'Local Hero' - Movie Review

I saw this movie around the time it came out (1983). I saw it because I really liked "Gregory's Girl" (director Bill Forsyth's previous movie), but I was indifferent to this one - although my friends loved it. I suspect I wouldn't like "Gregory's Girl" much these days: too cringe-worthy, which bothered me less at the time.

MacIntyre (Peter Riegert) is sent from Texas to purchase a Scottish town and its bay so that it can be replaced by an oil refinery. He's joined by a local Scottish representative of his company - a very young and nerdy-looking Peter Capaldi. The town is enthusiastic about the pay-day headed their way, but they deliberately string MacIntyre along in an attempt to increase the pay-out. At the same time, MacIntyre is trying to understand the odd demands of the eccentric head of the company (Burt Lancaster) and falling in love with the town.

It seems my taste in humour hasn't changed much as I was still only mildly amused by this one. I was mostly trying to find something "heart-warming" during the pandemic ... It's charming, with a classic setup of an almost-idyllic village full of eccentric characters. But I didn't laugh much.