The Hero: Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
Lee Hayden (Sam Elliott) is a Western icon with a golden voice, but his best performances are decades behind him. He spends his days reliving old glories with his former co-star, Jeremy (Nick Offerman), until a surprise cancer diagnosis brings his priorities into sharp focus. He soon strikes up an exciting, contentious relationship with stand-up comic Charlotte (Laura Prepon), and he attempts to reconnect with his estranged daughter, Lucy (Krysten Ritter), all while searching for one final role to cement his legacy.
This is one of those films that gets right in your face and makes you realize the downside to a Hollywood lifestyle and/or career. The story is really sad and depressing at times but also very hopeful and relatable to a certain extent. If you were to put yourself in the main character’s shoes you could easily see the man is going through a lot. You see his struggles front and center and in turn I was able to understand him so well. Elliot is such a joy to see perform. Whether it’s in a comedy, drama or anything else he’s done you really get to see him embody the character that he plays. He definitely is an actor that people need to go and experience his filmography because you’ll find a lot of fantastic gems there. Offerman provides some of the funniest and most poignant moments in the film. He gave a lot of insight on life and certain aspects that gave the Elliot’s character plenty of self reflection. Prepon was fantastic as well and I thought that she gave an awesome performance. She definitely showed another side to her as an actress and that was a nice thing to see. I enjoyed this movie quite a bit and thought that it was a really interesting way of seeing the story of an aging movie star looking for his last big break. If you’re looking for a good drama this is one to pick up. 7/10
Special Features:
Audio Commentary with Writer/Director Brett Haley and Sam Elliott
Photo Gallery
