Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #25551 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-07-04
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish
• Dubbed in: French, German, Italian, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 113 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Dustin Hoffman plays a lowlife who happens upon a plane crash and rescues the passengers, but doesn't really care about the value of his deed or the attendant publicity when the media starts searching for the hero. Another fellow (Andy Garcia) steps into the gap and claims credit, and as his life changes for the better he takes on a Messianic glow. Geena Davis is the cynical television reporter who pushes the latter's fame in order to keep her story alive, and this film, directed by Stephen Frears (Prick Up Your Ears), takes a few familiar jabs at a manipulative and voyeuristic press. This is essentially an unofficial remake of Meet John Doe, though it is less dramatic and forceful in the end than Frank Capra's classic. Chevy Chase has an oddly anachronistic part as Davis' editor (maybe he thought he really was in Meet John Doe), but the film belongs to Hoffman, who makes his character a slightly cleaned-up version of the actor's own Ratso Rizzo in Midnight Cowboy. --Tom Keogh

Special Features
1.85 Wide Screen
DVD 9
French\German\Italian\Spanish
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital Surround English
Dolby Digital Surround
Filmographies
Trailer
Featurette
Czech\Danish\Dutch\English\Finnish\French\German\Greek\Hebrew\Hindi\Hungarian\Icelandic\Italian\Norwegian\Polish\Portuguese\Spanish\Swedish\Turkish

Synopsis
From Stephen Frears, the director of DANGEROUS LIASIONS and THE GRIFTERS, comes ACCIDENTAL HERO, an engaging comedy starring Dustin Hoffman, Geena Davis and Andy Garcia. Davis is ace reporter Gale Gayley, a woman who literally falls into the story of a lifetime when she's a passenger on an airplane that crashes into a Chicago bridge. In the smoke and darkness, she's saved by Bernie (Hoffman) a rude, foul-mouthed man who promptly disappears into the night--leaving only his shoe behind. When Gale's TV station offers one million dollars to the mystery hero, John, a gentle Vietnam vet (Garcia), appears to claim the prize--and share it with the city's homeless. But this screwball Cinderella story is complicated by the real hero, who is a small-time crook that nobody believes. Both men, it seems, have something heroic inside--as well as something to hide--and it's up to Gale to discover the truth.

Customer Reviews

"Pardon The Vulgarity"
The first time I have seen this film was over ten years ago, and recently it been nagging me out of nowhere. I have spent quite some time in getting this film on DVD, which is not available in an open market. Then, yesterday, I finally got a chance to see it once more.

Once again, it did not disappoint me as I really enjoyed watching this movie. It is both humorous and full of good drama. And, I enjoyed the acting on Dustin Hoffman's part as he was delirious, especially his use of "pardon the vulgarity" throughout the movie.

Also from this movie is an insight about the "hero" to which is the famous line as said by John Bubber (played by Andy Garcia): "We're all heroes if you catch us at the right moment." That is true when a certain situation calls for that aspect of ourselves to save others or be of great help to others.

Bernie LaPlante (played by Dustin Hoffman) is a man of low character and a thief and a liar, and when a certain moment came, he took a role of the hero. However, afterwards he did not stick around to claim his reward. Then, John Bubber became a new thief by claiming to be the hero while LaPlante spent time in jail.

I will not go further to spoil it except to say that it's very interesting twists and turns, and fun to watch.

Great plot and well acted out
I planned on watching the first 45 minutes of this as it was late and I was working the next morning, however I ended up sitting through the whole lot. It's a gripping story and has a sub-message about the power of the media and the need for 'heroes' in our psyche.

Dustin Hoffman is excellent at playing his obnoxious character (someone who you definitely wouldn't want to be stuck in a lift with) and anyone studying media presentation techniques should watch Andy Garcia's role in this.

Overall, a clever storyline.

Fifteen Minutes of Fame
"Hero" is one of the most infuriating films I have seen in some time. From the very start of the picture, I truly identified with Dustin Hoffman's character, and it's maddening to see him screwed over by over-zealous media, and opportunist John Bubber (Andy Garcia).

The satirical elements of the film are even more true now, fourteen years later, than they were at the time. The tendency of the media to stomp on the outcasts and deify the coveted "15 Minutes of Fame" has only increased. The news coverage is not a camera into the world, it is rose colored glasses, seeing disaster as a breeding ground for heroes, and war as a chance to start again. The film doesn't end with the toppling of the giants... the little man just goes back to the gutter. More importantly, it's a true to life and enlightening view into modern media.