Chris Bruno Movies

The true story of a man who never gave up on his dreams of doing something big -- and doing it very, very fast -- provides the basis for this engaging comedy drama. Burt Munro (Anthony Hopkins) was born in 1899 in Invercargill, New Zealand. From childhood, Munro had a passion for machines that moved fast, and when he was 21 he bought his first motorcycle, an Indian model with a 600 cc engine. Motorcycles became an obsession that stayed with Munro for the rest of his life, as he constantly tinkered with his beloved Indian machine, modifying the engine and frame, determined to see just how fast he could make it run. In 1967, Munro decided it was high time he proved to himself and the world just what he and his machine could do, and he booked passage for the United States, with the goal of breaking the world's land speed record at Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats. As Munro made his way across America to Utah, he discovered not everyone took his dream seriously, but some did, and he made a handful of friends along the way, including Ada (Diane Ladd), a widow who fell for Munro's rough charm, and Fernando (Paul Rodriguez), a car dealer who offered to help him. However, when he finally arrived at Bonneville, Munro was told his machine was unsafe to participate in the time trials, and -- far worse -- he was too old to ride. It took some intervention from a ranking American driver, Jim Moffett (Chris Lawford), before Munro was given his chance to ride the famous Salt Flats. The World's Fastest Indian was written and directed by Roger Donaldson, who early in his career made a documentary about the real Burt Munro, Offerings to the Gods of Speed. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The second season of the Stephen King-inspired TV series The Dead Zone begins with the conclusion of the cliffhanger introduced at the end of season one, as schoolteacher Johnny Smith (Anthony Michael Hall), who ever since awakening from a six-year coma has had the ability to predict people's futures and read their thoughts simply by touching their hands, begins his mission to destroy political candidate Greg Stillson (Sean Patrick Flanery), whom Johnny knows will destroy the world if he ever becomes president. His crusade against Stillson encounters innumerable unexpected twists and turns throughout the season, notably in an episode wherein Johnny throws his support behind Stillson's political opponent, Harrison Fisher (Gerald McRaney), only to discover that Fisher may prove even more dangerous in the long run. Meanwhile, Johnny's gifts allow him to arrive at the sobering conclusion that his former fiancée, Sarah (Nicole de Boer), would have married Sheriff Walt Bannerman (Chris Bruno) even if Johnny hadn't been rendered comatose by his car accident -- but would Sarah have borne Johnny's son J.J., who now has no idea of his true parentage? Also, more questions arise as to the extent of televangelist Gene Purdy's (David Ogden Stiers) involvement in the death of Johnny's millionaire mother. Season two was to have ended with the episode "Playing God," but the USA network decided to extend the season by several weeks. As a result, audiences were treated to such choice episodes as "Zion," in which Johnny's therapist and best friend, Bruce (John L. Adams), experiences paranormal visions of his own; "The Storm," the series' first episode filmed in the letterboxed format; and "The Hunt," which was titled "The Hunt for Osama" until late-breaking events in the Middle East dictated a name change. The season finale provides a payoff to a recurring plot strand, in which Johnny is stalked by a mysterious man in black (Frank Whaley) -- who turns out to be a visitor from the future that Johnny has so often peered into, and who has a vital message that may or may not save the world from annihilation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In a non-comic variation of the 1993 film Groundhog Day, Johnny (Anthony Michael Hall) meets an attractive insurance adjuster named Natalie Connor (Reiko Aylesworth) at a bar. Touching her hand, Johnny foresees a romantic future for himself and Natalie -- but the visions quickly take a grim turn, and before long he is witnessing Natalie's death and the events leading up to it, over and over and over again. Even worse, in his efforts to warn Natalie of her fate, Johnny succeeds only in heaping additional disaster upon her. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

While on a camping trip with the Bannermans, Johnny (Anthony Michael Hall) has a vision of a crashed plane with two million dollars on board. Sure enough, that amount has recently been stolen, and Johnny is invited to join a search party headed by mountain ranger Randy Truman (Scott William Winters). Also participating in the search are Mark and Pauline Dionne (Ian Tracey, Krista Rae), the owners of a local boat shop -- who happen to be the thieves who stole the loot, and who do not intend to leave any witnesses to their crime. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Who is the facially scarred "man in black" who has been stalking Johnny (Anthony Michael Hall) throughout the past few episodes? It turns out that the mystery man, Christopher Wey (Frank Whaley), has an important message from the future -- one that will profoundly alter the future of humanity. But Wey refuses to reveal the particulars of his prophecy unless Johnny agrees to prevent the seemingly unpreventable murders of Wey's wife (Ione Skye) and daughter. This final episode of The Dead Zone's second-season closes with the traditional cliffhanger, this time incorporating an ominous magazine cover. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Johnny (Anthony Michael Hall) is reunited with two of his high-school friends, Jason Moore (Lochlyn Munro) and Jason's sister Kate (Ally Sheedy, with whom series star Hall appeared in the 1982 theatrical feature The Breakfast Club). Upon making physical contact with both Jason and Kate, Johnny experiences a disturbing psychic vision, indicating that one of the siblings needs a heart transplant -- and the other is fated to be the donor. Thus, if Johnny tries to save one of his friends, the other will die, and vice versa...and the more he tries to avoid making the inevitable choice, the more that choice is cruelly thrust upon him. "Playing God" was originally slated to air as The Dead Zone's second-season finale, but the USA network decided to extend the season for several additional episodes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Schoolteacher Johnny Smith (Anthony Michael Hall) awakens from a six-year coma to discover himself a stranger in his own land as the TV-series version of The Dead Zone launches its first season. Johnny's wealthy mother has died under mysterious circumstances, and a flamboyant televangelist named Gene Purdy (David Ogden Stiers) is in control of the Smith millions. Worse still, Johnny's fiancée, Sarah Bracknell (Nicole de Boer), is married to Sheriff Walt Bannerman (Chris Bruno), and has a young son named J.J. -- who, unbeknownst to himself and Walt, is Johnny's biological son. Of utmost significance is the fact that Johnny, who harbored minor ESP powers before the car accident that had plunged him into a coma, is now a full-blown psychic, endowed with the ability to predict the future and read people's thoughts by touching their hands. As the season progresses, Johnny dedicates himself to using his mental gifts to help people and to prevent impending disasters -- all the while holding down his old teaching job. Johnny's friend and therapist, Bruce Lewis (John L. Adams), and our hero's reporter girlfriend, Dana Bright (Kristen Dalton), both suspect there is more to Johnny's uncanny ability to prognosticate than meets the eye, but in general he keeps his awesome powers to himself. Season-one highlights include Johnny's brief cosmic romance with a woman who may have died 60 years before, his psychic link with a century-old Native American shaman, his disturbing visions while serving on a jury, and his growing suspicion that Rev. Purdy murdered Johnny's mother for her money. In one episode, "Netherworld," Johnny awakens in what seems to be a parallel world in which his accident never occurred and he is happily married to Sarah...but appearances, here as elsewhere, are most deceiving. The season ends with "Destiny," the first episode of a two-part cliffhanger loosely derived from the 1983 film version of The Dead Zone, in which Johnny receives truly negative "vibes" when he touches the hand of ruthlessly ambitious congressional candidate Greg Stillson (Sean Patrick Flanery). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide