Known for Directing
Mark L. Lester is an American writer, producer, and director of action films. Following his first film, Twilight of the Mayas, Lester worked on films such as Stunts, Steel Arena, and Bobby Jo and the Outlaw. His next film Roller Boogie with Linda Blair was a modest success, which he built on with reasonably received exploitation thriller Class of 1984, and Stephen King's Firestarter. His biggest hit came in 1985 with Commando, an Arnold Schwarzenegger action film that grossed over $57 million worldwide. He also produced Armed & Dangerous starring Meg Ryan and John Candy. In 1989 he directed Class of 1999, a very loose science fiction sequel to Class of 1984. Mark Lester married Dana Dubovsky, who he now works with and had two children, Jason and Justin. He also founded American World Pictures, and independent production and distribution company. Recent films include The Base, an action film, the thrillers Blowback and Hitman's Run, and television film Pterodactyl (produced for the Sci Fi Channel). Other credits include Showdown in Little Tokyo starring Dolph Lundgren and Brandon Lee, Night of the Running Man, Extreme Justice, Misbegotten, The Ex, Double Take, and Truck Stop Women.
Born
November 26, 1946 (age 79)
Birthplace
Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Filmography
87 films, 1 show


Dragons of Camelot
2014 · 1h 20m
country: United States
The Kingdom of Camelot is plunged into darkness after the death of noble King Arthur, as the reign of his cruel sorceress sister, Morgan Le Fay, begins. Commanding three deadly dragons with her dark magic, she hunts the remaining Knights of the Round Table to the ends of the Earth.


Poseidon Rex
2014 · 1h 16m
country: United States
Jackson Slate, famous treasure hunter, is out to find the legendary Lost Gold Of Cortez in the open waters off a secluded island in the Caribbean Sea. Using dynamite to blast his way through centuries of silt, new chasms are created reaching miles below the ancient ocean floor. From here, an ancient evil is released, that quickly, savagely, and without warning, destroys Jackson s boat and kills his crew. The sole survivor of the carnage, Jackson teams up with marine biologist, Sarah, to venture back to the site and investigate the horrific events. They extract an egg from the darkest depths of the ocean and take it back to the lab to investigate. But when it hatches, they realise they have awaken a deadly prehistoric monster, the P-Rex, which will stop at nothing until the entire island is destroyed...


Groupie
2010 · 1h 30m
country: United States
When a mysterious groupie joins legendary cursed band, "The Dark Knights", a series of unexplained murders derails their comeback tour.


Pterodactyl
2004 · 1h 29m
country: United States
A dormant volcano deep with the Turkish forest holds within it a deadly secret. Perfectly preserved, a nest of pterodactyl eggs are ready to hatch...


Betrayal
2003 · 1h 30m
country: United States
When one of her hits goes wrong, a professional assassin ends up with a suitcase full of a million dollars belonging to a mob boss.


Stealing Candy
2003 · 1h 23m
country: United States
Three ex-cons kidnap a famous movie star and force her to film a sex tape live on the internet for a paying audience.


White Rush
2003 · 1h 27m
country: United States
A group of young tourist couples comes across a drug deal gone bad while on vacation.


The Base 2: Guilty as Charged
2000 · 1h 37m
country: Unknown
US Army Investigator John Murphy has been sent to look into a series of suspicious deaths that have been going on under the watch of Colonel Strauss. After going undercover and infiltrating Strauss's unit, Murphy discovers that Strauss and his men are leading a vigilante gang to dispense 'justice' to those they feel have been wrongly acquitted of various crimes.


Sacrifice
2000 · 1h 30m
country: United States
A convicted bank robber breaks free as he is being transported to prison after learning that his daughter has been killed by a serial killer. Determined to find her killer, he joins with a female cop who is working the case. He quickly discovers that his daughter had recently had an abortion, an action common to all of the murdered women. Meanwhile the FBI agent that he escaped from is hot on his trail.


Blowback
2000 · 1h 31m
country: Canada
After a psychotic religious killer is captured and sentenced to death, he is instead recruited by the US government and trained to become a professional assassin. He now seeks revenge on all those who participated in sentencing him to death.


The Base
1999 · 1h 33m
country: United States
Major Murphy, a US Army Investigator, has received a new assignment. Sgt. Gammon is suspected of dealing cocaine from his base, and Murphy must gather enough evidence to shut down Gammon and his entire operation. Along with his partner, Lt. Andrews, the Major goes undercover to infiltrate the gang and find out just how far up the chain of command these activities are going.


Hitman's Run
1999 · 1h 33m
country: United States
A former mob hitman, now in witness protection, is forced to come out of retirement when his family is threatened by his cohorts. He teams up with a skateboarding kid, who has a computer disk that the mob wants to get their hands on that has a list of new names for individuals in the FBI witness protection program. The list includes his dad, who separated from his mother years before and hadn't been seen since.


Misbegotten
1998 · 1h 35m
country: Canada
Impatient to have a child, an infertile couple seeks help at a sperm bank and are thrilled when the procedure works. But their joy is cut short after they discover the donor is a psychopath willing to kill anyone who stands between him and his baby.


Double Take
1998 · 1h 26m
country: Canada
A Writer identifies a murder, possibly mistakenly, in this tense plot twisting thriller.


The Ex
1996 · 1h 27m
country: Canada
In order to get her husband back, an architect's psycho ex-wife kills everybody she can get her hands on.


Public Enemies
1996 · 1h 35m
country: United States
Ma Barker and her sons rob banks, shoot people and wind up at the top of the FBI's Most Wanted list in the 1930s.


Night of the Running Man
1995 · 1h 33m
country: United States
A Las Vegas cab driver finds a million dollars of stolen money in his cab after his fare is murdered. Soon after, a ruthless hitman is in pursuit; he will stop at nothing to recover the money and dispose of all witnesses.


Extreme Justice
1993 · 1h 36m
country: United States
Jeff Powers is the newest member of a very elite and very secret LAPD division. Their mission is to target important criminals and to get them to stop. Police brutality is not a known term for the division and they will stop at nothing to get the job done, even if it means murder.


Showdown in Little Tokyo
1991 · 1h 19m
country: United States
An American with a Japanese upbringing, Chris Kenner is a police officer assigned to the Little Tokyo section of Los Angeles. Kenner is partnered with Johnny Murata, a Japanese-American who isn't in touch with his roots. Despite their differences, both men excel at martial arts, and utilize their formidable skills when they go up against Yoshida, a vicious yakuza drug dealer with ties to Kenner's past.


Class of 1999
1990 · 1h 39m
country: United States
The time is in the future and the youth gang violence is so high that the areas around some schools have become "free-fire zones", into which not even the police will venture. When Miles Langford, the head of Kennedy High School, decides to take his school back from the gangs, robotics specialist Dr. Robert Forrest provides "tactical education units". These are amazingly human-like androids that have been programmed to teach and are supplied with devastatingly effective solutions to discipline problems. So when the violent, out-of-control students of Kennedy High report for class tomorrow, they're going to get a real education... in staying alive!


Armed and Dangerous
1986 · 1h 28m
country: United States
After policeman Frank Dooley is framed for theft and loses his job on the force, he joins a security guard agency and teams up with inept former defense lawyer Norman Kane. When the two botch a job guarding a local warehouse, they begin to uncover corruption within the company and their union.


Commando
1985 · 1h 30m
country: United States
John Matrix, the former leader of a special commando strike force that always got the toughest jobs done, is forced back into action when his young daughter is kidnapped. To find her, Matrix has to fight his way through an array of punks, killers, one of his former commandos, and a fully equipped private army. With the help of a feisty stewardess and an old friend, Matrix has only a few hours to overcome his greatest challenge: finding his daughter before she's killed.


Firestarter
1984 · 1h 54m
country: United States
Charlene "Charlie" McGee has the amazing ability to start fires with just a glance. Can her psychic power and the love of her father save her from the threatening government agency which wants to destroy her?


Class of 1984
1982 · 1h 38m
country: Canada
Andy is a new teacher at an inner city high school that is unlike any he has seen before. There are metal detectors at the front door and the place is basically run by a tough kid named Peter Stegman. Soon, Andy and Stegman become enemies and Stegman will stop at nothing to protect his turf and drug dealing business.


Roller Boogie
1979 · 1h 44m
country: United States
Teen lovers Bobby and Terry band together with other roller skaters to try and prevent a powerful mobster taking over the land their favourite skating rink sits on, and compete in the Boogie Contest.


Gold of the Amazon Women
1979 · 1h 40m
country: United States
An adventurer searches for the fabled Golden Cities of El Dorado and allies himself with a tribe of Amazon women against a murderous villain who is also after the treasure.


Stunts
1977 · 1h 29m
country: United States
After a stunt man dies while he is involved in the making of a motion picture, his brother takes his place in order to find out what really happened.


Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw
1976 · 1h 29m
country: United States
Aimless country girl Bobbie Jo Baker abandons her carhop job to join Wild West outlaw wannabe Lyle Wheeler for an adventure in theft, mayhem, and murder.


White House Madness
1975 · 1h 19m
country: United States
The Nixon Administration falls apart in a farcical manner in the time of the Watergate Scandal.


Truck Stop Women
1974 · 1h 28m
country: United States
A mother and daughter who run a brothel for truckers fight back when the Mafia tries to take over their operation.


Steel Arena
1973 · 1h 38m
country: United States
Dusty Russell shows off his talent as the greatest daredevil on the circuit. Later, he awaits the biggest challenge of his career.