Bill Stacey Movies

Ghosts...of the Civil Dead is an Australian prison picture, ironically coproduced by a company calling itself "Correctional Services". The prison in question is a cruelly repressive institution, with a set of rules bordering on the Draconian. The inmates finally rebel in violent fashion against the regimented sadism of their captors. With its limited setting and its small cast, Ghosts...of the Civil Dead should have been easier to follow. The unnecessarily cluttered screenplay was written by the film's director, John Hillcoat. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this hilarious, award-winning comedy, Malcolm (Colin Friels) is an innocent, naive mechanical genius with a distinct gap where sexual and social awareness normally reside. He first gets into trouble when he builds his version of a streetcar and then takes it on a joyride through Melbourne -- a definite no-no. That exploit costs him his job as a maintenance man for the streetcar company. Out of work, Malcolm is forced to take in two boarders who are actually a con man and his female companion. The con artist is intrigued by all of Malcolm's mechanical inventions, and cash registers are clicking at the back of his mind. It does not take him long to convince Malcolm to join them in robbing a bank -- which turns out to be even more adventurous than the streetcar ride through Melbourne. Director Nadia Tass and her husband, co-producer, scripter and cinematographer David Parker followed up with an enjoyable and funny Rikky and Pete. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Hollywood's Stacy Keach stars in Australia's Road Games. Keach is a truck driver who takes the law in his own hands to capture a serial killer. When the police fail to nab the murderer of hitchhikers, Keach takes to the road, conducting his own search. En route, he picks up hitcher Jamie Lee Curtis--and it is her presence that brings the killer out of hiding and into the bloody finale. Director Richard Franklin's fondness for Hitchcock, which would come to full fruition in Psycho II (1982), is very much in evidence throughout Road Games. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

One of several feature film versions of the late 19th century novel by Rolf Boldrewood, this frontier adventure is set not in the Wild West of the U.S., but in the equally untamed Australian Outback of the same era. Two brothers, Jim (David McCallum) and Dick Marsten (Ronald Lewis) follow in their father's footsteps by leaving home to seek adventure as gunfighters. They become outlaws in the roving band led by stylish Captain Starlight (Peter Finch), who leads them on a series of escapades robbing banks and rustling cattle. Though they find the excitement and romance they craved, the Marstens soon become disillusioned with a life on the run and begin to wish that they could resume the mantle of honest, hard-working citizens. Unfortunately, events transpire to put the entire Starlight gang out of operation before the brothers can recommence their formerly law-abiding ways. Produced by Britain's Rank Organization, Robbery Under Arms (1957) was followed by a television series remake in 1985 and a handful of other films set against the colorful backdrop of the Australian frontier, including The Man from Snowy River (1982) and Quigley Down Under (1990). ~ Karl Williams, Rovi