The Stunt Man (1980)

A fugitive stumbles on 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.

Director:

Richard Rush

Writers:

Lawrence B. Marcus (screenplay), Richard Rush (adaptation),

Stars:

Peter O'Toole, Steve Railsback, Barbara Hershey

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter O'Toole	...	Eli Cross
Steve Railsback	...	Cameron
Barbara Hershey	...	Nina Franklin
Allen Garfield	...	Sam (as Allen Goorwitz)
Alex Rocco	...	Police Chief Jake
Sharon Farrell	...	Denise
Adam Roarke	...	Raymond Bailey
Philip Bruns	...	Ace
Charles Bail	...	Chuck Barton
John Garwood	...	Gabe
Jim Hess	...	Henry
John Pearce	...	Garage Guard
Michael Railsback	...	Burt
George Wallace	...	Nina's Father
Dee Carroll	...	Nina's Mother

Storyline

While on the run from the police, Steve Railsback hides in a group of moviemakers where he pretends to be a stunt man. Both aided and endangered by the director (Peter O'Toole) he avoids both the police and sudden death as a stuntman. The mixture of real danger and fantasy of the movie is an interesting twist for the viewer as the two blend in individual scenes.

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Plot Keywords:

stunt | on the run | police | actress | fugitive | 

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Taglines:

"If God could do the things that we can do, he'd be a happy man . . ."

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 February 1981 (France)

Also Known As:

Le diable en boîte

Filming Locations:

Flynn Springs, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,500,000 (estimated)

Gross:

SEK 1,815,060 (Sweden)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Simon Productions, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

131 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Although actors like Martin Sheen and Jeff Bridges were lobbying hard for the part of Cameron, Steve Railsback clinched the part after director Richard Rush saw his stirring performance as Charles Manson in Helter Skelter. Once Rush decided on Peter O'Toole and Railsback as his leads, he waited a year and a half to make the picture with them, turning down chances to go forward with O'Toole and Bridges, Sean Connery and Railsback, and George C. Scott and Sheen.

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Goofs

One minute, Cameron is on a bridge in the town of Fair Oaks, California, and Eli Cross is in a helicopter observing him. Then, inexplicably, they're all in San Diego, California, over 100 miles to the southwest.

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Quotes

Eli Cross: It's not what he's eating, but what's eating him that makes it... sort of interesting.

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Crazy Credits

After the credits end, the movie-within-a-movie director (played by Peter O'Toole) yells, "Sam, rewrite the opening reel! Crush the little bastard in the first act!" And then he laughs during the fade-out.

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Connections

Featured in The Sinister Saga of Making 'The Stunt Man' (2000)

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Soundtracks

"Bits & Pieces"
Music by Dominic Frontiere
Lyrics by Norman Gimbel
Sung by Dusty Springfield

User Reviews

I'm gonna get caught gushing!

One of my favorite movies of all time. Must admit that I'm a bit biased since Peter O'Toole's one of my favorite actors of all time. This movie has NEVER gotten the attention that it deserves. Maybe that's, in part, due to the difficulties involved in categorizing it. I don't even know in which section of the video store I'd start looking.

Peter O'Toole is so swell in it. I love that enigmatic character, movie director Eli Cross! Like the movie (and O'Toole, for that matter), he's so hard to cubbyhole. You like him, but you don't trust him. Like Cameron/Lucky (Steve Railsback's escaped convict character) does, you NEED to know exactly where his motives lie ... all in good time. You know Cross'll do whatever's necessary to get "the shot", but he's still got a conscience ... right? Would Cameron have been better off (read safer) just staying in jail ... hmmm?

All the action in the film circles around this question and while the viewer (and Cameron) decide what to make of Eli, it's a fun trip through the world of filmmaking (how realistic a trip, I've no idea). Great performances by O'Toole and Railsback, along with Barbara Hershey, Allen Garfield, Alex Rocco and Sharon Ferrell add so much to the suspense.

See this movie. You can feel how much fun it was for the cast to make. Look at Eli's devilish grin as he tries to soothe Lucky's worries. Try to imagine how many other movies have you sympathizing for an escaped convict. And don't worry if you don't know what to make of mad genius filmmaker Eli Cross because nobody else does either, and if they do, they ain't talkin' ... that might spoil the movie!