THE HERO – Review

Sam Elliott as Lee Hayden and Laura Prepon as Charlotte in THE HERO.
Photo by Beth Dubber. Courtesy of The Orchard ©

Sometimes one role can define an actor’s career. Sam Elliott plays such an actor in late life, facing his own mortality and coming to grips with his life and career, in the sometimes funny, sometimes touching drama THE HERO. THE HERO is an intimate personal drama that draws on universal human concerns in a story that is by turns comic, bittersweet or moving. Writer/director Brett Haley’s thoughtful film has the same feel of authenticity as his previous one, I’LL SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS, in which Elliott co-starred with Blythe Danner. Like that film, THE HERO is a life-affirming film that portrays older adults as fully rounded individuals living in this present world instead of two-dimensional types, human beings with brains, a sense of humor and romantic lives.

Lee Hayden (Sam Elliott) is an aging Hollywood actor famous for one starring role in a Western named “The Hero.” The role made him a star but turned out to be his high point, something of which Lee is acutely aware. After a long career in lesser films and on television, Lee is now reduced to mostly voice-over work linked to his iconic Western role. Lee mostly spends his days calling his agent about work or hanging out with his friend Jeremy (Nick Offerman).

Lee has a tenuous relationship with his ex-wife but is largely estranged from his daughter (Krysten Ritter). A cancer diagnosis sends Lee reeling but he keeps the information to himself. Checking in with his agent, Lee learns he is getting a “lifetime achievement” award from a Western fan organization which would like him to attend the ceremony. Lee brushes that aside, asking instead if there are acting job offers, but there are none. Discouraged, he does what he frequently does, drops in on Jeremy, a former actor who once played a supporting role in a TV Western starring Lee but now sells pot for a living. The two men spend the day watching old movies, smoking pot, and reliving the old days. But a chance encounter a brash younger woman named Charlotte (Laura Prepon) brings at chance at romance, and along with the medical diagnosis, makes Lee rethink his present life.

Like Haley’s I’LL SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS, THE HERO aims to disrupt our assumptions and make us rethink how we view some people. In this film, Haley spotlights the life of an actor whose face and voice are familiar to many but whose roles are often confined to a certain image, a certain type. Haley wrote the film expressly for Sam Elliott, after getting to know him shooting the earlier I’LL SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS, but the story line is inspired by a number of famous actors more often seen as supporting players than leading men. The character’s name is a reference to Lee Marvin and Sterling Hayden, two actors who sometimes fit that category.

Like Haley’s previous film, THE HERO has humor and offers a little romance along with its refreshingly realistic look at late life. Haley avoids all the stereotypes of older people, focusing on them as people while being frank about both age and the mortality we all face.

Haley has a brilliant hold on this material giving the viewer nuanced and complex story with strong performances to anchor the director’s thought-provoking aim, to reconsider the humanity of group of people out culture often dismisses but which, if we are lucky, we will all join in time. Like real life, these people and their relationships are complicated.

Brilliant casting is the key to Haley’s success in this film, as in the previous one, aided by Haley’s thoughtful script and firm directorial hand. Sam Elliott is the perfect choice in this role, a likable character actor with an iconic face and voice familiar from Western films or cowboy-type roles but less often seen in lead or non-Western parts, and almost never without that signature mustache. Elliott played one of two of Blythe Danner’s love interests in I’LL SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS, and by far the more romantic character tempting Danner’s widowed character to reconsider the possibilities of life. In this leading role, Elliott shines again but now has the chance to show off his wealth of talent. The complex play of emotions across the actor’s face brings out layers of feel and depth of character, whether in scenes alone or with others.

The supporting cast is also excellent, with the always-good Nick Offerman acting as a foil for Elliott’s character in transition. Laura Prepon plays the mischievous Charlotte, a stand-up comedian who suddenly steps into Lee’s life but raises issues around their age difference. Krysten Ritter is very moving as Lee’s estranged daughter, unsure if she wants to let her unreliable, oft-absent father back in her life.

Haley manages to touch on so many universal human subjects, not just the concerns of the aging, in ways that are both personal and global, a rare feat. The story takes unexpected turns – like real life – and refuses to follow Hollywood conventions. Yet time and again, Haley hits real life truths. While the story might appeal more to older viewers, audiences likely will feel some connection to their own lives or experiences, whether young or old.

Beside the well-crafted story and fine acting, the film has visual appeal, in the California seaside setting and skillful photography by Rob C. Givens. The lush beauty of the California settings heightens the drama of some scenes, particular an emotional one between Lee and his daughter, and also in a fraught one between Lee and Charlotte. Periodically, there are dream-like flashbacks to Lee’s famous Western “The Hero,” moving and sometimes disturbing sequences that give insight on Lee’s emotional state and inner character.

THE HERO has much to recommend it, from its unexpected but touching story to the wonderful performance by Sam Elliott. Sam Elliot’s performance, maybe his best, is a big reason to see this film but the thought-provoking story, with its heart and hopefulness, is a winner as well. THE HERO opens Friday, June 30, at Plaza Frontenac Cinema.

RATING: 4 out of 5 stars