Hero Wanted (DVD, 2008)

In order to impress a lovely bank teller, a small town trash
collector Liam Case (Cuba Gooding Jr) stages a robbery so he
can emerge as the hero. But the simple plan yields deadly
consequences, and Case must seek vengeance against the cohorts
who betrayed him. Unfortunately, Detective Terry Subcott (Ray
Liotta) suspects Case as the perpetrator of a string of murders
in this action drama that has a number of twists to it. Norman
Reedus co-stars with Gooding and Liotta as Case's conflicted
pal and co-worker and does a good job also. Director Brian Smrz
is making his film directing debut here and does a good job in
an initial try, and having three top-notch acting jobs done by
the key casts makes this a good movie. Action and Adventure
devotees will enjoy this movie and lovers of suspense will also
find enjoyment in it as the twists and turns of the flix do add
some suspenseful flavor. Good for a nights entertainment for
most people.

Cuba Gooding has made a run with some half-spirited films, whether theatrical or DTV. He's a good actor but seems to wind up in films that fail critically, or have some behind the scenes troubles and end up losing their theatrical release (End Game and Murder of Crows). It seems he gets stuck in bad films that don't allow him much area to move. "Hero Wanted" surprised me with how much he was allowed to carry the film.

The story is good. And sadly an empathetic one. A man who once recieved media spotlight and social love for saving a girl from a flaming wreck, is now past his 15 minutes and has trouble dealing with the withdrawl. So one day, he attempts to foil a bank robbery to be a "hero" again, but ends up shot in the process. He then begins a vigilante man hunt for the robbers.

The plot was really good, and one I anticipated, but about 2/3 through it passes into some implausibility and cliche roots, resorting to a head scratching and pointless shoot out with the robbers, police, and Cuba Gooding. The ending was uplifting though; sorta bittersweet and got back to it's empathic realism.

Ray Liotta was wasted, being in only about 4 scenes, and brought nothing new to the story. But still, he's a pleasant to have around since he's a strong supporting actor.

All in all, a good film and one I would watch again. I can easily recomend it, for the story, and Cuba's performance of empathy and vulnerability.

HERO WANTED - If you love Cuba Gooding Jr and/or Ray Liotta, and a decent amount of action, you should really enjoy this movie. We have never heard of it before now(even though it is a 2008), but ended up picking it up(due to the great actors) and we really enjoyed it. Offers a good amount of ACTION, and sounds exceptionally well on a theatre/surround sound system.

This movie will keep your attention, and is worth buying to watch over and over again.

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Picked up this title without ever hearing about it for $1.51. I figured with Cuba Gooding Jr. on the cover, why not? Saying that I was disappointed would be an understatement. The film never really pulled me into the story, mostly due to the fact that it jumps around from past to present without letting the viewer know. I guess this was the writer's attempt at making the overall predictable story more complex, but ended up just making it confusing. And the 'plot twist', as I'll generously call it, made me groan.
Gooding puts on a good performance himself, but couldn't carry this film alone. And Ray Liotta was onscreen for what seemed to be a total of 5 minutes, so there wasn't much he could do for the film. I've seen worse, but I've also definitely seen better. If it's free, it's worth the watch if you're into the genre. But other than that I'd say pass on this one.

I like it because it had alot of action it wasn't boring. I decided to buy it because I like Cuba Gooding Jr. He is a good actor. I also bought it because of the price.