by Frank Calvillo
Looking back on the many stand up comedians who attempted to make the jump from the comedy club to the movie set, none of them seemed to have the knack for honing their talents to fit the silver screen quite like Richard Pryor. His comic timing and his ability to draw laughs simply through facial features easily sealed his fate as a comedy movie star.
Pryor had such a knack for comedy, however, that it oftentimes becomes easy to forget that he was also a genuinely good actor who had the ability to bring heart and pathos to even the most outrageous of scenes. It’s therefore not too surprising that he was eventually given the chance to exercise his dramatic chops in the little-known Some Kind of Hero.
Vietnam soldier Eddie Keller (Pryor) has spent six years in a POW camp, subjected to various sorts of abuse and malnourishment before finally being released. Upon his return home, however, Eddie’s current life is a shell of the one he left behind. His wife has left him, his mother has suffered a stroke, and he has no way to cover his money worries. With no funds coming in from the Army, and only the company of a sensitive hooker named Toni (Margot Kidder) to help him through, Eddie is at a loss on what to do until he decides to become a criminal in an effort to solve his mounting financial burdens.
Its more than obvious that Some Kind of Hero was originally conceived as a straight drama. The screenplay proudly wears its dramatic aspirations all over itself from beginning to end, never missing the opportunity to tug at the audience’s heartstrings. This would be annoying if it weren’t for the fact that the devices work, mainly because Pryor’s mix of gravitas and honesty makes them work.
It also helps that each of the dramatic points in Some Kind of Hero ring true to life with regards to what many Vietnam vets endured both as POWs and returning soldiers. Moments such as Eddie signing a confession forced upon him by his captors in exchange for having the camp doctor examine his dying best friend Vinny (Ray Sharkey), and later on having to defend the reasoning behind his signed confession in front of an Army judge, are the kind of dramatic moments which resonate in terms of both their power and heart.
As is usually the case with most star vehicles, however, studio input/interference is almost always a given. In Some Kind of Hero, executives in charge of the film felt that Pryor’s screen persona was too established to be accepted by the public in a straight drama and insisted that a number of comedic scenes be written in as a result.
Pryor admirably tries to balance the two tones of the film, but the comedy aspects are only funny because he himself is funny. The comedy would work in a different movie, but oftentimes its more of a distraction than anything else here and seems to be awkwardly competing with the seriousness of the story. There’s a little bit of narrative whiplash for the audience when watching certain scenes, such as when Eddie goes to apply for a loan where an official simply tells him “no” as a bank sign proclaiming “we never say no” sits behind her. The scene would work if it weren’t for the fact that Pryor launches into a frustrated rant about how his problems are mounting with no end in sight immediately after. That moment not only undercuts the comedy, but it almost makes us feel guilty for laughing at such a joke.
It’s really a shame that Pryor’s dramatic work in Some Kind of Hero wasn’t lauded as much as it should have been. There’s a captivating earnestness to Pryor’s performance as a forgotten soldier that isn’t the usual gimmick of a movie star trying to stretch, but rather a truly gifted actor showing the many layers of his talent. Pryor understands the pain and the frustrations, the fears and the struggles of such a man, and is able to convey them beautifully without the slightest hint of sarcasm or irony.
As the female lead, Kidder is game, but doesn’t have much more to do than play “the girl.” Why the filmmakers didn’t actually care enough to explore her character more, as well as the excellent chemistry she shares with Pryor, is beyond me.
Its far better to think of Some Kind of Hero as a drama with comedic elements rather than a comedy with dramatic ones. Regardless, though, it’s the comedy which gives Some Kind of Hero a decidedly patchy kind of feel that it’s never really able to shake. If only the suits had let their more than capable leading man play the story out like the straight, beautiful drama it naturally was. It’s even more unfortunate because the film does offer up some interesting and telling comments about returning vets and the harsh treatment society throws at them after calling them heroes.
The Package
Apart from the standard scene selection, there are sadly no special features.
The Lowdown
One of the greatest comic actors of his generation proves he’s much more by giving a truly moving performance in a noticeably uneven film.
