James Hitchcock
There seems to be a fundamental difference of opinion between the British and their continental neighbours about how to deal with foreign- language films; we prefer subtitling, whereas they prefer dubbing. Americans, however, seem equally allergic to both dubbed dialogue and subtitles, so have come up with a third way of dealing with movies made in some incomprehensible foreign lingo; they simply remake them as American movies. "My Father the Hero" is an example of this process, one which seemed much in vogue during the nineties. It is a remake of a French film called "Mon Pere ce Heros" and, like that film, stars Gerard Depardieu as the heroic father of the title. (There is, of course, a slight difference in meaning between the French title and the English one; perhaps the translator skipped class on the day his French teacher was explaining the uses of the demonstrative adjective). The film is centred upon teenager Nicole, the daughter of a French father and American mother. Her parents are divorced and since their divorce Nicole, who lives with her mother in New York, has had little contact with her father, Andre, who has returned to France. She cannot speak French and even dislikes her French-sounding Christian name, preferring to be known by the more American "Nicky". And then one day Andre turns up, offering to take her on holiday to the Bahamas. While there, Nicky meets and falls for a handsome seventeen-year-old boy named Ben and (for reasons best known to herself) decides that the best way to impress him is to tell him a series of lies:-Lie 1. That she is eighteen years old. (No Nicky, you're fourteen and don't look any older, so even if Ben does go for older women he's not going to swallow that one). Lie 2. That she already has a boyfriend. (Look Nicky, that's what you tell a boy when you're hoping to put him off. Not when you're trying to encourage him). Lie 3. That her boyfriend is an older man who is not only extremely jealous but also has a prison record. (And if that doesn't frighten Ben into running a mile, I don't know what will). Lie 4. That her father is a convicted armed robber, that her mother is a prostitute and that she herself is a recovering drug addict. (Ooh, Nicky, aren't you just making yourself sound like love's young dream?) To round off this catalogue of mendacity, Nicky tells Ben that Andre is actually her lover. (Weird, or what?) This untruth quickly finds its way around the resort where they are staying, so that before long all the holidaymakers are convinced that Andre is involved in a sexual relationship with an under-age girl whom he is passing off as his daughter, although none of them actually take the seemingly obvious step of reporting him to the police. About the only person unaware of what is going on is Andre himself, who cannot understand why his fellow-guests shun him after he treats them to a rendition of "Thank Heaven for Little Girls" at a talent contest. Eventually, Nicky decides that she has no option but to let Andre in on the secret, and he decides that he will have to play along with her lies in order not to spoil her chances with Ben. (Seriously weird, or what?) It is many years since I saw "Mon Pere ce Heros", so I will not attempt a direct comparison, but I must say that I loathed "My Father the Hero". One problem was with the character of Nicky, whom the scriptwriter obviously saw as a teenage romantic comedy heroine but who comes across as a particularly obnoxious little brat, even leaving aside the fact that she tells lies about her blameless father which in the real world (as opposed to the fantasy world in which the film is obviously set) could have resulted in his being sent to jail. She is the sort of girl who thinks that she can get away with being as sullen, bad-tempered, rude and ungrateful as she likes; both her parents feel the lash of her tongue. I felt sorry for Ben, and kept hoping that he would have the good sense to ditch Nicky and find a nicer girl closer to his own age. Katherine Heigl has since gone on to become a well-known Hollywood name, but I must say she did not show a lot of promise in her teenage years. Three years after this film she went on to make the even more dreadful "Prince Valiant". Someone must have thought that it would be a good idea to get Depardieu to reprise his role from "Mon Pere ce Heros", but that somebody had obviously forgotten that Depardieu, a fine- sometimes electrifying- actor in his native tongue, cannot act for toffee in English, a language he does not speak with any fluency. Here (as in some of his other English-language movies) he falls back on a sort of "amiable slob" persona, which makes it difficult to imagine that Andre would ever be taken seriously when, as part of his attempts to assist Nicky's romance, he tries to invent all sorts of stories about his life as an international adventurer. My main problem with the film, however, is that its central premise is just screwed-up. A teenage girl who could behave in the way Nicky behaves in this film, regardless of what the film-makers might have you believe, would not be a loveably kooky romantic comedy heroine. She would probably be a delinquent in need of treatment for some serious mental health issues. This must be one of the weirdest comedies of the last few decades. And I don't mean that in a good way. 3/10
Uriah43
All "Andre" (Gerard Depardieu) wants is to spend some quality time with his 14 year-old daughter "Nicole" (Katherine Heigl). So he takes her to Jamaica for a nice vacation. However, when she gets there she happens to fall in love with a young man named "Ben" (Dalton James) and in order to impress him says that she is actually 18 and that Andre is her lover who rescued her from a life of crime and drugs. One thing leads to another and soon the entire resort is under the impression that Andre is a child molester and treat his friendly gestures with complete disdain. Meanwhile, Nicole discovers that in order to continue the ruse she has to continue stretching the truth even more out-of-balance than ever before. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that, in spite of the risqué subject matter, this turned out to be a nice little comedy. I especially liked the scene where Andre is asked to play the piano and he chooses a song that infuriates the crowd. In any case, I enjoyed this movie and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.
slightlymad22
Gerard Depardieu stars as Andre, a divorced Dad taking his 14 year old daughter (Katherine Heigl) on holiday. She is mad at him over a previous issue, and acts like a spoilt brat for the entire movie. Almost as soon as they land, she takes a shine to Ben (Dalton James a good looking 20 odd year old playing a teenager) and starts off lying to impress him, it starts with her age, then she reveals Andre is not her father, but her lover.Here is where the movie falls apart a bit, as t fails to take advantage of all the hilarious situations that could come from this situation, and pretty much plays it safe.As for the cast, Depardieu is the star of the show, and he gets the main laughs. Heigl is cute enough and she looks good in a thong bikini, but her acting is not up to scratch, which is more evident when she needs to cry. James reminds me of a young Tom Cruise, and should of had a bigger career.It's not an Oscar worthy picture, but there's a certain type of sweetness at the core of this movie. I liked it.
