My favorite scene in this movie is how Eli (Peter O'Toole) gets his leading lady Nina (Barbara Hershey) the performance he wants in a particular scene. Without giving it away, a similar situation happened on the real set of "The Exorcist" where William Friedkin used unconventional means to get the performance from one his actors. "The Stunt Man" in some sense is about the director getting what he wants out of his cast and crew and how he does it.
Briefly, "The Stunt Man" is about a Vietnam vet turned fugitive-from-the-law, Cameron (Steve Railsback), accused of attempted murder in an ice cream shop no less. (Never seen as the story begins when he's on the run.) He has an altercation with an antique car on a bridge before he stumbles onto a movie set located on one of the Malibu or Santa Monica beaches in California.
Turned out the car on the bridge was part of the movie and it went over the side of the bridge and into the river along with their stunt man who drowned! They are shooting an anti-war movie set during the First World War. Barbara Hershey in an early role plays Nina, the leading actress of the film. Aspects of the film they're shooting seem like if Ed Wood directed "Saving Private Ryan"!
Through sheer luck, Cameron becomes the stunt man's replacement, pretending he's now "Bert", the late stuntman! Eli the director (Peter O'Toole in a quintessential O'Toole performance) tells Cameron basically that if he tells his movie crew, he is Bert, then he's Bert!
Cameron then learns not only the movie-making biz but the politics involved. People are all sleeping with each other, such as the lead actor having an affair with the makeup and hair artist. The stunt coordinator is a total pessimist, and the screenwriter is like all writers, frustrated with how his screenplay is being butchered by Eli. Eventually Cameron, now Bert, is involved with an affair with someone quite unexpected!
The best aspects of the movie are when the camera rolls and the scenes are shot. Some of Bert's interactions are wildly unrealistic. The director treats Bert as a near-equal, which is not how a director would someone like a stunt double. Eli spends more time with his arm around Cameron/Bert than any other hire on the production! At one point he screams at his cameraman for not using more footage on a take. That may be somewhat realistic.
A decent film, for me a one-watch. Pauline Kael hailed it as the best movie about movies but I would contest "The Player" directed by Robert Altman is far more realistic. There are parts of this film which are rather nutty.
Briefly, "The Stunt Man" is about a Vietnam vet turned fugitive-from-the-law, Cameron (Steve Railsback), accused of attempted murder in an ice cream shop no less. (Never seen as the story begins when he's on the run.) He has an altercation with an antique car on a bridge before he stumbles onto a movie set located on one of the Malibu or Santa Monica beaches in California.
Turned out the car on the bridge was part of the movie and it went over the side of the bridge and into the river along with their stunt man who drowned! They are shooting an anti-war movie set during the First World War. Barbara Hershey in an early role plays Nina, the leading actress of the film. Aspects of the film they're shooting seem like if Ed Wood directed "Saving Private Ryan"!
Through sheer luck, Cameron becomes the stunt man's replacement, pretending he's now "Bert", the late stuntman! Eli the director (Peter O'Toole in a quintessential O'Toole performance) tells Cameron basically that if he tells his movie crew, he is Bert, then he's Bert!
Cameron then learns not only the movie-making biz but the politics involved. People are all sleeping with each other, such as the lead actor having an affair with the makeup and hair artist. The stunt coordinator is a total pessimist, and the screenwriter is like all writers, frustrated with how his screenplay is being butchered by Eli. Eventually Cameron, now Bert, is involved with an affair with someone quite unexpected!
The best aspects of the movie are when the camera rolls and the scenes are shot. Some of Bert's interactions are wildly unrealistic. The director treats Bert as a near-equal, which is not how a director would someone like a stunt double. Eli spends more time with his arm around Cameron/Bert than any other hire on the production! At one point he screams at his cameraman for not using more footage on a take. That may be somewhat realistic.
A decent film, for me a one-watch. Pauline Kael hailed it as the best movie about movies but I would contest "The Player" directed by Robert Altman is far more realistic. There are parts of this film which are rather nutty.