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The Stunt Man (1980)
DVD (2 discs
+ 1 features
)
Blu-ray (1 discs
)
Digital ✓
Genre: Comedy
Aspect Ratio: Wide
Sound: DD 5.1
Academy Awards:
3 Nominations
Synopsis
When the line between illusion and reality blurs, it can be hard to know who's pulling the strings, or whether you're about to fall. Richard Rush's "The Stunt Man," adapted from Paul Brodeur's novel, languished on the shelf before its belated 1980 release, but it has since become one of the most revered cult films of all time, thanks largely to its playful, irreverent look at the art and trickery of moviemaking and a wickedly clever performance by Peter O'Toole. O'Toole plays Eli Cross, a megalomaniacal film director whose power to bend reality is like a drug. His latest target is Cameron (Steve Railsback), a Vietnam veteran on the run from the police, who stumbles onto the set of Cross' World War I epic just as a stuntman dies in an accident. In exchange for protection from the law, Cameron agrees to take the dead man's place and learns stunt work on the fly, but soon grows convinced he's a pawn in a deadly game controlled by the manipulative director. Or is he? The film itself is a game, played through the fantasy of moviemaking, and half the fun lies in sharing the stunt man's paranoid confusion. Barbara Hershey is smart and alluring as the film's leading lady, who refuses to be cowed by her director's scheming, but O'Toole steals the show. Rush, whose career was hampered by battles with the Hollywood studio system, never made a better film. It earned three Oscar nominations, including Best Actor, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Cast
Barbara Hershey
Steve Railsback
Peter O'Toole
Director
Richard Rush
Awards & Nominations
- Oscar Nominee: Best Actor In A Leading Role
- Oscar Nominee: Best Director
- Oscar Nominee: Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium
Keywords
Comedy
Cult Film / TV
Technical Specifications
Audio Languages
English
Subtitle Languages
None
Special Features
- Audio commentary
- Deleted/extended scenes
- Featurettes/Behind-The-Scenes/Documentaries
- Photo gallery
- Trailers/TV spots
- Commentary With Director and Stars
- Original Production and Advertising Art
- Complete Screenplay
- Directors Notes
- The Sinister Saga Of Making "The Stunt Man"
- The Maverick Career Of Richard Rush
- Peter O'Toole Recounts The Stunt Man
- Devil's Squadron Featurette
- Barbara Hershey on Nina Franklin Featurette