Some Kind of Hero

Plot synopsis:
Eddie Keller is a U.S. Army conscript private who was captured while defecating. He was held in a POW Camp for years. Due to his resistance in signing a confession admitting to committing war crimes he ends up being one of the last POWs to be brought home from Vietnam. Keller endures several years of torture and deprivation at the hands of the Vietnamese Army. He finally relents to signing a "confession" admitting to war crimes to save the life of his cell mate.
Having returned home, Eddie finds the world has moved on without him. His wife has fallen in love with someone new, and had a daughter, just after he became a POW. His mother has suffered a stroke, and requires constant (and expensive) medical attention. Eddie is initially called a hero when he is finally released, but when his signed confession is discovered (and no one can track down the other prisoner he tried to save), his veteran's benefits are suspended by the U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs pending further investigation.
Eddie tries to integrate back into society, but finds himself stopped at every turn. The Army refuses to help, he cannot find a job, and he is running out of options. The only bright spot in his life is Toni, a high-priced prostitute who picks Eddie up at a bar. Despite Toni's profession, the two begin a romance.
While trying to secure a loan, Eddie is witness to a bank robbery. He begins to plot a way to gain the funds he needs to provide for his mother, and also to avenge himself on a system that abandoned him in Vietnam, then turned him into a traitor.
Eddie plans to hold up a bank, but fails repeatedly in his efforts to embark on a life of crime. Eventually, he succeeds in stealing a briefcase full of bonds, which he arranges to sell to a mobster for a large sum of cash. The mobsters plan to kill Eddie and take the bonds. Eddie turns the tables on the mobsters, escaping with the cash and the bonds with Toni.

Tags: revenge

Review:
Great film up until about the middle.
This film starts off like an extremely poignant drama.
The bond between Richard Pryor and Ray Sharkey in the POW camp is seamlessly acted.
The musical score by Patrick Williams is outstanding and very sad.
The films middle is just as good, with very moving parts with Pryor returning from war to deal with problems with his mother, his wife, and his life.
However, after this the film goes awry.
The films keeps its respectability however, because Pryor is such a good actor..
Pryor is so good.
In this film, it starts off great and it kinda sizzles after a while, but it is at least put together well by one guy- Richard Pryor.
He rises above the material here like no other and actually gives a good dramatic/comedic performance (his best dramatic one besides Blue Collar).
While the prison camp scenes are quite intriguing, it becomes a little undone at home.
That's my complaint.
One of Pryor's more thoughtful performances...but a good central idea is diffused by too many targets.
After five years as a POW in Hanoi, Army Corporal Richard Pryor is rescued and returns to the States a hero (he makes the evening news after a journalist suggests he bend and kiss the ground).
Still, heroes don't linger long in a busy world, and soon Pryor is fighting for his self-worth after the government turns their back on him and his wife admits she's moved on with her life.
Serio-comic adaptation of James Kirkwood Jr.'s novel by Kirkwood and Robert Boris makes an uneasy vehicle for the star, who is encouraged to go deeper as an actor yet still retain his naughty persona and signature foul mouth.
The character's imprisonment under the Vietcong takes up thirty minutes of screen-time (far too long), while the limply dramatic stuff with the unfaithful Mrs. chews up another ten.
Pryor has some strong scenes here and there, but he's relying on externals to get him through.
He allows himself to be vulnerable and loving, and this works up to a point, yet the feel-good ending is a cheat (larceny cures all!) and a romance with Beverly Hills hooker Margot Kidder (who appears to have no other clients) is rather unlikely.
Taking care of Business.
**SPOILERS** Somewhat Average movie, with an above average performance by Richard Pryor, about a war veteran coming back home to find that his life turned upside down since he went away.
Caught by the North Veitnamese with his pants down Cpl. Eddie Keller, Ricard Pryor, ends up in a communist Vietnamese POW camp for five years.With nothing to eat but rice and roaches and having a pet rat as a cell-mate things pick up a bit for Eddie when he had another US POW Vinnie Diangelo, Ray Sharkey, as company but even that turned out to be a tragedy for Eddie with Vinnie dying, and without any medical care, he signed a statement saying that the US was committing war crimes in Vietnam in order to get Vinnie help.
All that did for Eddie, Vinnie seemed to have died anyway, was brand him a traitor, Eddie was later cleared of that accusation, and indefinitely holds up his severance pay for spending five years behind bamboo bars for his country.Back home things got even worse for Eddie by him first finding out that his wife Lisa, Lyne Moody,was living with another man, who together with Lisa blew all of Eddie's savings, and has a young six year old daughter who doesn't even know that he's her father and on top of all that his mom Jesse Keller, Olivia Cole, is in a nursing home that she's about to be thrown out of because there's no money to pay her bills.
With no money in his wallet and no money coming in from the US Army Eddie in an act of desperation tries to become a stick-up artiest only to fail miserably; at one point Eddie was so scared trying to rob a bank that he embarrassingly wet himself to the shock and outrage of the bank teller that he tried to rob.
Eddie finally hits it big by following two security men Tank and Mickey, Martin Azarow & Matt Clark, who work for the Fidelity Western Bank into an office building with two suitcases loaded with some $250,000.00 in cash and securities.
Catching one of the security men, Tank, in the mens room with his, not Eddie's, pants down and robbing him at "toy gun" point then taking off with the suitcase loaded with the securities, not cash, Eddie now has to find someone to convert them for him and the only one's who can do that are those who work for the mob.Richard Pryor in his second, the 1978 movie "Blue Collar" was his first, non all comedy role is both touching and courageous as Cpl.Eddie Keller who tries to make things better for himself and his mom but ends up being the real, not the made up, hero in the eyes of his friends in and out of the army.
Nice supporting roles in the movie by both Margot Kidder and Ronny Cox as high-priced hooker Toni Donovan and Eddie's fellow GI Col. Powers who tries to ease Eddie back into civilian life.Feel-good ending with Eddie chased by the mob who tried to rip off, not convert, his stolen government bonds and then attempted to murder him.
Eddie turns the tables on the mobsters and at the conclusion of the movie ends up, like the song says, taking care of business with everyone the bank the army and the nursing home that his mom is in, including himself and Toni, ending up much better off for it..
Good Dramedy.
This is definitely one of Pryor's better performances.
Maybe not his funniest but on the drama side of things the movie is thoughtful and touching at times because of his performance, and he's still funny when he needs to be.
The director/writer I think overreaches in the end but this is definitely worth watching for Pryor's performance if nothing else..
One of Richard Pryor's Best!.
Richard Pryor and Margot Kidder act in this film about a POW who returns home to the United States particularly Los Angeles, California dealing with his wife and mother.
The film has a great cast such as Olivia Cole, Lynne Moody and Anne Haney in supporting roles.
Richard Pryor was a terrific actor as well as comedian.
This film was on a DVD that I found at the store.
It's a great little gem of a movie..
Damages from War on Pryor's serious performance!!!.
Who already follow the Pryor's career will be surprised about this serious role in this anti-war movie,based on a book this picture bring to us an another and hidden Pryor's profile,without losing focus of course,he takes all bitter experience from a soldier who was at Vietinam's POW and all this is handling by USA's Army when be back,the real problem begin when he realize that he isn't hero anymore,he have judgment after he'd signs a complete confession to save a soldier's life,forgotten by his wife and worst by own country is too much for him...all mixed with good jokes and con behavior take the picture a pleasant entertainment!!
Resume: First watch: 1994 / How many: 4 / Source: TV-VHS-DVD-R / Rating: 7.
A bit too much language, but still enjoyable, and a personal favourite.
MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS I remember seeing this on video in the mid-late 80s - and still can't get a Region 2 DVD of this one, so make do with a VHS copy made many years ago.Based on James Kirkwood's novel, Pryor does his typical (sometimes foul mouthed) routines as a POW returning to find his life has fallen apart.
The early dramatic scenes have quite an impact, actually more so than the comedic scenes.Pryor tries hard with the material and there are some genuinely funny moments (the signing of the confession is one).Ronny Cox offers sturdy support and Margot Kidder plays the 'tart with a heart' who eventually drives off into the sunset with Pryor and $100,000 to boot!I've always had a soft spot for this movie, and was unjustly ignored at the box office.
Pryor's screen presence carries this one, but this is still no way a turkey..
Pryor makes it bearable..
Richard Pryor gets to really show off some talent here as an actor in this adaptation of the James Kirkwood novel.
It has good moments, but never really satisfies; it works fairly well when it gets serious but its comedy is never that funny.
Pryor really is better than the material, which doesn't achieve an effective balance between its drama and comedy.
It's not bad as yet another look at the problems of Vietnam vets readjusting to civilian life, in any event.Pryor plays Eddie Keller, who's taken as a prisoner of war during his tour in Vietnam.
When he's brought back to the States, he finds having to put up with Army red tape to be intolerable.
In addition to being in desperate need of money, he learns from his wife Lisa (Lynne Moody) that she's in a relationship with another man and that his mother Jesse (Olivia Cole) is in a nursing home - an expensive one, to boot, which is about to kick her out if they don't get paid.Eddie makes friends with a well meaning prostitute named Toni (Margot Kidder) and eventually sees a way to deal with the money problem - larceny.This wouldn't be nearly as watchable if it weren't for Pryor, who's touching as well as funny.
You feel so bad for him, in fact, that scenes in which Eddie bungles hold-up jobs to be much more pathetic than humorous - which may have been the point.
Pryors' scenes with fellow P.o.W. Vinnie (Ray Sharkey) are deeply affecting; the late Sharkey makes the most of his brief screen time.
Ronny Cox lends strong support as the colonel who tries to help Eddie upon his return to America.
Kidder is appealing and a couple of familiar character players - such as Paul Benjamin, Matt Clark, Anne Haney, Peter Jason, Caren Kaye, Sandy Ward, and the much too briefly utilized Tim Thomerson - can be seen in small roles.Ultimately, while one does want happiness and success for the Eddie character, the feel-good ending is not all that believable.
The movie is decent, but it's not memorable in any way.Six out of 10..
Richard makes it!(Possible SPOILERS).
Richard Pryor is the reason to see this movie.
He takes a somewhat ordinary story, of a soldier who returns home from a Vietnam POW camp, to a less than welcome home, and makes it a better movie.
His trying to look tough and menacing, and acting it out in front of a mirror, is really good ("Freeze, sucka!
Get DOWN!!"), and then having all his efforts totally evaporate at the bank!
A welcome movie to see, I recommend it.
Some kind of Nonsense.
This is strictly for Pryor fans.
Just because he was a great, funny guy doesn't mean this is more than a B-Movie.
The script is awful, it just meanders around constantly ridiculing crime and prisoners of war.
It balances between comedy and melodrama and keeps falling on its face doing justice to neither.
First there are 30 minutes of rather unrealistic, uninspired Vietnam prisoner of war time  the guy is playing basketball at one point...
How more can you pander to your audience?...
That prison time is boring, unconvincing and already can easily put one to sleep.
Back in the U.S. the guy for no real reason at all is considered a "war hero".
Yet he is of course quickly forgotten by the public and seems to be stumbling into all kinds of wacky mishaps.
We will soon find out.
Yawn.
There are annoying clichés: his sick mother, his little daughter he never meets, a high end whore falling in love with the hero etc.
It is very odd how this movie constantly switches from tragedy to slapstick in one instant.
Doesn't work at all.
Overall this in fact is just a bad comedy and does a disservice to prisoners of war.
Just because this guy was a great stand-up comedian, played in a few good movies and died of MS is no reason not to be annoyed by this silly, unconvincing, unfunny comedy.
But if you like Richard Pryor you will probably be thrilled by him reading 3 hours of Dadaist poetry..
"It's straight 7's for Eddie".
This movie can be brilliant in many ways.For it's mixing of Comedy and Drama.
Richard Pryor's portrayal of Vietnam vet Eddie Keller is so human,Funny,fragile,sad.But in the end.A triumph of the human spirit.He gets caught with his pants down by the enemy in Vietnam.Literally.He then is thrown in a prison camp.A friendship grows between him and a mouse then another ensues with A Pow. The viet-kong wants him to sign a document basically saying the U.S army is wrong for engaging in the war.He turns the kong general down several times.Until his POW pal Turns very ill.So in order to get his a friend a doctor he signs it and is on his way back home to the US.
He discovers a whole lot has changed since being in the prison camp.He has a daughter.His wife loves somebody else.She and her new love changed the bookstore into a novelty shop and it went bankrupt.On top of all that she mentions that Eddie's mother had a Stroke and can hardly talk.Very touching scene.
More bad news.He's behind in the nursing home payments and if he can't pay.She can't stay.
But he's expecting back pay from the military.Or so he thought.The problem is he signed that document.Military considers it a act of treason.So he can't get his back pay.
So he goes to a bar to try and come 2 a resolution and meets Toni(Margot Kidder)Very sexy as a hooker with a heart of gold in this movie.They hook up and get close.So he has to get the money up some how.So he decides to rob a couples stores and banks.Or at least tries.Until he sees these two guys with bags of money making a withdrawal out of the bank and he decides to follow them and .............
I'm telling too much.You have to watch the movie to know the rest.There are some things that aren't resolved by the movie's end.Like Eddie's relationship with his wife,daughter and the military issue.Other than that Great Movie.Great Music.Love the score and theme song.Great Performance from Richard Pryor,who puts strong emotions and movie he's made.He's a comic genius,god.The greatest in my opinion.So I would recommend u see this film for a good story,a good laugh,a good cry,and Most importantly for Richard Pryor.
see Blue Collar 1978'.
Another great film and performance from Daddy Rich.