Steve Railsback Movies
Before underappreciated character actor Steve Railsback became a fixture in the direct-to-video market, he studied with Lee Strasberg and spent a decade acting on the N.Y.C. theater circuit. His made his film debut in Elia Kazan's 1972 crime thriller The Visitors, and followed that up with a role in the 1974 action drama Cockfighter. His first major film role was as the cult leader Charles Manson in the 1976 CBS movie Helter Skelter, based on the book by Vincent Bugliosi. He starred opposite Sophia Loren in the barely released Canadian film Angela and opposite Kim Basinger in the six-hour romantic miniseries From Here to Eternity. His last mainstream starring role was in the 1980 offbeat action movie The Stunt Man, as a fugitive who stumbles onto the set of a fictional movie directed by Peter O'Toole and starring Barbara Hershey. The movie developed a bit of a cult following, and as a result Railsback developed a small but appreciative audience.Throughout the remainder of the '80s, Railsback thrived as a leading man in the special area of low-budget B-movies seen mostly on cable or home video. Some schlocky favorites include the British sci-fi horror flick Lifeforce and the Australian action movie Escape 2000. A few exceptions to his action-filled resumé are the family drama The Golden Seal and the period comedy Calender Girl. In the '90s he tried producing and screenwriting while also playing recurring psychopath Duane Barry on FOX's The X-Files. He made his directorial debut in 1994 with The Spy Within, an erotic thriller starring Scott Glenn and Theresa Russell. In 1997 he joined the cast of the FOX sci-fi drama series The Visitor for a season. In 2000 he returned to playing sicko psychopaths as the title character in the creepy biopic Ed Gein. In addition to portraying the farmer-turned-serial killer, he also served as executive producer. He stayed with the horror genre for his next appearance in the South African movie Slash (2002). ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- 1990
Not so much a sequel to the John Sayles-scripted Alligator as a shoddy remake, this sophomoric low-budget effort plays like a bad TV movie about a swamp-dwelling alligator mutated to monstrous size by toxic waste, munching on the screaming residents of a lakefront community. The naughty polluter who caused this mutation is the property developer himself (Steve Railsback, playing such a cookie-cutter villain that he might as well have a "BAD GUY" sign around his neck). An embarrassed Joseph Bologna plays the cop investigating the mutilation murders; an equally-ashamed Dee Wallace Stone plays the scientist assisting him, who is conveniently married to him as well. In an attempt to remedy the situation, a big-game hunter (Richard Lynch) is called in to bag the beast. When his efforts fail, it's left to Bologna to pick up the pieces -- literally -- and take charge of the situation when the big reptile decides to take in the grand opening of the local amusement park. From a nonsensical script to cheesy special effects that make the beast look like a pool toy, this film shows none of the cynical charm and sly wit that made Alligator so enjoyable. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joseph Bologna, Woody Brown, (more)
- 1977
In this subpar Canadian film, Sophia Loren is Angela, a prostitute who has decided to become a waitress after she gets pregnant by Ben Kincaid (John Vernon) and needs a better way to support her baby. When Ben gets back from service in the Korean War, he does not believe Angela's little boy is his, and after he starts working for his old mob boss, he says he cannot continue as long as the boy is in the house. So his boss Hogan (John Huston) has the child kidnapped, which triggers Angela to seek revenge, and she informs the police about Ben's planned robbery. He is caught and goes to jail for more than two decades, and when he gets out, his only goal is to get even. Meanwhile, Angela has worked her way up to the ownership of an elegant restaurant and has fallen in love with handsome young Jean Labrecque (Steve Railsback), who delivers meat to the kitchen -- without either knowing at the time that they are mother and son. With dim lighting, a dim script, and dim chances, this turkey was quickly made into dim-sum and shelved in video cassettes. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sophia Loren, Steve Railsback, (more)
In Armed and Dangerous, John Candy plays a cop who has been kicked off the force on a trumped up charge. Eugene Levy costars as a disbarred lawyer. The two outcasts take low-paying jobs as security officers at a company controlled by mob boss Robert Loggia. In their own stumblebum fashion, Candy and Levy uncover a smuggling operation masterminded by Loggia. Meg Ryan also shows up in an early leading role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Candy, Eugene Levy, (more)
Set in the year 2017, Barb Wire takes place after democracy has fallen and a fascist military junta has taken over the U.S. government, plotting to wipe out the country with Red Ribbon, a laboratory-manufactured disease derived from the AIDS virus. The entire test city of Topeka has been annihilated, and only the small bastion of Steel Harbor remains the last free zone in the country, conveniently the home of the title heroine Pamela Lee. Barb, a leather-clad, silicon-stretched motorcycle mama, happens to carry antibodies for Red Ribbon in her DNA, thus making her an enemy of the state. She sets out to defend freedom and take down the evil government by posing as a stripper and seducing foolish male adversaries with her well-displayed assets. The plot thickens as she happens upon her freedom-fighter ex-lover and his wife (much in the vein of Casablanca). ~ Jeremy Beday, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pamela Anderson, Temuera Morrison, (more)
- 1987
This slick throwback to the giant-mutant-insect movies of the 1950's has built a small reputation solely on its irrelevant title -- the film contains no monkeys, blue or otherwise -- which confused both reviewers and viewers alike. (This dilemma was solved in its second video incarnation, under the more honest title Insect.) The story begins when a gardener becomes infected with a plant-borne insect larva, which he disgorges upon his arrival at the County Memorial Hospital. When the bug-baby ingests a large dose of growth hormone called NAC-5 (hospitals are always leaving that stuff around where bugs can get at it), it immediately bulks up to the size of a bulldozer. The plot quickly shifts into Alien mode, as scientists, police (namely wild-eyed cop Steve Railsback) and hospital personnel creep down the hospital's labyrinthine corridors in search of the insectoid monster, which they hope to destroy with conveniently-provided experimental laser equipment before it can test the capacity of the maternity ward with a few million larvae. Despite the lurid promotional materials (showing pretty nurses SCREAMING IN HORROR!!), the story is played quite straight -- more of an homage to films like Them! than a parody of same -- and benefits from good performances (John Vernon is great as the hospital director), a tight script and a strong emphasis on suspense and action from director William Fruet. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Railsback, Gwynyth Walsh, (more)
The Bonds of Love in this made-for-TV drama are those forged between divorcee Kelly McGillis and mentally disabled Treat Williams. What begins as a friendship between two lost souls blossoms into a deep and genuine romance. Their wedding plans are challenged by his mother (Grace Zabriskie) and father (Hal Holbrook)-who are not depicted as villains but merely well-meaning and overprotective (only Williams' brother, played by Steve Railsback, comes off in negative terms). Based on a true story, Bonds of Love is set in Kansas (though it was lensed in Ontario). The film premiered January 24, 1973. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1993
- PG13
Lots of guys used to dream about having a date with Marilyn Monroe, but three friends who are about to graduate from high school to go their separate ways try to make that fantasy a reality in this comedy, set in 1962. Roy (Jason Priestley), Ned (Gabriel Olds), and Scott (Jerry O'Connell) have been buddies since the age of six, when they were entered together in a Howdy Doody look-alike contest. With only a few weeks to go before they graduate from high school, Roy has impulsively joined the Army to get away from his abusive father, while Ned has discovered he's going to be a father, and Scott is still plagued by his pesky virginity. Wanting to enjoy their last few weeks of freedom, Roy "borrows" a wad of cash and a blue Galaxie 500 convertible from his former employers, repo men Arturo and Antonio Gallo (Kurt Fuller and Stephen Tobolowsky), and persuades his friends to join him as he heads to Hollywood. Roy wants to meet the woman of his dreams, Marilyn Monroe, whom he's learned is working on a new picture, Something's Got to Give. With the help of Roy's Uncle Harry (Joe Pantoliano), they locate Monroe's home and camp out at her gate, hoping to get a glimpse of the glamourous goddess. However, Roy breaks out a reefer to smoke while they attempt to stay up all night (tactical error number one: marijuana does not make you more alert!), and when she slips out without their noticing, the three end up on a mad chase to find Marilyn before she gets away. Meanwhile, the Gallo Brothers have noticed their car is gone, and they are determined to get it back, without much concern for the health or safety of the thief. Calendar Girl was Jason Priestley's first vehicle following his success on the television series Beverly Hills 90210. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Priestley, Gabriel Olds, (more)
- 1980
- R
In this routine slasher film about the relationship between a deranged killer and his victim, Keegan (Jo Ann Harris) is a young woman who returns to her home town to look for her sister's killer. Other victims have been brutally murdered by a man in a black mask, and Keegan turns to the easy-going, investigating cop Roger Lane (Sam Groom) for information on the slayings. As the investigation continues, Roger and his friend Billy (Steve Railsback) play a horror-movie board game that seems to somehow be connected to the deaths, while Keegan meets with her mother (June Lockhart) and relives the past with old friends. In-house references to horror movies are also featured when Keegan and the two board-game buddies watch the 1932 shocker The Monster Walks at Billy's work place. The contrast between Keegan's normal life and the world of thrills in the movies is all the greater in the final scenes, when the killer -- who is fairly easily psyched out early on -- reveals his motives. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sam Groom, Jo Ann Harris, (more)
- 1988
- R
An archaeologist has come back home with a priceless gem in his possession. However, it was ill-gotten and his life is in extreme danger. After he's killed, his widow becomes the mark of several treasure-seekers. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lisa Eilbacher, Steve Railsback, (more)
- 1987
- PG
Amy (Olivia Hussey) is a widow who is held captive by her insane Aunt Margot (Piper Laurie) in this predictably routine mystery. After she believes her husband has died, Amy is comforted by a group of society women with lesbian tendencies and is drugged when she goes to live with her aunt who tries to convince her she is insane. Amy begins to have nightmarish hallucinations and believes she sees the decayed remains of her late husband. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Olivia Hussey, Piper Laurie, (more)
David Nutter made his directorial debut with this fantasy thriller, attempting a switch on The Stepford Wives premise. The Clark family moves from Chicago to Cradle Bay, and Steve Clark (James Marsden) is cautioned by Gavin Strick (Nick Stahl) about the separating factions at the local high school, where the Blue Ribbons, a club of robotic perfect students, rule. Gavin claims a conspiracy is afoot, and sure enough, he turns into an ultra-perfect himself. Rachel Wagner (Katie Holmes) joins Steve in investigating, and they soon suspect school psychiatrist Dr. Caldicott (Bruce Greenwood), a neuropharmacology specialist. The soundtrack contrasts alternative rock with tunes by Barry Manilow, Wayne Newton, and Olivia Newton-John. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Marsden, Katie Holmes, (more)
By day, Ed Gein was a quiet man who kept watch over the farm left to him by his late mother in Plainfield, a small rural community in Wisconsin. But by night, Gein was one of the most bizarre and dangerous psychopaths in recorded history. Raised by a violent alcoholic father and a mother with an obsessive fear of sin and hatred of sex, Gein had very few friends, and after the death of his parents, Gein was left to his own devices on the family farm (where, under a government subsidy program, he was paid not to grow crops), and his unhealthy obsessions eventually became ugly realities. Gein's crimes included murder, necrophilia, cannibalism, and grave robbing, with Gein using the flesh and bones of his victims to construct household objects, including a suit and mask made from human skin that Gein used when he wanted to dress up as a woman (it's been suggested that some of Gein's crimes stemmed from a twisted attempt to deal with his desire to change his gender). In 1957, two murders committed by Gein attracted the attention of the police, leading to Gein's arrest; near the end of that year, he was declared criminally insane and was committed for life to Wisconsin's Waupan State Hospital, where he stayed until his death in 1984. Gein's grisly story inspired a number of horror films, including Psycho, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Deranged, but Ed Gein is the first feature based strictly on the facts of Gein's case, using his real name as well as those of most of his victims. Ed Gein stars Steve Railsback in the title role, with Carrie Snodgrass as his mother Augusta, and Sally Champlin and Carol Mansell as two of his victims. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Railsback, Carrie Snodgress, (more)
- 1992
- R
Forever: A Ghost of a Love Story was inspired by the unsolved murder of movie director William Desmond Taylor in 1922. High-living music video director Keith Coogan moves into a crumbling Hollywood mansion. Here he is visited by a friendly and very beautiful wraith (Sean Young), who turns out to be the ghost of long-ago screen star Mary Miles Minter, the late Mr. Taylor's lover. Coogan's ectoplasmic romance is complicated by his sexually aggressive--and very much alive--female agent (Sally Kirkland). The film's in-the-know screenplay manages to conjure up the ghosts of silent movie favorites Fatty Arbuckle, Mabel Normand and Wallace Reid, all of whom, like Minter and Taylor, were destroyed under spectacularly scandalous circumstances. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
Having previously spawned an Academy Award-winning film, which starred Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, and Frank Sinatra, James Jones' best-selling military novel From Here to Eternity was adapted into a six-hour miniseries in 1979. Set in Honolulu in 1941 in the days prior to the December 7 attack, the film concerns four principal characters: Sergeant Milt Warden (William Devane), who yearns for a promotion; Karen Holmes (Natalie Wood), the restless wife of Warden's CO, who enters into a torrid affair with the sergeant; Private Robert E. Lee Prewitt (Steve Railsback), a sensitive soul who loves the army but instinctively rebels against everyone wearing stripes; and prostitute Lorene Rogers (Kim Basinger), with whom Prewitt falls in love. The TV version is able to sidestep the censorship restrictions of the original movie, which means that the Warden/Holmes affair is conducted in bed as well as on the beach, and that Jones' indictments of military iniquities isn't subject to "official" approval. Originally telecast on three consecutive weeks in February 1979, From Here to Eternity led to a brief weekly series in 1980, with Devane and Basinger carried over from the miniseries, but with Don Johnson as Prewitt (who dies in the original novel) and Barbara Hershey as Karen Holmes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Natalie Wood, William Devane, (more)
One of the largest crimes in history was the 1980 robbery of the Boston Depositors Trust by a group of policemen as related in this true story. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ed Asner, Ray Sharkey, (more)
Based on the best-selling Vincent Bugliosi book of the same name, Helter Skelter is a made-for-TV account of the investigation and prosecution of Charles Manson (Steve Railsback), who was convicted of leading a group of followers (known as "The Family") to murder seven people in California, including actress Sharon Tate. The film takes a Law & Order-like approach, starting with the discovery of the murders, which leads to the police gathering snippets of evidence that they eventually connect to the bigger picture. The second half of the movie concentrates on how District Attorney Bugliosi (George DiCenzo) attains a conviction despite the enormous amount of press coverage the case received. Nancy Wolfe, Christina Hart, and Cathey Paine portray the three loyal Manson Family members who were the co-defendants at his trial. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George DiCenzo, Steve Railsback, (more)
Steve Railsback and Bruce Boxleitner headline this modern take on Robert Louis Stevenson's classic fantasy adventure about a mysterious undiscovered world where creatures beyond out wildest imagination roam free. A commercial airliner has crashed deep in the heart of the Amazon, and as the survivors attempt to make their way to safety they make a most terrifying discovery. This is a land out of time, a place where towering scorpions, winged reptiles, and a ten-story tall simian engage in a constant battle for supremacy. Mankind is but a savory snack in this violent world of giants, and if the survivors don't find their way out of the jungle fast they will no doubt meet a fate worse than death. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Director Tobe Hooper adapts Colin Wilson's edgy novel The Space Vampires in this in this horror/sci-fi epic with a cult following. The story concerns a joint British-American space probe of Hailey's Comet. Inside the comet, the astronauts, headed by Carlsen (Steve Railsback), find a spaceship that contains the dead bodies of several aliens, along with the naked bodies of three human-like creatures in suspended animation. They bring the aliens aboard the ship for examination, but the specimens are sloppily guarded and soon the trio spread contagion among the population of the ship. Returning to earth, the beautiful space vampire (Mathilda May) escapes into London and begins to feed of the bodies of the unwary Britons, turning the city into a zombie-populated wasteland. It is now left for Carlsen to stop the vampire invaders. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Railsback, Peter Firth, (more)
- 1999
- R
A man under federal protection finds himself on the run from a gang of angry mobsters and a cop gone bad after his successful execution of a multimillion dollar heist. This studio film is not to be confused with the 1997 indie melodrama, starring Cara Buono of The Sopranos and directed by Don Close. ~ All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Belushi, Michael Beach, (more)
- 2008
- R
- Add Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation to QueueAdd Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation to top of Queue
Filmmaker Mark Hartley explores Australia's hidden genre in this documentary that casually casts aside "official" film history to celebrate the demented genius of director Brian Trenchard-Smith, and the exciting wave of little-known but supremely entertaining films that entertained adventurous Australian filmgoers throughout the 1970s and '80s. Every film student worth his or her weight in celluloid has seen Breaker Morant and Picnic at Hanging Rock, but what about the lesser-known gems that didn't make the film-school textbooks? In his forward to Tim Lucas' book Mario Bava: All the Colors of the Dark, director Martin Scorsese states, "We have to keep resisting the idea of official film history, a stately procession of 'important works' that leaves some of the most exciting films and filmmakers tucked away in the shadows." In this documentary, director Hartley explores the films forgotten by "official film history" with the comprehensive eye of a true film buff. As a child watching such films as Snapshot and The Man from Hong Kong, Hartley immediately recognized how wildly disparate they were in tone and execution from the films that comprised Australia's traditional film library. Appearing like American genre films that just happened to be shot in Australia and cast with Australian actors, these so-called "Ozploitation" flicks flourished in the wake of relaxed censorship laws down under. Yet despite constant chatter about the "new wave" of Australian cinema, financially successful films like The Man from Hong Kong and Patrick that were popular both at home and abroad were never mentioned, sneeringly dismissed as "genre" films rather than Australian films. Perhaps in the wake of such successful Australian films as Wolf Creek and Undead -- and looking ahead to such films as the slasher shocker Storm Warning and the eagerly anticipated remake of Long Weekend -- curious filmgoers are finally prepared to discover what they've been missing all these years. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
The crew of a spaceship fight for their lives after an alien energy source begins turning everyone aboard into rampaging mutants in this sci-fi shocker starring Steve Railsback. The year is 2241. Captain Holloway is the commander of the Pandora. She and her crew of six are transporting a form of alien fuel known as "Thanatos" to Earth when they receive a distress call from The Diana, a spacecraft that's become stranded amongst the stars. According to the distress call, space pirates have attacked the Diana, and the only remaining survivors are four nurses. But upon docking with the ship, Captain Holloway discovers the truth; the women who claimed to be nurses are in fact the pirates, and now they're about to take over the Pandora as well. Never one to go down without a fight, Captain Holloway instructs her crew to strike back with everything they've got. In the heat of battle, the container housing the "Thanatos" is ruptured, and one of the pirates is covered in the fuel. She's been infected, and now anyone she attacks will be infected, too. As the Pandora makes its way to Earth, Captain Holloway and her crew battle a horde of hungry mutants in a desperate effort to wipe out the "Plaguers" before they can wipe out all of humanity. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Railsback, Alexis Zibolis, (more)
- 1995
Steve Railsback, Don Mogavero, and Larry Linville star in this politically themed action thriller. A ruthless radical militia group has set their sites on Washington D.C., and a former CIA operative who is behind bars on dubious charges is given a chance to redeem himself by when he comes up with a way to foil the invasion. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Railsback, Larry Linville, (more)
In this crime drama, members of a formerly peaceful community fight back after the cops fail to protect them from the gangsters who have turned their neighborhoods into battlefields. They do this by hiring a boozy detective to investigate the backgrounds of the supposedly upstanding local politicals and businessmen behind the mayhem. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
