Elmore John Leonard Jr. was an American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. His earliest novels, published in the 1950s, were Westerns, but he went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures. Among his best-known works are Hombre, Swag, City Primeval, LaBrava, Glitz, Freaky Deaky, Get Shorty, Rum Punch, Out of Sight and Tishomingo Blues.
Straight to Hell is a 1987 independent action comedy film directed by Alex Cox and starring Sy Richardson, Joe Strummer, Dick Rude, and Courtney Love. The film also features cameos by Dennis Hopper, Grace Jones, Elvis Costello, Edward Tudor-Pole, Kathy Burke, and Jim Jarmusch. Band members of the Pogues, Amazulu, and the Circle Jerks are also featured in the film. The film borrows its title from the Clash's 1982 song of the same name.
Pickup on South Street is a 1953 Cold War spy-themed film noir written and directed by Samuel Fuller, and released by 20th Century-Fox. In 2018, Pickup on South Street was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." The film stars Richard Widmark, Jean Peters, and Thelma Ritter. It was screened at the Venice Film Festival in 1953.
The Big Bounce is a 2004 American comedy heist film starring Owen Wilson, Charlie Sheen, Sara Foster and Morgan Freeman. It was directed by George Armitage and based on the 1969 novel of the same name by Elmore Leonard. Leonard's novel had previously been adapted for the big screen in a 1969 film of the same name directed by Alex March and starring Ryan O'Neal.
Breakdown is a 1997 American thriller film directed and co-written by Jonathan Mostow. It stars Kurt Russell, J. T. Walsh and Kathleen Quinlan. The original music score was composed by Basil Poledouris. The film was produced by Dino De Laurentiis and Martha De Laurentiis, and released on May 2, 1997 by Paramount Pictures. It is one of the final films featuring Walsh to be released in his lifetime. The film received positive reviews and gained a strong cult following.
Payback is a 1999 American neo-noir action thriller film written and directed by Brian Helgeland in his directorial debut, and starring Mel Gibson, Gregg Henry, Maria Bello, and David Paymer. It is based on the novel The Hunter by Donald E. Westlake using the pseudonym Richard Stark, which had earlier been adapted into the 1967 film noir classic Point Blank, directed by John Boorman and starring Lee Marvin.
The Gumball Rally is a 1976 American action comedy film, directed and co-written by Charles Bail, a former stunt coordinator also known as Chuck Bail, about an illicit coast-to-coast road race. It was inspired by the Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash run by Brock Yates, which inspired several other films, including Cannonball (1976), Cannonball Run (1981), and Speed Zone (1989), as well as an actual event, the American Gumball Rally and Gumball 3000 international race.
Oliver Twist is a 2005 drama film directed by Roman Polanski. The screenplay by Ronald Harwood adapts Charles Dickens's 1838 novel of the same name. It is an international co-production of the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic and France.
Alfredo Lettieri was an American actor. Active during the 1960s and 1970s, he commonly portrayed villainous characters. He achieved recognition for his performance as mobster Virgil Sollozzo in the crime film The Godfather (1972) and appeared in several other productions alongside Hollywood's biggest screen stars.
The Big Bounce is a crime novel written by Elmore Leonard, published in 1969.
Death Wish 3 is a 1985 American vigilante action-thriller film directed and edited by Michael Winner. It is the third film and the last to be directed by Winner in the Death Wish film series. It stars Charles Bronson as the vigilante killer Paul Kersey and sees him battling with New York street punk gangs while receiving tactical support from a local NYPD lieutenant. Despite being set in New York City, some of the filming was shot in London to reduce production costs. It was succeeded by Death Wish 4: The Crackdown.
Framed is a 1947 American crime film noir directed by Richard Wallace and starring Glenn Ford, Janis Carter and Barry Sullivan. It was released by Columbia Pictures. The movie is generally praised by critics as an effective crime thriller despite its low budget.
Twist is a 2003 Canadian drama film directed by Jacob Tierney and starring Nick Stahl and Joshua Close. It is a retelling of Charles Dickens' classic 1838 novel Oliver Twist.
Moving McAllister is a 2007 American comedy film starring Ben Gourley, Mila Kunis, Jon Heder, Rutger Hauer, and Billy Drago. The film was shot largely in Utah and St Johns County, Florida and was produced by Camera 40 Productions. It was released on September 14, 2007, in the United States.
The Ambassador is a 1984 American political thriller film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Robert Mitchum, Ellen Burstyn, Rock Hudson and Allan Younger. It was the last theatrical release starring Rock Hudson before his death in October 1985.
Four Men and a Prayer is a 1938 American adventure film directed by John Ford and starring Loretta Young, Richard Greene, George Sanders and David Niven.
The Evil That Men Do is a 1984 action thriller film directed by J. Lee Thompson, and starring Charles Bronson, Theresa Saldana, and Joseph Maher. The film was adapted by David Lee Henry and John Crowther from the novel of the same name by R. Lance Hill. Bronson plays a former assassin who comes out of retirement to avenge the death of his journalist friend at the hands of a torturer called "The Doctor", who works for various dictatorships worldwide, particularly those of Operation Condor. The film marks the fifth collaboration between Bronson and director J. Lee Thompson, following St. Ives (1976), The White Buffalo (1977), Caboblanco (1980), and 10 to Midnight (1983).
Messenger of Death is a 1988 American vigilante action thriller film starring Charles Bronson. It is about an attempt by a water company to start a family feud among fundamentalist Mormons to take the family's land for the company.
Baby Blue Marine is a 1976 American drama film set during World War II that was directed by John D. Hancock and starring Jan-Michael Vincent. The feature film was produced by Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg.
Hot Pursuit is a 2015 American action comedy film directed by Anne Fletcher and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. Written by David Feeney and John Quaintance, the story follows a police officer assigned to protect the widow of a drug boss from corrupt cops and criminals who want her dead as they race through Texas to avoid detection. The film stars Reese Witherspoon and Sofía Vergara.
