Original subtitles

(waves crashing)

(seagulls squawking)

(waves crashing)

(waves crashing)

(helicopter rotors whirring)

(truck engine rumbles)

- [Man] Here she comes, Grant.

- [Barbra] This is Barbra Paskin, reporting from Sydney.

It's the last fling today

for Australia's favourite stunt man, Grant Page.

Fans here won't forget Grant's scenes

in "The Man From Hong Kong",

and the stunts he made famous in "Danger Freaks".

The stunts he's doing today

for the new Australian stunt record he's setting up

begin with the thrilling death slide.

(rope buzzing)

(water splashes)

(audience clapping)

Grant, would you tell us about the next stunt

you're going to do?

- Certainly Barbra, the next stunt is a human catapult,

in which I'm attached between two headlands,

200 feet high on 1000 feet of rope.

And the Centre of it is dragged back,

much like a bow and arrow,

and I'm the arrow,

attached in the Centre of the rope hanging on.

That gets released, and the idea is

that the tension on the rope will take me out

faster than gravity will take me down to the bottom.

We worked a long time on the theory on this one,

and 100% confident it'll work.

We're about to try the practice for the first time.

It's never been done before.

- [Barbra] If Grant succeeds with this one,

he'll have something to talk about

when he arrives in Hollywood.

He leaves us tomorrow to perform stunts

in the new television series, "Undercover Girl".

It sounds like fun.

- [Director] Stand by everybody, this is it.

Ready, Grant?

Here we go.

Release.

(crowd applauds)

(upbeat rock music)

♪ To climb the highest heights ♪

♪ To fly the farthest flights ♪

♪ Living on borrowed time ♪

♪ Life is on the line ♪

♪ You have to have the knack ♪

♪ When the wind is at your back ♪

♪ You must survive the test ♪

♪ To be better than the best ♪

(explosion)

♪ You're a stunt rocker ♪

♪ Everybody looks at you ♪

♪ We know you're something special ♪

♪ By the things you do ♪

(Curtis cackles)

♪ You cannot make a mistake ♪

♪ Every duel your life might take ♪

♪ You just might wind up dead ♪

♪ When you're living by a thread ♪

♪ You know you have the knack ♪

♪ When the wind is at your back ♪

♪ You must survive the test ♪

♪ To be better than the best ♪

♪ You're a stunt rocker ♪

♪ Everybody looks at you ♪

♪ We know you're something special ♪

♪ By the things you do ♪

♪ You're a stunt rocker ♪

♪ Everybody looks at you ♪

♪ We know thank you're something special ♪

♪ By the things you do ♪

♪ Stunt rocker, stunt rocker, stunt rocker yeah ♪

♪ Stunt rocker, stunt rocker, stunt rocker yeah ♪

♪ Stunt rocker, stunt rocker, stunt rocker, yeah ♪

♪ Stunt rocker, stunt rocker, stunt rocker, yeah ♪

- [Grant] So tell me, Curtis, how's the band doing?

- Great, after five years, we're starting

to make some money.

I just got this.

- Not bad.

Can't wait to see you guys perform.

- Well, we're in the recording studio right now.

Tomorrow we start three nights at The Forum.

- Hey, can we go by the studio later?

- Sure, it's not too far from your hotel.

(rock music)

- [Curtis] How can we be related? I get dizzy looking up.

- [Grant] That's all right. I'm tone deaf.

- So am I.

(man laughs)

♪ See the wizard looking at the town ♪

♪ He's just deciding on the parts to burn down ♪

♪ In a wicked city ♪

♪ It really is a pity ♪

♪ Law and order doesn't matter a bit ♪

♪ The pigs are roasting over a spit ♪

♪ In a wicked city ♪

♪ Mad, bad scene ♪

♪ People running ♪

♪ Satan's coming ♪

♪ Wicked city's falling ♪

♪ All of the people are crawling ♪

♪ Spirits and souls ♪

♪ All out of control ♪

♪ Wicked city's falling ♪

♪ All of the people are crawling ♪

♪ People running as fire must climb ♪

♪ They know it's their turn to die ♪

♪ In a wicked city ♪

♪ Oh, sad, sad scene ♪

♪ They turn to Christ but he saw through their lies ♪

♪ He wasn't about to be hypnotized ♪

♪ By a wicked city ♪

♪ Supernatural pity ♪

♪ People running ♪

♪ Satan's coming ♪

♪ Wicked city's falling ♪

♪ The people are crawling ♪

♪ Spirits and souls ♪

♪ All out of control, oh ♪

♪ Wicked city's falling ♪

♪ All the people are crawling ♪

♪ In a wicked, wicked, wicked, wicked, wicked city ♪

♪ Chicago ♪

♪ Sydney ♪

♪ Washington ♪

♪ LA ♪

- Gentlemen.

Grant Page. Cousin, stuntman, horrible actor,

but hell of a nice guy.

- Curtis tells me you guys do magic tricks.

- Magic tricks?

Grant, we do magic.

- Nice. Can I borrow that?

- You ain't seen nothing yet.

We're even doing some things like you do.

Needs a little tightening,

but now we've got you to help us with that.

- Slow down.

You're talking to a man that's going to be knocked down

by a car tomorrow.

- So? We'll work on it tomorrow night.

- That's a nice hood.

- What hood?

- So when this car actually comes at you,

it's going to be 60, is that it?

- If anything goes wrong, everyone stand clear

apart from Grant.

- Okay. All right, fellas, well-

- [Lois] You want an article shortened, just tell me.

It really irks me to read something I wrote

off the rack and barely recognise it.

How can I deliver my best prose

if I know you're going to cut it up behind my back?

Well, you damn well better promise. I mean it, all right?

- [Reporter] The South lands- - Asshole.

- [Reporter] Another notch today,

when a recent arrival from Australia

stepped in front of a fast-moving vehicle.

Nothing unusual: LA boasts 20 serious accidents a day.

But the twist in today's story is that stuntman Grant Page

stepped in front of this two-ton hunk of metal on purpose.

(car motor roaring)

- [Reporter] Hey, is he all right?

Jeepers, is he really hurt? Oh my goodness.

- [Reporter] Grant told us later,

"I've done this 100 times in Australia,

but this time, it went wrong."

As you can see, the impact completely

shattered the windshield.

- [Reporter] Oh, he's in shock. All right.

Yeah, listen, just leave him there, we'll get an ambulance.

- Grant Page.

- [Reporter] I'll be all right.

- [Reporter] Stuntman Page seems to have suffered

only a mild concussion,

but doctors at Memorial Hospital are refusing

to release him until further tests are made.

- I don't believe it.

Crazy guy.

(bush rustles)

New therapy program me?

- Yes; as a matter of fact,

I usually finish up a bit of driving.

I'm in a hell of a hurry. Would you mind?

- Be my guest.

- Thanks. - I love your outfit.

- I left my suit in a phone box.

- Really?

(car engine starts)

(tyres screeching)

- [Lois] Hey, take it easy.

- Sorry, but I've got to be in the studio in 15 minutes

or I'll lose my job.

- Okay, okay, just mind my car.

- It's nice.

Makes you want to see the one I got back home.

(upbeat rock music)

(motors roaring)

(psychedelic synth music)

- Where the hell have you been?

- I've been in hospital.

- Well, you're late, God damn it.

Get into wardrobe and hurry up.

- I really appreciate this.

Look, if you want to hang about the set

for a little bit to see what's happening, you're welcome.

Look, a cup of coffee or a green card, please.

- Sure, look, I'm doing an article for Tempo Magazine

on how people relate to their work.

I'd like to talk to you about what you do.

- Great. Just keep your eye on the water tower up there.

- [Man] Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

- [Monique] Hey, I really can do it myself, okay?

- You're really not supposed to be doing that.

- It's for your own protection.

- Your agent insisted.

- You've gone too far with this ridiculousness.

(Monique speaking foreign language)

(men shouting)

- [Man] Bob.

(machine whirring)

- Do you have a problem?

- I'm being chopped to pieces, Peter.

Every time there's any action going on,

this guy in drag does it for me.

There's no continuity to the character.

- Look, sweetheart, we're building an image here.

Now the producers are just going to have to realise

what a very valuable little property you are.

- How valuable can I be if an audience

doesn't believe me, huh?

- [Man] No, that spot, the other was oval.

This is oval.

(intense psychedelic music)

- [Ron] Come on, hurry up. Get your ass up there.

We haven't got all day.

- Quiet, everybody, we're going for a take.

Right everybody, roll them.

- [Man] (indistinct) down, rolling.

- [Man] Rolling camera. - [Man] Camera rolling.

- Scene 37, take one, marker.

- Action.

(gunshot)

(Grant hits mat)

- Great stuff, huh?

- Why do they do it?

- Stunt men? Gee, I don't know. I never thought about it.

Exhibitionism?

You know, this business draws every crazy in the world.

- [Ron] Where's the blood?

Sent you up there a load of blood. We don't see any of it.

- Only one went off. What do you want me to do?

Bleed? You want me to slit my wrists?

- These guys don't last long.

A lot of them get smashed, cut, bruised, crushed.

They lose a leg. They lose their nerve.

- [Ron] We'll do it over. Rig him up again.

Get it right. I want to see that blood fly.

- How on earth are they going to get that past the censor?

- Oh, the foreign markets love the blood.

And the more they do, of course,

the more I can charge for my clients.

- Oh, do you represent the stunt man?

- No, I mean, you know, there's no money in that.

I represent Monique Van De Ven.

She's the star of the show.

- [Ron] Action.

(gunfire)

(dramatic ominous music)

- [Man] The pressure of that bed.

- Well, is that enough for you?

- Not the St Valentine's Day Massacre, but it'll do.

- Doesn't anybody care if they get hurt?

- No, not really.

Stunt men are breakables.

- Print it.

- [Man] Move the cameras.

- Know why they're using this guy?

Because he doesn't know when to quit.

They're going to get a lot of mileage out of him.

- Really? - Oh yeah.

He's quite well known.

I first heard of him when he did this movie called

Mad Dog Morgan.

And in this particular film,

there was a dream sequence.

Grant had to fall backwards 70 feet off a cliff on fire

into a pool 12 feet deep.

It was a very dangerous stunt,

and somehow something went wrong.

He got a couple of bad burns.

(fire crackling)

(ambulance siren)

Anyway, most people would have left.

Walked off the set, "Goodbye, Charlie.

Forget it. I'm never coming back.”

This guy is back in three days, in bandages,

and he's coming onto the director with,

"Let me try it again.”

You know? Oh, he's crazy.

(ominous psychedelic music)

- Turned out fine.

They used it as one of Morgan's nightmares.

The director reversed the film,

and had me coming out of this burning pond.

(man whimpering)

- [Monique] Listen, I want to drive the car tomorrow, okay?

(Grant laughs)

I mean it.

I mean, all people see for half of the show

is the back of my head, right?

So I want you to teach me how to do things, okay?

- It's not in my contract, lady.

- Hey, this isn't funny anymore. I'm serious, really.

- Driving isn't so difficult. It takes a feel.

I can't just tell you standing here.

- So show me.

- All right.

(upbeat rock music)

(car engine roaring)

(cars smashing)

(water splashing)

♪ In this world of magic ♪

♪ You will (indistinct) ♪

♪ In this world of magic ♪

♪ (indistinct) ♪

(car explodes)

(upbeat rock music)

- Hi.

♪ There she was ♪

♪ What a witch ♪

- They're good.

♪ Woman, woman ♪

♪ Take me away ♪

♪ Woman, woman ♪

♪ Take me away ♪

♪ Please, woman ♪

♪ You got to come, baby ♪

♪ Come on down ♪

♪ Come and make sweet ♪

♪ Sweet love ♪

♪ Every night, woman ♪

♪ All through the day ♪

(intense guitar solo)

♪ Woman, woman ♪

♪ Take me away ♪

♪ Woman, woman, woman, woman ♪

♪ Woman, woman, take me away ♪

♪ Woman, woman, woman, woman ♪

♪ Woman, woman, woman ♪

♪ Please feel it ♪

- Hey, that was great. - Yeah.

- [Curtis] Hey Grant. You all right?

That car really wiped you out.

- I'm fine, man. But you ought to see the car.

(all laugh)

Lois Wells, Monique Van De Ven.

- Haven't I seen you on the tube?

- Yeah, possible.

- Undercover Girl.

- Yeah.

- Meet Perry, Smokey, Paul, Greg, Doug, Curtis, and Richie.

- How are you?

- Better known to the FBI as Sorcery.

- Oh wow.

- Why do you wear a hood?

- Why does anyone wear a hood?

- Oh, how does it feel?

- Uncomfortable.

- [Rick] Grant, we've got to get going to the concert.

- Hey, can I come too?

- Sure, we'll have a little snack before the show.

- Terrific.

- And the next course is-

- Voila.

- Well, what is it?

- We're having duck.

- Oh. - Oops.

(Monique gasps)

- There you go.

- I think I turn into a vegetarian.

- Tell you what,

I'll take him back to the chef

and tell him it's a little too rare.

(crowd cheering and whistling)

(mysterious whooshing)

- [Voice over] Since the days of Merlin, the magician,

the power of good has challenged the forces of evil.

Prepare yourselves for a night of cosmic combat,

a duel to the death to decide the fate of mankind.

The king of the wizards against the prince of darkness.

Ladies and gentlemen, Sorcery.

(upbeat rock music)

(explosion)

♪ He's by your side ♪

♪ You've been lurking with a demon ♪

♪ No use trying to hide it ♪

♪ Well, my friends told me about you ♪

♪ Said you was a trip ♪

♪ But they did not know ♪

♪ What you were itching to do ♪

♪ You've been talking with the devil ♪

♪ He's by your side ♪

♪ You've been bad, baby ♪

♪ You've been lurking with a demon ♪

♪ Lurking with a demon, yeah ♪

♪ Well, how could I know, with a face like an angel, ♪

♪ That you'd be this way? ♪

♪ You took my heart and soul ♪

♪ And you threw it away ♪

♪ But my friends told me about you ♪

♪ Said you was a (indistinct) ♪

♪ But I did not know (indistinct) ♪

♪ You've been talking with the devil ♪

♪ He's by your side ♪

♪ You've been bad, baby ♪

♪ You've been lurking with a demon ♪

♪ Lurking with a demon, yeah ♪

(guitar solo)

(crowd cheering)

(fire crackling)

(Curtis cackles)

♪ You've been talking with the devil ♪

♪ He's by your side ♪

♪ Baby, baby, lurking with a demon ♪

♪ But you're trying to hide it ♪

♪ My friends told me about you ♪

♪ Said you was a trip ♪

♪ But they did not know you were into (indistinct) ♪

(crowd cheering)

♪ By your side ♪

♪ You've been bad, baby ♪

♪ Oh ♪

♪ You've been lurking with a demon ♪

♪ Lurking with a demon ♪

♪ Oh yeah ♪

♪ Lurking, lurking, lurking with a demon ♪

♪ Lurking with a demon ♪

(crowd applauding)

- [Monique] Hey, Paul, it was a great show, man.

- Really terrific. - Thanks a lot.

Why don't you stick around for the second half?

- Sure. Yeah.

Hey, you have a cigarette for me?

- As a matter of fact, I do. Right over there.

Now, watch.

- Where did it go?

- Right over there.

(all laughing)

- [Curtis] Would you like a light?

- Oh yeah.

(upbeat rock music)

(Greg howling)

♪ Black leather, black heart ♪

♪ Wench in chains ♪

♪ The virgin walked to the cliff ♪

♪ She screamed at me ♪

♪ Well it was a night like any other ♪

♪ But there'd be sacrifice to Satan, our brother ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me ♪

♪ Yeah ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me tonight ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me tonight ♪

♪ She wept, she screamed ♪

♪ Ooh, she cried ♪

♪ She knew she was ♪

♪ About to die ♪

♪ Law down this slab of stone ♪

♪ But now, ever more ♪

♪ She will never be alone ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me tonight ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me tonight ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me tonight ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me tonight ♪

(Curtis cackling)

♪ (indistinct) Sacrifice ♪

♪ (indistinct chanting) ♪

(intense guitar solo)

♪ She wept, she screamed ♪

♪ Ooh, she cried ♪

♪ She knew she was ♪

♪ About to die ♪

♪ Lay me down on this slab of stone ♪

♪ From now, ever more, she would never be alone ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me tonight ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me tonight ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me, ooh ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me sacrifice ♪

♪ Help me ooh tonight ♪

♪ Tonight ♪

(crowd cheering)

(indistinct conversation)

- There he goes.

- She does like it.

I knew she'd eat this stuff.

- Have some more.

- Oh, good boy.

- Come on. You're a grotty eater.

- Here, have a little water.

- Watch out for your greens, see how they're good for you.

- I know what we'll do.

We're going to give her the whole plate.

- Look at you go.

- Dance, dance, dance.

- Grant. It's after midnight.

- What happens? You turn into a pumpkin?

I thought you wanted to interview me.

- Hey, Grant, let's dance, okay?

(Monique singing a tune)

Hey, why don't we stay up all night?

We have a seven o'clock call in the morning.

- Not me, I've got to go home

and add all this to my outline.

- What is this article you're doing, anyway?

- Now he asks.

- Well?

- Hey, listen.

Lois wants to go home, so let her go home, okay?

- I'm doing an article about how people in our society

can get so caught up in their work

that it becomes their whole life.

Sometimes it even kills them.

- People like me?

- You're the best example I've found so far.

- And that's bad?

- I think it's sad.

- Hang on for just a minute. I'll be right back.

- Hi.

I don't know why journalists ever bother themselves

to interview people.

You're going to write what you want to anyway, right?

You should see some of the things they write about me.

Sometimes I read it and it sounds like so much fun,

I go and do it.

Listen, it's not just Grant.

It's all these guys.

They're real craftsmen,

and you could do them a real injustice.

- Monique, it's not my intention-

- Lois, if you get a chance, take a look through this.

It'll give you a little background.

I've been collecting pictures and clippings

about other people's work.

Someday I'm going to put together a manual

about the techniques of stunt work.

- It looks interesting. - Yeah.

- [Lois] What drives a man like Grant Page

to risk his life so casually on a daily working basis?

Is it the same kind of devotion to professional excellence

that sent men like 73-year-old Carl Walinda

plunging to his death?

Are we dealing with the demands of the profession,

or a man's attempt to prove something to himself?

Apparently, this whole stunt business had its roots

in the circus.

The advent of silent movies,

and the zany "20s opened up

a whole new field of opportunities

for the ambitious acrobat.

(upbeat jaunty music)

(explosion)

- Grant Page is one of many stuntmen

in the developing Australian film industry.

What they lack in expensive technology,

they seem to make up for in sheer nerve.

{motorbike motor buzzing)

(upbeat rock music)

(fire crackling)

- [Lois] Warren Campbell is a veteran

of more than 50 fire stunts.

When he's not burning,

he runs a company that makes swimming pools.

Quite understandable under the circumstances.

Tom Slavin's Kempo karate team once

did a TV show with Grant.

Their training methods leave little to the imagination.

(glass smashing)

Peter Armstrong is Australia's top stunt coordinator,

with 20 years' experience in movies and live shows.

His specialty is jumping from the top of one car

to another, blindfolded.

His only injury was losing the tip of his thumb

in a head on crash.

Tying your wife to the front of your car and

ramming her through a burning barricade would be

grounds for divorce in most families,

but for auto stunt specialists Max and Dale Aspen,

it's all in a day's work.

(car exploding)

- [Ron] You mothers, can't you get moving?

We haven't got all day to sit around here.

Come on, let's get going on this.

- Felt good when you were doing it,

but it doesn't feel good now, does it?

(Monique snarls)

All right.

- Hello, Monique. Dance, dance, dance.

(Monique groans)

- Are you here to watch the fun?

- I came to see Grant. He never lets up, does he?

- Do you?

(Lois laughs)

- It's not strong enough.

It's unsafe.

I'll have to do all the work up on this end up here.

(joint squeaks)

- Hell, it feels pretty good to me.

- You're not doing it.

- (indistinct) stuntman.

- [Lois] Who are you today?

- Professional killer. How's that for an interview subject?

- Had one of those last week.

- Oh, stay around and watch a bit of stunt work.

Cup of coffee afterwards?

- Hmm.

This book of yours is very impressive.

- Thank you.

- [Ron] Okay, let's go.

Come on, there's nothing moving around here but the sun.

(intense rock music)

Roll cameras.

Action.

- [Ron] What the hell are you doing?

- I'm sorry, they slipped.

- If you can't hang onto that script, shove it up your ass.

- Okay, Ron.

(tyres screeching)

- [Grant] There's really very little risk at all.

If there was, I wouldn't be doing it.

- Then why don't they let me do it?

- It does require some experience and training.

You notice they don't have me out there

doing great long stretches of motivated dialogue.

- A man of action.

There's more to this than I thought.

I wonder if you'd let me keep this a little while longer?

- Of course.

It's all been pioneer work up until now.

We're only just developing the art.

- Art?

- Have you seen Gone In 60 Seconds?

(intense rock music)

(tyres screeching)

(police siren wailing)

(cars smashing)

- Look, there's no way I'm going to have her

fire a flare gun. She can get a very valuable-

- I want her to fire the flare herself.

- But she happens to be a very valuable property. Okay?

- Look guy, I'm the dog. You're the tail. I wag you.

She's firing the flair.

- Okay. Okay. She firing the flair.

- It's crazy to take s0 many risks.

- Risks?

You realise how much precision and planning

goes into each segment?

- The timing has to be perfect.

- Hey, they're ready for you, sweetheart.

- Okay.

- How are you doing?

- They'll want me too.

- Listen, I fixed it so you can shoot the flare yourself.

- Great.

- [Grant] Come watch.

It's going to be a lot of good work in this one.

- What do you do this time?

- A little stunt driving.

Car catches fire. I burst into flames.

Come through the windscreen a human fireball.

- Grant.

I've been observing you for a couple of days now,

and I know you're going to kill yourself sometime,

and I just don't want to be here when you do.

So if you don't mind, I'm going home.

- Grant, I think she likes you.

(light sputters)

- [Ron] Okay, you got this right now?

- [Monique] Yeah, I know. Yeah.

- [Ron] Okay. All right, we're going for a take.

Let's get it right.

Roll sound. - [Crew] Okay.

- Roll camera. - [Crew] Okay.

- Scene 24, take one marker.

- All right. Action.

(upbeat rock music)

(van engine roaring)

(gunfire)

(glass smashing)

(fire crackling)

- Not bad.

- [Monique] You know, Grant,

you're the only guy in this whole show

who's not always trying to take me out.

- Hey. What do you call this?

- Well, it's not exactly lounge seats at the Ritz.

You're very professional, aren't you?

- Well, I'm not looking to advance my career

by dating the star of a series, if that's what you mean.

- No, I was going to put it in another way.

More like the teacher not dating the students.

- All right, then. You're on.

- I like you too.

- That's more than I can say for Lois at the moment.

- Don't let her get to you.

I mean, if she's your type, she"ll come around.

She's got to learn to accept you for what you are.

- [Voice over] Ladies and gentlemen, Sorcery.

(bass line)

(intense electric guitar)

(upbeat rock music)

♪ Darkness fills the night ♪

♪ The moon was shining bright ♪

♪ I became the air ♪

♪ Evil everywhere ♪

♪ A demon from below ♪

♪ Watched the shadows grow ♪

♪ Snuck into your heart ♪

♪ (indistinct) ♪

♪ Mark of the beast ♪

♪ The devil is unleashed ♪

♪ Mark of the beast ♪

♪ It's time for Satan's feast ♪

(Greg howling)

(guitar solo)

(crowd cheering)

♪ Mark of the beast ♪

♪ The devil is unleashed ♪

♪ Mark of the beast ♪

♪ It's time for Satan's feast ♪

(Curtis cackling)

(Greg howling)

(man screaming)

(Curtis cackling)

(crowd applauding)

- Hi there.

- Nice view. - Yeah.

- Stay a while.

- No thanks. The devil's domain is down, not up.

I got an improvement on your next act.

What about you leap onto the stage from up here?

- Yeah, sounds nice.

- I'll have to think about that.

- Hey Grant, what's the most dangerous stunt

you've ever done?

- I'll have to think about that.

- [Lois] Tempo Magazine, September issue.

This is for the Centre spread section.

In 1975, Page attempted to set a world record,

by combining two stunts into one:

the Human Torch and the Flying Fox.

At the entrance to Sydney Harbour,

there is a cliff known as North Head.

It was here in front of TV and press representatives

from all over the world that Grant planned

to be sprayed with gasoline,

set alight and slide 300 feet down a rope

to the rocks below.

A large safety team spent four hours

carefully rigging the equipment for a stunt

that everybody knew would push Grant

to the outer limits of safety.

But the man himself answered reporters' questions

with unruffled confidence.

- [Grant] I'm not worried, Brian,

because we've spent too much time on the research of it

to be anything but totally confident

of what's going to happen.

Particularly after the practice run we've just done.

There was a few variations of gear

that we've never used before,

but now we've completely duplicated it,

except for the actual fire.

Now, your only big worry there is the fire burning

the actual main rope.

We've allowed ourselves 60 seconds of leeway.

The run should only take about 10.

Maybe five or 10 seconds at the top,

which still gives us about 40 seconds clear

for any problems that might crop up.

- [Reporter] Aren't you just a little bit scared?

- No.

Now if I was, wouldn't be doing it.

- [Lois] Water gel, a scientifically prepared fire retardant

was the only protection Grant used against the flames.

Just before the stunt,

he put on woolen underwear soaked in it,

and smeared the gel all over his face and hair.

- Here we go.

10, 9, 8,

7,6,

5,4,

3, 2,

1.

Ignition.

(upbeat rock music)

(intense guitar solo)

- What happened?

- I burned to a crisp. What do you think?

- That can be arranged, wise guy.

(Curtis growls)

- Wow.

(Grant laughs)

- We are the wizards' council.

Will the sorcerer survive the sword?

(crowd cheering)

(upbeat rock music)

(crowd clapping)

(shrill twinkling)

♪ In days of yore they sacrificed the virgin ♪

♪ But now the sorcerer will take his turn ♪

♪ In those days, the world was ruled by magic ♪

♪ There was a white and there was a black ♪

♪ Will he survive? Will he survive? Will he survive? ♪

♪ Will he survive the sword ? ♪

♪ Each 1000 years comes the day of judgement ♪

♪ Wizard council meets to choose their king ♪

♪ The devil's tongue is like a blade of steel ♪

♪ In which the sorcerer must face the test ♪

♪ Will he survive? Will he survive? Will he survive? ♪

♪ Will he survive the sword? ♪

♪ In those days, the world was ruled by magic ♪

♪ There was the white and there was the black ♪

♪ The devil's tongue is like a blade of steel ♪

♪ And which the sorcerer must face the test ♪

♪ Will he survive? Will he survive? Will he survive ? ♪

♪ Will he survive the sword ? ♪

(crowd applauding)

(Greg howling)

(plane rumbling)

(dramatic music)

{phone ringing)

- Hello?

- [Grant] Have a look out your window.

- Who is this?

- Just have a look out your window.

- You're crazy.

- I just came by to invite you to a party.

- No, what are you talking about?

- I won't leave until you say yes.

- [Lois] Oh my God, hang on.

(baby fussing)

What can I do?

- Say yes, so I can get down from here.

- All right, wise guy, you win.

It's a little early for a party, isn't it?

- All right, what about breakfast first?

- You do circus stunts, too?

- Heights I just do for my own amusement.

(upbeat rock music)

- [Grant] I would never do anything like that

if I thought there was the slightest chance

I was going to fall.

Look, it's funny; everyone has a different attitude

about heights.

Heights...

If you're standing here, standing on, say, there-

- [Lois] Uhuh.

- There's no way you're going to fall over.

But if you knew that there was no building on that side

and no building on that side, you would stand-

- I wouldn't even attempt it.

- You'd fall over, for sure.

But that's the same thing.

Also, it's confidence in yourself.

You develop your own confidence.

It's, well, say, you know how strong your hands are.

This sort of thing.

- Oh God. Not again, Grant, please. I went through this...

Dear God.

Oh.

- See? All right.

It's easy.

But I'll tell you what, it's still hard work.

- Yeah, right.

- But it's just the fact that you know what you can

and can't do.

There's no irrational fear.

Everyone has irrational fear,

but it's an unbased fear because they-

- With me, it's a based fear.

When I was seven years old, I climbed a Willow tree.

I was a real tomboy.

I met three branches on the way down.

- You're lucky you hit the branches.

I think everyone sort of has their experiences in trees.

I was one of those real little show offs.

I was always up the top of the tree.

Always up there, always screaming out,

"Look at me, look at me."

That's the ego thing.

I think probably any stunt man that's working today,

if he kids himself that he hasn't got an ego,

he's in danger,

because I think every stunt man working

has got the expertise as a young child,

by being a show off,

because that's what gives him the drive to get there,

to do all of these things that teach him what to do.

But the first thing he's got to learn,

if he's going to make his living at it

is that it was his ego that got him there,

and it's his ego that's going to kill him.

I had a couple of bad experiences hang gliding,

when I pushed my luck just a little too far.

When you fly for movies, inevitably,

you have to take a few risks.

The first time I hit a tree, which wasn't too bad,

but when I crash landed in the river,

I was very nearly drowned.

(water splashing)

The kite went straight to the bottom

and I got tangled in the harnesses and couldn't get out.

My friends had just about given up hope.

I was underwater for nearly two minutes before I came up.

Didn't put me off hang gliding, though.

It's too much fun.

If you can imagine standing on the edge

of a 2000 foot cliff,

just facing out off the cliff,

and all you can see in front of you is two wires

running up that way, and a bar like that.

You've got a hold of the bar

and you just run straight forward.

And that bar is all your control.

And you just go out, and you feel a lift,

and lifts you with it.

And then as you turn, it's just like a bird,

because you're lying flat.

You're flying with your body in a flying position,

and your body does the movement.

You go like that and you fly.

It's fantastic.

(upbeat rock music)

- [Lois] Hey, can I bring you back down to earth

for a minute?

Are you going to take me to this party, or aren't you?

- No.

(Lois laughs)

(mellow funk music)

- [Ron] Who are you supposed to be?

The Phantom of the Opera?

Why don't you take that stupid hood off?

Shit.

- [Monique] You want to do some magic for me? He's my agent.

- Sure.

You don't mind if I borrow your handkerchief, do you?

- No.

- Now then, what I want you to do

is watch the handkerchief very closely,

because if you don't watch it closely,

you're going to miss the whole thing.

And we have a bird.

- Isn't he cute? Hi there.

- Monique, this is a very unusual bird,

and I'll show you why.

Because we take him and lay him over,

right on his back, like so.

A few passes.

He becomes hypnotized, just like that.

Unless, of course, we snap our fingers.

Because then, he's wide awake again.

Would you like to hold the dove?

- Yeah.

- Here you go. Wear it in your next movie.

- Thanks, I will.

Peter, the others, there by the music.

Why don't you go over there and talk to them?

Maybe they need an agent.

- [Peter] Oh, I'm sure they do.

The only thing is that I don't represent magicians.

- Too bad.

- Greg.

- Ta-dah.

- I got an act for you.

- What? You're talking to me?

- Yes. I'm Chris Shalan.

For $1,000,000, I'll allow myself to be buried alive

under 25 feet of rock and cement.

(Peter laughs)

- Great.

- Check these chains.

Tight, aren't they?

- Yeah, they're tight.

- Well then, watch this.

(water splashes)

(intense psychedelic music)

- Is this suicide or what?

- I don't think so.

- Who is he?

- [Man] He says he's Houdini's reincarnation.

- [Monique] Well, let's hope so.

- He'd better be.

(onlookers applauding)

- The cement business. Are you serious?

- Yes.

- Huh.

♪ We're sublime ♪

♪ Summer's here ♪

♪ Wish it could last ♪

♪ All of the year ♪

♪ My my my ♪

- Great.

- Good.

- How does it feel when you're playing?

- [Rick] Oh, it's incredible.

You know, some people say,

"The show you guys put on is just incredible,”

And I tell them, "You ought to see the show

that we're seeing from where we're standing.”

You actually get a feeling of almost lifting off the ground.

You're not conscious of things around you.

You could actually seriously hurt yourself

and not even feel it. - [Lois] Really?

- Well, I've had my hair catch on fire.

- Oh. - [Rick] Yeah.

- [Greg] The audience just looked up

with a stark expression on their face.

I turned, Smokey wasn't there.

And as I turned around to see where he was,

he was putting Rick's hair out.

They didn't miss a note. They didn't miss a note.

- And I'm playing.

- [Richie] It was falling down over his face.

- And then after the song was over,

the people were applauding, and I was thinking,

"Oh my God."

- The music, mind you, the music never stopped,

because that's one thing that this group is like.

- The show must go on.

- [Richie] The show must go on.

- [Rick] It's kind of like picking up an audience

and shaking them violently for an hour and a half,

and then throwing them down.

And when it's all over, they're going,

"Oh, my-"

They don't know what they've seen, yeah.

- Remember last night,

what you said to me about diving on the stage?

Could you do that?

- You mean down from the rafters?

- Yeah.

- Hey, sounds like the Flying Fox.

- You better be very careful how you pronounce that now.

- Oh really?

- Yes, it could be done.

- Is it hard to rig?

- No. No, I've done it 100 times before.

- Yeah. It's beautiful. Really, I like it.

- I'll tell you what. I've got the rig in the hotel room.

- Hey, listen.

I'd love to do something like that on the show.

- Your agent would never allow it.

- Listen, he works for me. I don't work for him.

- That's not the way he fells it.

- Oh, I think I better fix that.

- Look, I'm a businessman.

Now I'm going to get 10% of that $1,000,000,

whether you come up from the cement

or you do not come up from the cement, you get me?

- [Monique] Peter, I think you and I

should have a little talk, okay?

- Yeah, fantastic. You want to excuse us just a second?

Thank you.

- Not now, later,

because Grant is going to show us

how his Flying Fox stunt works, okay?

- Look, don't you see enough stunts on the set every day?

You know, I think you're taking this thing

much too seriously.

Look, you got to learn how to relax a little bit.

Play the game. Now just let me handle your career.

You know, I can do you a lot more good

than these stunt people can.

- Really, huh? - Oh yeah.

- Slime.

(water splashing)

- My contacts, I can't find them.

I lost my contacts. I can't see.

- Bye, Peter.

(women laughing)

- [Grant] Okay, cousin,

the rope is now attached to the building.

- [Curtis] Right.

- The body rope around you has a breaking strain

of over two tonnes.

The carabiner has a breaking strain of 4,000 pounds.

The rope clips in through the top like this,

and forms one loop around the back.

That's done up, and now you are attached to the building.

You're set.

- [Monique] Hey, Grant, that sounds really easy.

I'm not afraid to do that.

- Fear is a funny thing, Monique.

If ever you lose respect for the danger of what we're doing,

you can finish up very dead.

Okay, cousin. See at the bottom.

- See you down there.

- [Grant] Okay.

- Hey Curtis?

- Yeah?

- You want to do me a real nice favour?

- Monique, you can talk me into it.

- Okay.

Let's go.

- Okay.

- [Grant] I'd say about when he gets to

that white ledge there,

Tony, we should start the heavy braking at that stage.

Hello. What are you doing down here?

- That's what I wanted to talk to you about.

- Who the hell is on the rope?

- Monique's up there.

- Jesus.

- Monique, are you sure you know what you're doing?

- I'm really okay. Don't worry.

Okay, I'm okay.

(rope buzzing)

I love it.

(crowd cheering)

- Fantastic.

But you're a very naughty girl.

- I'm not. Hey, not bad for a first time, right?

- Too bloody good, but now we've got to get back

and teach you the theory, I think.

- Oh.

(Grant laughing)

(upbeat rock music)

♪ Come on, baby doll ♪

♪ I'm (indistinct) ♪

♪ I'm going to show you some tricks ♪

♪ Lay your body down ♪

♪ Oh, follow me down ♪

♪ Into the Centre of the earth ♪

♪ Down to the devil's den ♪

♪ Come on, lift your curse ♪

♪ Burned alive, protect our souls ♪

♪ Burned alive, death below ♪

♪ Burned alive, you've lost control ♪

♪ The devil speaks but words you do not hear ♪

♪ Wicked, wicked woman ♪

♪ I'm going to teach you fear ♪

♪ Now that you are here ♪

♪ I'm in control ♪

♪ And you'll never see the world outside this hole ♪

(Curtis cackling)

(guitar solo)

(fire crackling)

♪ Put you in a coffin made of steel ♪

♪ You're scared but it's excitement that you feel ♪

♪ Wicked, wicked woman ♪

♪ Now you've lost control ♪

♪ You'll never see the world outside this hole ♪

♪ Burned alive, protect your soul ♪

♪ Burned alive, buried below ♪

- Grant?

♪ You've lost control ♪

(explosion)

(crowd cheering)

- [Greg] Ladies and gentlemen, Mr Grant Page.

Grant, we'd like to dedicate this next song to you.

(upbeat rock music)

(explosion)

♪ Climb the highest heights ♪

♪ And fly the farthest flights ♪

♪ Living on borrowed time ♪

♪ Your life is one the line ♪

♪ Your have to have the knack ♪

♪ When the wind is at your back ♪

♪ You must survive the test ♪

♪ To be better than the best ♪

(explosions)

♪ You're a stunt rocker ♪

♪ Everybody looks at you ♪

♪ We know you're something special ♪

♪ By the things you do I ♪

- How can I be so blind?

This is something unique you guys are doing.

I think it's going to catch on.

- It already has. It's called rock and roll.

- Not this combination.

There's music, there's magic and stunts.

I'm going to write an article. Let's call it stunt rock.

♪ Never make a mistake ♪

♪ Every duel your life might take ♪

♪ You just might wind up dead ♪

♪ When you're living by a thread ♪

♪ You know you have the knack ♪

♪ When the wind is at your back ♪

♪ You must survive the test ♪

♪ To be better than the best ♪

♪ You're a stunt rocker ♪

♪ Everybody looks at you ♪

♪ We know you're something special ♪

♪ By the things you do ♪

♪ You're a stunt rocker ♪

♪ Everybody looks at you ♪

♪ We know you're something special ♪

♪ By the things you do ♪

♪ Stunt rocker, stunt rocker, stunt rocker, yeah ♪

♪ Stunt rocker, stunt rocker, stunt rocker, yeah ♪

♪ Stunt rocker, stunt rocker, stunt rocker, yeah ♪

♪ Stunt rocker, stunt rocker, stunt rocker, yeah ♪