The Hero: Love Story of a Spy (2003) User Reviews

A Hot Mess!

[Sherazade · 4/10 · 11 September 2006]

First things first, Preity Zinta is too much of a pretty girl to be playing a plucky little village girl and it shows so painfully here as she is miscast in the role of Reshma, a Indian-Kashmiri mountain girl who looks like she just stepped off the cover of Vogue and catches the eyes of a soldier(played by Sunny Deol) guarding the border near her village.

Second of all, does Sunny Deol ever play a jester? Why do I always see him as a stuffy cop, or detective, or goon, or tough big brother, or gangster and now here a spy???? I'm tired of seeing him, same 'Ol, same 'Ol! Break the mold Sunny!

Priyanka Chopra is wasted here as well in one of her many first films, as Shaheen Zakaria the daughter of a Pakistani-Canadian industrialist(played by Kabir Bedi) who funds and supports terrorists. Amrish Puri is the only one who holds his own as Ishak Khan, an unrelenting terrorist whom Major Arun Khanna (Deol) is hellbent on taking down. Blink and you'll miss the always jilted Parvin Dabas playing Salman, yet another unlucky guy in love.

The only good thing about this film is that it showcases a full fledge Indian/Pakistani styled wedding shot in the snowy mountains of a Canadian resort disguised as a home and I have to say that it's one of the most beautiful I have ever seen.

The name's Deol... Sunny Deol!

[Ace_of_Hearts · 19 February 2004]

Bollywood has finally found its very own James Bond in Sunny Deol. For the Hero has all the ingredients of an Indian Bond film. A story. Bad guys. Bond girls. Gadgets. And a lot of unbelievable action as in over the top.

SPOILERS

In The Hero we meet Major Arun Khanna (Sunny Deol) who is a spy for the Indian government. The Indian government has gotten wind of a group of Pakistani fundamentalists who want to free Kashmir from India. Arun Khanna goes undercover as a major in the Indian army. Stationed at the border he meets the shepardess Reshma (Preity) whom he falls in love with. When the bad guys target them at their engagement party and Reshma ends up missing, it's up to Arun to find them and take them out.

For a long time I wondered how long it would take for Bollywood to come up with its very own Bond, and now it has. This movie has all the Bond ingredients. The baddies in the form of Amrish Puri and his sidekicks are absolutely wicked. Just like some of the SPECTRE members Puri and company are deluded enough to believe in their own plans. You also have the two obligatory Bond girls. One good and obviously the love interest, the lovely Preity. And newcomer Priyanka Chopra as daughter of one of the baddies. And ofcourse we have the Indian Bond Sunny Deol. He plays the silent, strong type who tries on various disguises.

The action is rather enjoyable. The scenery is smashing. And the songs are lovely. There is one difference between The Hero and all the other Bond movies. The Hero pays more attention to the storyline than to the action and the girls as do the Bond movies. Fortunately this is a good thing, cause this movie is very enjoyable, that is if you like James Bond movies. Personally, I can't wait for the sequel.

****/5 stars

Tons of money don't make a good film!

[Peter_Young · 2/10 · 25 August 2009]

This dreadful film is a classic proof that a big-budget and innovative stunts cannot save a poor script. A director who just tries to collect many clichéd moments from different films in history cannot make a film good enough. A film cannot look new and fresh with advanced film-making when the dialogues are so ancient. A title like "The Most Expensive Indian Film Ever" cannot draw audiences to cinemas. This film was evidently treated like a good lure to make money. But happily it didn't work out. Sunny Deol stands there with no expressions. Preity Zinta may be the film's saving grace. She looks amazingly beautiful and manages to do the best of the otherwise bland role she was given. There is hardly a chemistry between Sunny and Preity, by the way. Priyanka Chopra cannot act to save her life in her debut role (thankfully she would later improve). The result is a disastrous, pretentious flick for children, who too will get bored at some point. Avoid.

Loved the tremendous scene of the 2nd wedding

[interestingtidbit · 7/10 · 27 March 2006]

No big spoilers, but a few very small ones.

Someone mentioned that they didn't like the movie due to making Pakastanis out to be bad guys. They didn't understand the movie. The hero actually catches a Pakastan flag and honors it, stating openly that his problem was with the terrorists, NOT the people of the country. One of the side characters does insult a Pakastani at the end of the movie, but he's just in character - he was rebuked earlier by the male hero for his hard heart.

I am new to Bollywood films, so I can't compare it to others. But I was amazed by how much was in this movie. It's an event. Hollywood would have probably made Part 1 and Part 2 instead -- but I guess that's what Bollywood does, it "gives you your money's worth".

The second wedding scene was great. To spend over an hour deepening a love story, only to have the one tear and other details in this scene, was very moving. The bracelet, the slight shaking of the brides head when getting the bracelet, the eye movements of the bride after the big dance, ...

To enjoy this movie, don't think too hard. Yes, it has incredible one-in-a-billion coincidences. Just ignore it, and go on. Lots of action, a deep love story, some crafty plots, and some catchy tunes. I've seen far worse!

Oh, and if you are from the West, be warned. It's all about Muslim sensibilities, and to a lesser extent Hindu. Christians don't exist, nor do some western sensibilities. For example, there is a arrogance/pride song, where the hero (a spy) tries to impress others in his Islamic faith - much different from Christian virtue of humility, as it is all about his human strength in keeping external rules.

It's great to see virtue and purity and virginity so greatly honored.

Disaster..worst movie of the year

[Li_85 · 1/10 · 6 October 2008]

The Hero is another one of Sunny Deols disaster movies. Sunny enjoys making movies, which he thinks he is loved by audience. Yes, but only people you know, not millions in the world. He once again beats up 100's of guys alone, When will he learn he is not Supermen. He does the amazing stunts with a big belly. He even out smarts the English Special services. I can go on discriminating this guy, but he will continue to make Flops. This was Priyanka Chopra's second film, where she didn't look pretty as usual. Maybe, because her role didn't demand this. Sadly, Priyanka couldn't save this film from being a SUPER FLOP. Preity is annoying and delivers a boring performance. Overall, this movie was awful and is a big waste of time.

Review about the movie

[akrambkk · 2/10 · 7 October 2014]

0. Sense of NYC was totally looks unreal. 1. Hero give 6 months school fees to the girl's care taker family, and next sooner he appoint her to work for him & country (Many language errors in the dialog. 2. His Name is Wahid Khan from Indonesia, an Indonesian guy with name 'Khan' and two Desi friends or assistant make sense. 3. He said first he don't drink because he's Muslim but was drinking later. 4. While he changed drinking his glass, and was drinking full glass but song was still continues (he was signing the song) 5. There are couple of more error in the movie about language grammar and story. But it's okay thats too small.

Over all it's an average movie, often changed from the topic and theme of the story but still its okay.

Deol proves himself!!!

[Menancing_Ninja · 8/10 · 9 September 2006]

This movie is said to be the most expensive film till date made by an Indian filmmaker.Anil Sharma is quite an old film maker who has experienced many things in his life and has thought of how to make his movies.Casting Sunny Deol was the first right decision he made as no other actor could have taken his place for such a role.It was a difficult role which needed lots of emotional and action packed activities.Sunny performs amazingly.It is said that he actually jumped the final jump in the movie from the top of the mountain.That's incredible. The movie is a love story of a spy as the name suggests.If you can imagine Sunny looking different in his make ups, then you might understand on what basis the movie has been made.Pritey Zinta delivers a good performance.The rest of the cast gives in their hard work and Amrish Puri yet again proves that he is the best Villain there is.

Songs are average while the action sequences(especially with the wrestler in the lab in Canada is rocking!!!)are just too good.Allan Amin yet again proves his modern mind and his outlook. Overall, it is fun movie and a great time pass.

Cool action movie!

[Asbohra · 10/10 · 29 January 2007]

The Hero is true to its title, especially with Sunny Deol playing the action hero. This is a the second Desi James Bond type movie that Sunny is doing (the first was Himmat in '96). The movie has an interesting direction, thanks to Anil Sharma, who directed the awesome patriotic action film, Gadar. Action in this movie is superb, especially the scene where Sunny falls 11,000 feet down and does not even get hurt (Sunny is known for doing his own death-defying stunts). I like that fight with that giant guy (I forget his name, but I know he is a famous wrestler) and the train climax. Amrish Puri is the greatest and most intriguing villain ever to hit the big screens, and only he could pull off his role as the ISI agent with élan (I do miss seeing him, but he will be remembered forever). (Only flaw was playing the same song repeatedly as it got annoying). The confrontation scenes between Amrish Puri and Sunny Deol are definitely worth watching. Anyways, there are twists and turns to keep you at the edge of your seat. Just sit back and relax and enjoy the movie!! Cheers!!

Story was brilliant

[gams-24441 · 10/10 · 18 May 2021]

I think it is just a matter of time in which this movie was released , if this were released in 2015 to 2020 .

This movie could have done better.

Better then tiger zinda hai and all.

Classic Indian Spy Film

[atul-sharma172 · 10/10 · 10 August 2018]

The Hero is an Indian reincarnation of James Bond with none other than Sunny Deol. The reason I scored it a perfect ten is become it was my the first ever Spy Film. I remember watching this film when it was released in theaters. I was jusy 7 at that time. At that age, I didn't knew about Bond, Indo-Pak rivalry, Covert Spies or any other related thing and I just enjoy the movie experience.

Anil Sharma ---

[rvnrr · 8/10 · 29 June 2006]

Just want to say, that if you watch the movie with some guys enjoying a drink, you really enjoy it.

This movie was then the most expensive movie made in India.

however, what classifies this movie are some earthy dialogues like 'Daadi badhaane se koi Mussalman nahi ban jaata' There are also some good Pakistani characters this movie (played by Pravir Dabas and Priyanka Chopra) and it says that it is bad to burn a Pakistani Flag. So, this is nit as Jingoistic as other Anil Sharma/Sunny D movies.

This movie is as nonsensical as other such movies and can be enjoyed only if you are drinking with your buddies.

sunny/sharma does it again...

[nyc1179 · 10/10 · 4 May 2003]

THE HERO is one of the best spy thriller from india... right behind AANKHEN some 30 years ago, ironically that blockbuster starred SUNNY'S father megastar DHARMENDRA... THE HERO is technically as good as big hollywood productions, stunts are breathtaking, movie is highly entertaining and for all indians who like good movies this must be seen...

Good Movie (except for Political Mishmash)

[caesarian · 19 December 2003]

Sunny does a good job. Politics are the only thing that stand between good and great. Pakistanis are not evil. Muslims are not evil. Kashmir is a land blighted as much by ISI as by the Indian Army.

That said, there were some problems with the plot. However, those used to Deol's fanciful movies will ignore this oversight.

Outstanding movie

[rajputshri · 10/10 · 15 November 2021]

Sunny deol , priti , priyanka supeb work in this movie story and script and acting scene superb fantastic I like this movie watch many times because of anil sharma made it very high clearity and Superhit.