Hidden Movie Gem: “Local Hero”
Today’s Hidden Movie Gem guest post comes from John Arends.
Movie Title: Local Hero
Year: 1983
Written by: Bill Forsyth (story and screenplay)
Starring: Peter Riegert as Mac McIntyre, Denis Lawson as Gordon Urquhart and Burt Lancaster as Felix Happer
Directed by: Bill Forsyth
Plot Summary: A big Texan oil company wants to buy a huge chunk of Scottish coastline — including the quaint town of Ferness — for a new oil terminal and a representative is flown over to close the deal. Chosen because it’s thought he is of Scottish origin, McIntyre (Peter Riegert) complains to a colleague that he could do the deal over the wires in an afternoon and that his parents chose the surname when they got off the boat from Hungary because they thought it sounded American. But what grabs the attention and is the fundamental beauty to the film is “Mac’s” journey from a materialistic Texan yuppie to one who falls in love with the simple things of life and by the film’s end, when Mac returns home, has been changed forever by his trip.
Why I Think This Movie Is A Hidden Gem: Movies, at their essence, are magic. In how they transport us to other worlds, introduce us to strangers who, 90-to-120 minutes later, we have fully become, and in how they help us navigate our own corners of the real world. LOCAL HERO does all of this, and so much more, with an alchemist’s mix of whimsy, charm, irony, humor, and surprise.
Not surprisingly, Bill Forsyth, cast and crew cook all of this up in a magical place, a small village on the coast of Scotland that is reminiscent of Brigadoon, in its impact on our lead characters. (Forsyth plucks this parallel story beat precisely as Mac and his sidekick, Oldsen, cross the threshold into the new world by falling asleep in a fog-shrouded car while nursing an injured rabbit.)
Once they arrive in the village, it becomes immediately clear that the locals are playing Mac, not the other way around, as he begins “negotiations” to buy the whole town — lock, stock, church, pub and barrel. Every single character Mac meets in this quintessential cast of “colorful folks” is intriguing, or delightful, or mysterious, or enchanting or unexpected or — Well, that’s what makes this film a hidden gem. It does brilliantly what every movie strives to achieve. It fully immerses us (with help from a hauntingly beautiful soundtrack by Mark Knopfler) in an authentic world brought to life by characters we’ll never forget — topped by Felix Happer, played by the iconic Burt Lancaster.
My Favorite Moment In This Movie: With a run time of 111 minutes, there are about 92 favorite moments. Among the best: Mac’s drunken confession that he’s in love with Gordon’s fetching wife, and life, and he proposes they swap places: “I’ll make a good Gordon, Gordon…” The dinner scene when we learn Gordon’s cooked Mac’s now-pet rabbit… The running gag with the motorcycle…And the final scene, when Mac is back in Houston, forever changed, and he decides to — well, that’d be spoiling the whole thing…
My Favorite Dialogue In This Movie:
VICTOR: How are things? I heard about the céilidh [village social].
GORDON: Oh, we’ve lots to tell you. We’ve been invaded by America. We’re all gonna be rich.
VICTOR: Really?
GORDON: We won’t have anywhere to call home, but we’ll be stinkin’ rich.
Key Things You Should Look For When Watching This Movie: The pacing and the tone of the movie are both astonishing feats. If you scanned it without the sound, it’d look decidedly unkinetic. Layer in the quirkiness of characters and dialogue and the storytelling becomes hypnotic. Writer-director Bill Forsyth casts his spell with dry humor, smart words and unexpected moments that envelopes the viewer, and, if you’re open to it, and to watching the sky, it just might steal your heart.
Movie Trailer:
You can see the movie online for free here
Thanks, John! To show our gratitude for your guest post, here’s a dash of creative juju for you. Whoosh!
A special shout out to John, who I met in person this weekend at the Austin Film Festival. When we caught up with each other, John gave me a wonderful gift: A printed copy of a 1981 draft of the screenplay for Local Hero, this because (A) John knows how much I love this movie and (B) John is a swell guy!
Tomorrow: Another Hidden Movie Gem!
Note: We filled up the month of October, so I don’t need any more guest posts. Thanks to everyone who participated!
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