Pass the Ammo
Tags: cult, satire

Plot synopsis:
Curry is the Rev. Ray Porter, who runs a Pentecostal faith healing and televangelism empire based in Arkansas. A small group of stereotypical rednecks, one of whom was bilked out of her inheritance by Rev. Porter's ministry and another of whom just got out of prison, try to rob Porter's ministry. A series of wrong turns inside the church during the robbery leads the robbers onstage right in the middle of a broadcast, and the three robbers turn what was supposed to have been "just" a robbery into a hostage situation.
During the hostage negotiations, a series of snowballing scandals involving the ministry come to light. The robbery, hostage taking, and scandal revelations are all broadcast live over satellite television as locals gather in bars to watch. Rev. Porter and the robbers develop a rapport during the hostage situation that resembles shop talk among thieves, as they discuss the best ways of investing stolen money.
One comic subplot involves the Christian network's producer, a drug-addled electronics wizard named Stonewall who decorates his workspace with Pink Floyd posters, but was hired by the network because "he has found the Lord...he told us so himself."
Another subplot involves a local sheriff, himself also an archetypal redneck whose duck hunting trip was interrupted by the incident, who seems to sympathize with the would-be robbers. The film is partly about his moral struggle in trying to enforce the law when his sympathies lie elsewhere. He just wants to see the situation end with nobody getting hurt, and butts heads with the network's owner and federal agents who demand harsher action.
The owner of the satellite network, whose character is based on Jerry Falwell, demands that the National Guard be called in leading to a siege and climactic ending.

Review: Any film that features the immortal Tim Curry as a corrupt televangelist would be worth watching, and this one has even more to offer:  Annie Potts as his loopy, big-haired wife; gun-toting good old boys fresh out of jail (and hungry for Moon Pies); dancing angels in fishnet stockings; and a trigger-happy citizens' militia that takes its TV very seriously.
This screwball satire features Bill Paxton as our hero, who attempts to quietly steal back his girlfriend's legacy but inadvertently takes the TV studio Tower of Bethlehem hostage--during a live broadcast.
Curry and Potts give virtuoso performances, but every one of the quirky supporting characters adds to the fun.
While this over-the-top comedy may not be for all tastes, anyone who ever laughed at a Tammy Faye t-shirt should get a kick out of its razor-sharp send-up of televangelism, and fans of Curry, Potts, or Paxton shouldn't miss it..
Tim Curry as Jim Baker.
This is one of those quirky little comedies that never becomes a big hit, but has the charm and endurance of a cult movie like "Harold and Maude." Not to everyone's taste, but if if you like this sort of thing, this is the sort of thing that you'll really like.
A young woman and her boyfriend enlist the help of some friends, recently released from jail, to rob the televangelist of the money that her recently deceased aunt had given to "God" and which should have been her inheritance.Tim Curry as the televangelist is fun, but Annie Potts also turns in a wonderful performance has his wife.
The entire production is professional quality, unlike many cult classics."Pass the Ammo" is not without subtlety.
The bank robber asks about IRAs, and he says, "Well, they have their plusses and their minuses."  Their geniality is that of two people in the same profession talking shop."Pass the Ammo" is not great theatre.
It is, however, a good deal of fun for the right people, of which I am one.
I recommend it if you are a Curry fan, or like odd little comedies, or found the fall of Jim and Tammy Faye Baker entertaining..
Thoughts on Pass the Ammo.
This movie solidified my sheer love of all things Tim Curry (ha!).
Seriously, a college pal was a video store employee at the time, found this and thought, "Hmm...."  So a bunch of us had a Tim Curry Night Party at her place, and this was the "matinee" -- after viewing it, we should have made it the feature!
My personal story aside, if you really want a good look at the inner workings of televangelism (at its all-time worst), and a good laugh to boot, then this is the movie for you!
I just watched it again (for the kazillionth time, it seems), and I never fail to find something hilarious in it.
So next time you're at the video store, looking for an interesting comedy, get this one!
Great look into the dodgy world of television ministries..
It is really a shame this movie may never get the deserved DVD release.
It has everything that you would go looking for in a movie released in the late '80s.
Bill Paxton, Tim Curry, Annie Potts, Dennis Burkley, and Leland Crooke put in great performances in my opinion.
Dennis Burkley's performance was probably the most unexpected pleasure, with Tim Curry's evangelist character a solid entry in his cache of performances.
As Tim Curry movies go, it's not Tim Curry overdoing it, or conversely under-performing, but rather a balanced illustration of his range.The plot is pretty entertaining if you derive any amusement from the circus environment of past and present ministries extorting money from hopeless people around the world.
The movie plays with the stereotypes of the characters pretty well, both the feature cast and the background nobodies who fund the multi-million-dollar church business."Pass the Ammo" did a good job in making me laugh, which is what this sort of movie is all about.
Laughs via misc sight gags, lines of dialogue, and the situations the characters find themselves in.
This is a straight 80s comedy with a typical ending leaving you satisfied with where it goes.
Come for Tim Curry and stay for a special appearance by the best attempted Moonpie robbery ever..
Great Movie.
I love this movie.
I really loved the character who played "Bubba".
A must rent for the gang to enjoy most on any movie night.
I am a big fan of fan Bill Paxton and I love him in this movie.
This movie was a all-star cast of unknowns at the time, but as history has bore out, they are all stars in their own right.
One of the most underrated movies out there.
I saw Pass the Ammo because as some people might know already I am a huge Tim Curry fan.
So I finally got to see the movie I had been waiting to see for so long recently, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
It is not the best movie ever made, or a masterpiece of cinema but it is a lot of fun.
Over-the-top yes it is, but it is still fun.Before watching a film, I sometimes look up some reviews, and some of them have been mixed.
Some of them have been very complimentary, praising Tim Curry and Annie Potts and the film's sense of fun, then there were those that criticised it for being over-the-top and flabby.
I can understand why people would consider this over-the-top, as it is, but it is meant to be, not to mention very eccentric- the dialogue of Darla especially is evidence of that.
True, Pass the Ammo doesn't have the best pacing in the world, in fact some of it is somewhat uneven causing a few scenes towards the beginning to drag a tad.However, even with the minor flaws I do consider Pass the Ammo one of the most underrated films out there.
Recently the closest I've come to laughing hysterically in a movie was in Clue, Oscar and a few of the Muppet movies.
Pass the Ammo is so wonderfully over-the-top and eccentric in the plot, writing and performances that I found myself letting go and having a good old time.I liked the idea of the plot(a televangelist, his wife, crew and audience being held hostage in the studio), it mayn't be the most original of all plots, but it kept me interested and was well constructed, and I loved the sweet little twist at the end.
One definite strong point was the writing, I loved the eccentric vibe to it.
In particular, Darla's dialogue like when she accuses Ray of adultery is absolutely hysterical, and so were "bubba, hand your mama that grenade launcher" and "they're gonna (enter obscenity) the preacher on live TV".Even the direction was good, nothing outstanding, but it worked.
Bill Paxton and Linda Koslowski are appealing in their roles as characters that are rather unorthodox and such but you end up sort of liking them.
Tim Curry has been better in my opinion particularly in Rocky Horror, Clue, Legend, Peter Pan and the Pirates and It, but he is excellent as Ray. However, Annie Potts steals the show, she is absolutely wonderful and just hilarious.
And I loved the chemistry between her and Curry, you could really tell they were friends just by how they acted on screen.
Less than ten years later they worked on the equally underrated Over The Top series, and they were just as brilliant then together.
Anyway, back to the film, the rest of the cast ranged from competent to good, some of them were very good such as Leland Crooke.Overall, delightful and I think underrated too.
9/10 Bethany Cox. it was one of the best times of my life..
first i was one of the people that did not make it to the credits.
i was the fat boy that bill used as a shield from the cops.i enjoyed watching just as much as being there.this movie was not just a comedy, but a close look at the televangelist, this was filmed at the height of jim and tammy's trouble, and jimmy swagard's trouble, we received script changes that where a mirror image of events that were still unfolding in the press, many changes happened before it was in the press..
Forgotten Gem. This movie was under appreciated in its time, and is now a forgotten gem.
Released in the era of the high rolling TV preachers and their scandals, and the song "Would Jesus Wear a Rolex" was on the radio, it is a great commentary on greed and hypocrisy in the name of religion.
Annie Potts in the highly sexualized "Samson and Delilah" scene was priceless and Tim Curry was, well, he is Tim Curry.
The ever watchable Bill Paxton is the bad boy hero and just adds to the amazing cast.
I just wish someone would release this on DVD.
I would love to be able to share this with my friends.
Hallelujah, Pass the Ammo, Praise the Lord!.
Don't expect much subtlety from this broad but skin-deep satire of TV evangelism, in which an amiable quartet of amateur thieves takes over a TV temple and holds the clergy hostage against a siege of state militia, local police, yellow journalists, and resident vigilantes (can you guess who gets the most sympathy?).
The script is more than a little self-satisfied, taking earnest potshots at easy targets without inflicting any serious damage, and except for Tim Curry (who plays the greedy preacher with his tongue firmly in cheek), the holy rollers and gullible worshippers are all too exaggerated to be convincing (it's hard to fake so much bogus sincerity).
But once the stand-off is finally underway (after a set-up stretched twenty minutes too long) the story relaxes enough to give the characters room to have fun.
The film is certainly no 'Dog Day Afternoon', but it does have its moments, and no one can say it isn't lively.
Too bad the real thing (Jim and Tammy Baker; the good reverend Swaggart et al) is so much funnier..
With a cast like this attached (Bill Paxton, Tim Curry, Linda Kozlowski, Glenn Withrow, Annie Potts, Anthony Geary and Brian Thompson decking a flowing mullet), I'm surprised to see this comedy to be somewhat of a under-seen cult item which is a mildly humorous spoof on televangelism.
Jessie and Claire along with two other friends go into a ministry to rob it, because Claire's inheritance went to the church but they accidentally stumble upon the ministry's live TV set while trying to flee.
So they end up holding those inside to ransom, while the cops wait outside and many viewers watch on.
The cast are just great.
Curry is simply sensational as the smooth talking TV reverend (who makes a memorable first appearance) and so is an over zealous Potts as his eccentric wife.
Then you have the likes of Paxton and Kozlowski as the buoyant young couple.
Geary is also quite fun as a free-spirited member of studio crew and Leland Crooke as the level-headed sheriff.
The zany plot is a basic standoff, but it's the cleverly scathing script that makes good use of the situation to parody these showy religious outings filled with glitz to cover the underlining corruptness.
It's a sideshow with over-the-top antics (especially when some gun toting rednecks and the national army gets involved) and neon qualities, as characters open up and America watches on.
You'll be glued to the screen."Jesus doesn't live in a TV studio.
One of my favorite movies.
Yes it is a Bill Clinton parody but that is only a minor part of the movie.
The main plot is worth more attention with wonderful performances all through the movie, especially by Tim Curry.The movie was filmed in beautiful Eureka Springs, Arkansas.
I understand Tim Curry had never been to Arkansas before and liked it so well he ended up buying land in Arkansas.
I remember all the excitement in Arkansas when the word came out that the movie was being filmed and I couldn't wait for it to come out.It's a movie I'm sorry more people haven't seen and will never be released on DVD..
It seems odd to me that this movie isn't better than it is.
The timing was right -- it was released at the height of the Baker scandal.
But it's not as laugh-out-loud funny as one would expect.Curry is good (and this is the one and only time on film he had a halfway decent American accent) as the Jim Baker-esque televangelist who's been dipping into God's funds.
Potts is in top form as his Tammy Faye-ish wife, stealing the show with her campy production numbers and general outrageousness.
In fact, everyone in the church is well-played, and that aspect of the film is entertaining....However, they are not really the stars of the show.
It's Paxton and his cohorts who are out to take back the money that Curry snatched from his dying Grandmother-in-law.
While stealing back the funds, they walk out the wrong door and wind up taking the whole studio hostage.
From this point on, the film takes a bad turn from which it never recovers.
There's a lot of screen time where nothing's really happening.
And when things are happening, it doesn't really match the fun outrageousness of the Curry/Potts show.Not that the film is without merits.
It just seems like it should have been better.
But it's still worth a look for fans of the lead actors.Side-note:  Potts and Curry hit it off and spent several years trying to find another project together.
Personally I found that dull little 3-week-wonder far better than this project.
The only thing that kept this movie from rising to the top was the name!
Unfortunately you had to be over 50 to remember the old phrase "Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition!" Had they titled it "The God Channel Collection" kids would have understood what it was all about!
Bill Paxton, Annie, Linda, and Tim were awesome!
The story line is fun but a little confusing the first viewing.
It's definitely a movie to watch more than once!
I went to visit Eureka Springs (where this movie was filmed) and it is truly a beautiful place in NW Arkansas!
Tony Geary (the heartthrob of General Hospital many years ago) was the hero of this movie!
And pay special attention to the Mayor and his council (I called them the stooges!) Bear in mind that this was filmed the year before the Jim & Tammy Baker exposure!
A fun Adult movie!.
Take a tacky television religion show being held hostage by some truly dumb thieves, and you pretty much have the whole 93 minutes of "Pass the Ammo".
This is a perfect example of a one joke movie, that boxes itself in with nowhere to go.
Once everybody is inside the neon lit church, the hostage situation turns into a religious sideshow.
Bill Paxton, Tim Curry, and especially Annie Potts, give it their all, but the overly simplistic script doesn't give them enough to work with.
There are already enough tacky religious shows on TV that are/were the laughable real deal, to fatally weaken this satire.
Pass The Ammo (1988)Badly written, badly directed and badly edited.This movie is a mess of stilted cuts, non-flowing storyline, with confused and one-dimensional characters.Paxton is the boyfriend, whose girlfriend's mother has given all her inheritance away to a televangelist just before the mother dies.
They plot an ill-conceived scheme to rob them while on air, because a church/TV studio is easiest to rob during live production.
For some reason, all phone donations arrive at the church in cash, even though cheques are still a hugely popular form of payment in the US (5% of adult Americans still don't have a bank account, instead they cash them at pawn shops and cheque cashing companies).They end up taking everyone hostage live on TV, that is being broadcast by an unstoppable satellite signal, so the feed can't be cut.Their getaway driver gets gunned down by the cops, but he didn't have any speaking parts, so he's quickly forgotten.The movie is cut into muddled vignettes, seemingly at random, whereby they try to add some depth to the characters, but ultimately fail on all accounts.The climax occurs when the crazy hillbillies (who have been watching on TV and decide to save the reverend) turn up with a small army of vigilantes and attack the church from one side and the church leaders who have called in the governer who has brought along the army (including a tank) who attack from the other side.The church is destroyed, the 2 cousins who just got out of prison get arrested, the boyfriend and girlfriend (now married) escape and run off into the forest with a few small bags of cash.StarringDebra Sue Maffett, bit part for former Miss America 1983.
Hosted many TV talk shows, and now works in the televangelist field as a media consultant.
Brian Thompson, plays a shirtless Samson, has 17 on-screen deaths from his 103 roles, notably terminator fist through the stomach ("Wash day, nothing clean, right?") and twice by Buffy as 2 different characters.Anthony Geary, as a hippie named Stonewall (riots), who helps their cause.
Best known as Luke Spencer (900 episodes) on General Hospital, where he played a hitman, who later raped and then married his victim.
The marriage (broadcast in 1981) is still the biggest rating hit for a daytime soap.Annie Potts, crazed christian preacher, starred in 2 shows, Any Day Now and Designing Women, best known as Janine Melnitz from Ghostbusters and the Toy Story voice of Bo Peep (currently as Meemaw on Young Sheldon).Tim Curry, as the Reverand.
Linda Kozlowski, the girlfriend who lost her money, best (and pretty much only) known as Sue Charlton from Crocodile Dundee, who would go on to marry Paul Hogan.