Blog #6

Hero is a word that has been thrown around to the point where people confuses it’s meaning like people who fight in war or someone who manages to save a cat from Ms. Danvers’ tree. A hero is someone who does a selfless act in aid only to get nothing in return.  In this movie the main protagonist Bernie Laplante is portrayed as a scumbag, societies lowest of the low if you will. He drinks, steals anything that can give him money or gratification, takes advantage of those who aid him, etc. Until one night while driving through the rain his car breaks down and he becomes involved in a plane accident that crashes though the Brooklyn bridge. Bernie does the opposite of what his character has been depicted from the first 25 minutes of the movie and decides to help the passengers who are trapped inside the burning plane.  Eventually he saves all the passengers only for the wrong/right motivation in which he wanted to save the boy’s father who he thought was trapped on the plane.  Bernie went through all the trails of a hero yet he has never received the credit for one since the homeless man John Bubber who Bernie hitched a ride from when he left the scene took the credit from him. John Bubber becomes a national hero and a positive symbol of human greatness.

What I like about this movie is how it incorporates humanity illusion that the world is a friendly place with realism where people are out for themselves. Like what Bernie said to his son “You have to look out for number one, you”.  Whenever a problem exist in the world especially within our country we like to think there are people out there like Bubber that will fix it for us. Like in the scene in the movie where Gail takes John out to a fancy restaurant, random strangers congratulating him for helping the passengers and said they would never do something like that. The TV station kept constantly whoring out his publicity and reported John’s achievements like saving soldiers during Vietnam. What’s sad is that the TV station only showed a couple of good things he did in the war and the public eat it all. Same can be said with what’s going on with the war in Iraq. The news stations will only report the good things that our soldiers over seas are doing and not the terrible incidents or innocent lives killed by the crossfire. Whenever Bernie tries to prove he actually saved the lives on that plane people ignore him or don’t believe him. What is another play on reality where if you have a record of good deeds and look photogenic the media wants to know everything about you like John Bubber.  Like what happen to the bombing in Time Square, if it were a stock broker or someone that came home after their service. They would be heroes, but instead it was a hotdog vendor that notices the smoke coming out of the van. The vendor was homeless and never had a resume that made him heroic in order for the media to mass market on.

In America we love our heroes to be flawless and to have high moral standards. John Bubber lied to Gail and the television station only to have a place to sleep for the night. Feeling guilty that he has taken the credit for something he never did. He uses his new found fame to encourage people to help the homeless and sick kids when he visited the hospital. Until he couldn’t take the guilt anymore and attempts suicide until Bernie convinces Bubber to continue the false publicity since he inspires people to do good or a nominal fee of Bubber’s half of his million dollars. If the public knew the truth they will automatically hate John for being a fraud and go back living where everyone is looking out for themselves. Plus the public won’t take the insult of their intelligence very well since the television station that heavily marketed John Bubber duped them for ratings. I’m in the middle since this whole philosophical motive and ideas are so grey. Sure John Bubber lied but look at the people he inspired to help. If no one claimed to save the reporter Bernie wouldn’t be out on bail, even if he went and claim his reward no one would believe him since he’s not heroic material.