobbery. When healed, he decides to go after the robbers.

   This is a very violent film so be prepared. For the longest time youhave no real idea what is going on. It's like watching something in atime continuum kind of thing as in CRASH and VANTAGE POINT, and itdoesn't straighten out until the last 20-minutes or so. But, as backand forth and as violent as this is, there is entertainment value inhere. And, once you see the twist, all becomes very clear.

   Cuba Gooding is one of those actors who could be nominated for an Oscarfor any movie he is in. The movie may be bad, but he is always good andthat cannot be said of too many. Ray Liotta is always fun to watch andone day someone will realize he, too, is an Oscar caliber actor. I wassurprised to see Jean Smart in this. I almost didn't recognize her, butonce I heard that voice, I knew it was her. She is terrific. And, SammiHanratty will be at the finish line along with Dakota Fanning andAbagail Breslin. The rest of the cast, the bad guys for the most part,were all terrific.

   When you see Ben Cross you ask yourself, why don't we see more of him.He is a class act.

   Violence: Very violent Sex: No. Nudity: Yes, you briefly see some poledancers on a TV screen. Language: Yes.

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10. 

    Melissa Mendelson from United States
    30 Mar 2012, 6:48 pm

    I wasn't born a hero. Nobody ever is. Is it because of the tragediesthat we never see coming? Is it because our lives lie in ruinafterward, forgotten by the world? How do we go on, and why should wecare? But hope is the haunting image of her, and crisis is the trigger,hurling us into harm's way. But a life needs to be saved, but who willsave me? I need hope, and I need her. But my trust falls against thebitter edge of betrayal, and her delicate presence slips through myhands. I failed. A sliver of love are the tears falling from my eyesfor I am to blame, and justice needs to hear my cry. But what kind ofhero is painted in red? Is it one trying to make right from what wentso very wrong, or will there be no forgiveness for what I must do? WillI fail again, or will redemption take me by hand, deny death itsbounty, and grant me one last chance? And will love be the wind beneathmy broken wings? I wasn't born a hero, but nobody ever is.

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