A college jock hits on a pretty classmate, while a Cuban exile falls hard for a beautiful flight attendant.
That’s the shallow way to describe “2 Hearts,” which has considerably more on its mind than the gooey romantic escapism on its surface. Those allergic to the tear-jerking movies based on the novels of Nicholas Sparks, such as the “The Notebook” and “A Walk to Remember,” are advised to steel themselves against sentimental manipulation. But those who can’t get enough of love mixed with personal tragedy — I’m thinking of you, “The Fault in Our Stars” — will be in heaven with “2 Hearts.”
Director Lance Hool (“One Man’s Hero”), working from a script co-written by his daughter, Veronica Hool, eases us into a fact-based story about two couples living in different times and places who find themselves linked by an act of supreme generosity. The positive message forged out of a need for human and spiritual connection may sound corny, but it resonates, especially in these pandemic times.
Australian actor Jacob Elordi, the hottie discovery from “Euphoria” and “The Kissing Booth,” excels as Chris, a college freshman from Maryland who falls head over heels for Sam, played by Canadian actress Tiera Skovbye (“Riverdale”). His puppyish enthusiasm for all things in his life, from sports to every move that Sam makes, brings them together quickly.
Across an age and geographical divide, a Cuban exile named Jorge (Adan Canto of “Narcos”) makes a success of his father’s rum business while falling hard for Leslie (Radha Mitchell), a flight attendant he’s reluctant to tell about an illness that’s plagued him for years. Canto brings a delicacy of feeling to the role, from Jorge’s plea to Leslie to hold his hand before flight takeoff to the constant fear over how soon his debilitating illness might end his life. How the stories of Chris and Jorge intersect to make you laugh and cry, sometimes at the same time, is the crux of the film’s surprise twist.
“2 Hearts” is sparked by the real story of Chris Gregory, who died of a brain aneurysm at age 19, but not before donating his organs to save others. One of those recipients in 2008 was Jorge Bicardi of the Cuban rum family, who was near death when he received a double lung transplant thanks to Chris’s gift of life. The narrative that brought the Hools together with the Gregorys and the Bicardis to bring this story to life would make a movie in itself. But what’s on screen is more than faith-based advocacy for organ donation. It’s the selflessness of Chris’s act and its lasting effect on others that turns insipid soap opera into an inspirational labor of love from three families with an emotional stake in its outcome. Released in theaters on Oct. 16, “2 Hearts” — flaws and all — has a spirit that soars.
Tony Scott’s “Man on Fire” employs superb craftsmanship and a powerful Denzel Washington performance in an attempt to elevate genre material above its natural level, but it fails. The underlying story isn’t worth the effort. At first we’re seduced by the jagged photography and editing, which reminds us a little of “City of God” and “21 Grams.” We’re absorbed by Washington’s character, an alcoholic with a past he cannot forgive himself for. And we believe the relationship he slowly develops with the young Mexico City girl he’s hired to protect. But then the strong opening levels out into a long series of action scenes, and the double-reverse ending works more like a gimmick than a resolution.
The screenplay is by Brian Helgeland, whose work on “Mystic River” dealt with revenge in deep, painful personal terms. But this time action formulas take over. The hero outshoots and outsmarts half the bad guys in Mexico City. He seems to be homeless, yet has frequent changes of wardrobe and weaponry, even producing a shoulder-mounted missile launcher when necessary. And as he plows his way through the labyrinth of those responsible for kidnapping the girl, the body count becomes a little ridiculous, and Washington’s character, who seemed very human, begins uncomfortably to resemble an invulnerable superhero. Sure, he gets shot now and again, but can you walk around Mexico City as an accused cop-killer and outgun professional killers indefinitely?
When it seems that everyone who could possibly be killed is dead and the movie must surely be over, there’s another whole chapter. We count those still alive, and ask ourselves if the Law of Economy of Characters applies: That’s the one that says a movie contains no unnecessary characters, and so the otherwise unexplained presence of a star in a seemingly insignificant role will be richly explained by the end.
All of this is true, and yet the movie has real qualities. Denzel Washington creates a believable, sympathetic character here — a character complex enough to deserve more than fancy action scenes. Even the last scene involving his character is a disappointment; there’s a moment when one thing and one thing only should happen to him, and it doesn’t, and the movie lets him, and us, down gently.
Washington plays Creasy, whose resume includes anti-terrorism. He’s fallen on hard times, drinks too much, and travels to Mexico for a reunion with his old military buddy Rayburn (Christopher Walken). “Do you think God will forgive us for what we’ve done?” Creasy asks Rayburn. “No,” says Rayburn. “Me neither,” says Creasy.
Rayburn has a job for him: acting as a bodyguard for Mexico City industrialist Samuel Ramos (Marc Anthony), his American wife Lisa (Radha Mitchell) and their daughter Pita (Dakota Fanning). At the job interview, Creasy is frank about himself: “I drink.” Ramos is able to live with this information, but advises Creasy to tell nobody, especially Mrs. Ramos. As we think back over the film, this conversation will take on added importance.
Creasy keeps his distance on the job. Pita wants to be his friend; he explains he was hired as a bodyguard, not a friend. But eventually he bottoms out in his despair, begins to love the little girl, and becomes her swimming coach, Marine-style. These scenes have a real resonance. After she is kidnapped, the movie goes through the standard routine (police called in, telephones tapped, ransom drop arranged), but with additional local color, since off-duty Mexico City police were apparently involved in the snatch, and Creasy feels surrounded by vipers. Rayburn may be the only person he can trust.
At the Ramos home, Samuel negotiates with the kidnappers, gets advice from his family lawyer (Mickey Rourke), and consults with the head of the Anti-Kidnap Squad, who is a busy man if the movie is correct in its claim that someone is kidnapped in Mexico every 90 minutes. Creasy, meanwhile, depends on a plucky journalist named Mariana (Rachel Ticotin), and she depends on an ex-Interpol expert named Manzano (Giancarlo Giannini). As the net and the cast widen, we begin to wonder if anyone in Mexico City is not involved in the kidnapping in one way or another, or related to someone who was.
“Man on Fire” has a production too ambitious for the foundation supplied by the screenplay. It plays as if Scott knows the plot is threadbare, and wants to patch it with an excess of style. He might have gotten away with that in a movie of more modest length, but “Man on Fire” clocks in at close to two and a half hours, and needs more depth to justify the length.
Too bad, because the performances deserve more. Denzel Washington projects the bleak despair he’s revealed before, and his character arc involves us. Christopher Walken supplies another of his patented little speeches: “Creasy’s art is death. He’s about to paint his masterpiece.” Dakota Fanning (“Uptown Girls“) is a pro at only 10 years old, and creates a heart-winning character. Ticotin and Giannini supply what is needed, when it’s needed. There are scenes that work with real conviction. The movie has the skill and the texture to approach greatness, but Scott and Helgeland are content with putting a high gloss on formula action.
Chuck Norris is back, dishing out patriotism and heavy sadism in ”Missing in Action 2 – The Beginning,” which opened yesterday at the UA Twin and other theaters. Confused by the chronology? Don’t be. ”Missing in Action,” the first film in the series, told what happened when Colonel Braddock (Mr. Norris), a Vietnam veteran and former prisoner, went back to rescue missing men. Everything went swimmingly: The men were rescued, and the film made money. So, a second installment is here to reveal the details of Braddock’s 1972 escape. If it too does well, we will undoubtedly be seeing a Part 3 covering his high school years.
The new film, like its predecessor, is primitive but shrewd. Its first hour is devoted to ugly and repeated humiliations of Mr. Norris and the supporting cast, so that the last section can present their ferocious assault on their Vietnamese captors. In the first section, for instance, Mr. Norris is hung up by his feet and has his head covered with a burlap bag containing an angry rat. No wonder the rat is angry; this is not his lucky day. Mr. Norris does not lose fights with any opponent, man or rodent.
His chief antagonist in the film is a Vietnamese officer who enjoys torturing the hapless Americans, and who still has starched uniforms and polished boots after a decade in the jungle. (This is only one of the film’s numerous peculiarities; another is that Mr. Norris, supposedly after years on prisoner’s rations, hasn’t lost any weight.) His final bout with this officer provides a karate match that Mr. Norris’s fans ought to relish, although some of them yesterday had a hard time enduring the suspense leading up to this climactic moment.
”Don’t kill him that way!” pleaded one man in the audience, when it appeared that Mr. Norris would merely blow up his enemy with a grenade. This man then went on to make a highly imaginative suggestion. Mr. Norris, imaginative in his own way, proceeded to deliver a series of kicks, punches and strangleholds, dedicating these blows individually to each of his fellow prisoners. The last stroke, and the nastiest, he dedicated to himself.
Belfast, August 7, 1999. The world premiere of the film “One Man’s Hero” brought about the historic meeting of two Irish political rivals – Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams and Lord Mayor of Belfast Bob Stoker.
For the first time, Stoker, a Unionist and Protestant leader, crossed the border into the Catholic stronghold of West Belfast in order to attend the premiere, which was hosted by Adams as part of the West Belfast Film Festival.
“One Man’s Hero” star Tom Berenger, director/producer Lance Hool and producer Conrad Hool, enjoyed the chance to watch this unexpected and momentous meeting.
“People kept telling me, ‘You have no idea what you’ve done by bringing these two together,’” said Lance Hool. “To see the faces of the people filled with hope was just amazing. It was an electric experience.”
Stoker surrounded himself with bodyguards for his first entry into Sinn Fein territory, but at Adams behest, Stoker asked his bodyguards to withdraw. Adams subsequently addressed the film audience and introduced the Lord Mayor. Visibly nervous, Stoker told the audience that although he had never before visited West Belfast, he was the Lord Mayor of all of Belfast and was glad to make this first visit. He added that he hoped this visit would further peace and understanding. The audience vigorously applauded, and Adams called the visit “historic.”
Stoker accepted Adams’ invitation to the premiere in part because Stoker was intrigued by the film. Together, the two leaders watched the movie, which tells the story of an Irish battalion that fought in the Mexican-American War. Adams called the film “brilliant,” and Stoker said he was “deeply touched by a tremendous film.” Both men and their entourages enthusiastically congratulated the filmmakers.
As a result of the meeting, Adams and Stoker planned to immediately re-start the boggeddown peace process. Former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell will fly to Northern Ireland next month to join them.
Tom Berenger, Daniela Romo, Joaquim de Almeida and Patrick Bergin star in the film, which will be released domestically by MGM on Sept. 24. The film is the last film to have been produced under the Orion label.
“One Man’s Hero” was given a green light under Len White and John Klugge’s stewardship in the hope that the film would continue the Orion legacy that produced such controversial and successful films as “Platoon” and “Dances With Wolves.”
For one night in troubled Northern Ireland, “One Man’s Hero” proved that film can both entertain and be a catalyst for peace.
“One Man’s Hero” is a deeply felt and engrossing period epic that not only presents the Mexican War of 1846-1848, in which Mexico lost more than half its territory to the U.S., from the losers’ point of view, but also spotlights the heroic role in Mexico’s defense played by the San Patricios, Irish immigrant deserters from the American Army who cast their lot with the Mexicans.
Two years ago, Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo honored their St. Patrick’s Battalion in a public ceremony commemorating their sacrifice to the cause of Mexican liberty. The film, which represents the fulfillment of a 20-year dream on the part of its director, Lance Hool, is a fine example of how a genre film–in this instance the period-war picture replete with spectacular battle scenes–can call attention to a little-known historical incident that has resonance in the present.
In the 1840s, President James Polk took advantage of unrest in Mexico to promote the policy of Manifest Destiny, which held continuous expansion of United States territory to include the Southwest and to establish a bicoastal nation to be a self-evident and proper goal. With the American Army geared to provoke a border war with Mexico in 1846, the U.S. government solicited the Irish, in the throes of the potato famine, to help fight it, promising U.S. citizenship for the enlistees and further assuring them that they could earn enough money as soldiers to send for their families, who would also automatically be granted citizenship.
The Irishmen who signed up, however, found that the famine had already triggered so much emigration to the U.S. that many Americans were beginning to perceive the Irish newcomers as an economic threat. With anti-Irish sentiment brewing on the home front, the Irish faced escalating bigotry in the Army, especially for their Catholicism.
The way writer Milton S. Gelman tells it, before Col. Benton Lacey (Mark Moses), who is of Irish descent, could arrive at a remote outpost in Mexican territory where the Irish soldiers were stationed, Capt. Gaine (Stephen Tobolowsky, always expert at playing nasty types) has done his absolute worst. He withheld news of a promotion to the leader of the Irish, Sgt. John Riley (Tom Berenger), and subjected several of the Irish privates to such a severe flogging for attending Mass at a nearby Mexican village church that Riley is driven to lead his men to desert, where they wind up under the wary protection of a Mexican bandit, Cortina (Joaquim de Almeida), in his mountain stronghold.
When the Mexican War breaks out, the Irishmen’s status as deserters soon becomes that of traitors. A Mexican general (Jorge Basso) makes an eloquent pitch to persuade both Cortina and Riley and his men to join the Mexican army to battle the Yankee invaders. Gradually, the Irish identify with the struggle for freedom and autonomy of their new countrymen, with whom they share a common religion.
Gelman has a sure sense of structure and character development, but swatches of his dialogue are trite and the complex and unstable political situation in Mexico is not made as clear as it could be. You could wish that the film, directed with vigor and passion by Hool, would have been venturesome enough to have done away with an obligatory seeming love story as its central focus, involving a rivalry between Riley and Cortina for the fiercely proud freedom fighter Marta (Daniela Romo). Fortunately, it is handled in an adult manner, with De Almeida providing the entire picture crucial ballast as a dashing, disillusioned aristocrat with whom the courageous and principled Riley can have a believably antagonistic yet mutually respectful relationship.
*
Alas, Marta is no more than the noble, self-sacrificing Latina of a zillion other movies. For Cortina the stoic Marta is “the woman of women”; for Riley, “more woman than any woman I have ever known.” Fortunately, too, Romo, stuck in a cliched role, looks the part and has much presence.
The film, which takes its title from Riley’s remark that “One man’s hero is another man’s traitor,” covers lots of territory with considerable dispatch and clarity, culminating in the defeat of the Mexicans, a grim turn of events for the San Patricios in particular. Berenger and Almeida excel in their complex roles, and their strong portrayals are echoed in the performances of the large supporting cast, Moses most notably and including James Gammon as the earthy Gen. Zachary Taylor and Patrick Bergin as the arrogant and cynical Gen. Winfield Scott.
With Joao Fernandes’ resourceful cinematography offsetting some phony-looking sets, and Ernest Troost’s appropriately stirring score’s strong assets, “One Man’s Hero” has the stuff of a cavalry classic–just imagine what a John Ford or a Gabriel Figueroa, for starters, could have done with it–but it lacks the vision and personality to attain such a level of artistry. Still, this is a tale worth telling.
* MPAA rating: R, for violence. Times guidelines: In addition to standard battlefield bloodshed, the film has several sequences of extreme brutality.
‘One Man’s Hero’
Tom Berenger: Sgt. John Riley
Joaquim De Almeida: Cortina
Daniela Romo: Marta
Mark Moses: Col. Benton Lacey
An Orion Pictures release. Director Lance Hool. Producers Hool, William J. Macdonald, Conrad Hool. Screenplay by Milton S. Gelman. Cinematographer Joao Fernandes. Editor Mark Conte. Music Ernest Troost. Costumes Matthew Jacobsen. Production designer Peter Wooley. Art director Hector Romero. Set decorator Enrique Esteves. Running time: 2 hours, 8 minutes.
