Despite this cheesy movie, I really thought Billy Thurman was great in it, as the country bumpkin Tim. Was he a professionally trained actor? Did he ever do other movies? He has a real presence and can really project a folksy, expansive acting style. He could have had a great career playing country sheriffs and villains in the 70's. I can't seem to find many other movies he was in, so maybe he did it under a different name?
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I agree. In the other Larry Buchanans I have seen, Billy is wooden and amatuerish like the other cast members. Very good here. Maybe he is not acting in 2889 so much as being himself(a drunk?).
shareI suppose the most critically acclaimed movie he appeared in was The Last Picture Show, where he played the high school gym teacher.
shareYes, I thought he was really good, too. He makes you feel so sorry for him when the liquor bottle is spilled. I can't help but feel really angry at Captain Ramsey at that point. Thurman must have been a pretty decent actor, because he was in a lot of things, including "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." Notice that this movie is not listed as one he's "known for," unlike most other actors in the cast. That shows he had a lot more of a career than they did. If this is something you're known for, that's kind of sad.
I notice one of the reviewers says that only Paul Peterson put in a decent performance. I think some people can't separate characters from actors, and I think that reviewer has that problem. An actor who can make you hate him or pity him is a really good actor!
"Extremism in the pursuit of moderation is no vice."