Since Jon Jacobs wrote this film, you can expect at least one moment of New Age/mystical nonsense dialogue that will seem out of place and forced. That scene here involves some people in the desert telling our heroes about energy and visions. What does it have to do with the plot? Nothing, really.
“Hero, Lover, Fool” is about a love triangle that never really feels right. You’ve got the handsome male hero (Jon Jacobs playing Paul) who chances onto a woman (Fatos Silan as Isabelle) on the run from her boyfriend (Michael Kastenbaum), a movie star messed up on drugs and alcohol and possessing a gun. Paul risks his life for Isabelle, who eventually seems more than happy to end up back in the arms of her crazy lover. Paul is left high and dry, but at least he’s got an idea for a new film.
While there are moments in this movie that are interesting to watch, overall it fails to connect. That’s not the fault of the director or actors, though. This time its all about story, or lack thereof. You could see where this one was going almost right from the start, and the fact that the characters weren’t very developed beyond what they needed to be for the story doesn’t help matters any. The work’s only saving grace is that it sometimes feels like a dark dream that is deeply rooted in reality, but those moments are fleeting at best.
You have to hand it to these folks. At least you can tell they believe in what they are doing. One just wishes what they were doing was worth watching.
