Movie · 1980 · Action, Comedy, Drama, Thriller, Romance · 2h 11m · R · English
Curator score: 5.6/10 (21.4K ratings)
If God could do the tricks that we can do, he'd be a happy man...
Overview
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.
Ratings
Curator score: 5.6/10
IMDb: 6.9/10
Letterboxd: 3.52/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 90%
Metacritic: 75
TMDB: 6.6/10
Director
Richard Rush
Production
20th Century Fox, Melvin Simon Productions
Cast
Peter O'Toole, Steve Railsback, Barbara Hershey, Allen Garfield, Alex Rocco, Sharon Farrell, Adam Roarke, Philip Bruns, Charles Bail, John Garwood, Jim Hess, John Pearce, Michael Railsback, George D. Wallace, Dee Carroll, Leslie Winograde, Don Kennedy, Whitey Hughes, Walter Robles, A.J. Bakunas
Where to watch
Amazon Prime Video, Peacock Premium, Night Flight Plus, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Peacock Premium Plus
Curator Review
Verdict
A sharp, chaotic meta-Hollywood thriller that mixes action, dark comedy, romance, and psychological gamesmanship. It’s uneven by design, but the bravado, Peter O’Toole’s towering performance, and the film’s feverish sense of movie-set reality make it a distinctive watch.
Best for
Viewers who like films about filmmaking and on-set power struggles
Fans of off-kilter 1970s/early-1980s genre hybrids
People who enjoy charismatic, larger-than-life performances
Anyone drawn to meta-cinema, stunt work, and Hollywood satire
Skip if
You want a cleanly plotted thriller
You dislike tonal whiplash between comedy, danger, and romance
You prefer understated realism over showy filmmaking
You’re not interested in movies that are knowingly self-reflexive
Overview
The Stunt Man is one of those movies that feels like it’s constantly daring you to keep up. It starts as a fugitive story, turns into a movie-set fever dream, and keeps mutating into something slyer and stranger than its premise suggests. Richard Rush treats the set like a battlefield of egos, illusions, and control, and the result is both messy and exhilarating.
Worth noting
Peter O’Toole is the film’s gravitational force, playing the director as a dazzling manipulator who seems to understand every angle of the room and every weakness in it. Steve Railsback gives the movie its bruised, reactive center, while Barbara Hershey adds emotional tension that keeps the film from becoming pure self-regard. The movie’s appeal is less about realism than about the seduction of performance itself.
Bottom line
It’s not a perfectly balanced film, and some viewers will find its excesses abrasive or overcooked. But if you like cinema that is loud about its own artifice and still manages to feel alive, this is a memorable, singular ride.
Top Letterboxd reviews
laird (4.5★) · 387 likes
Peter O'Toole descending into shots like a deity on a crane forever.
carrieandtracy · 259 likes
What in the hell happened to Richard Rush? The Stunt Man is so sophisticated and funny, shot with such elan — it’s just freaking weird that the guy’s career very nearly stops, right there. All the performances have real depth. Mr. O’Toole is the obvious MVP, but Mr. Railsback and Ms. Hershey do their own heavy lifting. There is a scene, late in the film, between the two of them that would never make it on the screen today. Producers would… more What in the hell happened to Richard Rush? The Stunt Man is so sophisticated and funny, shot with such elan — it’s just freaking weird that the guy’s career very nearly stops, right there. All the performances have real depth. Mr. O’Toole is the obvious MVP, but Mr. Railsback and Ms. Hershey do their own heavy lifting. There is a scene, late in the film, between the two of them that would never make it on the screen today. Producers would… more
Todd Gaines (4★) · 216 likes
I can't tell you what genre I'd label Richard Rush's The Stunt Man. It's a hybrid of dark comedy, action, drama and romance. It all depends on what scene you're watching. It's highlighted by Peter O'Toole's Oscar nominated performance. However, he's not the Stunt Man, but the eccentric director of an epic WWI movie.
Peter O'Toole kills it, but I can't believe how powerful Steve Railsback is. He acts his balls off. It's almost unbelievable how he instantly turns from… more
Sean Armstrong (5★) · 171 likes
Watching this movie for the first time is a little like having an unbelievably sexy woman punch you in the face while giving you a handjob. And just before you blow your load, 50 people rush into the room.
BeardofTsu (4★) · 138 likes
In 22 seconds, I could break your fucking spine. In 22 seconds, I could pinch your head off like a fucking insect and spin it all over the fucking pavement. In 22 seconds, I could put 22 bullets inside your ridiculous gut. What I seem unable to do in 22 seconds is to keep you from fucking up my film!
A real tour de force performance from Peter O'Toole and possibly my favorite Richard Rush joint. The police sergeant played by Alex Rocco would go on to voice the creator of Itchy and Scratchy years later- a nice fun bit of trivia.