Rick Johnson directs and stars in this small town drama about a man who is forced to confront some uncomfortable issues when his past comes back to haunt him. Billy Stagen (Johnson) appears to have it all. A former pro football player, Billy has returne
Reviews
I really liked this movie, Rick Johnson is absolutely gorgeous..This is a great movie about a ex-football player and hero, but now the sheriff of this small town that the whole town takes advantage of, he finally wises up after some tragic events that happen. It was strange to see the oldest boy from Home Improvement play the character of a spoiled rich kid that thought he was above the law because of his football status. If you know who Meatloaf is the singer, you are gonna be surprised to see him as the coach, he looks nothing like I remember him, Meatloaf does very well in this movie too. This is a movie to add to your DVD collection. I have seen Rick Johnson only in a few movies, but I would love to know more about this actor, director. Where did he come from? why hasn't he got the attention he deserves.....
I rented this movie thinking it was about high school football plus the fact it was mostly (if not all) filmed in Alabama. I was pleasantly surprised - so much in fact, I will probably wind up buying my own copy on DVD. I don't know who Rick Johnson is (or was) and I presume that Ashley is his real-life daughter playing the part of "Lee". I didn't even recognize "Meatloaf" as the Coach until I saw the closing credits and the kid from TVs "Home Improvement", Zachery Ty Bryan, played a spoiled, rich football "star" player. Having lived in Birmingham, I kept looking for locales and familiar faces. Two radio personalities (Rick & Bubba) had small parts as bartenders and Michael Papajohn (makes me think of the pizza chain) played a redneck character named Trent that loved to drink and party with the students, most of whom didn't look old enough to drink. Still, the script is good even though probably unseen by many since it was independently produced.
Rustin is an incredibly touching film and a standout among indie films. Rick Johnson's direction is fluid and graceful as he tells the story of an athlete spinning out of control and the daughter he discovers. There is such compassion in the story -- not something you see a lot in indie films. I loved Ashley Johnson -- she's heartbreakingly real as the daughter and several of the supporting roles are sharply drawn. I look forward to more films by Rick Johnson.
How could you have a part in this movie? I saw this movie because it was filmed in some of the places I grew up in. I can't believe the amount of stereotyping went into this movie, and what makes it more sickening is that some of the actors claim to be natives of the area. Not only did I find some of these stereotypes much too exagerated and just unbelievable, the story itself wasn't anything new and to be absolutely honest, pretty boring. All the classic movie cliches were there, the hardened cop, the cocky football player, the coach that doesn't care about anything but football, basically all the movie characters that could never exist in real life. Why good talent like Meatloaf Aday and the girl from Growing Pains would even be in this movie boggles my mind. The music in it was almost descent, but then it got to a song written for the movie that sounded like it was from an after school special, definately not feature film quality. This movie hasn't found its way to a distributor yet, and for all of you throughout the country I hope that it isn't picked up.