Heroes (1977)

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

RELEASED IN 1977 and directed by Jeremy Kagan, "Heroes" details events in the mid-70s when a quirky PTSD patient at a New York City veteran's hospital (Henry Winkler) escapes to start a worm farm in Eureka, California. He meets a young woman on the bus (Sally Field) and they have many adventures in their journey across the country wherein the man must come to terms with his 'demons' before successfully moving on with a potential babe by his side. Harrison Ford appears as a mentally dubious race car driver from the sticks in Missouri.Winkler was riding a wave of popularity due to his role as Fonzie on Happy Days when "Heroes" was shot in 1976. Despite its obscurity, it was a hit at the box office, grossing $33.5 million on a $3.2 million budget, and opened at #1. It's similar in tone to Jack Nicholson's "Five Easy Pieces" (1970) and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (1975) and, actually, is a meshing of those two movies, but it's nowhere near as good. There's something about Winkler's kooky character that doesn't ring true and so it takes forever to catch a grip with him. Thankfully, you eventually do by the second half.Another problem is obvious plot holes. For example, would two thugs steal over $1000 and nonchalantly hang out in the nearest, most obvious place in which to find them? Would an intelligent young woman (or man) rashly drive a car through the walls of an establishment, risking the lives of any innocent person who happened to be on the other side of the walls (whom she can't see)? I suppose it could be argued that she peeked through the window just before pulling the stunt but, even then, she still wouldn't be 100% certain no one would be near that wall when she drove through it.Nevertheless, it's great seeing Winkler star in a movie in the mid-70s as someone besides The Fonz, not to mention seeing both Field and Ford when they were so young. Harrison was on the verge of shooting to fame with "Star Wars," released the same year. The message of the movie is worthy too and is the first post-Vietnam War film to address the topic of PTSD (major release anyway), although it's done better in "Coming Home" (1978). There's some low-key humor thrown in here and there with a ventriloquist dummy episode on the bus being particularly amusing.The original song that ushered in the end credits was Kansas' "Carry On Wayward Son," but it was removed for legal reasons on the DVD, which is the version I watched. The substitute song "Heroes" isn't anywhere near the greatness of the Kansas number, of course, but it ain't bad and the lyrics are actually more fitting. Yes, it's bland by comparison, but a 4-minute song at the end doesn't make or break an almost two-hour movie; it's just extra toppings on a cake.THE FILM RUNS 112 minutes and was shot in New York City and California (Petaluma, Marshall, Nicasio, Lancaster & Inverness). WRITER: James Carabatsos.GRADE: B-

Overall I'd say it's an hour and a half of not much, then a pretty great ending (albeit predictable) ending. It reminds of something that would've made a decent Mash episode. The acting is decent, although I kinda wonder why either Winkler or Field would be in it, except that at the time I think it was kinda drawing on the popularity of Mash. I liked the film mainly for its 70s feel. It seems like to most people, the most important part of the film was the Kansas song at the end (or its apparent omission in some versions). That seems pretty strange to me. Overall a watchable film, although a bit hard in parts, and kinda hard to swallow in some parts.

There is this scene where they're staying at this motel, and from what I recall a car crashes into the hotel. Haven't seen the movie again in years, so it's all a bit foggy. Anyway I was 14 years old then and it was a huge event that this movie was being filmed in Sylmar, CA. The FONZ was in our neighborhood! Tons of us kids went to see him and meet him and he was totally into it and friendly to everyone. Meanwhile, quietly sitting in her director chair was Sally Field. I loved her as the Flying Nun, and I wanted to talk to her, but I just didn't get an approachable vibe from her. I just kept staring at her, ha ha. I wish I had, maybe we could have had a nice time visiting while everyone else went crazy for Henry Winkler, who by the way was super short. I gotta go rent this movie again!

When I saw this film I was quite young and it gave me a humanizing portrait of Viet Nam veterans for the first time. Harrison Ford's performance gave a great glimpse into the personal demons of the war, and coupled with Henry Winkler's fellow veteran offered a range of the complexities of the impact of the war and the responses of the public to our soldiers coming back. I thought it was much subtler than some of the other Viet Nam films of the era and portrayed more everyday people. As a kid in the seventies, veterans were always seen as men that were just walking around with the constant threat of exploding, one-dimensional beings of violence. The movie crosses my mind occasionally because of the impact on my youth but also more now because of the large number of veterans that will become a returning part of our society. I wonder if a movie like Heroes will have added significance because it didn't feature 'heroic' war activists but instead the mechanic next door and the kind misfit you meet on a bus.