Summary
While filled to the brim with cliches, Zero to Hero serves up a lighthearted and comforting viewing experience.
Netflix’s rom-com Zero to Hero (2024) is a saccharine romantic comedy with a plot pulled from a two-decades-old Lizzie McGuire movie. The straight-to-streaming movie was directed by Marcelo Antunez from a screenplay by Felipe Folgosi. It follows a down-on-his-luck rock’n’roll performer who gets the chance to live out his dreams of fame by impersonating a country music star.
The Brazilian flick centers on a wannabe rockstar named Hero who just so happens to look exactly like famous country singer Sandro Sanderlei (both played by Lucas Lucco). Like any self-respecting struggling musician, Hero lets his pride get in the way of gainful employment and finds himself forced to perform at school proms with his best buddy Nelson (Rodrigo Fernandes) to make ends meet.
As luck would have it, Sandro is a raging alcoholic who couldn’t stop himself from drinking the night before a routine surgical procedure. The alcohol in his blood combined with the anesthetic leads to Sandro falling into a coma days before his sold-out countrywide tour.
Sandro’s band manager, Genival, notices the uncanny resemblance between Hero and the country star at a routine prom gig. As Sandro’s doppelganger, Hero agrees to go on tour and impersonate the famed singer. In exchange for stepping into the star’s shoes, Sandro’s manager Agnaldo offers to help him get a record deal at the end of the ruse.
Now our protagonist must cut off his long rocker locks, and put on a cowboy hat and some tight leather pants before taking on the mantle of a country music sensation. While on tour he connects with Sandro’s ex-girlfriend and producer, Lulli (Carla Díaz), and learns a thing or two about friendship, fame, and love.
Zero to Hero is the type of rom-com where you’ll probably guess the entire story after the first few minutes. It features a down-on-his-luck hero who’s offered the opportunity of a lifetime. He falls in love with the girl who hates him at first but eventually warms up to him. We even have a Disney-type villain in the label exec Jacques, whose evilness is so evil the movie doesn’t even bother trying to explain it.
There’s a lot the film doesn’t try to explain. At one point in the plot, Nelson calls Hero out for acting too much like Sandro and not enough like himself. However, Hero only took on the impersonator gig because Nelson insisted it was a golden opportunity. That entire scene exists solely to include some sort of emotional conflict artificially.
That’s not to say the film isn’t worth streaming. The film is at its best when it fully leans into familiar romantic tropes without trying to add too many complex layers.
This musical rom-com features great tunes and enough charm to make you not care about the nonsensical plot. The two leads share great on-screen chemistry and the romantic element will probably keep most genre fans entertained. While full of cliches and two-dimensional side characters, Zero to Hero is a straightforward romantic comedy that never takes itself too seriously. If you’re looking for a comfort watch to go with your mid-week pizza takeout, this is the movie for you.
Interested in what happens at the end of the movie? I broke down the ending of Zero to Hero in detail.
