Sam Elliott's Favorite Movie From His Career Is A Must-Watch On Prime Video

In season 2 of "Landman," Sam Elliott plays Thomas "T.L." Norris, a retired oil worker reckoning with the fallout of a life spent away from his family. The man has a lot of demons, and he's forced to face them head-on when his son, Tommy (Billy Bob Thornton), invites the old man to move into his home. The result is a storyline that gives rise to some of the most affecting scenes in Taylor Sheridan's oil drama, especially since Elliott and Thornton share an off-screen history that bolsters their on-screen chemistry in the hit Paramount+ series. Indeed, watching T.L. take stock of his life as an aging West Texan is haunting in a surprisingly moving way for a show that's also full of half-naked women and soapy melodrama.

If you enjoy that aspect of Elliott's performance and have yet to see 2017's "The Hero," you should probably make it your next watch, especially since it's currently available on Prime Video. As one of the best Western movie actors of all time, Elliott was perfectly placed to appear in that film as a former Western movie star reckoning with, well, a lifetime of experiences. That would also explain why "The Hero" is one of his personal favorites among the many films and TV shows he's worked on.

During an interview with Build, Elliott was asked about his all-time favorite project, and he explained that he tends to appreciate the movies he's starred in as much for the experience he had working on them as for the films themselves. According to the actor, "The Hero" was the best experience he ever had in that regard and, as such, his all-time favorite movie from his career. "I don't think it'll ever get any better than it was on this film," he remarked.

Sam Elliott made his film debut in the forgotten Kirk Douglas Western "The Way West," where he appeared in a small part. After several other minor roles, Elliott was elevated to leading man status for movies like "The Quick and the Dead" and "The Shadow Riders." More high-profile projects soon followed in the form of stuff like "Road House," in which Elliott played Patrick Swayze's mentor, ahead of the actor lending his unmistakable drawl to the narrator in "The Big Lebowski." The man's non-Western movies are worth exploring, too, including the Elliott-led 1978 horror movie "The Legacy". But there's no doubt the screen icon is emblematic of the oater.

This, in turn, made Elliott perfect for "The Hero." The 2017 comedy-drama was directed by Brett Haley, who also co-wrote the script with Marc Basch and made his own debut with 2010's "The New Year." After that, Haley worked with Elliott for the first time on 2015's "I'll See You in My Dreams," a comedy-drama in which the actor serves as the love interest for Blythe Danner's Carol Petersen. For "The Hero," however, Haley put Elliott front and center, writing the lead role with him in mind.

"The Hero" casts Elliott as Lee Hayden, an aging performer whose prime years as a Western star are long behind him. Now working mostly as a voice actor, Hayden discovers he has terminal pancreatic cancer, prompting him to try and reconnect with his ex-wife Valarie (Katharine Ross) and estranged daughter Lucy (Krysten Ritter). Hayden also strikes up a relationship with Charlotte (Laura Prepon), a stand-up comic he takes to an award ceremony honoring his legacy as a Western legend. After his appearance at the ceremony, though, Hayden suddenly finds himself flooded with offers.

"The Hero" premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival prior to its theatrical opening the following June, and it was met with positive reviews. The film maintains a very respectable 77% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, with almost every critic agreeing that Sam Elliott's performance is what holds the story together. 

Many critics found elements of "The Hero" to be contrived or lackluster in some way. /Film's own review even dubbed "The Hero" a middling drama while observing that Elliott "shines" as its lead. Thankfully, the actor himself received almost unanimous praise for "The Hero," somehow finding a way to elevate material that didn't always live up to the singular presence at its center. For Elliott, the final product speaks for itself. As he went on to say in his Build interview, "On all sides of the camera it was a labor of love for a lot of people. I think in the end that we pulled it off with a piece of really good entertainment."

With Elliott's "Landman" performance fresh in our minds, there's never been a better time to experience him being similarly reflective to great effect in Brett Haley's comedy-drama. There's even a weird age gap relationship in the movie, which recalls T.L.'s relationship with Francesca Xuereb's Cheyenne in "Landman." Similarly, in an example of life imitating art, there'll no doubt be more offers arriving in the wake of his "Landman" success, just like in "The Hero." But there's nothing better than a laconic, calmly thoughtful Elliott, and "The Hero" gives us plenty of that. If nothing else, it's a fine reminder of why he's one of the all-time greats.

As mentioned earlier, "The Hero" is now streaming on Prime Video.