Nicole (Katherine Heigl) is 14 and goes on vacation in the Bahamas with her father André Arnel (Gérard Depardieu). She falls in love with 17-year-old Ben (Dalton James) but her dad finds him way too old for her. Tired of being treated like a child, Nicole makes up a whole story to make herself more interesting, where André is actually her lover who saved her from a life of debauchery a few years earlier. André is unaware of his daughter's lies and the reputation she is building him, leading to a cascade of misunderstandings and misled confrontations.[2][3]
Filming occurred during the summer of 1993. It was filmed on Paradise Island, Bahamas at the One & Only Resort, which was later renamed The Ocean Club by Four Seasons Resort.
Reception
Box office
The film debuted at number 4 at the US box office behind Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, Mrs. Doubtfire and Philadelphia.[4] It went on to gross $25.5 million in the United States and Canada and $19.3 million internationally for a worldwide total of $44.8 million.[5][1]
Critical response
The film received negative reviews from critics. Janet Maslin wrote, in her review of the film for The New York Times, that "nothing else about the film is moving, but its Bahamian beachfront scenery just might make you cry."[2] Peter Rainer of the Los Angeles Times opened his Los Angeles Times review of the film by writing:
“My Father, the Hero,” remade from a French comedy virtually unseen in this country, at least has Gerard Depardieu in the cast, which gives it a pedigree. Depardieu, who has appeared in every French film for the past 20 years, give or take a few, makes his third appearance in a Hollywood movie. (The first two were “Green Card” and “1492: Conquest of Paradise.”) It’s enjoyable watching Depardieu wrap his mouth around the English language; he seems to enjoy it as much as we do. Less enjoyable is watching Depardieu (or, in long shot, his stunt double) water skiing and wallowing through treacherous shoals. (A friend said he reminded her of Shamu.)
Depardieu may be fun to watch but he's not enough reason to see the movie.[3]
Roger Ebert wrote that "if Depardieu seems right at home in 'My Father the Hero,' perhaps that is because only two years ago he made a French film called 'Mon Pere, Ce Heros,' with exactly the same plot. I saw it, and would say it was more or less exactly as appealing as this English version. Once was a time when Hollywood would buy the rights to French hits ("Three Men and a Cradle") and remake them. Now they buy the recycling rights as soon as the original is released, and hold it out of the American market, which in this case was no great loss."[6]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 20%, based on 15 reviews, with an average score of 4.4/10.[7]
