David Tress appears in Stone Cold (1991), a gritty action film that exemplifies the raw energy of early '90s cult cinema. In this film, he contributes to the intense atmosphere surrounding the conflict between the law and an outlaw biker gang. Tress's performance adds depth to the film's exploration of loyalty and violence, making him a notable presence in this gritty narrative. His work in Stone Cold aligns with the exploitation genre's penchant for memorable characters and high-stakes drama.
Stone Cold
Joe Huff is tough Alabama cop who is frustrated with a system that handles criminals with kid gloves. Currently, Joe is on suspension for displaying excessive violence toward criminals. After stopping a supermarket robbery, Joe is summoned by Agent Cunningham, whom he meets in a vacant underground parking garage. Cunningham proceeds to blackmail Joe into going undercover, by threatening to turn his three-week suspension into six months without pay. Cunningham wants Joe to go undercover in Mississippi and infiltrate "The Brotherhood," a white supremacist biker gang linked to the murders of government officials and suspected of dealing drugs to the mafia. The Brotherhood is led by a violent psychopath named Chains Cooper. Joe reluctantly accepts and goes undercover as "John Stone", but his job is not easy. His FBI contact, Lance, is a germophobe who does not exactly fit in with the biker crowd, and the members of the Brotherhood, especially Chains, have their suspicions about "John Stone", who has seemingly come out of nowhere to get a piece of their action. Charged with killing a man as his initiation, Huff enlists the FBI's help to carefully fake the murder and is accepted into the Brotherhood. However, Chains's right-hand man Ice Hensley, does not trust Huff and eventually tries to expose him, leading to Ice's death in a high-speed motorcycle chase. During the operation, Huff learns that the Brotherhood's ultimate goal is to eliminate Brent "The Whip" Whipperton, a District Attorney running for Governor of Mississippi, who has promised to crack down on crime within the state. They plan to use a cache of stolen military weapons to storm the Supreme Court, meeting at the Mississippi State Capitol, where one of their own is on trial for murder, and assassinate both Whipperton and the judges presiding over the case. When Chains' girlfriend Nancy accidentally learns about Huff's identity, he confides in her, and offers her immunity if she cooperates with the FBI. Though resistant at first, Nancy accepts his offer, but the operation fails when the man Huff had supposedly killed to gain admission to the Brotherhood suddenly returns. In retaliation, Chains shoots and kills Nancy, but plans to do away with Huff in a more spectacular fashion, by strapping a bomb to his chest and throwing him from a helicopter en route to the Capitol. Huff manages to fight his way free and commandeer the chopper, then takes the fight inside the Capitol, where a melee erupts between the Brotherhood and the local police. Chains uses an automatic rifle that was planted inside the courtroom to kill a government agent, two security guards, and all of the Supreme Court judges before taunting Whipperton and killing him as well. As Chains rallies his biker brethren, Huff battles his way through the ranks of the gang until finally coming face-to-face with Chains. Huff easily wins the fight and leaves the gang leader in police custody, but Chains suddenly breaks free and steals an officer's gun, intending to shoot Huff. A gunshot is heard, and Chains abruptly falls to the ground, having been shot by Huff's partner Lance. Huff then marches stoically from the courthouse.
