Hero at Large (1980)

An idealistic but struggling actor finds his life unexpectedly complicated when he stops a robbery while wearing the costume of Captain Avenger, a superhero character of a film he is hired ... See full summary »

Director:

Martin Davidson

Writer:

AJ Carothers

Stars:

John Ritter, Anne Archer, Bert Convy

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Ritter	...	Steve Nichols
Anne Archer	...	J. Marsh
Bert Convy	...	Walter Reeves
Kevin McCarthy	...	Calvin Donnelly
Harry Bellaver	...	Eddie
Anita Dangler	...	Mrs. Havacheck
Jane Hallaren	...	Gloria Preston
Leonard Harris	...	Mayor
Rick Podell	...	Milo
Allan Rich	...	Marty Fields
Kurt Andon	...	Fireman
Gerry Black	...	Hero at Fire
Tony Cacciotti	...	Anthony Casselli
William Bogert	...	TV Moderator
Joyce Brothers	...	Herself (as Dr. Joyce Brothers)

Storyline

An idealistic but struggling actor finds his life unexpectedly complicated when he stops a robbery while wearing the costume of Captain Avenger, a superhero character of a film he is hired to to promote. He decides to dabble at being a superhero only to find that it is more difficult and dangerous than he ever imagined.

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Plot Keywords:

superhero | robbery | actor | costume | morality | 

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Taglines:

Help is on the way!

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 June 1980 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Manhattan Hero

Filming Locations:

26 Grove Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kings Road Entertainment, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The fictitious actor playing Captain Avenger in the movie in the movie was Ryan McGraw.

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Goofs

As Steve sits in his cab listening to a portable police scanner, he is still moving the tuner (showing needle movement) while the dispatcher can be clearly heard giving the information about the fleeing criminals.

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Quotes

[repeated line]
Steve Nichols: [as Captain Avenger] It doesn't matter who I am!

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Connections

References Dracula (1979)

User Reviews

A small film with a heroic message.

You might want to compare this film with a film called Hero, staring Dustin Hoffman. Both films are about ordinary people who perform extraordinary actions, thereby becoming "heroes". In Hoffman's film the main character is a sleaze who's philosophy is do unto other before they get a chance to do unto you. Ritter, on the other hand is a nice guy who is seduced by the glory of being heroic. Hoffman spends most of the movie trying to avoid recognition for his heroic acts while Ritter becomes caught up in a scheme to capitalize on people's need for heroes. Both men's lives are held up as evidence that all of us have the capacity to be a hero under the right circumstances. Both films are inspiring with important things to say. Hero At Large however is a small film while Hero is a big budget film with major actors. I thoroughly enjoyed both but by comparison, Hero beats you over the head with its message. I can't help liking Hero At Large just a little better.