Popular reviews

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  Review by Tay 5

  under our christmas tree, i found a red envelope with my father’s all caps handwriting on it: TAYLOR (THIS IS A PRESENT.)

  inside, my father detailed over both sides of the card, and onto the back, that he couldn’t find my gift. at least, not a physical copy of it. he had wanted to get me some DVDs of Bill Forsyth’s work. my father wrote a lot about how he discovered Forsyth’s work when he was in college; about how although Forsyth isn’t necessarily a staple in our contemporary canon, you can still see his influence over Wes Anderson and Richard Linklater. my father listed three films in particular he thought had reoccuring & apparent themes, naming Local Hero the best.…

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  Review by Jordan Horowitz ★★★★½ 4

  I asked twitter what their most “perfect” movie was — not best, but perfect. Lots of folks said LOCAL HERO, and it was one I’d never seen. So i watched it. Just so, so beautiful. And yes, perfect. Thanks, twitter.

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  Review by fran hoepfner ★★★★½ 2

  thought fondly of my parents, former 1980s capitalists slowly (and only somewhat) radicalized by getting really into finding seashells on random beaches. Burt Lancaster is amazing, obviously.

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  Review by Will Menaker ★★★★★ 3

  American yuppie gets glimpse of a better way of life in a charming Scottish town he has to buy for an oil company, but ultimately has to go home. A delightful, romantic and bittersweet comedy that wears its unassuming humanism lightly.

  I've always loved Peter Riegert, probably because he reminds me of my dad. Also GOD Burt Lancaster is great as the somewhat batty oil tycoon obsessed with the constellations and finding a comet, plus Peter Capaldi shows up as a young executive who gets beguiled by a selkie.

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  Review by Laura ★★★★½

  all business should be conducted in knitwear thank u

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  Review by nick ★★★★

  Local Hero is a quiet storm that, instead of relying on gags, disarms you with its soothing, melancholy touch that simply works wonders, while providing its statement on materialism and environmental protection that still rings true almost 30 years later.

  Chronicling an American employee's quirky journey to a Scottish town for property acquisition, Local Hero is every bit as charming as its premise suggests. With an array of different personalities, local customs and cultural shock, it's guaranteed to be a breezing experience filled with breathtaking scenery and goofy ideas. It's rather dry delivery of comedic elements makes this a unique comedy that stands out for its rather meditative nature.

  Local Hero ultimately deals with the inherent human connection with nature…

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  Review by Filipe Furtado ★★★★½

  Man suffering from capital disease gets a taste of overwhelming world. It could be trite if the filmmaking wasn't so taken by warmth and awe. Every bit in the village is lovely and the way Forsyth sets its contrasts between magical and practical essential for the film's success. That final move from Riegert alone to the booth always gets to me.

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  Review by trolleyfreak ★★★★★ 5

  It's like going home to an old friend every time I watch this masterpiece..

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  Review by Paul Elliott ★★★★½

  Local Hero is a refreshingly thoughtful comedy-drama from director Bill Forsyth. It possesses some beautiful and elegant scenery, which was primarily shot on location in the small village of Pennan on the Aberdeenshire coast, and discerns the filmmaker being clearly inspired by the classic Ealing comedies of the late forties along with securing him a BAFTA award for Best Direction. 

  The mostly dry humour is always entertaining and blended with an agreeable level of magical realism which helps to strengthen its overall charm, and its themes, such as the director's attack on capitalism together with his delightful observations on existence are unforgettable. This is a very satisfying movie with more than an inkling of transcendentalism about it as well as containing the first music score written and produced by Mark Knopfler.

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  Review by Alan ★★★

  This is like wholesome and funny There Will Be Blood version.

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  Review by Cormac 👑 ★★★★ 33

  Oldsen, I could grow to love this place.

  Bill Forsyth’s tranquil affirmation to the oddities of small-town life brims with a certain magical quality beneath the slow-moving seams of its old-fashioned reliability. It’s almost as if one loyal employee at Tourism Scotland stumbled onto an early cut of THE WICKER MAN and thought “Hey, wait. That's not what we’re like. Is it?”

  And so they set out to make their own truths. With their homegrown clique of kooky natives sprouting around each and every corner to fill in its crayon-box of colours plus a resounding sense of the “Hey, wait. There’s no way this is real. Is it?’ to the rustic idyllicism of the Scottish Highlands. One that replaces building…

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  Review by 📀 Cammmalot 📀 ★★★★

  Cinematic Time Capsule
  1983 Marathon - Film #6

  ”I want you to try this Scotch. It's 42 years old.”

  Mmmmm… It tastes like a soothing blend of Scottish quirkiness with plenty of off-kilter charm and some dreamy notes of magical sweetness that simply gets better and better every time I watch it…

  ”Oldsen, I could grow to love this place”

  
  The New York Times Book of Movies: The Essential 1,000 Films to See

  Cinematic Time Capsule - 1983 Ranked