Almost Heroes

Almost Heroes follows two men who set out in 1804 to cross the American West and reach the Pacific Ocean, only to find themselves racing the far better known expedition of Lewis and Clark. Leslie Edwards, the would-be leader of the group, recruits the overweight trapper Bartholomew Hunt, and together they assemble a ragged crew of misfits and brawlers. Most of the men abandon the venture before it truly begins, leaving a handful of odd characters to push westward through the wilderness, past bears, Native Americans and Spanish soldiers. The film is a comedy set against the backdrop of early nineteenth-century exploration.

Christopher Guest directed the film, which came after The Big Picture and Waiting for Guffman and before Best in Show, A Mighty Wind and Mascots. Mark Nutter, Boyd Hale and Thomas R. Wolfe wrote the screenplay, and Denise Di Novi produced. Chris Farley plays Bartholomew Hunt and Matthew Perry plays Leslie Edwards, with Bokeem Woodbine, Barry Del Sherman, Eugene Levy and Lisa Barbuscia among the credited cast of 27.

Released in May 1998, the film runs 90 minutes. Made for a budget of 30 million US dollars, it took in about 6 million worldwide. On IMDb it holds 5.8 out of 10 from 19,000 votes, while on TMDB it has 5.5 from 228. A critics' rating of 3.3 from 38 reviews puts it well below the audience scores.