View source for Local Hero (film)

{{Short description|1983 film by Bill Forsyth}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Local Hero
| image          = Local_Hero_Poster.jpg
| alt            = Two men in business suits walking in shallow water by the sea 
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Bill Forsyth]]
| producer       = [[David Puttnam]]
| writer         = Bill Forsyth
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Peter Riegert]]
* [[Denis Lawson]]
* [[Fulton Mackay]]
* [[Burt Lancaster]]
}}
| music          = [[Mark Knopfler]]
| cinematography = [[Chris Menges]]
| editing        = Michael Bradsell
| studio         = [[Goldcrest Films]]
| distributor    = [[20th Century Fox]]<ref name="bbfc">{{cite web |title=Local Hero (1983) |website=[[BBFC]] |url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/local-hero-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zmtq2mze |access-date=10 June 2024 }}</ref>
| released       = {{Film date|1983|02|17|[[New York City]]|1983|3|17|[[London]]|1983|4|29|UK|df=y}}
| runtime        = 111 minutes<ref name="bbfc" />
| country        = United Kingdom
| language       = English
| budget         = £3&nbsp;million<ref name="walker">{{cite book |last=Walker |first=Alexander |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EuyXPwAACAAJ |title=National Heroes: British Cinema in the Seventies and Eighties |publisher=[[Harrap]] |year=1985 |page=182 |isbn=9780752857077 }}</ref> or £2.6 million<ref name="jake">{{Cite book|title=My indecision is final |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vs9PPwAACAAJ&pg=PA116 |first1=Jake |last1=Eberts |first2=Terry |page=116 |last2=Illott |year=1990 |publisher=Faber and Faber|isbn = 9780571148899}}</ref>
| gross          = $5.9&nbsp;million (US)<ref name="mojo"/>
}}

'''''Local Hero''''' is a 1983 British [[comedy-drama]]<ref name="bbfc" /> film written and directed by [[Bill Forsyth]] and produced by [[David Puttnam]]. It stars [[Peter Riegert]], [[Burt Lancaster]], [[Denis Lawson]], [[Peter Capaldi]], and [[Fulton Mackay]]. Riegert plays an American oil company representative who is sent to the fictional village of Ferness on the west coast of Scotland to purchase the town and surrounding property to build an oil refinery. The musical score was composed by [[Mark Knopfler]].

The film premiered on 17 February 1983. It received critical acclaim, and holds a [[List of films with a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes|100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes]].<ref name="tomatoes" /> At the [[37th British Academy Film Awards]], the film was nominated for seven [[BAFTA Award]]s and won [[BAFTA Award for Best Direction|Best Direction]] for Forsyth. In 1999, the [[British Film Institute]] ranked the film as one of the [[BFI Top 100 British films|Top 100 British films]] of the 20th century.

A stage musical adaptation [[Local Hero (musical)|of the same name]], written by Forsyth and Knopfler, premiered in 2019.

==Plot==
"Mac" MacIntyre is an aspiring executive working for Knox Oil and Gas in [[Houston]], Texas. Felix Happer, the company's eccentric owner, chooses Mac because of his Scottish sounding surname to acquire Ferness, a village in the Scottish Highlands, to make way for a refinery. Mac, actually of Hungarian extraction, is apprehensive about the assignment, complaining to a co-worker that he would rather handle business over the phone and via [[telex]]. Happer, an avid amateur astronomer, tells Mac to watch the sky and to notify him immediately if he sees anything unusual.

Arriving in Scotland, Mac teams up with local Knox representative Danny Oldsen. When they visit a Knox research facility in [[Aberdeen]], Dr. Geddes explains the plan to replace Ferness with the refinery. They also meet marine researcher Marina.

Mac spends several days in Ferness, gradually adapting to the slower-paced life and getting to know the residents, most notably hotel owner and accountant Gordon Urquhart and his wife Stella. Mac becomes more and more conflicted as he presses to close the deal that will demolish the village he has come to love. The villagers, however, are tired of their hard life and are more than eager to sell, though they feign indifference to induce a larger offer. Mac receives encouragement from an unlikely source: Victor, a capitalistic [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] fishing boat captain who periodically visits his friends in Ferness and checks on his investment portfolio, managed by Gordon.

Meanwhile, Danny befriends Marina, who is under the impression that the company is planning to build a research centre at Ferness. During a date, he discovers that Marina, who seems more at home in the water than on land, has [[webbed toes]]. While watching some [[grey seal]]s, Danny mentions that sailors used to believe they were [[mermaid]]s. Marina tells him the sailors were wrong.

Meanwhile, in the United States of America, Happer grows gradually disillusioned with his therapist, whose “treatment” involves showering Happer with a continuous torrent of verbal abuse. The therapist continues to obsessively harass and verbally abuse Happer, at first over the phone, eventually climbing up several storeys to reach Happer's office where he attempts to plaster the words “Happer, you’re a motherfucker” onto the window, whereupon Happer tells his secretary to call the police, and tell them to shoot the therapist off the window of the building. He then prepares to leave for Scotland.

As the deal nears completion, Gordon discovers that Ben Knox, an old [[Beachcombing|beachcomber]] who lives in a [[driftwood]] shack on the shore, owns the beach through a grant from the [[Lord of the Isles]] to his ancestor. After being offered thirty thousand pounds, Ben picks up some sand and offers to sell for the same number of pound notes as he has grains of sand in his hand. A suspicious MacIntyre declines, only to be told there could not have been more than ten thousand grains. MacIntyre continues to try everything to entice Ben to sell, even offering enough money to buy a similar stretch of any other beach in the world, but Ben is not interested. 

Happer finally arrives on site, just in time to unknowingly forestall an ugly confrontation between some of the villagers and Ben. When Mac informs him of the snag in the proceedings, he decides to negotiate personally with Ben and, in the process, discovers a kindred spirit. Happer opts to relocate the refinery offshore and set up an astronomical observatory instead. Danny brings up Marina's dream of an [[Oceanography|oceanographic]] research facility and suggests combining the two into the "Happer Institute", an idea that Happer enthusiastically embraces. Sent back home to implement the changes, a sombre MacIntyre returns to his apartment in Houston. He pulls from his pocket pebbles and shells and spreads them out on the work surface. The local phone box in Ferness starts ringing.

==Cast==
{{cast listing|
* [[Peter Riegert]] as "Mac" MacIntyre
* [[Burt Lancaster]] as Felix Happer
* [[Fulton Mackay]] as Ben Knox
* [[Denis Lawson]] as Gordon Urquhart
* Norman Chancer as Moritz
* [[Peter Capaldi]] as Danny Oldsen
* [[Rikki Fulton]] as Geddes
* [[Alex Norton]] as Watt
* [[Jenny Seagrove]] as Marina
* [[Jennifer Black]] as Stella Urquhart
* Christopher Rozycki as Victor
* [[Gyearbuor Asante|Christopher Asante]] as Reverend Macpherson
* [[John Gordon Sinclair]] as Ricky
* Caroline Guthrie as Pauline
* [[John M. Jackson]] as Cal (as John Jackson)
* [[Jimmy Yuill]] as Iain
* [[Tam Dean Burn]] as Roddy
* [[Sandra Voe]] as Mrs. Fraser
* [[Jonathan Watson]] as Jonathan
}}

==Production==
===Development===
[[Warner Bros.]] and [[Goldcrest Films]] originally declined to fund ''Local Hero''. However, when Puttnam won a [[BAFTA]] for ''[[Chariots of Fire]]'' in 1982, Goldcrest agreed to finance the entire film. Warner Bros. agreed to pay $1.5 million for US rights.<ref name="jake"/>

===Casting===
Puttnam always wanted Burt Lancaster to play Happer but the casting proved problematic because the Hollywood star wanted his $2 million salary, which was almost a third of the film's entire budget. Upon learning of Lancaster's potential involvement in the project, [[Warner Bros.]] offered Puttnam a US distribution deal and provided the additional funding to secure Lancaster. After negotiations, Puttnam ended up having an additional $200,000 in the film's budget. He later remarked in an interview that "big stars are not a liability, they are an asset!"{{Citation needed|date=November 2024}}

[[Michael Douglas]] and [[Henry Winkler]] were both actively pursued by Bill Forsyth for the role of MacIntyre (which ultimately went to [[Peter Riegert]]).{{Citation needed|date=November 2024}}

===Filming===
[[File:Pennan Village 01072008.jpg|right|thumb|[[Pennan]], [[Aberdeenshire]], which featured as the fictional village of Ferness]]
[[File:Camusdarach Beach, near Morar - geograph.org.uk - 58018.jpg|right|thumb|Camusdarach, [[Morar]], near [[Mallaig]], [[Highland (council area)|Highland]], as the beach at Ferness]]
''Local Hero'' was filmed in several locations around Scotland. Most of the Ferness village scenes were filmed in [[Pennan]] on the [[Aberdeenshire]] coast, and most of the beach scenes at [[Morar]] and [[Arisaig]] on the west coast.<ref name="Herald 1982">{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=NQE-AAAAIBAJ&pg=3871%2C2957310 |title=Local Hero. The making of the movie |first=Jack |last=Webster |work=[[The Glasgow Herald]] |date=17 July 1982 |page=7 |access-date=9 June 2018}}</ref><ref name="scotland">{{cite web |title=Local Hero (1983) |website=Scotland: the Movie Location Guide |url=http://www.scotlandthemovie.com/movies/flocalhero.html |access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref>

* [[Aberdeenshire]]
* [[Arisaig]], Highland,
* The Ship Inn, [[Banff, Aberdeenshire|Banff]] (interior bar scenes) 
* [[Ben Nevis Distillery]], Fort William, Highland
* Camusdarach Sands, Camusdarach, Morar, Mallaig, Highland (Ferness, beach scenes, including external scene of Ferness church, using a mock-up of Our Lady of the Braes church – see below – specially constructed beside the beach)<ref name="scotland"/>
* [[Fort William, Scotland|Fort William]], Highland
* [[Scottish Highlands|Highlands]]
* Hilton, Highland (Ferness, village hall ceilidh)
* [[Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center]], 2101 NASA Road, Houston, Texas, US (Knox Oil testing lab)
* [[Loch Eil]], Highland
* [[Lochaber]], Highland
* [[Lochailort]], Highland (Ferness hotel, internal shots)
* [[Loch Tarff]], Fort Augustus, Highland (fog and rabbit scenes)
* [[Mallaig]], Highland
* [[Moidart]], Highland (road scenes for drive to Ferness – A861 descent to Loch Moidart and descent to Inversanda Bay)
* [[JPMorgan Chase Tower (Houston)|JPMorgan Chase Tower, formerly Texas Commerce Tower]], 600 Travis St., Houston, Texas, US (Knox Oil headquarters)
* Our Lady of the Braes Roman Catholic Church, Polnish, Highland (Ferness, village church, internal scenes)<ref name="scotland"/>
* [[Pennan]], Aberdeenshire (Ferness, includes red phone box)
* Pole of Itlaw, Aberdeenshire (Ferness, village shop)

===Soundtrack===
{{main|Local Hero (soundtrack)}}

The film's [[Local Hero (album)|soundtrack]] was written and produced by [[Mark Knopfler]] of [[Dire Straits]]. This has led to the popularity of the film with fans of the band,{{cn|date=October 2025}} and Knopfler has since performed an arrangement of "Going Home (Theme of the Local Hero)" as an encore at many of his concerts.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/film-and-tv/12-things-you-didn-t-know-about-local-hero-1-3341139 |title=12 things you didn't know about Local Hero |first=Patrick |last=McPartlin |work=[[The Scotsman]] |date=14 March 2014 |access-date=1 February 2017}}</ref> This tune borrows some melodic riffs from traditional Scottish songs. In his review of the album for [[AllMusic]], William Ruhlmann wrote:

{{blockquote|Dire Straits leader Mark Knopfler's intricate, introspective fingerpicked guitar stylings make a perfect musical complement to the wistful tone of Bill Forsyth's comedy film, ''Local Hero'' ... The low-key music picks up traces of Scottish music, but most of it just sounds like Dire Straits doing instrumentals, especially the recurring theme, one of Knopfler's more memorable melodies.<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web |last=Ruhlmann |first=William |title=Local Hero (Original Soundtrack) |website=AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/local-hero-original-soundtrack-r42531 |access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref>}}

Knopfler re-recorded the theme with fellow guitarists including [[Bruce Springsteen]], [[Brian May]] and [[Jeff Beck]] (credited as 'Mark Knopfler's Guitar Heroes') in aid of [[Teenage Cancer Trust]] in March 2024.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3gqjx170lxo |title=Knopfler's new Local Hero gets St James' airing |work=[[BBC News]] |date=2 March 2024 |access-date=14 April 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://diymag.com/news/mark-knopflers-guitar-heroes-going-home-theme-from-local-hero |title=MARK KNOPFLER'S GUITAR HEROES TO SHARE NEW RECORDING OF 'GOING HOME (THEME FROM LOCAL HERO)' |work=DIY Magazine |date=8 February 2024 |access-date=14 April 2024}}</ref> The track peaked at #18 on the [[UK singles chart]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Mark Knopfler's Guitar Heroes |website=OfficialCharts.com |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/mark-knopflers-guitar-heroes/ |access-date=14 April 2024}}</ref>

[[Gerry Rafferty]] provided the vocals for "The Way It Always Starts" on the soundtrack. The album was certified a [[British Phonographic Industry|BPI]] silver record.<ref name="allmusic"/>

==Critical response==
The film received strongly positive reviews, except in Scotland.

In his ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' review, [[Roger Ebert]] gave the film his highest four stars, calling it "a small film to treasure". He gave particular praise to writer-director Bill Forsyth for his abilities as a storyteller.

{{blockquote|What makes this material really work is the low-key approach of the writer-director, Bill Forsyth, who also made the charming ''[[Gregory's Girl]]'' and has the patience to let his characters gradually reveal themselves to the camera. He never hurries, and as a result, ''Local Hero'' never drags: Nothing is more absorbing than human personalities, developed with love and humor. Some of the payoffs in this film are sly and subtle, and others generate big laughs. Forsyth's big scenes are his little ones, including a heartfelt, whisky-soaked talk between the American and the innkeeper, and a scene where the visitors walk on the beach and talk about the meaning of life. By the time Burt Lancaster reappears at the end of the film, to personally handle the negotiations with old Ben, ''Local Hero'' could hardly have anything but a happy ending.<ref>{{cite web |date= April 15, 1983 |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |title=Local Hero |work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/local-hero-1983 |access-date=14 July 2023 }}</ref>}}

[[James Berardinelli]] gave the film three and a half stars out of four, calling it "a fragment of cinematic whimsy—a genial dramatic comedy that defies both our expectations and those of the characters". Berardinelli also focused on Forsyth's abilities as a storyteller, noting that the director "finds the perfect tone for this not-quite-a-fairy-tale set in a quaint seaside Scottish village named Ferness. By injecting a little (but not too much) magical realism into the mix, Forsyth leavens his pro-environmental message to the point that those not looking for it might not be conscious of its presence." Berardinelli concluded that ''Local Hero'' represents "the best kind of light fare: a motion picture that offers a helping of substance to go along with an otherwise frothy and undemanding main course".<ref name="reelviews">{{cite web |last=Berardinelli |first=James |title=Local Hero |website=Reel Views |url=http://preview.reelviews.net/movies/l/local_hero.html |access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref>

''[[The New York Times]]'' critic [[Janet Maslin]] wrote, "Genuine fairy tales are rare; so is film-making that is thoroughly original in an unobtrusive way. Bill Forsyth's quirky disarming ''Local Hero'' is both." Maslin concluded:
{{blockquote|''Local Hero'' is a funny movie, but it's more apt to induce chuckles than knee-slapping. Like ''Gregory's Girl'', it demonstrates Mr. Forsyth's uncanny ability for making an audience sense that something magical is going on, even if that something isn't easily explained.<ref name="nytimes">{{cite web |last=Maslin |first=Janet |title=Local Hero (1983) |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/02/17/movies/film-local-hero-houston-to-scotland-odyssey.html |date=17 February 1983 |access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref>}}

In ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' magazine, film critic Todd McCarthy wrote, "After making the grade internationally with the sleeper hit, ''Gregory's Girl'', Scottish writer-director Bill Forsyth has broken the sophomore sesh jinx the only way he could, by making an even better film ... Given a larger canvas, director Forsyth has in no way attempted to overreach himself or the material, keeping things modest and intimate throughout, but displaying a very acute sense of comic insight."<ref name="variety">{{cite web |first=Todd |last=McCarthy |title=Local Hero |work=Variety |date=15 February 1983 |url=https://variety.com/1983/film/reviews/local-hero-1200425640/ |access-date=11 January 2008}}</ref>

Almar Haflidason called ''Local Hero'' "a wry film that slowly slips under the skin to surprising effect" in ''BBC Home''. Haflidason concludes, "Once over, the mood of the film hits home and a longing develops to visit once again the characters of this warm and deceptively slight comedy."<ref name="bbc">{{cite web |last=Haflidason |first=Almar |title=Local Hero (1983) |work=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2001/03/27/local_hero_1983_review.shtml |access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref>

For ''Movie Gazette'', Gary Panton described the film as a "magical, intelligent comedy". Panton praised the cinematography as "little short of amazing" and that ''Local Hero'' was "Bill Forsyth's finest work of all, this is a perfect film."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://movie-gazette.com/341/local-hero |title=Local Hero (1983) |first=Gary |last=Panton |work=[[Movie Gazette]]}}</ref>

During his [[Al Gore 2000 presidential campaign|2000 campaign for the presidency]], US Vice-president [[Al Gore]] told [[Oprah Winfrey]] in an interview that ''Local Hero'' was his favourite film.<ref name="WaPo Kurtz">{{cite news |last1=Kurtz |first1=Howard |title=A Moment of Clarity on Candidates' Status |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/business/technology/2000/09/12/a-moment-of-clarity-on-candidates-status/26a06cb8-6ba0-4a9c-bfc0-df04d09f64c6/ |access-date=10 June 2022 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=12 September 2000}}</ref>

On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film received a 100% rating based on 40 reviews, with an average rating of 8.80/10. The site's consensus reads: "A charmingly low-key character study brought to life by a tremendously talented cast, ''Local Hero'' is as humorous as it is heartwarming".<ref name="tomatoes">{{rotten-tomatoes|local_hero}}</ref> On [[Metacritic]], the film has a score of 84 out of 100, based on reviews from 16 critics.<ref name="metacritic">{{cite web |title= Local Hero |url= https://www.metacritic.com/movie/local-hero |website= [[Metacritic]] |access-date = 1 April 2024 }}</ref>

Some Scottish critics were less enthusiastic about the film, pointing out that it repeated and reinforced long-established cinematic representations of Scotland and the Scots and perpetuated a comforting but misleading narrative about Scotland's relationship with international capitalism.<ref>[[Cairns Craig|Craig, Cairns]] (1983), ''Visitors from the Stars: Scottish Film Culture'', in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), ''[[Cencrastus]]'' No. 11, New Year 1983, pp. 6 - 11, {{issn|0264-0856}}</ref><ref>Caughie, John (1983), ''Support Whose Local Hero?'', in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), ''[[Cencrastus]]'' No. 14, Autumn 1983, pp. 44 - 46, {{issn|0264-0856}}</ref><ref>McArthur, Colin (1983), ''The Maggie'', in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), ''[[Cencrastus]]'' No. 12, Spring 1983, pp. 10 - 14, {{issn|0264-0856}}</ref> The Glasgow Women and Film Collective questioned what it saw as the film's male-oriented narrative about innocence and power and the marginal roles it accorded to women.<ref>Glasgow Women and Film Collective (1983), ''Bill and Ben: The Innocent Men?'', in Hearn, Sheila G. (ed.), ''[[Cencrastus]]'' No. 14, Autumn 1983, pp. 42 -44, {{issn|0264-0856}}</ref>

==Box office==
''Local Hero'' earned $5,895,761 in total gross sales in the United States.<ref name="mojo">{{cite web |title=Local Hero |work=Box Office Mojo |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=localhero.htm |access-date=31 July 2013}}</ref> It earned distributors gross of £487,437 in the UK.<ref name="money">Chapman, J. (2022). ''The Money Behind the Screen: A History of British Film Finance, 1945-1985''. [[Edinburgh University Press]], p. 314 {{ISBN needed}}</ref>

Goldcrest Films invested £2,551,000 in the film and received £3,290,000, earning them a profit of £739,000.<ref>{{Cite book|title=My indecision is final|first1=Jake|last1= Eberts |first2=Terry|last2=Illott|year=1990 |publisher=Faber and Faber|page=657}} {{ISBN needed}}</ref>

==Accolades==
{| class="wikitable sortable" width="90%"
|-
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Award
! scope="col" | Category
! scope="col" | Nominee
! scope="col" | Result
|-
| rowspan="7" | [[37th British Academy Film Awards|1984]]
| rowspan="7" | [[British Academy Film Awards]]<ref name="bafta 83">{{cite web |url=http://www.bafta.org/awards-database.html?year=1983&category=false&award=false |title=Awards Database |website=[[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]] |access-date=11 July 2012}}</ref>
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role|Best Actor in a Supporting Role]]
| [[Burt Lancaster]]
| {{Nominated}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography|Best Cinematography]]
| [[Chris Menges]]
| {{Nominated}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Direction|Best Direction]]
| [[Bill Forsyth]]
| {{Won}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Editing|Best Editing]]
| Michael Bradsell
| {{Nominated}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Film|Best Film]]
| [[David Puttnam]]
| {{Nominated}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Film Music|Best Film Music]]
| [[Mark Knopfler]]
| {{Nominated}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Original Screenplay]]
| Bill Forsyth
| {{Nominated}}
|-
| [[National Board of Review Awards 1983|1983]]
| [[National Board of Review|National Board of Review Awards]]<ref name="natboard">{{cite web |url=http://www.nbrmp.org/awards/past.cfm?year=1983 |title=Awards for 1983 |website=[[National Board of Review of Motion Pictures]] |access-date=11 July 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120401150806/http://www.nbrmp.org/awards/past.cfm?year=1983 |archive-date=1 April 2012 }}</ref>
| [[National Board of Review: Top Ten Films|Top Ten Films]]
| ''Local Hero''
| {{Won}}
|-
| [[National Society of Film Critics Awards 1983|1984]]
| [[National Society of Film Critics|National Society of Film Critics Awards]]<ref name="natsoc">{{cite web |url=http://www.nationalsocietyoffilmcritics.com/?page_id=2 |title=Past Awards |website=[[National Society of Film Critics]] |access-date=11 July 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150323062049/http://www.nationalsocietyoffilmcritics.com/?page_id=2 |archive-date=23 March 2015 }}</ref>
| [[National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay|Best Screenplay]]
| Bill Forsyth
| {{Won}}
|-
| [[1983 New York Film Critics Circle Awards|1984]]
| [[New York Film Critics Circle Awards]]<ref name="nyfcca">{{cite web |url=http://www.nyfcc.com/awards/?awardyear=1983 |title=New York Film Critics Circle Awards |website=New York Film Critics Circle |access-date=11 July 2012}}</ref>
| [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Screenplay|Best Screenplay]]
| Bill Forsyth
| {{Won}}
|}

==Legacy==
The minor planet [[List of minor planets: 7001–8000#345|7345 Happer]] is [[Meanings of minor planet names: 7001–8000#345|named after Lancaster's character]] in the film and his quest to have a comet named after him.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://minorplanetcenter.net/db_search/show_object?object_id=7345 |website=The International Astronomical Union Minor Planet Center |title=(7345) Happer = 1969 TJ6 = 1992 OF |access-date=18 March 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Schmadel |first=Lutz D. |author-link=Lutz D. Schmadel |author2=International Astronomical Union |title=Dictionary of minor planet names |year=2003 |publisher=Springer-Verlag |location=Berlin; New York |isbn=978-3-540-00238-3 |page=592 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KWrB1jPCa8AC&pg=PA592 |access-date=29 July 2012 |author2-link=International Astronomical Union }}</ref>

The song "Going Home: The Theme of the Local Hero", from the soundtrack, is used as the [[walk-on music]] for [[Newcastle United F.C.]] at [[St James' Park]]. [[Mark Knopfler]], the composer, grew up in Newcastle and is a fan of the club.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2 March 2024 |title=Mark Knopfler reworks Local Hero with guitar superstars |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3gqjx170lxo |access-date=15 March 2025 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=8 February 2024 |title=Newcastle United announce 'world exclusive' for St James' Park |url=https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/24107463.mark-knopflers-new-local-hero-unveiled-newcastle-match/ |access-date=15 March 2025 |website=The Northern Echo |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bateman |first1=Anthony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6Id8AgAAQBAJ&dq=mark+knopfler+newcastle+fan&pg=PA186 |title=Sporting Sounds: Relationships Between Sport and Music |last2=Bale |first2=John |date=27 October 2008 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-134-06745-9 |page=186 |language=en}}</ref>

This film was inspiration for the television series [[Northern Exposure]], as it was a favourite of series writer [[Joshua Brand]].<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=ctRnDUK7Yt8nEmwf&v=I_baoomn4o0&feature=youtu.be |title=Joshua Brand Interview about creating Northern Exposure |date=14 December 2017 |last=Tooley Lives |access-date=3 April 2025 |via=YouTube}}</ref>

In October 2025, the film was screened as 'Tribute to David Puttnam' at the [[20th Rome Film Festival]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ciakmagazine.it/news/festa-del-cienma-di-roma-2025-il-programma-completo-diretta/ |title= Festa del Cinema di Roma 2025, il programma completo (diretta) |trans-title=Rome Film Fest 2025: Full program (live)|date=19 September 2025|access-date=19 September 2025|website= [[Ciak Magazine]] |language=it}}</ref>

== Stage musical adaptation ==
{{main|Local Hero (musical)}}
A stage musical based on the film premiered at the [[Royal Lyceum Theatre]], Edinburgh in 2019.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://lyceum.org.uk/press/entry/the-royal-lyceum-theatre-edinburgh-and-the-old-vic-present-the-world-premie |title=The Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh and The Old Vic present the World Premiere of Local Hero |website =[[Royal Lyceum Theatre]] |date=3 February 2018 |access-date=24 February 2018}}</ref> The musical featured music and lyrics by Knopfler<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/culture/theatre/bill-forsyth-and-mark-knopfler-reunite-for-new-local-hero-musical-1-4681466 |first=Brian |last=Ferguson |title=Bill Forsyth and Mark Knopfler reunite for new Local Hero musical| work=[[The Scotsman]] |date=3 February 2018 |access-date=24 February 2018}}</ref> (writer of the film soundtrack) and a book by [[Bill Forsyth]] (original film screenwriter and director) and [[David Greig (dramatist)|David Greig]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.thestage.co.uk/news/scottish-film-local-hero-to-be-adapted-as-stage-musical |first=Georgia |last=Snow |title=Scottish film Local Hero to be adapted as stage musical |work=[[The Stage]] |date=3 February 2018 |access-date=24 February 2018}}</ref> and was directed by [[John Crowley (director)|John Crowley]].<ref name="Team">{{cite news |url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/arts_ents/16189147.Playwright_David_Greig_on_Local_Hero_the_musical___If_Scotland_likes_it__it_ll_have_integrity_/ |title=Playwright David Greig on Local Hero the musical: 'If Scotland likes it, it'll have integrity' |work=[[The Herald (Glasgow)|The Herald]] |location = Glasgow|author= Taylor, Marianne|date=28 April 2018 |access-date=5 December 2021}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[BFI Top 100 British films]]
* [[List of films with a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes]]
* [[Cinema of Scotland]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb title|0085859}}
* {{tcmdb title|id=81658}}
* {{Screenonline title|492539}}
* [http://www.scc.net/~heather/localhero.html ''Local Hero''] at Bill Forsyth website
* [https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/6600-local-hero-our-man-in-ferness ''Local Hero: Our Man in Ferness''] an essay by Jonathan Murray at the [[Criterion Collection]]

{{Bill Forsyth}}

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[[Category:1980s British films]]
[[Category:1980s English-language films]]
[[Category:1983 comedy-drama films]]
[[Category:1983 films]]
[[Category:1983 independent films]]
[[Category:20th Century Fox films]]
[[Category:British comedy-drama films]]
[[Category:British independent films]]
[[Category:English-language comedy-drama films]]
[[Category:English-language independent films]]
[[Category:Films about real estate holdout]]
[[Category:Films directed by Bill Forsyth]]
[[Category:Films produced by David Puttnam]]
[[Category:Films scored by Mark Knopfler]]
[[Category:Films set in Aberdeen]]
[[Category:Films set in Highland (council area)]]
[[Category:Films set in Houston]]
[[Category:Films set on beaches]]
[[Category:Films shot in Houston]]
[[Category:Films shot in Scotland]]
[[Category:Films whose director won the Best Direction BAFTA Award]]
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