JinRoz For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

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

Bergorks If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

classicsoncall This appears to be a movie that partially succeeds in it's message of maintaining a semblance of humanity where it could have been an exercise in all out anti-capitalism. Oil industry executives 'Mac' MacIntyre (Peter Riegert) and his boss, Felix Happer (Burt Lancaster), undergo a serious change of heart regarding their plans to build an oil refinery on the shores of a Scottish village, due primarily to their own inner conflicts and the outgoing personality of an old time beachcomber named Ben Knox (Fulton Mackay). That Ben coincidentally has the last name of Happer's company, Knox Industries, may or may not lead one to conclude that the Knox family patriarch at one time was swindled by a big business concern. The thought did occur to me when Ben's full name was revealed, but it's never confirmed in a definitive way, thus leaving it to the viewer's own imagination. There are some funny and poignant moments in the picture, introduced it seems, to insert an element of whimsy into the story. However depending on one's disposition, Marina's (Jenny Seagrove) webbed feet might elicit either a chuckle or a groan in reaction. To maintain that magical, mystical feeling, the story line could have done a better job to keep that fanciful feeling alive throughout. I didn't know how to react for example, when Mac's adopted rabbit wound up on the dinner table - "I'm sorry Mac, but we eat rabbits here".For those who enjoyed this movie, I'd recommend crossing the Atlantic to a picture that takes place in the American Southwest. "The MIlagro Beanfield War" has a similar story line of a small town being seduced by greedy corporate fat cats, though in this instance, it's the little guys who eventually win out. The film has a bigger name cast that blends in nicely with local talent without stepping on their toes. It achieves a spirituality that "Local Hero" doesn't quite reach though it tries, with a guardian angel that might have added a touch of capricious humor to the proceedings here.

writers_reign Scotch-US relations were explored more or less thirty years before Local Hero when a lone US millionaire, Paul Douglas, sought only to get a shipment of cargo from A to B and had no interest in buying a piece of the country. His frustration when he was constantly thwarted in this aim led to hostile relations between essentially one American and one Scots skipper of a barge. In Local Hero the US representative of a large multinational establishes positive relationships with the local natives albeit with an ulterior motive of buying land which may be rich in oil. Both films were popular with movie goers of different generations so it's difficult to draw any conclusions. Paul Douglas justified his top billing in The Maggie being on screen roughly 85% of the time whilst Burt Lancaster, by far the biggest name in the Local Hero cast list is on screen in inverse ration or about 15% of the running time. We do, however, get to see fledgling actors like Jimmy Yuill, John Gordon Sinclair, Dennis Lawton and Jenny Seagrove all of whom would become familiar faces via television. If you're looking for a category under which to file this one then whimsy is as good as any.

Mr-Fusion Throw open the dictionary to the word 'likable' and there's "Local Hero". Or at least it should be, seeing as this movie is the very definition of the word. None of the laughs are ostentatious; they come about organically, mostly from everyday working people and great characterization. It's small town life in an almost otherworldly seaside village; a place where even a city clicker from Big Oil can lose himself. You can tell these characters were created with love and that's exactly where the movie derives its charm. And it features an ending that's deceptively melancholy. But don't let that fool you; this is one enriching movie indeed.8/10 Also, how 'bout a hand for Denis Lawson? Wedge almost steals the whole thing!

FilmCriticLalitRao In the course of human civilization, it has been keenly observed that the activities of buying and selling are not as simple as one expects them to be. This is due to the fact that in any financial transaction, apart from the exchange of cash and properties, human emotions are also involved. Keeping in mind this aspect of financial transactions, Scottish director Bill Forsyth directed "Local Hero", a film where more than buying and selling of goods, a precious exchange of human emotions take place in abundance. 'Local Hero' oscillates between comedy and drama as it contains elements of both genres. There is a lot for both critics as well as viewers to learn from an American's visit to a Scottish fishing village in order to negotiate the sale of land which would be used to construct an oil rig. One gets to watch how an ordinary American man becomes completely besotted with the simplicity of a Scottish village to such a large extent that he expresses his desire to swap his American existence for a much quieter stay in the fishing village. Director Bill Forsyth is a keen watcher of human foibles which he has succinctly shown in his film. One watches bemusedly how two lonely men feel the need of female companionship. Apart from ubiquitous concern for environment and nature, there is empathy towards animals too. In a moving scene there is string indignation when the American discovers that he has been made to eat his pet rabbit as food. Local Hero has celebrated more than 30 years of existence. It would be remembered by future generations as a film about local people who are neither hostile nor overtly nice. This is something which works in this film's favor as more than a single 'local hero', there are numerous 'local heroes' who care for their surroundings.