It is really a shame this movie may never get the deserved DVD release. It has everything that you would go looking for in a movie released in the late '80s. Recognizable stars putting forth solid performances, without going overboard. Bill Paxton, Tim Curry, Annie Potts, Dennis Burkley, and Leland Crooke put in great performances in my opinion. Dennis Burkley's performance was probably the most unexpected pleasure, with Tim Curry's evangelist character a solid entry in his cache of performances. As Tim Curry movies go, it's not Tim Curry overdoing it, or conversely under-performing, but rather a balanced illustration of his range.
The plot is pretty entertaining if you derive any amusement from the circus environment of past and present ministries extorting money from hopeless people around the world. I suppose we should see the humor in them somehow, even if it is wandering the landscape of stereotypes and taking pages from the real life travesties associated with their own sinning ways. The movie plays with the stereotypes of the characters pretty well, both the feature cast and the background nobodies who fund the multi-million-dollar church business.
"Pass the Ammo" did a good job in making me laugh, which is what this sort of movie is all about. Laughs via misc sight gags, lines of dialogue, and the situations the characters find themselves in. This is a straight 80s comedy with a typical ending leaving you satisfied with where it goes. It won't leave you hanging out to dry wishing it had gone in another direction. Come for Tim Curry and stay for a special appearance by the best attempted Moonpie robbery ever.
