Hero and the Terror

It has been a year, but even after six months of therapy, Det. Danny O'Brien is still having nightmares about that fight. His therapist, Kay, is more than just his therapist. She's pregnant with his baby and O'Brien wants to marry her.

Simon Moon, who killed 22 women, breaks out of Camden State Hospital three years after O'Brien captured him. But the laundry van he stole ran off the road and into the Snake River (wait, if he was in California ... or does California have a Snake River?). His body is never found.

A dilapidated neighborhood in Los Angeles may be on its way back after the city spent $14 million on the renovation of a legendary theater. The completion of the project is being celebrated with a big movie premiere. What the people inside don't know is that before the event started, two women were killed in the building. Everything points to Simon Moon, but he's dead. Isn't he?

The beginning of the movie made me wonder if this was the sort of thing I could enjoy. But seeing the name of Ben Matlock's gorgeous daughter in the opening credits gave me an incentive to watch. Brynn Thayer isn't that great-looking here, but she is attractive and she has her good moments as an actress. Plus her character is easy to like.

Chuck Norris is tough when he has to be, but also quite kind and tender. He did a good job, and I actually liked him. I could see this movie as the pilot for a series (if it had been made recently), but I don't know that I'd watch week after week. Those looking for Norris to display his martial arts skills get one scene where he teaches Victor a lesson.

The investigation is interesting, though not that complicated.

What I wasn't expecting when I saw the opening was so much comedy. Many of O'Brien's scenes with Kay, the scene where the nervous theater manager tells Betsy she has the job, the scene where Robinson said he would help with the investigation, and part of Robinson's one other scene in the theater. Plus a chase by police that involves O'Brien but has nothing to do with the rest of the plot.

The movie is not that violent, except for the nightmare. The killer (whose face we don't see) breaks people's necks, which isn't pleasant to watch, but it's not bloody.

It was good for a TV-movie. Average for a theatrical production.

Out of the ordinary for Norris? In a way it does feel like it, but still those sweaty and muscle-bound elements are still evident but in a lesser tone. Norris does kick some ass, but he plays a scarred, guilt-ridden and unsure character that doesn't see himself as some sort of hero (the media portrays) with the main focus being on the welfare of his girlfriend and their expected baby. Some might say that it's a sombre performance with little emotion, but it's a heartfelt turn that you feel every aching and haunting thought. Complementing that broad complexion is David Michael Frank's score, which is always there and holds a sorrow edge. The story builds upon its material with a humane angle, as Norris battles the demons (spares us some wry relationship humour) while the killer (the terror) is mainly a lumbering shadow that emits terror in the most basic and raw way. It's primal and old-fashion police-killer premise, but stays stimulating throughout. That's not discarding some repetitive and contrived inclusions, and how the killer does feel secondary to Norris. William Tannen's direction gradually forms suspense and moves quick enough (even with some useless spots). The action isn't eye-opening, but it's a sturdy display with moments of atmospheric lashings and the setting in a renovated movie theatre is a nice touch. The violence is quick, with the killer providing a sure cure for neck problems. An above-par cast do a sound job. Brynn Thayer excels as Norris' girlfriend. Jack O'Halloran's animalistic, brute physique is his performance and Steve James is enjoyable too. Rounding the cast off; Ryan O'Neil, Jeffrey Kramer, Murphy Dunne and a short, but important see-in for Billy Drago (this guy has presence) who explains the creepy and unsettling nature of the wanted killer.

Hero and the Terror (1988)

** (out of 4)

Danny O'Brien (Chuck Norris) brings down a serial killer labeled by the media as The Terror (Jack O'Halloran), which gets his labeled as Hero. Three years after the event O'Brien is still suffering nightmares and struggling to put his life together but things get a lot worse when The Terror escapes from a mental hospital.

HERO AND THE TERROR is a Cannon film that tried to show their star Norris in a new light. The "added" stuff here includes seeing Norris struggle with coming to terms with the killer but there's a very large subplot dealing with his pregnant girlfriend and their upcoming child. The melodrama in the picture actually takes up the majority of the running time, which is too bad because there's a fairly interesting killer here to work with.

I never fault any actor trying to go out of the norm and do something different. It's funny that Cannon would have Norris doing some more than kicking butt in this film and especially when you consider that their other star Charles Bronson was trying something new this year too with MESSENGER OF DEATH. Both films have the stars offering up a new thing but it really doesn't work too well here. Norris actually gives a good performance and proves that he can handle the drama but all of this really waters down the story dealing with the serial killer and in the end, this is a Cannon movie after all.

The opening sequence actually manages to build up some nice suspense and there's some great one liners coming from Norris. The first forty five minutes or so are actually very entertaining but the film eventually runs out of gas and struggles to get to the conclusion. I think there are several long sequences that just didn't go anywhere including a search of a theater that drags on to the point where you're ready to take a nap. O'Halloran is effective in the role of the killer and it's too bad that there wasn't more of him.

HERO AND THE TERROR is a decent movie but not a complete winner.

A seemingly deliberate change of pace for Chuck, following the cartoonish heroics of his mid and late 80´s vehicles like Lone Wolf McQuade (1983) or Invasion USA (1985), this mostly by-the-numbers cop thriller is mostly notable for the apparent determination of its main star to play firmly against his own macho image, and deliver a lead performance more marked by vulnerability and sentiment than acrobatic spin-kicks (although those still make an appearance), along with the visible conflict with the film´s generic formula this wish creates.

Perhaps aiming to follow his 80´s action counterparts Stallone and Schwarzenegger into lighter, more thoughtful roles as his career and body aged, Chuck here offers a portrayal of a stoically humble (whilst still Corvette-driving), soft-spoken and self-effacing LA detective, made famous for his apprehension of animalistic serial killer Simon Moon (the eponymous "Terror" of the film´s gaudy title) and dubbed "Hero" for his actions by an euphoric media, a handle he chafes at given his own near-death at the sizable mitts of Moon (a voiceless Jack O´Halloran). When Moon escapes captivity and new victims bearing his trademarks (snapped neck, partial undressing) begin cropping up in LA, this Hero must face his large lumbering demons and track down the seemingly motiveless juggernaut that is his nemesis the Terror.

Methodically paced, shot with a flat televisual look and peopled with regular 80´s TV character actors, the film has a noticeable Movie of the Week flavor, right down to the underplayed action sequences, low level of gore and jokey final shot, a feeling not even the gruff charm of Steve James (criminally underused) and the presence of Ron "Superfly" O´Neal as the city´s mayor can fully erase. Director Bill Tannen creates a strong sense of atmosphere, and stages Chuck´s domestic scenes (given surprising prominence in the narrative) with professional skill but his handling of linking scenes is flat-footed, and his rather detached approach to the loosely choreographed action dissipates whatever tension they might otherwise provide. Chuck looks visibly bored in the film´s few de rigueur fight sequences, and actually more engaged in the romantic scenes with his heavily-pregnant partner (Brynn Thayer), whose level of character development far exceeds any other in the film´s under-nourished screenplay.

Despite the picture´s modest ambitions, obvious low budget, sluggish plot, cliched dialogue and mostly underplayed performances, it still remains strangely watchable; the serial killer plot mostly goes nowhere but Chuck has an amiable charisma, and it´s enough of a surprise to see him play a self-doubting family man averse to the public spotlight his own heroism brings, that it almost draws you along through the film´s many flat sections. The unlikely casting of Billy Drago as Moon´s psychiatrist, the atmospheric setting of LA´s Wiltern Theatre (which becomes Moon´s hideout and stalking-ground), the presence of Steve James and Murphy Dunne (of the Blues Brothers band) in supporting roles and the much-sampled, pleasingly old-fashioned score by David Michael Frank provide helpful distraction from the clumsy script, and Tannen displays just enough visual aplomb to make it an acceptable late-night diversion, if nothing more.

WOW! I've heard many negative reviews of this film but holy cow is it a nail biter! Chuck Norris is at his prime in this movie, a performance he was only able to top in Delta Force One and Two. Billy Drago, as Doctor Highwater, leads a solid supporting cast in making this movie a huge success. Every time Chuck and Billy team up they create an explosion of action and emotion. I've watched this movie several times and every time I come away with something new I have learned about the characters or the plot itself. This movie has an awful high babe factor as well. Bottom line: Drago and Norris are an hit on screen!