beauzee directors/writers, watched too many Frank Capra pictures, when they concocted this awful adventure.Dustin Hoffman sleepwalks through this accountant-approved wonder, the mellowed out homeless guy, who casually saves a lot of lives, in the only good scene in the picture. SEE THE PICTURE.Chevy Chase, as the newsroom Director, who must keep an eye Hoffman and Garcia (they sit out on a high ledge, Garcia's suicide perch - he's the guy who took credit for Hoffman's heroicS) who is so bad....I can't go on...anyway, consider that his name does not appear in the movie credits.all due respect to the reviewer who called this thing a satire...but I'll call it a sad tire. (no such inspiration in the script).

Michael Neumann A small time Chicago grifter (Dustin Hoffman, doing a broad variation of Ratso Rizzo) rescues the victims of a plane crash, including hot-shot TV journalist Geena Davis, but watches down-and-out Andy Garcia take the credit and, more importantly, the million dollar reward offered by Davis' newsroom to help milk a great story. The set up is clumsy and the ending is unforgivably anticlimactic, but in between is a compact, subversive black comedy, mocking the common daydream of being an anonymous hero by showing the headline hungry press and gullible public going hog wild over an impostor. Some of the dialogue (ignoring one embarrassing speech by Davis using an onion as a visual aid) has the same myth-kicking satire of a classic Preston Sturges comedy, but the script (by the author of the similar but much more serious 'Unforgiven') is too often let down by the counterfeit screwball touches and typically glib style of director Stephen Frears. The perfect ending is also spoiled by at least ten added minutes of surplus resolution; just ignore everything after Hoffman and Davis finally confront each other during the climactic scene at the Drake Hotel.

Amy Adler Bernie LaPlante (Dustin Hoffman) is far from an ideal citizen of New York City. He's a two-bit crook and his chickens are finally coming home to roost, that is, he will be sent to prison. However, his young lawyer secures him a week "to get his affairs in order". This includes saying goodbye to his ten year old son, Joey, ditto to his ex-wife, Ev (Joan Cusack) and getting his boss to write a letter of recommendation for him before sentencing. However, one night, chaos reigns. Bernie is supposed to take his son to the movies but, in a severe thunderstorm, a plane goes down right in front of Mr. LaPlante. The door to the aircraft is blocked and a fire has started. Unbelievably, Bernie gets the door open and rescues the passengers, including hotshot reporter Gale (Geena Davis). After doing this heroic act, however, LaPante quietly heads over to his son's house. Its way too late, as Eve informs him, and she sends him packing. On the way home, further trouble arrives when his car breaks down and he must hitch a ride from homeless vet John Bubber (Andy Garcia). It is there that Bernie tells John about his courageous act, with John duly impressed. As Bernie has only one shoe from the ordeal, he leaves it with Bubber for a one-legged man of John's acquaintance. Ho, ho! Soon the press and Gale, especially, is looking for the "hero" and they offer a reward of a MILLION BUCKS to help entice him into the limelight. However, Bernie has set up another crooked meeting and gets whisked off to jail. Its John, instead, who comes forward, for he has the Cinderfeller shoe that matches the one the press has found. Now, everyone believes Bubber is the hero, and in all sincerity, his former past as a hero of Vietnam is revealed, along with other charitable acts. But, once Bernie is sprung on bail one last time, will he "spoil" the story by giving the press the real scoop about which one of them is the true hero? This is a terrific movie that belongs on a list of 100 best films. It is intelligent, humorous, and very relevant. The cast, too, is superlative, with Hoffman giving one of his best performances ever as the grumpy, law-bending Bernie. Davis, Garcia, Cusack, an uncredited Chevy Chase and all of the others are great, too. The direction of Stephen Frears is also topnotch while the script, sets, costumes, and camera work are fantastic as well. In short, this one is a genuine keeper for the ages. Be a hero or heroine to someone who has never seen it and arrange a showing soon.

parhat In the movie, after receiving an award, Gail Gayle mentions "Life is like an Onion, you peel away and the story becomes different, but when you peel everything away, everything is all a lie" as part of her News acceptance award speech. The speech represents the entire story that is like a modern day Aesop fable. Dustin Hoffman plays small time criminal who accidentally saved the life of 54 people when the plane crash landed in front of him, but someone else took the credit. Our life is basically conditioned to think that people should be given credit where credit is due, in real life, credit isn't given where credit is due. The other problem about events or historical events is that life is like an onion. When you peel them all away, nothing is really there. Things we view as hero may be not we think it is, because of our prejudices in what we view them as a perfect hero. A real hero may have none of that, we humans are full of gray areas, some we are good, some we are not so good. There's not such thing as 100% good guys and 100% bad guys. So if you have to watch this movie, what we know what we see, is not what we think it is. If you should die one day, become a spirit, you will realize that everything we hold dear and true, we're not even close. That's the Aesop of the movie. The best part of the movie is Dustin Hoffman's is at his finest, there's simply not enough screen time for him because he's just so interesting to watch. This is a highly underrated film and if you keep the idea mentioned here in perspective, you will enjoy the movie more. Just peel away your onions!