Con Games
| Con Games | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Directed by | Jefferson Edward Donald |
| Produced by | Ross Nolan Tommy Lee Thomas |
| Written by | Jefferson Edward Donald Tommy Lee Thomas |
| Starring |
Eric Roberts Tommy Lee Thomas Matthew Ansara Amy Fadhli Moe Irvin Martin Kove |
| Music by | Veigar Margeirsson |
| Cinematography | John Lazear |
| Edited by | Chris Conlee |
|
Production
company |
Soaring Eagle Productions
|
| Distributed by | Artist View Entertainment |
|
Release date
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Running time
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90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Con Games is a 2001 American direct to video action drama film written and directed by Jefferson Edward Donald, starring Tommy Lee Thomas, Eric Roberts, Martin Kove, Amy Fadhli, and the late Matthew Ansara.
A senator's grandson is murdered while incarcerated at California's notorious "Doscher State Prison", nicknamed "Dachau" by convicts for the number of unsolved murders of inmates that have taken place therein. Hired by the senator, Gulf War veteran John Woodrow (Tommy Lee Thomas) infiltrates the prison to find the murderer, and learns that the grandson was killed by corrupt head guard Lt. Hopkins (Eric Roberts). When Hopkins discovers Woodrow's true identity, he has him tortured by inmates and guards. After an arduous shooting chase through the desert, Woodrow escapes.
Principal filming began in May 2001. To prepare himself for the film, actor and co-screenwriter Tommy Lee Thomas trained for seven months prior to shooting in order to get in shape, and his sessions included training by Lou Ferrigno. Thomas acknowledges having studied "muscle magazines" and appearances in them, as well as competing in bodybuilding competitions. Thomas realized the advantage of getting a recognizable name for his film and was able to secure Erik Roberts. While Roberts did not have the "star power" he held in his earlier career, he still had enough so that Thomas was able to facilitate the film's release in the U.S. and overseas. Keaton Simonds was to sing the song for the film's end credits, but Eric Roberts sang the song instead after Simonds changed his mind.
Film Threat praised both the film and its star, writing that the film was "a very entertaining B-level action film that was released in 2002 to barely any acknowledgement." They made note of the film's low production values and budget, and that the scenes depicting the prison itself reflected this in the small number of inmates and even fewer number of prison guards. They noted Tommy Lee Thomas as having co-written the screenplay, and wrote that he was "the fuel to this vehicle", that "clearly he studied a lot of Clint Eastwood films and he mastered the legendary star’s steely-eyed squint and sparse line deliveries," and that he "clearly possesses a sense of eccentric humor." They concluded "As low-budget action flicks go, this one is very diverting and highly watchable."
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