Review of The Stunt Man (1980) by Doctor S — 07 May 2009
I love Richard Rush's films. The Stunt Man took him nine years and one heart attack to complete, and it pretty much ended his career, but it was worth it! Steve Railsback is terrific as an on-the-lam Vietnam vet who gets enlisted as a stunt man in a war film being directed by the megalomaniacal Eli Cross (Peter O'Toole, never better).
He remains in a continual state of paranoia about whether O'Toole is trying to kill him to get a stunt finished, creating a compelling metaphor for the ways in which trust and domination play out in personal relationships.
The Stunt Man is also one of the great films about filmmaking: fantasy and reality get blurred and the insanities and egomanias of the Hollywood system are skewered by Rush with extreme prejudice. It's a shame that there aren't more action movies as smart, as sophisticated and as idiosyncratic as this one.
It's also a shame that Rush has only completed one film since -- Color of Night (1994) -- another film which also caused him a heart attack.
This review of The Stunt Man (1980) was written by Doctor S on 07 May 2009.
The Stunt Man has generally received positive reviews.
Was this review helpful?
