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20th Century Fox
Not part of a collection.
If God could do the tricks that we can do, he'd be a happy man...
A fugitive stumbles onto a movie set just when they need a new stunt man, takes the job as a way to hide out and falls for the leading lady while facing off with his manipulative director.
Professor-Hosquith
Dec 16, 2024 · via TMDB
I'd like to embellish the previous review... CaptNemo did a good job summing up the movie, but there are a few other interesting things that can be said about it. My short summary is that this is probably the best "meta" movie, or movie about making movies you'll find. I discovered the film on cable TV, and immediately fell in love with it. A short time later I came across the Brodeur novel in a used bookstore, and bought and read it immediately. The novel is quite dark, and has a number of plot issues. In several ways the movie is more fun and better than the book. But it's a *quite* different story. One area I disagree with CaptNemo is where he said that you find out everything at the end of the movie... I don't find the end of the movie completely illuminating -- some things are fairly clear, but there is much that's still open to interpretation... which is one of the things that makes it so fun to watch again! I only owned the laser disc edition of this movie for many years. I only recently acquired the DVD to have it in a more modern format to show to friends. And so then I discovered the commentary, and only as a result of that commentary I found out about the documentary film about the movie, "The Sinister Saga of Making The Stunt Man." If you're a fan of this movie, the documentary is a must-have! Regarding the movie-within-a-movie, it's difficult to say if it would have been a good movie or not. Is Eli Cross a good director? We don't really know. We're only offered tantalizing glimpses of his work. It would have been nice if the DVD special features included the screenplay of the movie-within-a-movie, or maybe even stitched some of the scenes together, like was done for the DVD of the movie-within-the-movie in Joe Dante's "Matinee."
CaptNemo
Apr 5, 2021 · via TMDB
This incredible movie took me by surprise in the fall of 1980. The Stunt Man replaced The Empire Strikes Back at the theater where I worked. I was prepared to hate this film. To my complete surprise, it became my favorite film from the 1980s. If you haven't seen it, strap yourself in and go for the ride. It's worth every second. Peter O'Toole has Never been better as Cross, the demented and brilliant director. Is he out to kill Cameron just to get a good scene or two from him? Or is he actually a caring person who would never hurt a fly? You won't know until the film is just about over. Basically, Cameron is on the run from the Law. He stumbles into a film set and (perhaps) causes the death of the film's stunt man. Ely Cross, the director, offers Cameron a place to hide from the Law if he'll replace the stunt man until the film is done shooting. Cameron agrees. From that point, nothing is what it seems. The film blends the real with the surreal world of filmmaking that will have you smiling throughout. High Points are the Soundtrack and Barbara Hershey. Barbara has never been more beautiful here, and she gives the performance of a lifetime. Location filming was at the Del Coronado Hotel in San Diego. The same hotel was used for Some Like It Hot.
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
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Peter O'Toole
Eli Cross
Steve Railsback
Cameron
Barbara Hershey
Nina Franklin
Allen Garfield
Sam
Alex Rocco
Jake
Sharon Farrell
Denise
Adam Roarke
Raymond Bailey
Philip Bruns
Ace
Charles Bail
Chuck Barton
John Garwood
Gabe / Eli's Cameraman
George D. Wallace
Father
Don Kennedy
Lineman
Walter Robles
Eli's A.D.
A.J. Bakunas
Eli's Script Clerk
Stafford Morgan
Thompson F.B.I.
John Alderman
Caribinerri
James Avery
Diner Patron (uncredited)
Patricia McPherson
Pretty Woman (uncredited)
Dan Perri
Title Designer
Mario Tosi
Director of Photography
Rosanna Norton
Costume Design
Gray Johnson
Stunt Coordinator
A.J. Bakunas
Stunts
Dick Warlock
Stunts
Erik Cord
Stunts
Gray Johnson
Stunts
Gregory J. Barnett
Stunts
James Winburn
Stunts
Kenny Endoso
Stunts
Regis Parton
Stunts
Tom Morga
Stunts
Walter Robles
Stunts
Richard Rush
Director
Richard Rush
Producer
Dominic Frontiere
Original Music Composer
Richard Rush
Adaptation
Lawrence B. Marcus
Screenplay
To Live and Die and Live
Mela
One Does Not Die That Way
The Hero
La La Land
A Strange Path
Day for Night
The Fall
Ulysses' Gaze
Color Me True
Sullivan's Travels
Bad Education
Notting Hill
Everything's Gonna Be Alright
The Last of Sheila
Youth
Gods and Monsters
Death Proof
The Life I Want
Jackass Forever
What Price Hollywood?
O Lucky Man!
The Barefoot Contessa
The Other Side of the Wind
Final Cut
Matinee
Plazos traicioneros
Jackass 3D
Hitchcock
Jackass Number Two
Real Life
F/X
Silent Movie
A Rainy Day in New York
White Hunter, Black Heart
Hot Rod
Cecil B. Demented
Jackass: The Movie
Hooper
Jackass 2.5
S.O.B.
Animal
Curtiz
For Your Consideration
Dirty Mind
Peter von Kant
Stunt Rock
Ghost Rider
Hollywood Boulevard
Nine
Stuntman
Alex in Wonderland
Deadly Encounter
The Dudesons Movie
The Devil Dared Me To
Myth
Dans la peau de McWalter
Royal Children
Valentino
Viva Knievel!
Stuntmen
Georgia
Scribblers
Paradoxes
Strains
Reprise
Godshot
The Dreamer Cinderella
MozikMoro
TRAINTRACKS
Evel Knievel on Tour
Filmmaking
Movie Monsters
Aşk Filmi
Another in the Fire
Near Myth: The Oskar Knight Story
The Simplicity of Two Lives Between the Riot of the World
Hunting Season
Code 3
The Enforcer
Hostile Takeover
The Wrong Guy
The Black Book
In the Soup
Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard
The Good Neighbor
The Quick and the Dead
The Giant Mechanical Man
Mr. Right
In Too Deep
Just Before I Go
Charlie Countryman
El Gringo
One Ranger
Eenie Meanie
Accident Man
King of Killers
Rogue Agent
Fast Charlie
Stretch
Surviving the Game
Civic Duty
Freebie and the Bean
The Crew
Seeking Justice
Who Is Cletis Tout?
Black Caesar
The Right Kind of Wrong
The Double
May 31, 1980
Seattle International Film Festival
Nov 3, 1980
Jun 7, 2011
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Bicara Cinta
2020
The Pied Pipers of Harlow
1965
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Battle your watched movies head-to-head
Community Top Movies
Evil Dead II
1987 · 14 wins
The Dark Knight
2008 · 14 wins
Halloween
1978 · 13 wins
Final Destination
2000 · 12 wins
Halloween II
1981 · 11 wins
Trivia
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