HOLLYWOOD BULLDOGS: THE RISE AND FALLS OF THE GREAT BRITISH STUNTMEN

UK, 2021, 110 minutes, Colour.

Vic Armstrong, Ray Austin, Jim Dowdle, Richard Hammett, Frank Henson, Greg Powell, Rocky Taylor, Paul Weston. Narrated by Ray Winstone.

Directed by John Spira.

Here is a treat for dedicated moviegoers. The IMDb description indicates the content and tone of this documentary.

Hollywood Bulldogs tells the rough-and-tumble story of the small community of British stunt performers who went on to dominate Hollywood in the 1970s and 80s. Growing out of the ragtag community of bouncers, gangsters and de-mobbed soldiers who were prepared to take a punch or chuck themselves down a flight of stairs for a few quid, the next generation went on to turn stunt work into a legitimate profession. They created and performed the iconic action sequences of 007, Indiana Jones, Superman, Rambo, Star Wars, Conan, the Alien films and pretty much everything since. They crashed cars, jumped from burning buildings, shot, stabbed, kicked and punched their way into cinema history. This is the first feature documentary to unite this legendary community in telling their story and as you'll see, there's life in the old dogs yet.

When we look back at the action films of the 1970s and 1980s, think James Bond, think Indiana Jones, think Star Wars… We appreciate the enormous amount of stunt work that brought those films into enjoyable action. It was the pre-computer graphics era.

The names listed above may not be familiar, although Vic Armstrong, the anchor commentator for this documentary, has had a long career including directing himself. However, each of the stuntmen has a particular personality, interesting to hear of their origins, army, stand ins… And their observations on what this has meant for their lives, some of them even sustaining severe injuries. But, they are proud of their work and enthusiastic as they talk about their life and work (except for comments and sequences showing the British director Michael Winner, generally considered obnoxious and badly demanding, risking accidents).

There are plenty of sequences from the films throughout, evoking many happy memories. And the stories about Steven Spielberg, Harrison Ford, Sean Connery, Dolph Lundgren and many others.

However, it is the look behind the action sequences that are intriguing, the meticulous detail in setting up the dstunts, the camera meticulous planning for shooting the sequences, the stand ins and the skill in editing the stars with the stand-ins in action.

The men themselves are particularly articulate – perhaps we had a presupposition that they might not be as intelligent and well-spoken as we thought. They really tell their stories very interestingly, we enjoy their company, and, now that they are older, it is very hard to imagine them as young and doing all the feats that are shown in the film.

There is a narration by Ray Winstone in his familiar gangster tones – enthusiastic but rather out of place considering the pleasing and enjoyable tones of the stuntmen themselves.