Hero Wanted

There are no great surprises in this,but i did overall enjoy it non-the-less.

Before i watched it i had read a review on here referring to it as nothing more than a B movie,and that cuba should never have agreed to do it,but it is better than that-not a great deal admittedly,but definitely better. The story is told in flashbacks a lot,which is over used these days,but it does have the effect its supposed to without being confusing.(however because its so linear in its style it doesn't leave any great surprises. Its a watchable film with OK acting and OK script,which is a lot better than a lot of the stuff around these days so i was happy with it and gave a reasonable 6 out of 10,missing 7 only because it was reasonable rather than actually good.

I was pleasantly surprised with the movie. Seemed to me to have a B movie feel starting out. It does seem like everyone is into the time shifting plots these days, but once I realized it everything else seemed to follow. I found myself trying to anticipate the next connection of pass and present. Cuba Gooding Jr. did a good job of portraying a man tortured with his pass and present. I do have to take exception to the bar scenes though. I'm not sure that Ray Liota needed to bulk up for the part but he did. Jean Smart had me kind of wondering what was going to happen in the apartment scene. Although there is predominately a U.S. cast, I think the feel of the movie was off because it was filmed in eastern Europe. Straight to DVD but worth the watch in my opinion.

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

Liam Case (Gooding) is shot and left for dead during a botched bank robbery. When healed, he decides to go after the robbers.

This is a very violent film so be prepared. For the longest time you have no real idea what is going on. It's like watching something in a time continuum kind of thing as in CRASH and VANTAGE POINT, and it doesn't straighten out until the last 20-minutes or so. But, as back and forth and as violent as this is, there is entertainment value in here. And, once you see the twist, all becomes very clear.

Cuba Gooding is one of those actors who could be nominated for an Oscar for any movie he is in. The movie may be bad, but he is always good and that cannot be said of too many. Ray Liotta is always fun to watch and one day someone will realize he, too, is an Oscar caliber actor. I was surprised to see Jean Smart in this. I almost didn't recognize her, but once I heard that voice, I knew it was her. She is terrific. And, Sammi Hanratty will be at the finish line along with Dakota Fanning and Abagail Breslin. The rest of the cast, the bad guys for the most part, were all terrific.

When you see Ben Cross you ask yourself, why don't we see more of him. He is a class act.

Violence: Very violent Sex: No. Nudity: Yes, you briefly see some pole dancers on a TV screen. Language: Yes.

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.