''Ring of Death'' is a 2008 American television film directed by Bradford May and starring Johnny Messner,

Stacy Keach Walter Stacy Keach Jr. (born June 2, 1941) is an American actor and narrator. He has played mainly dramatic roles throughout his career, often in law enforcement or as a private detective. His most prominent role was as Mickey Spillane's fictiona ...

and

Charlotte Ross Charlotte Ross (born January 21, 1968) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Eve Donovan on the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' from 1987 to 1991, and as Det. Connie McDowell on the ABC police procedural drama series ...

. It was created for

Spike TV Paramount Network is an American basic cable television channel owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Media Networks. The network's headquarters are located at the Paramount Pictures studio lot in Los Angeles. The channel was o ...

in 2008.

Plot

Burke Wyatt ( Johnny Messner) is a hardened ex-cop with a seasoned history of extreme and over-the-top methods during his time with the police, but having been dismissed for the past three years after drastically subduing a criminal, he wades through a rough stretch in his life; separated from his wife (

), he plays a part-time father to their only son, Tommy (

Uriah Shelton Uriah Shelton (born March 10, 1997) is an American actor and singer. He is known for his television roles, such as playing Jeff Cargill on '' The Glades'', Josh on the web series ''Blue'', and Joshua Matthews on ''Girl Meets World''. Shelton was ...

). He quietly harbors a desire to return to the force, and he gets the chance when approached by his old partner and friend, and now a successful

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

agent, Steve James (Derek Webster), who visits Burke to talk about an investigation into the suspicious and violent murders of several inmates at Cainsville State

Penitentiary A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correcti ...

, a notorious and brutal maximum security prison, with the suspicion that the prison warden, Carl Golan (

), is running an underground fight club where prisoners fight to the death for the entertainment of private viewers and paying internet subscribers and for the financial gain of prison officials. Needing someone to infiltrate the prison, Burke is offered the job with the promise of a massive trust fund for his son and reinstatement on the force with an FBI job. Unable to let the opportunity pass, he agrees to the prospects and his desire whetted, the offer can't be refused and he agrees to pose as a prison inmate to investigate the deaths. A high-profile operation, the only way to get inside the prison without arousing suspicion is for Burke to commit a crime himself and receive a jail sentence. Waiting outside a police precinct, he assaults an officer and steals his squad car, then purposely surrenders himself, and once sentenced, is transported to the prison in a bus with other convicts. Not long after arrival inside, Burke brushes with some of the more dangerous inmates of the prison, almost landing himself in fatal situations, and eventually crosses swords with Milton Kennedy a.k.a. "The President" (

Lester Speight Lester Speight (born August 28, 1963), also known as Rasta, is a former American football player who has had subsequent careers as a professional wrestler and then actor. He achieved significant recognition for his portrayal of '' Terry Tate: Offi ...

), a towering, physically imposing and vicious criminal and the boss of the prison's biggest gang known as 'The Disciples'. Feared and respected by all other felons, he has an untouchable status among them as well as to the guards. Burke's steel is then tested when he must defend himself against a lowly group of cons, but his prowess only attracts the interest of Warden Golan, who only sees in him a new addition to his league of fighters. Soon, FBI suspicions are confirmed when Burke is plunged into a cruel, sadistic world of life or death duels where he finds himself forced to compete for the warden and his guards in the

blood sport A blood sport or bloodsport is a category of sport or entertainment that involves wikt:bloodshed, bloodshed. Common examples of the former include combat sports such as cockfighting and dog fighting, and some forms of hunting and fishing. Acti ...

that he was drafted to expose.

Cast

* Johnny Messner - Burke Wyatt *

- Mary Wyatt *

- Thomas "Tommy" Wyatt *

Frank Sivero Frank Sivero (born Francesco Lo Giudice; January 6, 1952) is an Italian-American actor. He is perhaps best known for playing the roles of Genco Abbandando in Francis Ford Coppola's ''The Godfather Part II,'' and Frankie Carbone (based on Angelo S ...

- Tommy Micelli *

- The President / Milton Kennedy

External links

* * {{IMDb title, 1229764, Ring of Death 2008 action films 2008 television films 2008 films 2000s prison films American television films Films about death games Films directed by Bradford May 2000s English-language films