The Chuck Norris Action Thriller With A Pro Boxer, Stream Without Netflix
During his prime, action star Chuck Norris faced enemies in his films that ranged from domestic terrorists to drug smugglers to foreign agents. The 1988 film Hero and the Terror marks the first time that any Norris character uses lethal hand-to-hand combat skills to defeat a serial killer, a rare step away from the Americanized martial arts films he was previously associated with.
Chuck Norris In Hero And The Terror
Fans of mixed-martial arts won’t get nearly the bang for their buck when it comes to sheer quantity of fight scenes in Hero and the Terror.
Earlier Norris film entries like Missing in Action, Breaker, Breaker, or Good Guys Wear Black do better among those who tune in to see a flick that’s dominated by fight scenes.
But this unique Norris attempt at a thriller is second only to his 1982 movie Silent Rage in balancing the violence of an action film with the blood-pumping ride of a thriller.
Search For A Serial Killer
Hero and the Terror follows Detective O’Brien, a cop whose keen skills and martial arts prowess were responsible for putting serial killer Simon Moon behind bars.
Public panic ensues when Moon escapes and drives away from the prison in a stolen van but is quickly assuaged when the killer crashes it into a cliff and is believed dead in the explosion.
Several years later, women are being killed with the same M.O. used by Moon, leading O’Brien to believe that the murderer is alive and back to his old game.
Jack O’Halloran Is Simon Moon
Opposite Norris stars ex-boxer Jack O’Halloran as Simon Moon. The 6’6″ actor was a heavyweight boxer from 1966 until 1974, before retiring with a record of 34 wins, 21 losses, and two draws.
In his nine years in the ring, O’Halloran faced boxing greats George Foreman and Ken Norton, both leading to losses.
O’Halloran’s acting path didn’t begin with his villain role in Hero and the Terror. His sheer size and his mug earned him roles as a heavy in films, the first being Farewell, My Lovely where he played ex-convict Moose Malloy.
DC fans will no doubt recognize O’Halloran from Superman and Superman II as Non, one of three Kryptonians that Jor-El banished to the Phantom Zone.
Not A Box Office Success
Hero and the Terror was far from a success at the box office. The film managed to scrape in only $5 million over its short run in theaters. Critics were not kind to it then or now, as it currently holds a 0% score across six reviews.
Critics Didn’t Love It Either
Chuck Norris fans were a bit more positive, giving Hero and the Terror a 38% rating and putting it in the middle of the pack of the actor’s films. One reason the film doesn’t rate higher for audiences might be how it strayed away from the genre Norris was known for.
Though there was a good amount of action, some martial arts fans who watched the film tuned in for the Chuck Norris experience they were accustomed to, and not a movie about a cop trying to stop a killer.
Streaming Hero And The Terror
REVIEW SCORE
As a film, Hero and the Terror shows Norris playing a different type of character as well. He’s a father-to-be, his demeanor is more philosophical, and his dialogue is much more prominent than in most of his earlier films.
The acting overall is above average, the fighting sequences live up to anything you’d expect from Norris, and the storyline admittedly more intriguing than most other Norris films up to that point.
Overall, it’s deserving of 3.0/5.0 stars. A good storyline and decent acting are spoiled a bit by sub-par dialogue and unnecessary lulls in the film that could have been filled by Norris kicking someone in the head.
Hero and the Terror can be streamed for free on Tubi.
