User Reviews

Okay, so I first saw this movie when I was about 9. And I thought it was hilarious. But really, it is so wack. Very messed up but honestly, it's not horrible? The girl lies throughout the movie and it's about ...well, men? It's a good movie to watch when your scared to be alone and want to have something on to distract you or while your cooking something at night and feel scared.

A teenage girl (Katherine Heigl) on vacation in the Bahamas with her divorced father (Gerard Depardieu) tries to impress a potential boyfriend by saying that her father is actually her lover.

There are a number of strange things about this film. Fans of director Steve Miner might be interested, and Katherine Heigl fans may want to see her first big role. And then there is Depardieu, who was huge forever but might not have been as big in America. I first saw this film, as many people did, when it first came out, but it actually is more enjoyable now (2016) because of where those involved ended up.

But really, is it not strange to make a family film about an accused child molester? We probably should not be laughing at a man who is repulsing his friends because they think he is sleeping with a child (who also happens to be his daughter).

This is a great comedy and I recommend it to many viewers. The most hilarious scene in my opinion is when Depardieu is playing the piano in a bar; he doesn't know that his daughter is trying to pass him off as her boyfriend, and he's singing "Thank Heaven for Little Girls" ... all the patrons except for one woman walk out in disgust, thinking he's a child molester! That scene is absolutely priceless and will leave you splitting your sides, guaranteed.

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 overall. 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.

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

Just a funny movie!! A movie you can enjoy to laugh without anything bad. My family and I have enjoyed this movie repeatedly throughout the years!

I have really enjoyed several movies by Gérard Depardieu and expected I'd like this movie a lot more than I did. The biggest reason was that I just didn't find the movie very interesting or funny--so, it didn't hold my interest. Also, although he does NOT sleep with his headstrong daughter, the idea that she is lying by telling everyone that he is her much older lover is just plain icky! Yes, I know there is no incest and I know that nobody around them knows he really is her father, but I found that any kid passing her dad off as her sexual paramour is too yucky and prevents the movie from truly being funny. In addition, I really didn't like this little brat very much. Apart from her lies, she seemed very sassy and self-involved. I would have preferred if somehow she'd gotten her "come-uppance" and somehow been punished, as I just didn't like her.

This movie, to me, is comfort food to my soul. I can't explain it. It's not an Oscar worthy picture, but there's a certain type of sweetness at the core of this movie, that seems to reach out and grab you. It's one of those movies that you break out and watch while you eat a quart of ice cream and cry over a long, tiring day. And somehow the movie manages to reach you. Maybe it's the way each character interacts. Or the wonderful island music that kind of takes you away. It has an innocence that touches you. A charm that many movies have lost. Maybe because it's such a simple story, it's not trying to hard to disarm you, so you get to enjoy the entire thing for exactly what it is. A cute, simplistic, coming of age romance. Three thumbs up ;]

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.

Hated this movie. Bratty teenager. Dopey dad. Who lets their teen walk around a resort with her thong swimsuit up her butt? Stupid movie. Glad I didn't pay for it.

First time I watched this movie was on Laser Disc about 5 years ago. I liked it so much I taped it from HBO a couple of years later. The plot is a wee bit cliche, but there are many unexpectedly entertaining scenes, like when Gerard Depardieu (Andre) sang 'Thank Heavens for Little Girls', inoblivious to the fact that the audience thought he was a paedophile, and all those fights between Katherine Heigl (Nicole) and James Dalton (Ben) were just so... amusing, especially with Dalton being impossibly cute and all. Anyway, now I've finally bought the DVD and I'm re-watching it regularly.

Nicole (Katherine Heigl) is a 15 year old living with her divorced mother in Manhattan. She is forced to go on vacation with her French father Andre (Gérard Depardieu). She insists on calling him Andre. She hates being in an old people's resort in The Bahamas. She falls for local Ben (Dalton James). To make herself look more mature, she tells him that she's 16 and a secret mistress to Andre while pretending to be his daughter. A rumor of their disturbing relationship soon spreads throughout the resort. Nicole keeps adding to her tall tale.

Katherine Heigl started to be hot as an underage teen. Sometimes that got played up in her early movies. This one shines a bright spotlight on the issue. Dalton James looks a lot older than his character who is suppose to be 17. The whole underage issue is awkward and keeps any comedy from being funny. Gérard Depardieu may be funny to the French but he is not that funny in English. There is no way his flailing around could overcome the movie's inherent awkwardness. When he starts going with the lie, it turns from bad to annoyingly stupid.

Charming film. Laughed pleasantly. I was taken with the piano music that Depardieu played toward the end. Can anyone identify it for me? A Beethoven or Mozart slow piece??? Thanks. Depardieu was very patient in a dilemma that is sadly all too common in our day, the estrangement of the divorced parent from their child. The child grows up without them, the estranged parent dreams of making it all better and creating a better connection. The girl behaved like a teenager in such a situation. The author managed to find true beauty and redeeming emotions in this all too common and sad situation of our modern day. Depardieu is wonderful, the girl beautiful, the boy delightful.

and parading around a 14-year-old girl in a thong swimsuit is one of them. To fans of this movie, I'd like to ask: would you allow your daughter to walk around a resort dressed like that? And would your 14-year-old be able to handle the reaction she'd get from men? If yes, I'd like to know why, on both counts. A suit like that is a clear invitation to men; it's hypocritical to suggest that's not.

And on another point, what teenage girl would ever claim her father was her lover, without the excuse of severe mental problems? That's almost as disgusting as the swimsuit.

Simply put, some things are just not funny or appropriate, and they never will be.

Before I get into the actual merits of the film, it would be extremely remiss to not preface that with the real reason behind how and why this film came to be in the first place, a remake of a French film that was made only 3 years prior. For those of you who don't already know, Gerard Depardieu is basically a living legend in French cinema, so why not for American cinema too? Surely the whole world will love him just as much as the French do! In a mouthful, that's taking a lot for granted.

Personally I never understood the mass appeal of this man in France. He's an A-list actor there, and while I don't begrudge him that, he's also become a bit of a phenomenon. In fact, you really don't have the American equivalent. To make it clearer, Americans really don't have ONE guy upon who's shoulder they can rest the entire history of American cinema. Gerard Depardieu is basically that guy in France. He's essentially to film what Elvis Presley was to music. This film was the film that was intended to launch Depardieu's acting debut in America, and make him a household name in America, so after being almost universally panned by critics, why didn't it work?

Of all the screenplays they could have chosen for an American breakout feature, this one really was a curious choice. It's a film that deals with an incestuous, pedophilic subject. Europeans find this cute and funny, and the idea of older/younger relationships, as well as coming of age stories were a bit of a guilty pleasure over there for awhile, whereas those type of themes tend to creep out most Americans to the point where they would have trouble appreciating the comedy and irony in this type of film. That being said, even in Europe this type of pseudo-sex comedy was already on the way out by the mid 90s anyway. The "pseudo-sexual" aspect in and of itself is at the core of this film's lack of appeal to an American Audience. It's NOT really a sex comedy. It's PG rated with little to no sexual intrigue, so it's not going to appeal to young adults, and it's sure as hell not the type of thing most Americans would want to show to their kids.

So how did the "Americanization" of this massive cultural disconnect go? Simply put, not well! For starters, French humour relies heavily on character comedy. As such, erratic mood swings and exaggerated reactions are common in French comedies. The end result is, Depardieu's acting comes across as forced; he overacts basically, and in combination with his thick accent and scripted English expressions that only a native English speaker would say, it comes across as extremely awkward and wooden. It's like trying to tell a joke in a foreign language when you barely understand the words coming out of your mouth. It's hard to distinguish when he's trying to be funny or when he's trying to be serious, and unlike actors like Michael Caine, he's bad at blending the two.

One thing I find quite funny is how they tried to soften Depardieu's character in the American version to make him more likeable. For example, in the original, he beats his daughter twice, and he beats the woman he met at the resort once. All times in a matter of fact way as if not intended to illicit any type of audience reaction. Not so in the American Version. How's that for a cultural disconnect? In this version he comes across as more silly and light hearted, whereas in the original he comes across as a bit of a crank with a serious anger problem, and not likeable at all. There's definitely a "please like me!" aspect to this film which you'd probably only pick up on if you saw the original, but I definitely couldn't stop thinking about it, watching this.

So how did this film compare to the original? Believe it or not, I still thought this film was slightly better than the original. Even though most of the scenes are essentially copy and pasted, this director staging the scenes more naturally and less forced. In the original, one plot premise is constantly feeding into another. He also quite sensibly cut out the violent altercation where Depardieu punches out the resort's cook, right before he undergoes his failed attempt to rescue his daughter. In the original he's whisked into an ambulance, and never gets charged for commiting assault, whereas in this film he's brought back to the guesthouse to sleep it off. Again, much more natural and less forced, this being the most extreme example of that.

Ultimately though, neither are very good films. I suppose it didn't hurt that Katherine Heigl is much more attractive than the girl in the original film. Opposing that are things like the speedboat scene which in this film is more over-the-top than in the original, plus the entire premise itself comes across as forced, moreso in this film, especially when Depardieu's character spontaneously starts singing a song about little girls, completely oblivious to the fact that everyone at the resort thinks he's a pedophile. The scene that really kills it for me though in both films is the scene towards the end where the father is hiding in the bushes feeding lines to his daughter as she speaks to her male love interest in the film. So needlessly ridiculous.

I watched this, just the other night, it's okay entertainment and agree the funniest part is when Depardieu is singing "Thank Heaven", he also reminds me of the French version of Richard Gere, both have rather huge noses, (Depardieu looks like he's going down the same path as Marlon Brando)Depardieu needs to lay off the French crusine, this guy is a blimp and this movie is more than 10 years old, i haven't seen him recently but bet he's heavier, anyhow, i think he does a fine job with the script he's given, he alone carries this movie, (Lauren Hutton is given a small part) back when he was gaining momentum in the U.S. as a viable star, though accomplished in France as a major star and (believe it or not)sex symbol, obviously the sex symbol status was from his earlier days, i give it 6 out of ten.

About one step above an Olsen's twins film, there's a nary a surprise in store here except for how repulsive the bloated, hunchbacked Depardieu looks walking around the beach without a shirt on. This guy was supposed to be some sort of heartthrob? Quasimodo hubba hubba? Well, whatever.

Katherine Heigl's a great actress, whose career over the last several years has displayed a lot of her potential as both a comedic and dramatic actress, but this movie definitely didn't do anything to offer her a break-out role. Her vapid character lacks any trace of personality or self-esteem, spending her entire vacation crushing on a cute boy that she thinks is the greatest guy in then world (basically because he's a cute boy), yet she can't be honest with him for two seconds. Ladies, let me tell you something; if a guy's really into you, he's not going to stomp off in a huff because you tried to pass your dad off as your boyfriend. He may be a little confused about why you'd do something so silly, contrived, and um...incestuous, but in the end it's just going to be something you'll laugh together about.

The plot and dialogue hits every clche' right on cue. No originality and no wit...but it's rilly, rilly SWEET and Ben's rilly, rilly cute so viewers who think Titanic is the greatest movie ever made will of course say this movie is great because they won't notice that it doesn't have a brain in its head. One star.

What a great movie this is. I found it full of the delightfully unexpected pain of being a single father of a teenage girl. And it is set in a tropical island 'paradise'as well.

Gerard Depardeiux brings his special European flair to this story about a divorced father of a teenage girl. They are on holiday together and she begins to add to the excitement on the island in many unexpected ways. But you will need to see the film for yourself to see all the hilarious situations they find for themselves.

There are a few cult classics which all teens should see. This movie should be added to the list. In addition to Dirty Dancing, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, Rocky Horror Picture Show and Animal House, My Father the Hero should be required film study. Watch it as if you had a teenage daughter and you'll be rolling with laughter. Watch it with your teenage daughter and prepare to be laughed at for months.

This film gets a bum rap and I really don't get why. Maybe it's because they showed some 15 year old butt for a few seconds. I went in with very low expectations and was pleasantly surprised. The movie is warm, charming and actually funny at times. Worth a watch.

This movie is a funny comedy about a father and daughter vacationing at some tropical island,where the daughter falls for some boy and trying to pass for what she thinks is "cool",she makes up a preposterous story about her father. I read some of the negative comments,i think those people didn't get the main point of this movie,that exactly because the lie is so preposterous,all the situations are so funny. Besides the funny situations ,the movie has a few nice points to make,that young people often lie to appear "cool" but the only cool thing of course is to be who you are.Then,also it makes a nice point even though its exaggerated of course,what hardships good parents have to go through for their children's happiness.Also,that parents ,sometimes can also learn from their kids about their own life. Depardieu is great in this,and Heigl is also good.i don't agree that there is a huge difference between this version and the French one. In the French one,Depardieu has naturally some more facility with the language but he does a good job in English,also the American version has better production values than the french one and has some extra jokes about what Americans think about the French stereotype,which are funny and don't exist in the French version.