John Savage Movies
While attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, John Savage helped organize a children's theatre troupe, giving non-profit performances at various housing projects. When next heard from, Savage had won a Drama Circle award for his starring performance in a Chicago-New York revival of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. In films and television from 1972, Savage reached a watershed in 1975, starring as cub reporter Jim Malloy in the TV series Gibbsville and both starring in and composing the music for the theatrical feature Sister-in-Law. His career continued to flourish as the 1970s drew to a close: he played paraplegic war veteran Steven in the Oscar-winning The Deer Hunter (1978), hippie convert Claude in Hair, guilt-ridden police officer Karl Hettinger in The Onion Field (1979) and the suicidal, physically challenged Roary in Inside Moves (1980). For reasons unknown, Savage's star began fading in the 1980s, despite such choice roles as a cynical photojournalist in Oliver Stone's Salvador (1986). Most of John Savage's footage as Andrew Hagen in 1990's The Godfather III unfortunately wound up on the cutting room floor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1994
- R
In this suspense thriller, Albert (John Savage) is a psychopath who, after brutally murdering a woman, becomes obsessed with her 11-year-old daughter Annie. Twenty-one years after being sent to prison for his crimes, Albert is freed over the strenuous objections of Dr. Sachs (John Saxon), the psychiatrist who has been overseeing Albert's case all these years. Sachs is convinced that Albert is still a very real threat to the community, and it turns out that he's right; desperate to find Annie, but not knowing what surname she uses today, Albert begins contacting every Annie he can find in the phone book, leaving a bloody trail of murdered women in his path when they turn out not to be the little girl he's looking for. The supporting cast includes Bobby DiCicco, Hank Cheyne, Hyapatia Lee, and Beverley Mitchell as Annie. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Savage, John Saxon, (more)
When a top secret nuclear guidance system is stolen by an ex-CIA operative looking to sell the deadly device to the top bidder, it's up to a determined CIA agent and the international terrorist who he has vowed to capture to team up and stop the madman from destabilizing the world in the feature directorial debut of action icon Lorenzo Lamas. CIA Agent Mark Graver (Lamas) was living a quiet life when word came down that a government facility had been breached and a valuable device stolen. Now forced to team with former terrorist Alexa (Kathleen Kinmont) to retrieve the guidance system from international terrorist Franz Kluge (John Savage) -- who also happens to be the father of Alexa's daughter -- the race is on to get the guidance system and stop the bad guys from inciting war. It's not going to be an easy task, though, because when Graver learns that the man behind the scheme is none other than ex-CIA operative Ralph Straker (John Ryan), he is forced to team with bitter rival Kluge to storm Straker's heavily-guarded fortress, get the device, and save Alexa from a man intent on causing global destruction for his own profit. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lorenzo Lamas, Kathleen Kinmont, (more)
- 1994
In this episode of HBO's popular Tales from the Crypt horror anthology series, a wicked man who runs a home for the blind (and abuses its residents) gets a taste of his own medicine from two scheming denizens. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- 1994
- R
In this Canadian thriller, uneducated, disaffected white youths known as skinheads are attacking racial minorities. A government agent (Michael Ironside) investigating the incidents traces them to a wealthy, extreme right-wing, neo-Nazi businessman who is secretly bankrolling the skinheads, using them to do what he would like to do himself, but enabling him to keep his hands clean. The agent assembles a team (as in The Dirty Dozen) to fight back. ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Matt McColm, John Savage, (more)
Errol Flynn (1909-1959) was the son of a highly respected Australian scientist, and was given the opportunity to have an excellent education. However, his athletic and restless spirit caused him to get into trouble constantly, and he soon bailed out of school to go on and have a series of amazing adventures at least as wild as anything he portrayed as a movie star in the 1930s and 1940s. He was the living embodiment of the swashbucklers he portrayed onscreen. This biographical drama covers Flynn's (Guy Pearce) life from the period in the early twenties when he's homeless and living on the streets in Sydney, through a series of adventures with a pro-Nazi German man in New Guinea, to his return to Sydney and the beginnings of his serious involvement in theater. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Guy Pearce, Steven Berkoff, (more)
In this chilling made-for-cable-television outing, the population of the United States is nearly wiped out by a sexually transmitted disease. In order to stop its spread, those infected are sequestered in special camps. To make sure no infected person is allowed to go free, a group of vigilantes begins terrorizing city streets in search of carriers. The story is based on an off-Broadway play by Alan Browne. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1992
- R
In this political thriller, an ambitious press secretary discovers that the opposing political candidate has feathered the nest of his campaigns with terrible lies. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judd Nelson, Justine Bateman, (more)
After a break of more than 15 years, director Francis Ford Coppola and writer Mario Puzo returned to the well for this third and final story of the fictional Corleone crime family. Two decades have passed, and crime kingpin Michael Corleone (Al Pacino), now divorced from his wife Kay (Diane Keaton), has nearly succeeded in keeping his promise that his family would one day be "completely legitimate." A philanthropist devoted to public service, Michael is in the news as the recipient of a special award from the Pope for his good works, a controversial move given his checkered past. Determined to buy redemption, Michael and his lawyer B.J. (George Hamilton) are working on a complicated but legal deal to bail the Vatican out of looming financial troubles that will ultimately reap billions and put Michael on the world stage as a major financial player. However, trouble looms in several forms: The press is hostile to his intentions. Michael is in failing health and suffers a mild diabetic stroke. Stylish mob underling Joey Zaza (Joe Mantegna) is muscling into the Corleone turf. "The Commission" of Mafia families, represented by patriarch Altobello (Eli Wallach) doesn't want to let their cash cow Corleone out of the Mafia, though he has made a generous financial offer in exchange for his release from la cosa nostra. And then there's Vincent Mancini (Andy Garcia), the illegitimate and equally temperamental son of Michael's long-dead brother Sonny. Vincent desperately wants in to the family (both literally and figuratively), and at the urging of his sister Connie (Talia Shire), Michael welcomes the young man and allows him to adopt the Corleone name. However, a flirtatious attraction between Vincent and his cousin, Michael's naïve daughter Mary (Sofia Coppola) develops, and threatens to develop into a full-fledged romance and undo the godfather's future plans. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, (more)
- 1990
John Savage plays a roving reporter on assignment in Africa. While nosing around in the jungle, Savage stumbles upon an unregenerate Nazi war criminal. As he mulls over what do with this information, the Nazi continues laying the groundwork for a worldwide neofascist conspiracy. Despite the presence of such thespic heavyweights as William Hickey and Ernest Borgnine, Any Man's Death never quite lives up to its potential. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Savage, William Hickey, (more)
- 1990
- R
A humble but beautiful secretary tires of her husband's eternal depression and embarks upon an affair with a dashing media magnate in this melodrama. The woman is at first dazzled by the man's wealth, charisma, and sexual prowess and pays no heed to the darker side appearing through the cracks of his charming exterior, but soon enough she comes to see that she is in love with a ruthless man when he has her husband killed, making it look like suicide. He is also blackmailing politicians and heartlessly buying up international businesses with no regard for anyone else but himself. Still the woman passionately loves him even though she refuses to become the traditionally submissive mistress. Unfortunately, for him, she refuses to be dumped and at one point crosses a line and insults him during a business dinner. He gets angry, throws her on the dinner table and rapes her in front of his clients. Finally the light dawns on the shattered woman--this entertainment mogul who piously appears the perfect philanthropist on screen is not a nice man. She then decides to get revenge and stop him for good. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Savage, Kerry Armstrong, (more)
- 1990
Film and reality intermingle as an Israeli writer and film-school teacher creates a screenplay based on his wartime experiences. Flashbacks of his actual experiences commingle with scenes shot by his filmmaking class, as they make two different versions of his script. Despite the potential for confusion, the storyline remains clear. At one point the writer is recalled into active military service, and the film's cross-connections between story and history becomes even more complex. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Savage, Myriam Cyr, (more)
Director Spike Lee dives head-first into a maelstrom of racial and social ills, using as his springboard the hottest day of the year on one block in Brooklyn, NY. Three businesses dominate the block: a storefront radio station, where a smooth-talkin' deejay (Samuel L. Jackson) spins the platters that matter; a convenience store owned by a Korean couple; and Sal's Famous Pizzeria, the only white-operated business in the neighborhood. Sal (Danny Aiello) serves up slices with his two sons, genial Vito (Richard Edson) and angry, racist Pino (John Turturro). Sal has one black employee, Mookie (Spike Lee), who wants to "get paid" but lacks ambition. His sister Jade (Joie Lee, Spike's sister), who has a greater sense of purpose and a "real" job, wants Mookie to start dealing with his responsibilities, most notably his son with girlfriend Tina (Rosie Perez). Two of Mookie's best friends are Radio Raheem (Bill Nunn), a monolith of a man who rarely speaks, preferring to blast Public Enemy's rap song Fight The Power on his massive boom box; and Buggin' Out (Giancarlo Esposito), nicknamed for his coke-bottle glasses and habit of losing his cool. When Buggin' Out notes that Sal's "Wall of Fame," a photo gallery of famous Italian-Americans, includes no people of color, he eventually demands a neighborhood boycott, on a day when tensions are already running high, that incurs tragic consequences. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danny Aiello, Spike Lee, (more)
This tepid action adventure mainly serves as a travelogue of tropical Belize. Jeff Richardson (John Savage) is a British secret agent who tries to stop the former CIA agent Whitehale (Stephen McHattie) from dealing powerful explosives. Whitehale blackmails U.S. tourists Helen Williams (Kara Glover) and Rob Forbes (Sam Malkin) into doing his bidding. The two tourists are trying to raise half a million dollars to pay back the money to the munitions company from which they embezzled. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Savage, Kara Glover, (more)
- 1988
Set in Kenya, this made-for-TV adventure chronicles the courageous attempts of a safari guide to stop avaricious ivory poachers from slaughtering elephants. In order to succeed though, the guide must reconcile with his estranged son who is still angry that his father stole the young man's former wife. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1987
John Savage stars as a troubled man with a checkered past in the made-for-TV Desperate. Born into wealth, Savage turns his back on his heritage by heading for the high seas as skipper of an excursion ship. In Lord Jim fashion, he betrays his customers' trust by jumping ship during a storm. Years later, he settles down as a charter boat captain in Key West, where he hopes to make amends for his past sins. He partially realizes that goal by scuttling a gang of gun-runners. Meg Foster costars as Savage's lady friend, while Christopher Burke, the Down Syndrome-afflicted young actor who later starred in TV's Life Goes On, plays Foster's mentally handicapped son. Conceived as the pilot for a weekly series, Desperate debuted September 19, 1987. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This live-action version of the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast stars Rebecca De Mornay as the woman who learns to see the charm and love beneath the exterior of a boorish beast who imprisons her in his castle in order to collect a debt from her father. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rebecca De Mornay, John Savage, (more)
- 1987
This drama is based on a play by Mones and is set within a grim New York neighborhood where a new kid comes to the neighborhood. Unlike the street-wise and life-toughened gang members around him, the youth is a sensitive poet who teaches the kids about the meaning and beauty of life. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Savage, David Jacobson, (more)
- 1987
- R
After discovering that his terrorist brother has committed suicide, Marco (John Savage) travels to Columbia to investigate, in this action film. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Savage, Robert Duvall, (more)
- 1987
- Add Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam to QueueAdd Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam to top of Queue
Dear America: Letters Home From Vietnam was first telecast April 3, 1988, over the HBO cable service. Based on the book of the same name, the program is devoted to poignant recitations of letters to and from American participants of the Vietnam war. The letters are heard over images culled from news footage, home movies and still photography, with contemporary music added to put things in the proper historical context. The 2-hour film, featuring readings from various well-known actors (see cast list), was a co-production involving Bill Couturie, a previous Emmy winner for Vietnam Requiem, and the Vietnam Veterans Ensemble Theatre Company. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Berenger, Ellen Burstyn, (more)
While Salvador wasn't Oliver Stone's first film (a pair of offbeat horror stories preceded it), it defined his style of fiercely dramatic, politically oriented filmmaking, staked out his territory as one of the major directors of the 1980s and 1990s, and remains one of his strongest works to date. Veteran photojournalist Richard Boyle (James Woods) has been taking his camera to the world's trouble spots for over 20 years; while he does good work, Boyle's fondness for booze and drugs, and his colossal arrogance, have given him a reputation that's left him practically unemployable. Broke and with no immediate prospects, Boyle and his buddy Doctor Rock (Jim Belushi), an out-of-work disc jockey, head to El Salvador, where Boyle is convinced that he can scare up some lucrative freelance work amidst the nation's political turmoil. However, when Boyle and Rock witness the execution of a student by government troops just as they enter the country, it becomes clear that this war is more serious than they were expecting. Increasingly convinced that El Salvador is a disaster starting to happen, Boyle eventually decides that it's time to get out; but he has fallen in love with a woman named Maria (Elpidia Carrillo), and he doesn't want to leave her behind. James Woods gives one of his best performances as Boyle; and the passion of Stone's message, aided by the power of its truth (the film is based on actual events), propels the film forward. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Woods, James Belushi, (more)
This drama concerns a Vietnam vet who suffers at the hands of the people around him when he returns from the war. Frank Morgan (John Savage) is villified by the townsfolk because he exposed an American massacre of a Vietnamese village. When an offer comes up to pilot a plane carrying weapons to a Latin American nation in the throes of a civil war, Frank takes on the job. Coming with him is the woman who hired him, Beatriz (Maria Socas). After landing the plane, Frank and Beatriz are arrested by one of the fighting factions, and their further involvement in the civil war is guaranteed from then on. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Savage, Maria Socas, (more)
- 1985
A young wife and her husband witness the brutal barroom rape of a young woman and now must decide whether or not to testify against the culprits or remain quiet in this made-for-TV drama that exploits an actual Massachusetts case. Compounding her difficulties is the fact that one of the rapists is her brother-in-law. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1985
This made-for-television drama is about Nicki Davis (Tracy Pollan) -- an 18-year-old from a wealthy family who hangs out with a drug-dealing boyfriend -- and Tim Donovan (John Savage), the dedicated probation officer trying to get Nicki to come to grips with the reality of what she is doing. Nicki's predilection for the demimonde becomes a challenge that Tim cannot drop, and while it leads him into the drug world and an unwanted confrontation with Tracy's father -- who feels his daughter's life is no one else's business -- Tim does not give up. Tracy's boyfriend is arrested, and as her world starts to crumble a little, Tim begins to discover why she has chosen her particular path. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Savage, Tracy Pollan, (more)
