Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsABFFPride MonthOutfest OutfrontsSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
Sign In
New Customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Messenger of Death

  • 1988
  • R
  • 1h 31m
IMDb RATING
5.4/10
3.1K
YOUR RATING
Messenger of Death (1988)
A Denver reporter investigates the mass murder of a family of Mormons in rural Colorado.
Play trailer1:26
1 Video
32 Photos
ActionCrimeMystery

A Denver reporter investigates the mass murder of a family of Mormons in rural Colorado.A Denver reporter investigates the mass murder of a family of Mormons in rural Colorado.A Denver reporter investigates the mass murder of a family of Mormons in rural Colorado.

  • Director
    • J. Lee Thompson
  • Writers
    • Rex Burns
    • Paul Jarrico
  • Stars
    • Charles Bronson
    • Trish Van Devere
    • Laurence Luckinbill
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    5.4/10
    3.1K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • J. Lee Thompson
    • Writers
      • Rex Burns
      • Paul Jarrico
    • Stars
      • Charles Bronson
      • Trish Van Devere
      • Laurence Luckinbill
    • 44User reviews
    • 24Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 1:26
    Watch Trailer

    Photos32

    Charles Bronson in Messenger of Death (1988)
    Charles Bronson in Messenger of Death (1988)
    Messenger of Death (1988)
    Messenger of Death (1988)
    Messenger of Death (1988)
    Messenger of Death (1988)
    Messenger of Death (1988)
    Messenger of Death (1988)
    Messenger of Death (1988)
    Messenger of Death (1988)
    John Ireland and Trish Van Devere in Messenger of Death (1988)
    Charles Bronson in Messenger of Death (1988)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Charles Bronson
    Charles Bronson
    • Garret Smith
    Trish Van Devere
    Trish Van Devere
    • Jastra Watson
    Laurence Luckinbill
    Laurence Luckinbill
    • Homer Foxx
    Daniel Benzali
    Daniel Benzali
    • Chief Barney Doyle
    Marilyn Hassett
    Marilyn Hassett
    • Josephine Fabrizio
    Charles Dierkop
    Charles Dierkop
    • Orville Beecham
    Jeff Corey
    Jeff Corey
    • Willis Beecham
    John Ireland
    John Ireland
    • Zenas Beecham
    Penny Peyser
    Penny Peyser
    • Trudy Pike
    Gene Davis
    Gene Davis
    • Junior Assassin
    John Solari
    John Solari
    • Senior Assassin
    Jon Cedar
    Jon Cedar
    • Saul
    Tom Everett
    Tom Everett
    • Wiley
    Duncan Gamble
    Duncan Gamble
    • Lieutenant Scully
    Bert Williams
    Bert Williams
    • Sheriff Yates
    Jerome Thor
    Jerome Thor
    • Jimmy
    Sydna Scott
    • Sarah Beecham
    Cheryl Waters
    Cheryl Waters
    • Magda Beecham
    • Director
      • J. Lee Thompson
    • Writers
      • Rex Burns
      • Paul Jarrico
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    More like this

    Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects
    5.5
    Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects
    The Evil That Men Do
    5.9
    The Evil That Men Do
    Murphy's Law
    5.9
    Murphy's Law
    Assassination
    5.2
    Assassination
    10 to Midnight
    6.3
    10 to Midnight
    Borderline
    6.0
    Borderline
    Death Wish 4: The Crackdown
    5.4
    Death Wish 4: The Crackdown
    Love and Bullets
    5.6
    Love and Bullets
    Death Wish: The Face of Death
    4.9
    Death Wish: The Face of Death
    Cabo Blanco
    5.3
    Cabo Blanco
    The Stone Killer
    6.1
    The Stone Killer
    Death Hunt
    6.9
    Death Hunt

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Director J. Lee Thompson fell ill during the making of this film, the picture was finished by second unit director, Robert C. Ortwin Jr..
    • Goofs
      During the car chase, Smith's car is on the inside of one of the tankers on the first corner out of the tunnel, but in the next shot it's back in the middle of both tankers.
    • Quotes

      Garret Smith: [punching the assassin] Bastard child killer!

    • Alternate versions
      Almost 5 minutes were cut in Finland for VHS distribution. Later released on DVD as uncut.
    • Connections
      Referenced in Best of the Worst: Our VHS Collection (2019)

    User reviews44

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    A Different Kind of Bronson Film
    Messenger of Death (1988)

    ** (out of 4)

    After three women and several children of a Mormon family are brutally murdered, reporter Garret Smith (Charles Bronson) begins to investigate and it seems the possible suspect might be between two rival members of that family. As the reporter gets deeper into his investigation his own life comes into jeopardy.

    MESSENGER OF DEATH is that Bronson movie where he kills nobody. With that said, it should come as no surprise that this film was the least popular of his Cannon movies at both the box office and the video rental market. If you ask die-hard Bronson fans what their least favorite Cannon film is more than likely they're going to name this if they've even seen it. MESSENGER OF DEATH doesn't completely work but it's still a mildly entertaining mystery that at least gives us a chance to see Bronson in a different type of role.

    J. Lee Thompson does a pretty good job in his directing duties and especially during the opening sequence where a mystery man enters a house and murders several people. The editing of this sequence is very well-done and the director handles it quite well. I'd argue that we're also given a couple fun action scenes including Bronson in a jeep going up against a couple semis trying to run him off the road. As far as the legend actor goes, for the most part he's actually pretty good here. He's certainly believable as a reporter and it's nice seeing him in this type of role. The supporting cast is also good in their parts and you'll also see some familiar faces including Gene Davis (10 TO MIDNIGHT), Tom Everett and Kimberly Beck (FRIDAY THE 13TH: THE FINAL CHAPTER).

    So, where does MESSENGER OF DEATH go wrong? For starters, the budget was extremely low so I'm sure many interesting scenes were never filmed. Another problem is that its main story just isn't all that interesting. The mystery aspect could have been played up a lot better but too often the film falls back to a formula action picture where we see Bronson whooping up on people. These action scenes just don't sit too well with an otherwise talky picture. MESSENGER OF DEATH isn't your typical Bronson movie but it's certainly not the worst of his career.
    helpful•3
    1
    • Michael_Elliott
    • Dec 4, 2015

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 17, 1988 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Avenging Angels
    • Filming locations
      • Colorado National Monument, Colorado, USA
    • Production companies
      • The Cannon Group
      • Golan-Globus Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $3,074,681
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $1,035,279
      • Sep 18, 1988
    • Gross worldwide
      • $3,074,681
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 31 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Ultra Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Messenger of Death (1988)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Messenger of Death (1988) officially released in India in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2023 by IMDb.com, Inc.