Tom Burlinson Movies
Lead actor Tom Burlinson has appeared onscreen from the late '70s. ~ All Movie Guide
Australian filmmaker Paul Goldman directs the comedy The Night We Called It a Day, based on the actual events during Frank Sinatra's 1974 tour stop in Sydney. Joel Edgerton plays Rod Blue, a long-haired rock promoter in Australia during the '70s. He hopes to save his floundering career by spending all his money booking Frank Sinatra (Dennis Hopper). But when Sinatra arrives with his girlfriend Barbara Marx (Melanie Griffith), he insults the locals by calling reporter Hilary Hunter (Portia de Rossi) "a two-dollar whore." Union leader and future Australian prime minister Bob Hawke (David Field) tries to cancel the tour unless he apologizes, and it's up to Rod and his assistant Audrey (Rose Byrne) to step in and save the tour. Tom Burlinson performs Sinatra's vocal parts. The Night We Called It a Day was shown at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Hopper, Melanie Griffith, (more)
Developed by Tina Sinatra and approved by Frank himself, Sinatra is a made-for-television mini-series following the life and times of Frank Sinatra, one of the most popular and acclaimed singers of the 20th century. Opening with his childhood in Hoboken, New Jersey, the film follows Sinatra's (Philip Casnoff) rise to the top in the '40s, through the dark days of the early '50s and his triumphant re-emergence in the mid-'50s, to his status as pop culture icon in the '60s, '70s and '80s. In between, the film hits all of the main events, including his three marriages, his connections with the Mafia and his notorious friendship with the Rat Pack. Even with the presence of Tina Sinatra as executive producer, Sinatra doesn't gloss over the more unsavory portions of Frank's life, which makes it all the more impressive. With the exception of a couple of early songs, all the music in the movie is taken from the original Sinatra recordings. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- 1991
- R
Based on a true story, Showdown at Williams Creek is about a British soldier named John Brown (Tom Burlinson), who moves to America's Wild West, settling in the Montana territory with the hopes of making a fortune. However, things don't go entirely as planned in America, as he has to survive not only nature, but a vast array of thieves, cheats, and schemers. The culmination of his misadventures is when Brown is put on trial for killing an old man. Boasting several terrific performances, Showdown At Williams Creek is one of the darkest examinations of the Old West and the gold rush to be told on film. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
The Masterpiece Theater production of Derek Robinson's Piece of Cake tells the tale of the RAF Hornet Squadron during the early days of the second world war. The film traces the love lives of as well the class differences between the soldiers and follows how a new leader takes the young men to battle in France. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Burlinson
Romance and adventure abound in this sequel to the popular Australian film The Man from Snowy River. The story takes up five years after the other ended. It is still the 1880s when Jim Craig returns to his humble mountain cabin after he rounds up a heard of mustangs in the hope that he will earn enough money to finally be able to marry Jessica. Unfortunately, Jessica's dad wants her to marry the banker's son. Now the two lovers must work long and hard to be together. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Burlinson, Sigrid Thornton, (more)
- 1987
- PG
When a 4039 AD city is threatened by malevolent cyborgs, a group of humans from the city time-travels to a desert in 1988 Australia, hoping to repair damages inflicted by the robotic baddies. It is here that, with the help of a 20th-century geologist, the group attempts to defend themselves and the city against the incoming killer 'borgs. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Burlinson, Nikki Coghill, (more)
- 1986
- R
This is a youth-oriented romantic drama about the relationship of a champion surfer and a rock singer. Enhanced by impressive sequences of surfboard derring-do and the exotic scenery of western Australia (as well as the first adult role for Nicole Kidman), this film has plenty to keep young audiences entertained. P.C. Simpson (Tom Burlinson) lives in a magnificent beachfront home with his wealthy father and indulges his passion for surfing on a daily basis. His father may fault him for not working at a regular job, but he can appreciate his son's remarkable abilities on the waves. Jade (Kidman) is a rock singer who starts an romance with the surfer, but just as it seems his life could not get better, several setbacks occur that threaten a wipeout. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Burlinson, Nicole Kidman, (more)
- 1986
- PG13
H. Rider Haggard's popular adventure novel King Solomon's Mines has been translated to the big screen on several occasions. Tom Burlinson and Arthur Dignam contribute their vocal talents to this 1986 animated version of the venerable tale of hunting treasure and lost explorers in darkest Africa. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Victor Hugo's classic story The Hunchback of Notre Dame gets the animation treatment in this entry in Digital Versatile Disc, Ltd's Classic Animation series. Retooled for a young audience, the tale centers on a disfigured, but goodhearted, bell ringer who is the subject of scrutiny for his appearance until he is befriended by a beautiful woman named Esmerelda. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Burlinson
When an attempted political coup in Northern Italy fails, most of the mercenaries hired by the coup leaders disperse. Not so Martin (Rutger Hauer), who intends to rob his duplicitous former employer Arnolfini (Fernando Hillbeck). Martin is able to raise his own army by using a stolen religious artifact as a talisman. He later kidnaps Arnolfini's prospective daughter-in-law Agnes (Jennifer Jason Leigh),who saves herself from gang rape by feigning eternal devotion to her captor. Weeks of plunder and destruction follow, with a deadly plague thrown into the stew. Flesh and Blood has also been released under the title The Rose and the Sword. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rutger Hauer, Jennifer Jason Leigh, (more)
- 1983
Phar Lap, the legendary New Zealand-bred racing horse, is as well-known today for his mysterious death as for his fabulous accomplishments in life. Beginning at the end, the film flashes back to the day that Phar Lap, despite his lack of pedigree, is purchased on impulse by trainer Harry Telford (Martin Vaughan). Phar Lap loses his first races, but Telford's faith in the animal is unshakable. Suddenly the horse becomes a winner, thanks to the love and diligence of stableboy Tommy Woodcock (Tom Burlinson). American-promoter Dave Davis (Ron Leibman) arranges for Phar Lap to be entered in several top races, where his "long shot" status results in heavy losses for the professional gamblers. Just after winning an important race in Mexico, Phar Lap collapse and dies; though the film never comes out and says as much, it is assumed that the horse was "murdered" by the gambling interests. The film is based on a book by Michael Wilkinson. The real-life Tommy Woodcock appears in the film as an elderly trainer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Burlinson, Martin Vaughan, (more)
Inspired by an epic poem by A.B. "Banjo" Patterson, The Man From Snowy River was a major step forward for the regenerated Australian film industry of the early '80s. This "down-under Western" spotlights Tom Burlinson as Jim Craig, a headstrong young man who goes to work for a powerful cattle baron. Burlinson falls in love with Jessica (Sigrid Thornton), his boss' daughter, and becomes enmeshed in a bitter land feud. Kirk Douglas has a high old time in the dual role of hard-hearted landowner Harrison and grizzled, one-legged old prospector Spur. Previously filmed in 1920, The Man From Snowy River was directed by the other George Miller, not the director of the same name who helmed Mad Max (1979). A monumental moneymaker, the film inspired a 1988 sequel, confusingly titled Return to Snowy River, Part II. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kirk Douglas, Jack Thompson, (more)
