Local Hero (1983) User Reviews (275)

Minor Classic

[budgiefisher · 8/10 · 9 December 2004]

In this cynical age of image counting for all and increasingly small minded audiences being baffled by anything approaching subtlety, this film represents a much needed haven for the more cerebral viewer. It's pitch perfect lampooning of the massive gulf between supposedly similar cultures is a joy to behold over and over.

That fact that not much really happens is, in fact the whole point. It is a modern comedy of manners, the humour being in how characters react to alien situations.

It is exactly the kind of film Ealing studios would have produced had they survived into the 80's, and as such is to be praised for trying to show how simply taking an off centre look at real life can inform and entertain more eloquently than those who shout their satire from the rooftops.

a local hero in a happy place

[dbdumonteil · 8/10 · 31 December 2004]

A big American petrochemical company contemplates the construction of a oil refinery in a Scottish isolated fishing village. A young executive (Peter Riegert) from the Texas is sent there and with the Scottish representative of the company tries to negotiate with the local authorities to buy the ground. But things don't go exactly as planned. Indeed, the two men are more and more seduced by the easy life that reigns in the village while the inhabitants are tempted by the company's initial plan in order to grow rich. Then, the manager of the firm (Burt Lancaster) arrives in the village to settle the question with surprising results.

Bill Forsyth made an ecological tale full of charm and sensibility. He enjoys describing with a discreet and subtle humor the daily life of this Scottish village which seems to be virtually cut off from the outside world. Like the main protagonist, relaxed way of life that reigns in this fishing village gradually overcomes us. But we can also understand Forsyth's work as an invitation to the pleasure of the senses. Indeed, Riegert enjoys the food he eats and the whisky he drinks; he is charmed by the beauty of the landscapes and what he finds by the seaside (his collection of shells) and especially the rare phenomenon of the northern lights. Ultimately, his stay will do him good since he'll fully become integrated with the inhabitants. There's a small detail that says a lot about it: Riegert will put in his cupboard his American suit to wear instead a sweater.

Bill Forsyth has also written the screenplay and the merits we ca attribute to it is to have avoided the traps the topic was tending: a rejection of Manicheism and the characters globally escape caricature. The character acted by Burt Lancaster is more passionated by astronomy than his firm and the power of money.

"Local Hero" is a breath of fresh air and just like Peter Riegert, we would like to prolong our stay in this Scottish fishing village far from the stress of modern life, far from the Hollywood imperialism.

Let's Get Native.

[rmax304823 · 8/10 · 23 February 2009]

An easygoing, gentle,and thoroughly successful comedy. Peter Riegert is an executive at the Houston firm of Knox Oil, in the employ of Mr. Happer himself, Burt Lancaster. Lancaster has a terrific plan to develop an oil refinery on the Scottish coast and sends Riegert there to negotiate the deal with the presumably naive villagers who own the beach and the land around it. Riegert runs into some genuinely weird Scottish folk and winds up in love with the place. Lancaster arrives to take over the arrangements himself but is entranced by the night sky and sends Riegert home, telling him, "I'm glad I got here in time to interrupt YOUR refinery caper." Riegert sadly goes back to Houston, having sampled for a few weeks the single-malt heaven of being at peace with himself.

That's the story. Pretty simple in itself. But Bill Forsyth, the writer and director, has imbued it with a fey quality suggestive of pixies and fairies and will o' the wisps. It's totally charming. I'll mention just a few features that are liable to catch the eye. Or the ear, for that matter. The Scottish accent in the end makes itself at home in your vestibular canals. "It will be the petrochemical capitol of the world" comes out as "It wheel be the pay-tro chemical capitol of the wurruld." The stunning Jenny Seagrove plays a mysterious rubber-suited SCUBA diver who is creating a biological map of the bay. Her would-be lover, kissing her rubber-suited knee, is only slightly put off when he notices that her toes are webbed, a sea-girl wreathed with seaweed red and brown. Two men are watching her walk away. "Nice pair of lungs on that," remarks one. "Yes, great assets," comments the other. This scene, like every other one, is played absolutely deadpan. Every utterance sounds earnest. There are very few smiles and the only person who laughs on screen is a friendly visiting Russian fisherman.

An example of more humor, just so that you may see that this is the other side of the moon of the Marx Brothers. Two men are sitting at the dinner table. One tries to squeeze his half lemon on his fish and a squirt hits Peter Riegert in his left eye. Riegert winces and claps his napkin to his wounded eye, brushing off the other's apology. Then Riegert squirts some lemon juice on his fish and hits himself in his other eye. Cut.

The newly arrived Riegert decides to get to know the villagers and starts schmoozing a knot of fishermen on the wharf. They are friendly but a little wary. A baby in a nearby stroller begins to whimper and Riegert smiles at the tot and asks, "Whose baby is that?" The men all go silent and stare at their feet.

Two old geezers are grumbling over their beer about how fast things are changing, how the old days will soon be gone forever. One of them asks conversationally how much the other has been offered for his land. The second guy rattles off a complicated payment scheme like "One million from the front end with a two percent trust in structured derivative instruments." Back in Houston, Lancaster has hired a shrink who visits him regularly in his office. The shrink is determined to force Lancaster to get in touch with his feelings or some such nonsense. In the middle of a session, the shrink comes up with something like, "You know, you're really a stupid son of a bitch." Lancaster is shocked. "No, really, you're a terrible a**hole." Lancaster throws him out, still swearing, and the shrink takes to climbing the outside of Lancaster's office building and posting signs like "Happer is a mother --". Lancaster orders his secretary to call the police and have the madman shot, precipitating his flight from Houston.

The air in this tiny Scottish village is as strange as the sea that throws up on its beach oranges from South Africa and coconuts from the Bahamas. Out of the sky come meteors, Aurora Borealis, RAF Harriers on practice bombing runs, and helicopters with a bright light in front, like a living eye.

The performances are as liesurely as the unfolding events. No one runs around or shouts. Lancaster in his silver age is fine. The villagers are completely convincing. It's all reminiscent of one of Ealing's comedies from the 50s, without any manic element. More deliberate, like "The Maggie." It's not a masterpiece but it's an enthralling and whimsical piece of life -- modern and benighted -- seen through a ludic prism.

wonderful

[loydmooney · 14 December 2004]

Oddly enough, from the comments thus far about the film, nobody, as in not a single viewer, has commented on the absolutely stunning performance by Peter Riegert. It is the best of right on low key performances of all time: if somebody told him that leprosy had just overtaken the island he might have batted one eyelash. Yet no matter how low the key it is never off key. And yes, yes, it has a lot of other things going for it, but nothing like his performance. Somehow the director got the right guy for the job, so much so, that it is impossible to conjure anybody in all Hollywood that could have done so well. Moreover, the movie moves about him so tightly, and he takes the load so effortlessly, it is almost not surprising that nobody has noticed just how good he is here. In fact were there even a smidgen of fireworks from him, this would just be another movie. Time is gonna treat this film very well, when ninety percent of most films are forgotten, this will continue to rise in the ranks of the remembered.

Nice laid-back and quirky comedy set in Scotland

[SimonJack · 7/10 · 30 November 2015]

This laid-back comedy takes a company executive from the fast lane in the oil capital of Houston, to the wilds of the north Scotland coast. "Local Hero" is a sort of tale of redemption or rediscovery of the important things in life. Peter Riegert is MacIntyre and Peter Capaldi is Oldsen. They are the two Knox oil company advance men. Mac is ordered to Scotland from his job in Houston, and he meets Oldsen in Edinburgh.

Burt Lancaster is Felix Happer, the company owner and boss. His character is the epitome of power and wealth where he lives almost in seclusion – at least from the working class of his company. But in his penthouse office and home, Happer has the latest technology to pursue his fascination with astronomy. His ceiling is a planetarium. He has a visiting psychologist who seems to be a neurotic in his own right. He has a problem that we don't ever have explained. While powerful and wealthy, he doesn't live the high life. His passion and interest, aside from the occasional hand in operating his company, is the heavens. So, when he send Mac to Scotland to acquire an entire community and bay for Knox Oil to develop a huge oil drilling and refining project, he tells Mac to watch the sky and to report directly to him on what he sees.

The story then settles in on the small community on the north end of Scotland. Several local characters are played superbly by a supporting cast, many of whom have sizable roles. Denis Lawson is Urquhart, the local hotel and tavern operator, public accountant, and acknowledged spokesman for the town. Jennifer Black plays Urquhart's wife or mistress (and owner of the hotel and tavern). Fulton Mackay is Ben, the permanent beachcomber and owner of the beach.

Numerous other characters add color and fun to the scene. Warner Brothers filmed "Local Hero" in more than two dozen locales in Scotland. The scenic shots are fantastic. And some of the shots with the Aurora Borealis (real or special effects) and night sky shots are very good. The locals hope to get rich off their land, but if the project doesn't go through they'll be just fine continuing in their laid-back, but honest working lifestyle.

One of the main fishing catches in the village is lobster. Mac asks one of the fishermen if they ate them. "Too expensive," he replied. He says they get shipped out where folks in the fine restaurants of Edinburgh and London have them for dinner. The local town has a couple of quirky characters as well.

This quirky and easy going comedy gives a nice little slice of what life can be like in small communities away from the big cities. And how much one can enjoy such life out of the fast lane.

Pure magic...

[Maryte · 10/10 · 8 January 1999]

I have no idea what provoked me to see this film in the theatre lo those many years ago, but I am grateful to the serendipity which has brought this piece of magic into my life. I am constantly amazed that a piece of fiction (and not even a written one) could have such an impact on my heart and soul.

From the edgy humor of Happer's encounters with his analyst (I will always consider this to be Mr. Lancaster's most charming performance in a body of excellent work) to the poignant scene in which (an albeit drunken) Mac confesses his coveting Gordon's life, this film draws me in like no other. Whenever I am asked my favorite film, I answer Local Hero without hesitation - there is never a question of its position on my list.

I must confess, I am surprised there are no other reviews of Local Hero by women. I've always found the lyrical nature of the film to have a distinctly female sensibility. But on the other hand, I don't know any other women beyond myself who have seen it (or recall having seen it). The best recommendation I can make for this film is, when I find the world closing in on me, I watch Local Hero. I smile. I laugh. I even cry a bit. But most importantly, I come away knowing that I might someday find that very possible magic in my life.

Am I Missing Something???

[steventhomas011062 · 6/10 · 7 March 2023]

I read how this movie is considered one of the best British comedies ever made. There are also so many gushing 10 star reviews for it on IMDB, so I was very much looking forward to seeing it.

I found the movie to be quite charming, whimsical and beautifully filmed but that was it. Quite frankly, I don't understand what all the hype is about. I have certainly seen what I consider much better comedies, so don't understand all the hype. There were moments that made me smile, but none that made me laugh. I also struggled a bit with the accents at times. In my opinion, there are a lot better British comedy movies out there.

Quirky brilliance

[fdtate · 10/10 · 26 May 2002]

Some may be turned off by the apparent disregard of plot. Amazing characters, scenery and music make this a truly brilliant movie. It's a movie that may not be fully appreciated until you've seen it three or four times. Burt Lancaster steals the show in a small role. Peter Riegert is perfectly cast as a lost American who finds a place where he belongs. The memorable scenes are countless: the aurora borealis show, the eccentric beachcomber who offers to sell for a dollar per grain of sand in his hand, the injured rabbit, Riegert proposes to trade places with Gordon, etc., etc., etc. Mark Knofler's music is worth the price of admission alone. Definitely one of my all-time favorites.

A modern Fairy Tale

[cubinator · 7/10 · 6 April 2002]

The First Time I saw this movie I was a little boy. It's one of my father's favortie movies and I watched it again. This is movie is one of the quirkiest films ever. The way it's funny is unique, The characters are so real that they can be you or next door neighbor. Mark Knopfler's music only adds to the greatness. 3 of the most memorable scenes are when Mac (Peter Riegert) and Danny (Peter Capaldi) run over an injured rabbit in the middle of driving. Another Great scene is when Gordon (Denis Lawson giving a great performance.) Cooks the rabbit, and the final scene is one of the greatest in film, when Victor (Christopher Rozycki) Sings "Lonesome for a Lone Star Man like Me." I can't get enough of that scene it's just perfect. If you want to see a modern fairy tale today see Local Hero.

A Wonderful Wonderful Movie

[Paul-153 · 10/10 · 27 January 2002]

I really cannot praise Local Hero enough; it is simply one of the best films ever made and certainly, without any shadow of doubt, my number one favourite movie of all time. Fans of Ealing Comedy will relate to this film instantly. The humour is extremely subtle, going for the quirkiness of human behaviour rather than prefabricated belly-laughs. For example, the two farmers arguing which is the better vehicle for transporting winter lambs, Massarati or Rolls Royce. And the African preacher who has to explain that he's "not Scottish either" but still has the surname McPhearson. At first glance, the story of Local Hero is hardly one which would engage fevered interest. A big Texan oil company wants to buy a huge chunk of Scottish coastline and a representative is flown over to close the deal. Chosen because it's thought he is of Scottish origin, McIntyre (Peter Riegert) complains to a colleague that he could do the deal over the wires in an afternoon and that his parents chose the surname when they got off the boat from Hungary because they thought it sounded American. But what grabs the attention and is the fundamental beauty to the film is "Mac's" journey from a materialistic Texan yuppie to one who falls in love with the simple things of life and by the film's end, when Mac returns home, has been changed forever by his trip.

Mac plays his part very well from a character who depends on his expensive suits, his Porsche, quad hi-fi and personal health insurance to one who collects shells on a Scottish beach and drinks 40 year-old malt whisky in the bosom of the small community that he suddenly finds himself a part of. Burt Lancaster plays the wonderfully eccentric oil company CEO who is more concerned with dicovering a comet of his own than making millions of dollars. Then of course there is Denis Lawson as the estate agent / taxi driver / hotelier, Peter Capaldi as the bungling company trainee and Jenny Seagrove who prefers being underwater to life on land, along with all the various yokels and locals that give this film its very unique charm. And the plot twist? A fabulously subtle one-liner that gives the whole thing away. But of course, one cannot talk about this movie without mentioning the soundtrack. Many years ago I felt compelled to watch this movie because (being a big Dire Straits fan at the time) i had the soundtrack and was instantly hooked. Mark Knopfler does sterling work in adding musical flavour to the film. Lazy acoustic guitars match perfectly the breath-taking scenary that the director, Bill Forsyth, has captured of the Scottish Highlands. Overall, I would have no hesitation in recommending this film to people. Every recommendation I've made has been met with the same response: a gem of a movie that simply cannot be ignored. Local Hero will be my own personal number one for ever!

10/10

Local Hero: A Greatly Amusing and Entertaining Film

[imagiking · 7/10 · 6 July 2010]

A small and humble cult film, Local Hero gave birth to the careers of many of its participants, as well as heralding the arrival of this branch of low-key, location dependent comedies.

Based on his soi-disant "Scottish ancestry", up and coming Texan oil representative Mac is sent to the small and unassuming Ferness in Scotland to coordinate its sale and the installation of a new refinery in its place. Dealing with a host of bizarre characters on each side of the Atlantic, he comes to slowly notice and appreciate the differences between the two.

I think the fact that I went into Local Hero knowing absolutely nothing about it was instrumental in creating the final impression it had upon me. For a reason entirely unbeknownst to me, I was expecting some sort of small scale character drama. As such, I was rather taken aback to find myself laughing at the ensemble of eccentric characters before me, each of them hilariously entertaining in their own way. From the skyward facing mustachioed magnate to the adorably clueless-in-love Scot, the film is rife with delightful characters, presented by an equally wonderful cast. The plot is fairly straight-forward and uncomplicated, paving the way for the film to prove itself with its wit. And it does just that, and thensome. Be it the strange interactions of Happer and psychologist, the simplicity of the village folk, the pathetic but endearing attempts of Oldsen to woo his beloved Marina, or the small and genius tidbits of incidental humour which perforate the narrative, the film never fails to entertain. The characters are each very enjoyable, their eccentricities complementing each other greatly and making for a pleasing string of interactions, most particularly in the enduring patience and politeness of Mac towards the invasive populace. And, to appease that originally misled section of my mind, there is a running element of drama in the form of Mac's adaptation to the considerably different Scottish life. His slow realisation of the downsides of capitalistic avariciousness and the concomitant emptiness and lesser quality of life forms a moral backbone to the story, supporting us as we are ensnared by the ribcage of comedy.

With a fantastic wit, Local Hero brings the best in comic characters and performances and combines them with a neat storyline and undercurrent of social conscience. All these ingredients intermingle to create a greatly amusing and entertaining film.

Simply the best, perfect little film ever made.

[finnigan2 · 10/10 · 24 April 2001]

A real sleeper of a movie. I rented it without knowing anything about this film beforhand and was taken prisoner from start to finish. I honestly didn't want the movie to end. Full of interesting and amusing characters, a terrific musical score, wryly satirical without being demeaning of anyone; it invites you into a totally believable world where you begin to care about the fate of everyone and there are no false notes in the script, direction or performances.

If anyone ever doubted the importance of a screenplay in the success of a movie or thought that a big budget, lots of pyrotechnics and loads of special effects could cover up a movie's shortcomings - see this film. It should be required at all film schools as an example of what can be accomplished on a little budget but with good ideas and lots of talent. A perfect 10 - times 2!

Ambig-a-doon

[onepotato2 · 7/10 · 8 May 2007]

An oil magnate (Lancaster) bowls into a small Scottish town with his flunky (Riegert) in tow, with the purpose of wresting the property out of the locals hands. To everyone's surprise almost all the locals can't wait to unload it and get rich.

An older friend recommended this movie to me in my teens. I didn't hate it but I didn't quite understand it either. Hundreds of previous typical Hollywood plots and scripts had absolutely ruined my ability to actually think while watching a movie. What was I to do with a movie that didn't just foist brainless moment-to-moment stimulation on me? ...that didn't end with a climactic duel or explosion? ...that didn't scapegoat some 2-dimensional villain? ...that asked me to pay attention and be present? ...that asked me to consider scenes that weren't designed to guide the dumbest viewer's perception to a facile, foregone conclusion? This movie started me on a lifetime of asking more from movies.

For Peter Reieger to take this role after Animal House is to his credit; it's just astonishing to go from a silly crowdpleaser to something so ambiguous. The last scene, which would usually be omitted, is refreshing in its honest bleakness. As a good company-man Riegert has to be the first to leave the party. He fies back to America, tosses his keys on the table and the films holds for a few beats. He opens a beer, goes out on his balcony and the tone strongly hints that he wants to be back there. This is the a really lovely ending, getting at the essence of travel. At the end of it, you get a few seconds of relief at being home followed by the powerful longing to be back in that different, more stimulating world.

Rushmore is the most recent iteration of this type of film. I really need to review this.

I wanted to care

[sunergos · 5/10 · 14 April 2021]

I am Scottish and visited Pennan, the main filming location for the fictional village of Furness. At the viewpoint before you go down to the village, I was privileged to witness one of the most spectacular sunsets I have ever seen. The beach and the views are breathtaking.

Now to the movie. It was difficult to care about the village because it looked shabby in the movie, not charming. The poor lighting and cramped interior scenes didn't help. Add to that the that the fact that villagers didn't care either, and just wanted to sell up. The only person who seemed to sort of care was Marina, played by Jenny Seagrove, who is half-heartedly cast as some sort of modern-era mermaid complete with webbed feet (no, really). Almost always seen in a wetsuit, she pops up from and disappears into the sea every so often, inflicting a Scottish accent on everyone almost as dire as Michael Caine's in Kidnapped. We don't get to know enough about her and how she feels about the place for her to make much difference to the story. It looked like Ben, the old beach guy would turn out to be a descendant of the Scot who founded the Knox oil company that wants to buy the village. That could have been a great angle, but turned out to be a dead end. I found the ending to be less than satisfactory too.

If you harbour romantic views of Scotland in your heart e.g. You're an American with Scottish blood, you may enjoy the movie. If not, prepare to be underwhelmed.

Offbeat humor and charm

[howard.schumann · 22 September 2003]

In Local Hero, Scottish director Bill Forsyth allows us to see the environment not as something to possess or control but as a privilege granted to all. A young corporate executive for a Texas Oil Company, Mac MacIntyre (Peter Reigert), is sent to a small fishing village on the coast of Scotland to work out plans to buy a piece of coastal property that includes the entire town as a drilling site. The great Burt Lancaster plays Mac's boss, Felix Happer, a starry-eyed tycoon of Knox Gas and Oil who is more interested in the stars and getting rid of Moritz (Norman Chancer), his "abuse therapist" than his business. Strangely, he asks Mac to keep an eye on the constellation Virgo when he reaches Scotland to see if he can see a comet in its vicinity.

MacIntyre meets up with his Scottish partner Danny Oldsen (Peter Capaldi) and they rent a room at an inn run by the local accountant Gordon Urquhart (Denis Lawson) and his wife Stella (Jennifer Black). Eventually, Mac and Danny settle in and get to know the town, walking the beach, talking to the black pastor of the village church, and meeting the idiosyncratic villagers. Mac slowly and without any expectations develops an attachment to the town and its people while Danny falls for Marina (Jenny Seagrove), a marine biologist with webbed feet who dreams of building a laboratory for biological research.

When Urquhart agrees to act as the intermediary between MacIntyre and the locals in the negotiations, we are set up to expect the ruthless exploitation of country folk by the big city capitalists. Ironically however, it is the villagers who are captivated by the prospect of the money and more aggressive in its pursuit than Big Mac. The deal seems ready to be consummated when it is discovered that Old Ben (Fulton MacKay), who lives in a shack on the beach, actually owns six miles of beach property and does not want to sell. When the townspeople threaten to turn into an ugly mob, Happer arrives from Houston in his helicopter to add the final twist to a most unpredictable plot.

Local Hero creeps up on you slowly then delivers its payoff so convincingly that, by the end, you feel as if you have a lifelong relationship with the characters. Mac's transformation from being a corporate sycophant to a caring individual who experiences a sense of belonging, perhaps for the first time, is one of the great pleasures of the film and reminded me of a similar transformation in Kiarostami's The Wind Will Carry Us. Supported by a wonderful score by Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits and beautifully photographed by Chris Menges, the film captivates with its offbeat humor and charm and reminds us of what it means to be human without resorting to sentimentality. If technology is seen as an imminent threat to humans, Local Hero allows us to focus our attention upon that which is most threatened: respect for people's individuality, reverence for the land, the sea, and the sky -- and really good Scotch whiskey.

Local Hero

[Prismark10 · 7/10 · 11 July 2020]

Local Hero is a slice of Scottish whimsy with a touch of magical realism. It has a stirring soundtrack by Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits.

American oil tycoon and keen astronomer Felix Happer (Burt Lancaster) wants to buy an entire Scottish fishing village in Ferness Bay so he can build an oil refinery.

Mac (Peter Riegert) is sent over to negotiate the deal with the villagers because he has a Scots sounding name.

When he arrives, Mac liaises with a local rep Danny (Peter Capaldi.) Both meet Marina (Jenny Seagrove) who is a marine biologist working for the Scottish branch of the oil company. She thinks that the company are going to build a marine sanctuary.

The locals are happy to sell as they eye riches and the chance to leave their hard life. To them Mac is the local hero who will give them lots of cash.

Gordon Urquhart (Denis Lawson) is the local accountant, hotelier and village taxi driver who is handling the negotiations on behalf of the villagers. The more time Mac spends in the village, the more he gets to like to pace of life and wonderful night sky such as the Northern lights.

Mac is later told that an old man who lives in a hut on the beach, Ben Knox (Fulton Mackay) actually owns the beach that is important to the deal. It leads Happer to come to Scotland to negotiate personally with Ben.

Director Bill Forsyth has gone for a small scale charming film. It has some surrealism. Is Marina actually a mermaid as she managed to swim to Ferness Bay and she has webbed feet. Also, who is the father of that crying baby.

It is a world where a corporation boss is not evil but just eccentric. Happer is harassed by his own therapist. Mac wants to trade in his Porsche and live a simple life in the village knowing he has come to destroy it and its way of life.

The weak link is actually Reigert. This was a big leap for him and he is rather bland compared to the Scottish actors and of course Burt Lancaster. The one who steals the movie is Fulton Mackay. I still remember the line after all these years, his offer to sale for the grains of sand he holds in his hand.

All-time favorite movie

[kingbad · 10/10 · 10 May 1999]

Simply my favorite movie ever. Never fails to warm my heart, even after many, many viewings. Beautifully written, filmed, acted- everything works. I loved the whole movie, but especially the last scene. It just sums up the whole movie for me- friendship, not the material, is ultimately all that matters.

Great writing; a dozen well-developed characters. Gentle good humor, without demeaning anyone. A beautiful score, that fit the mood of the movie perfectly. Can't say enough about this movie- see it, see it, see it!

So much more than just a meek comedy about an out-of-his-depth American situated in a European nation.

[johnnyboyz · 7/10 · 4 May 2009]

Local Hero is actually a rather touching film about one man's bedding into a space, a space that should be as alien to him as a towering Wall Street skyscraper would be to an everyday, highlands local, and how the individual comes to be quite fond of it. Of course, these stories demand it be alienating to him early on before he undergoes a procedure, but what struck me most was the execution of the 'getting there'; the manner in which the film's lead gradually becomes more accustomed to his surroundings. The transition is very gentile; it's very relaxed and it isn't a loud and proud journey involving lots of people and incidences that are supposed to deliver on a visual level but not much else.

If Local Hero were to be remade today, producers would probably wedge in an antagonistic force trying to steal the oil that drives the narrative as the protagonist is forced to come to terms with his new surroundings as well as battle the heavily out of favour odds he faces – it may look a bit like Three Kings meshed with Kingdom of Heaven. But instead, we have downplayed comedy and realisation of both predicament and scenario. The lead must negate motorcycles coming close to running him down every time he steps out the front door; he must come to realise that there are not phones on every desk within sight as was in his office and that a telephone box is the only means of communication to the outside world, but he must also realise an alternate way of life – a calmer and more down to earth method of living, in which time is taken to appreciate the finer things and attention is payed to people and things around him. Much like the beautiful, colourful skies above him at certain points, MacIntyre will learn to observe.

The lead is 'Mac' MacIntyre, played by Peter Riegert. He works for a large oil company owned by Burt Lancaster's Felix Happer, a company called Knox Oil and Gas. MacIntyre is sent to Scotland and the village of Ferness from his solid Texas based lifestyle on the basis of purchasing the entire place for sake re-building, re-brandishing and re-inventing; that is to say, the Knox company want to build a refinery there.

Boss Happer may only be in the film for so long, but his presence is vastly important to the overall study of MacIntyre, for it is he that gives MacIntyre a secondary task; that being to watch the skies above where he is travelling to due to the astronomical activity, something that really excites Happer and his love of space, planets and the stars. The skies refrain from their light blue, vapid look and give off all sorts of hidden pieces of beauty as lights, colour and movement is apparent. It is the nucleus of MacIntyre's journey; an observation of things seemingly mundane or everyday and observing the hidden beauty, the 'real' beauty, of said object. It is linked to what I mentioned about MacIntyre coming to love the village and coming to realise his eyes have been opened.

Of course, the moral decision is pushed to a certain breaking point related to MacIntyre's fondness for the village that grows increasingly evident and the fact he's there to practically force them out of house and home, for a price. Along the way, he meets a Scottish Knox representative in Danny Oldsen (Capaldi) and one of the more memorable web-footed female characters in cinematic history, called Marina, played by the aptly named Jenny Seagrove. On a huge plus side, the film does not divulge off into a series of daft scenes driven on British/American banter designed to pry out a few cheap laughs on the audience's behalf. This is one of those 'Americans in Europe' films that requires a certain respect if you're to either 'get' the humour or understand the predicament the lead is in. I think the burning question MacIntyre asks himself at some point is to do with where all these people will end up, and why get rid of something so small and so harmless when everything's fine anyway.

Instead, the locals seem to embrace the change. The film is, in essence, all about modernity – the want to move on and build over 'pre-modern' settlements, be they fields or in this case beaches and a middle-of-nowhere seaside village. As the film does close, it became apparent to me that never before had I seen a film that pays so much attention to both land, sea and sky. It is a strange study of both the development and moving on of the land; the using of the sky as an initial study of looking at what you see everyday and observing something beautiful at the right moment as well as the use of the sea as a different sort of home for the object of MacIntyre's rare gaze, that being Marina. You might say the quaint village makes quite an impression on MacIntyre and to some of us, the film makes an impression just as significant.

A captivating sleeper.

[SquirePM · 10/10 · 21 July 1999]

I first saw this movie 1,000 miles from home. I was on business, staying in an outlying hotel, no car, no evening plans. So I walked 1/2 mile to a local 2-plex (!) theater. The choices were Max Dugan Returns and, starting 15 minutes later, Local Hero. The theater manager said the first one was a real good comedy, and he didn't know what Local Hero was about. I said I'd start with Dugan and switch if I didn't like it, and he said OK.

The Neil Simon, Jason Robards, Marsha Mason movie was ho-hum, totally predictable, formula claptrap, so I ducked into Local Hero.

WHAT A SURPRISE !!!

I was alone in the theater, laughing continuously, thrilled by this wonderful movie. What a joy!

When I left, still smiling, the manager asked me how I liked it. I told him it was a sure Oscar winner (wrong, alas) and the best film I'd seen in years. He was amazed. I hope he sat in on it. I hope you do too.

Here's the key - - EVERY TIME I encounter this movie on TV I stop what I'm doing and watch it. I once arrived at a hotel after midnight, tired and with a meeting at 8:00 am. I flipped on the TV while I unpacked and there it was, just a little past the beginning. I sat on the end of the bed for an hour, then pulled up a chair. I finished unpacking when it was over!

Just whose baby is that, anyway? You'll find out! {:-)

Local Hero

[CinemaSerf · 7/10 · 8 June 2023]

Burt Lancaster is the multi-millionaire oil magnate "Felix Happer" who despatches one of his minions (Peter Riegert) to Scotland to buy up a village to turn it into an oil refinery. Once he arrives, he is taken for a bit of a ride by the canny locals as they try to milk him for as much cash as they can. In the days before cell phones; he has to call his boss from the phone box reporting his lack of progress and some astronomical sightings until eventually Happer comes over himself and immediately strikes up a rapport with Fulton Mackay who lives on the beach (and who is steadfastly refusing to sell). It is is simple story very well told with a slightly unpredictable, happy ending and a brilliant score from Mark Knopfler.

A Classic From (But Not Of) the 80's

[DD-931 · 10/10 · 22 December 2002]

I consider this one of the 10 best movies I've ever seen (and to paraphrase John Cleese from LIFE OF BRIAN, I've seen a few). It is definitely the funniest movie of the 80's, just ahead of RAISING ARIZONA. And although LOCAL HERO and RAISING ARIZONA are quite dissimilar films, they do share one distinction: they were both made in the 80's, yet they go totally against the grain of movies made during that decade. All the shallow, cheap, go for the simple-minded lowest common denominator audience garbage that was so much a part of the 80's is missing here.

What is most special about LOCAL HERO to me is how it not only respects it's audience, but seems to show an against-all-odds affection for humanity that INCLUDES the audience. Bill Forsyth cares about every character that inhabits his film, and in a very gentle, open-handed way he seems to want to share his characters with the audience so that the audience might see the best of themselves in some aspect of those characters.

I can understand why Forsyth didn't develop into a major moviemaker in Hollywood, in the same way that I can understand why some people find this movie boring. But somehow, to me, keeping this movie alive along with all its' other fans is part of a cockeyed optimism about people that, these days, seems to be very much against-the-grain.

Quaint, quirky comedy

[grantss · 7/10 · 27 January 2019]

A US oil company intends building a large oil refinery in Scotland. To do so it will need to buy an entire town. The company sends a young, aggressive executive to Scotland to negotiate with the locals. Things go smoothly until the owner of a particular piece of land, vital to the plan, refuses to sell.

Quaint, quirky comedy. Some very funny moments and just about every scene is imbued with a sweet warmth and charm. Throw in some off-the-wall sub-plots and scenes, the psycho-analyst who is following Mr Happer around is the pick, and it is a great comedy.

However, the movie also some pretentions to being a drama and as a drama it is less good. It starts off very badly in this respect, with the anti-capitalist rhetoric being laid on a bit thick and a semi-absurd central plot. If the tone had continued like throughout the movie it would have quite irritating. Thankfully the stereotypes and one-dimensional characterisations diminish the further the movie goes on, though there are some predictable and trite plot developments along the way.

Not a very profound or powerful ending either. It just, basically, ends.

Is difficult to dislike though, due to the warmth of the delivery, and, as mentioned, worth watching as a comedy. In addition, the soundtrack, written by Mark Knopfler, is superb. Dire Straits often closed out their concerts with 'Going Home', the theme from Local Hero.

Nobody does it better than the Brits.

[negevoli-44 · 10/10 · 20 June 2000]

This cinematic piece of enchantment has been aptly praised in the other reviews preceding this one. I really didn't know what to expect when I saw this on cable, but it became an instant favorite. It is so true, so touching, that I felt pangs of sadness when it came to an end. A hopeful end, to be sure. I used to wonder about the casting of Peter Riegert in the lead (I think Dennis Leary would have been perfect in this role). But after several viewings, I have grown to like and appreciate Riegert's performance very much. (I'm one of those superficial twits who perfer good-looking leading men like Sam Neill and Brad Pitt.) And Riegert's non-Scottish appearance is taken care of in the script. Any movie that can raise the consciousness of its audience without preaching is a rarity, and this beautiful film manages to do just that. Certainly one of the best films ever made.

Another Brigadoon?

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 26 August 2006]

Watching Local Hero put me in mind of that other Scottish based film with that wonderful Lerner&Loewe score, Brigadoon. That one concerned a Scottish village that got itself raptured out of time and space and certainly is spared the critical decision that this village and its inhabitants have to make.

An American oil company, active in North Sea offshore drilling, wants to buy the town literally, tear it down and build a refinery and dredge the harbor to make it deeper for ocean going ships. And they're willing to pay, they've got gazillions to spend.

Looking to close the deal is young and aggressive executive Peter Riegert who I guess went to this line of work after graduating from that university with its notorious fraternity. He likes to do things by telex, saves him from the human contact.

But human contact he gets here and it does make him rethink things.

I met Peter Riegert a year ago when he was touring with his film King of the Corner, which by the way is a gem, and asked him about this film and working with Burt Lancaster who plays the oil company president and amateur astronomer.

What you saw on the screen is what you got with Burt. He sounded exactly in normal conversation like he does on screen. He was in some awe of him, telling the audience that he grew up watching Burt on the screen in such films as The Crimson Pirate and Gunfight at the OK Corral.

What I remember best was Riegert telling us of that piece of career advice he gave him. Alternate your films as he learned to. Do one for yourself and one for the poke as Burt Lancaster put it. I can just hear him saying it too.

Local Hero is a good piece of entertainment, but I wondered why no one in the village suggested the Brigadoon option as a way of having your cake and eating it too.

I don't understand the rave reviews

[maccas-56367 · 4/10 · 1 February 2021]

Blown away by all the glowing reviews and this film's status as a comedy great. I didn't feel any of that.

The scenery is the real star here, and the performances are serviceable too. There are occasional hints of greatness, (and it does the fish-out-of-water tale well), though it has been done better countless times since.

I couldn't help but feel frustrated by the whole thing. The meditative slow pacing of the film was okay given the setting and way of life, but I just felt like nothing happened. It all felt shallow and way too "American" for its setting.

The beautiful wee town still gets developed by big business America (albeit not an awful oil refinery). Nothing really happens in regards to the relationships of the characters. The poor rabbit was just unnecessary and pointless too.

The film feels dated - whether it be the music or technology used. Guess I had hoped for the main characters growth and transformations to have been more effective and greater than they were.

I'm glad I watched simply for the scenery and to cross it off my list. But I much prefer Bill Forsyth's Gregory's Girl which came out two years prior. If you're after a movie or show of this type, I recommend Waking Ned Devine or Doc Martin instead.