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Salvation! (1987) movie poster

Characters & Themes

Salvation! (1987) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

Release, runtime and language
1987 · 80 mins · English
JustWatch #3,487 31
Directed by
Beth B.
Starring
Exene Cervenka, Viggo Mortensen, Rockets Redglare, Stephen McHattie, Nancy Sullivan, Tom Robinson

SEX. POWER. MONEY. It’s all in the name of God! A troubled young woman hooks up with a money-crazed televangelist and becomes a rich, heavy-metal Christian rock star.

Comedy Cast, crew & box office
On this page (8)
  1. 1 Where to watch
  2. 2 Characters explained (14)
  3. 3 Where & when it takes place
  4. 4 Themes & meaning (3)
  5. 5 Character & meaning questions
  6. 6 Movie threads
  7. 7 Movies like Salvation!
  8. 8 Every angle

Where to watch

Where to Watch Salvation! (1987)

Where can you watch Salvation!? Stream, rent or buy it in the US, including on Kino Film Collection, Hoopla and Amazon Video: current JustWatch availability with up-to-date prices.

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14 main characters · contains spoilers

Salvation! Characters Explained: Who Is Who

The main characters of Salvation! (1987), heroes and villains: what drives them, how they change over the course of the story and what each of them reveals about the film's bigger ideas.

  • Reverend Edward Randall

    played by Stephen McHattie

    A Staten Island-based televangelist who bilks his flock and secretly watches pornography while rehearsing his sermons in his stately home. He projects a sanctimonious image to attract donations, masking a calculating and vulnerable personality.

    • 🙏 Hypocrisy
    • 💼 Corruption
    • 🎭 Manipulation

  • Rhonda Stample

    played by Exene Cervenka

    A born-again Christian who watches Randall's programs, regularly sends him money, and becomes the driving force behind expanding his ministry. Her religious fervor hides a growing hunger for power and control, and she pushes others aside to secure greater influence.

    • 🙏 Faith
    • 💼 Power
    • 💰 Influence

  • Jerome Stample

    played by Viggo Mortensen

    Rhonda's non-believer husband who loses his factory job, finding himself entangled in the escalating schemes around Randall's ministry. He distrusts the new arrangement and sees the manipulation but is drawn into the consequences of the power play.

    • 🧭 Skepticism
    • 💔 Family strain
    • ⚖️ Economic stress

  • Lenore Finley

    played by Dominique Davalos

    Jerome's sister-in-law who arrives in a rainstorm with car trouble; she becomes entangled with Randall, sparking the affair that could be used for blackmail.

    • 🌧 Rainstorm
    • 🔥 Seduction
    • 👨‍👩️ Family ties

  • Ollie

    played by Rockets Redglare

    A neighbor in the social circle who participates in the drama surrounding Randall's ministry; his presence helps illustrate the community dynamics at play.

    • 👥 Neighbor
    • 🗣️ Boisterous
    • 🏠 Community

  • Girl at Poker Game (Nancy Sullivan)

    A minor attendee at the poker game scene, part of the social circle that observes the unfolding tensions around Randall’s ministry.

    • 🎴 Poker game
    • 🕊️ Minor role
    • 👀 Witness

  • Girl at Poker Game (Cathy Haase)

    Another attendee at the poker game, sharing a smaller role in the social milieu that frames the main events.

    • 🎴 Poker game
    • 🕊️ Minor role
    • 👀 Witness

  • Yuppity (Peter Bavaro)

    One of the boorish neighbors who rounds out the social circle around Randall's circle, contributing to the pressures and judgments of the community.

    • 🏙️ Neighbor
    • 💬 Boorish
    • 💰 Affluence

  • Yuppity (Elizabeth White)

    Another boorish neighbor in the mix, reinforcing the social dynamic and adornments of the community surrounding the ministry.

    • 🏙️ Neighbor
    • 💬 Boorish
    • 💰 Affluence

  • Stan

    played by Billy Bastiani

    A neighbor in the circle who participates in the confrontation and social scenes that follow Lenore's arrival, illustrating the community's complicity and volatility.

    • 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Neighbor
    • 🎭 Boorish
    • 🕵️ Witness

  • Tom Robinson

    Factory Worker who loses his job, reflecting the economic pressures surrounding the Stamples and the ministry's influence on everyday life.

    • 🏭 Factory worker
    • 💼 Economic stress
    • 🕰️ Time-pressure

  • Donald Bialer

    Factory Worker who is part of the same industrial world, contributing to the backdrop of economic struggle within the community.

    • 🏭 Factory worker
    • 💼 Economic stress
    • 🕰️ Time-pressure

  • Pamela Woodbridge

    Factory Worker whose presence adds to the working-class milieu surrounding the central figures and tensions.

    • 🏭 Factory worker
    • 💼 Economic stress
    • 🕰️ Time-pressure

  • Josh Steinberg

    Factory Worker offering another slice of the industrial backdrop to the film's social ecosystem.

    • 🏭 Factory worker
    • 💼 Economic stress
    • 🕰️ Time-pressure

Last updated: May 05, 2026 at 10:07

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Setting

Where and When Does Salvation! Take Place?

The setting of Salvation! (1987): the year and time period, the places and locations, and how they shape the characters, the mood and the tension of the story.

Time period

Location

Staten Island

The story is anchored in a Staten Island home that doubles as a center for the televangelist's ministry. The stately residence sits at the heart of the plot, reflecting the blend of piety and performance in the religious media world. A tight-knit local circle makes private scandals spill into public life.

  • 🕍 Televangelism
  • 🏙 Urban setting
  • 🗺 Island locale

Last updated: May 05, 2026 at 10:07

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3 major themes

Salvation! Meaning: Themes & Message Explained

What is Salvation! (1987) really about? The emotional, social and philosophical themes the film keeps returning to, its symbolism and the message beneath the surface.

  • Hypocrisy

    The Reverend Randall presents a pious public image while secretly engaging in vice, revealing a gap between faith and conduct. His duplicity drives the moral tension of the story as others react to the emerging scandal. The film uses this duality to question the integrity of religious leadership.

  • Power & Money

    Rhonda's ascent within the ministry shows how wealth and status can distort faith into a tool for control. The expansion of the ministry brings financial rewards that tempt loyalty and fuel manipulation. Money becomes a central currency around which relationships and politics turn.

  • Control & Exploitation

    Romance and sexuality are weaponized to influence leadership and extract advantage. Blackmail and coercion emerge as potential tactics to steer the ministry, culminating in a volatile power struggle. The narrative exposes how performance and sanctimony can mask coercive dynamics.

Last updated: May 05, 2026 at 10:07

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Character & theme questions

Salvation! Characters & Meaning: Your Questions Answered

The questions people ask about Salvation! (1987): who the characters really are, their relationships, what the symbols mean, where it takes place and what the movie is really about. Each answer contains spoilers.

Q1

Where is the movie set?

The film takes place in Staten Island, New York. The primary setting is a stately home that serves as both the residence and ministry center for Reverend Randall's televangelist operation. The urban island locale provides the backdrop for the story's exploration of religious performance and community dynamics.

  • staten island
  • new york
  • setting
  • location
  • televangelist ministry
Q2

Who is Reverend Randall?

Reverend Edward Randall is a televangelist based in Staten Island who presents a pious public image while secretly engaging in vice. He bilks his flock for donations and secretly watches pornography while rehearsing his sermons. The film reveals the stark contrast between his sanctimonious public persona and his actual behavior, driving the story's central theme of religious hypocrisy.

  • reverend randall
  • televangelist
  • main character
  • hypocrite
Q3

Who is Rhonda Stample?

Rhonda Stample is a born-again Christian who becomes the driving force behind expanding Reverend Randall's ministry. She regularly watches Randall's programs and sends him money, using her religious fervor to gain influence within the organization. Her hunger for power and control grows as the ministry expands, making her a central figure in the story's exploration of how wealth corrupts faith.

  • rhonda stample
  • character
  • power hunger
  • ministry expansion
Q4

What does the movie say about religious hypocrisy?

The film uses Reverend Randall's duality to question the integrity of religious leadership. Randall presents a pious public image while secretly engaging in vice, revealing the gap between faith and conduct. This hypocrisy drives the moral tension of the story as other characters react to the emerging scandal, suggesting that performance and piety can mask deep corruption.

  • religious hypocrisy
  • faith
  • integrity
  • televangelism
  • moral corruption
Q5

How does the film explore power and money?

Rhonda's ascent within the ministry demonstrates how wealth and status can distort faith into a tool for control. As the ministry expands, financial rewards tempt loyalty and fuel manipulation. Money becomes the central currency around which relationships and politics turn, showing how financial success can corrupt religious movements.

  • power
  • money
  • corruption
  • wealth
  • ministry
  • control
Q6

How does the film address control and exploitation?

Romance and sexuality are weaponized within the ministry to influence leadership and extract advantage. The narrative exposes how blackmail and coercion emerge as tactics to steer the ministry, culminating in a volatile power struggle. The film shows how performance and sanctimony can mask coercive dynamics, exploring the dark side of religious organizations.

  • control
  • exploitation
  • sexuality
  • blackmail
  • manipulation
  • power struggle
Q7

Who is Jerome Stample?

Jerome Stample is Rhonda's non-believer husband who loses his factory job and becomes entangled in the escalating schemes around Randall's ministry. He distrusts the new arrangement and recognizes the manipulation happening around him, though he is ultimately drawn into the consequences of the power play between the other characters.

  • jerome stample
  • husband
  • non-believer
  • factory worker
Q8

What is the movie about thematically?

Salvation! is a satirical comedy that explores themes of religious hypocrisy, exploitation, and moral corruption. The story centers on the televangelist world, showing how spectacle and greed can triumph over genuine faith. It examines the corruption possible when religious leadership becomes intertwined with money, power, and personal ambition.

  • themes
  • satire
  • religious hypocrisy
  • exploitation
  • moral corruption
  • greed
Q9

What kind of story is this?

This is a dark satirical comedy that explores religious hypocrisy and exploitation without offering redemption. The film maintains a cynical tone, using humor to highlight the absurdity of religious performance gone awry. While the subject matter is serious, the comedic approach provides distance from the darkness, resulting in a bleak narrative about the triumph of spectacle over genuine faith.

  • tone
  • dark comedy
  • satire
  • cynical
  • bleak
  • religious satire

Movie threads

More Movies Like Salvation!, by Mood & Story

Curated lists built around what makes Salvation! tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Dark satires of corrupt institutions like Salvation!

Biting comedies that expose the greed and hypocrisy festering within powerful systems. Discover movies like Salvation! that use dark comedy to expose institutional corruption. These satirical films explore greed, hypocrisy, and moral decay within powerful organizations, from religious institutions to political systems.

  • satirical
  • cynical
  • unsettling
  • corrupt
  • hypocritical
  • greedy
  • Tone: dark, cynical, satirical
  • Pacing: steady, narrative-driven
Why these movies?

The story pattern: These stories typically follow ambitious characters who discover or exploit systemic corruption for personal gain. The narrative arc shows the gradual moral decay of individuals and institutions, often culminating in bleak revelations about power's corrupting influence.

Why they belong together: These films share a darkly comedic tone focused on exposing institutional hypocrisy. They balance cynical social commentary with character-driven stories about greed and corruption, creating unsettling yet compelling viewing experiences.

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Salvation!

1987
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1998
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1970
Xala movie poster

Xala

1975
Burn After Reading movie poster

Burn After Reading

2008
Even Pigeons Go to Heaven movie poster

Even Pigeons Go to Heaven

2007
Cold Dog Soup movie poster

Cold Dog Soup

1990

Moral decay and power corruption stories like Salvation!

Character studies showing how ambition and power lead to ethical collapse and personal ruin. If you liked Salvation!'s exploration of moral corruption, discover similar movies about power's corrupting influence. These stories follow characters who trade ethics for success, leading to bleak outcomes and personal ruin.

  • corrupt
  • greedy
  • hypocritical
  • power struggle
  • moral decay
  • unsettling
  • Tone: dark, unsettling, cynical
  • Pacing: steady, character-driven
Why these movies?

The story pattern: These narratives follow protagonists who initially seek success or meaning but become corrupted by power, money, or influence. The story tracks their moral descent through increasingly questionable choices, typically ending with their complete ethical collapse or devastating consequences.

Why they belong together: These films share a focus on character-driven moral decay, exploring how ambition corrupts individuals. They maintain steady pacing to show the gradual erosion of ethics and often conclude with bleak resolutions that underscore the cost of corruption.

Salvation! movie poster

Salvation!

1987
Go Down Death movie poster

Go Down Death

2014
The Road to Ruin movie poster

The Road to Ruin

1934
Condemned to Live movie poster

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1935
The Hoodlum movie poster

The Hoodlum

1951
Absolution movie poster

Absolution

2024
Knock on Any Door movie poster

Knock on Any Door

1949
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Corky

1972

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Every angle

Salvation! (1987) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

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