Hero Wanted (2008)

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

There's some real depth to Hero Wanted, but it's often buried under contrived and clichéd writing. The characters are interesting, but much of their development depends on plot elements that didn't really make too much sense. Still, if you're more interested in the themes and characters than you are in the actual plot, this movie can work for you.The story is kind of interesting, but it's a bit complicated. Basically, Cuba Gooding, Jr plays a depressed loser who seeks meaning in his life, after terrible loss. Finding his inspiration, he is torn between seeking redemption and revenge, when it is taken away from him. Sounds kind of interesting, right? Well, the execution is a bit flawed, but I did appreciate the attempt to give me more than a basic, streamlined revenge movie.Cuba Gooding, Jr has done quite a few of these direct-to-video action movies, and all have been flawed in some way. Still, I like him (and Ray Liotta) enough that I'll continue to watch them, even though they tend to get rated rather poorly on the IMDb. If you're the same way, then I recommend Hero Wanted. If not, maybe it's best that you just avoid it.

Being that they do so much direct-to-video stuff, it's hard to remember that both Cuba Gooding Jr., and Ray Liotta are award winning actors! Hero Wanted is one of those direct-to-video films. It follows the story of a man who tries to live the righteous life, but even the best of people have their breaking point. This was a really interesting story, with some unexpected twists and turns. It was a pretty good film that really fell under the radar. The story was great and the acting was top notch, but the way it was filmed really left a lot to be desired. The film is frequently jumping months ahead or to a flashback, without any notice or footnotes, it made parts of the film very confusing. There were also a couple of pretty big plot holes, that added to the confusion. This is by no means a classic, but the acting was terrific, the action was pretty cool, and I enjoyed it quite a bit.

I originally watched this to see Kim Coates and Tommy Flanagan. Can't stand Cuba Gooding Jr, so that probably biased it a little for me, but even with that...This had the potential to be a great movie. Interesting -albeit sometimes confusing -plot line, the story is told in reverse order at times, which makes it a bit hard to follow, but nothing too serious.The character of Liam Case (played by Gooding) could have been much more fleshed out. Instead, we only see the result of what he's doing, with no real clear motive on why. Even with Gooding's mediocre acting skills, there was a lot missing, that could have made it ten times better.Other than him, this was a fairly good movie. Nothing that would make my favorites list, or even something I'd watch more than once, but it's not a bad little movie to pass the time.

Now don't get me wrong - cuba G is a versatile Oscar winning g actor, its just that this role was completely unsuited for him. Cant figure out why the director/producer/promoters shortlisted him for this role that needed a far more intense almost brooding character. Otherwise the movie is,as they say over here, Good Time Pass! Pretty violent and fast moving, with a rather confusing plot that unravels itself towards the end. found the 'bad' guys rather good actually, and the good guys, well, not so good, not even Ray Liotta who is also wasted in the smallish part that he plays. Ben Cross' also smallish role is played with the panache that ben does to all his roles. Hes; one of those actors who can play Victor or villain with equal ease and effectiveness. George Menon, Goa