Blog # 9 eassy # 2

Brandon Miller
10/20/10
Blog # 9



Defining a hero is hard. In American culture, we define a hero as someone who is hard working, honest, helpful, intellectual, dependable/reliable, and puts others life's above them self's because it is 'the right thing to do. But this is hardly the rule. Most of the time, a hero is really just someone who was at the right place at the right time and decided to help. That is exactly the case in the Movie Hero, where we ask, what is a hero and who can be one.


First off, anyone can be a 'hero'. It is not something you are born with, its not in your blood, and you cant train to be a hero. There is no test, or special right of passage. There is no wrong or right person to be a hero. Hero proves this by having Bernie Laplante a low life, con artiest, who clearly only looks out for himself. And yet he is the hero of the movie, who pulls 54 people out of a crashed burning plane. Given the description of a hero, you would NEVER expect this lieing, excuses making, thief to do anything heroic. And yet he does. Does his characteristics, make him any less of a hero? Even though he saved so many people, does his past actions make him any less of a hero?


Now, lets take another character, John Bubber. A Vietnam war veteran, who is now homeless and living in his car. He constantly thinks of others, he helps Bernie when he needs a ride and even decides to to give someone else a shoe when he could have used it. Would you ever expect him to claim HE was the one that pulled all those people out of the plane and take the Million dollar reword? The only person to try and stick their neck out for others, and has any quality's that would make for a hero, is the one that tells the lie in order to get the money. He puts up this whole charade and continues to lie about saving the people, mean while Bernie is serving time in jail and could really use the money.


Now, lets take a deeper look at this. John was wrong for doing what he did, But as they say there is a method to the madness. One thing that needs to be considered is that, John was homeless and kind hearted. He was not some corporate big shot, who already had a home and money. He could really use the million dollars, and he could have helped others with it. He still shouldn't have done it. Now with Bernie He also could have used the money and he earned it. And even with his crocked past, he still deserved it for helping them.


What is interesting about the movie to me is that the movie doesn't really chooses a side on which one is wrong and which is right. They try to show them both from a neutral stand point. With Bubber, they show how uncomfortable he is at what he is doing in that he was not expecting all the money and did not want to take advantage of the news reporter Gayle. Then again when he wanted to commit suicide and leave to note saying what he did wrong. But they also show he was the right man when he try's to convince the people to bring the poor blankets and also how when laplant talks to the bartender and asks him if he told him he did it would he believe him? I think the movie try to let us decide who is right and who is wrong by showing us the positives and negatives of both characters so it really comes done to us.



I think the bar scene poses a very important question for all of us and is the focal point of the movie. When Berrni asks the bartender, “If I said I was the one who pulled them out of the plane, would you believe me?” The bar tender looks at him and tells him no. That he and Bernie do not have that spirit that Bubber has. I think this is a critical point in the movie because it asks another important question. Not only who IS a hero but what do we in today's 'society who would be accepted as a hero. After the events of 9/11 and the Iraq war, if a person from Iraq or that area but has nothing to do with the war. If he save those people from the plane, would the people accepted that? Would the media even show him? Would they accept someone who was a criminal or a prostitute? It is not only did you do the act but are you presentable to the public.


Are you marketable?



So, what is a hero? Because Bernie certainly dose not fit the bill. But even so he still risked his life for the sake of others. Not to mention Bubber who had the makings of the hero still did something wrong but tried to make it right. Lets say it was Hitler who saved those people from the plane. Would he still be consider a hero despite everything else he has done? Yes, no, I don't know. After doing this assignment and thinking about it, I now have no idea what makes a hero.