Meet NZ’s Stallone
Move over Karl Urban, Temuera Morrison and Zoe Bell. A littleknown Kiwi actor who found fame as an international action star is finally getting some longoverdue recognition.
The star of 1980s and 90s Indonesian action movies like The Intruder, The Stabiliser, Forceful Impact, American Hunter and Jungle Heart, Peter O’Brian is the subject of a new short documentary Operation: Rambu!
Released as part of this year’s crop of Loading Docs, director Steve Austin’s tale is seven minutes in heaven for fans of cult and cheesy cinema.
Now resident in Tauranga, O’Brian comes across as heartfelt and honest as he looks
back on his luck (he was mistaken for Sylvester Stallone while holidaying in Jakarta), some seat-of-the-pants moviemaking and his decision to walk away from that life.
You’ll laugh as he recounts how he blagged his way into his acting career (a wide definition of ‘‘being in drama’’ at school proved handy), recoil as he recalls stunts that would make even Tom Cruise blanch and gasp when clips show off a 1980s hairstyle reminiscent of Queen’s Brian May.
Packing a lot of emotions into its short running time – O’Brian is teary-eyed as he remembers a family crisis and ‘‘airport miracle’’ that brought him back to New Zealand – Operation: Rambu! also serves as a showreel for an actor looking for one last great role.
On the evidence of this slick, sweet short, it’s actually O’Brian’s story that deserves a longer second take.
Operation: Rambu! is available to view at loadingdocs.net as part of the 2019 Loading Docs collection.