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A squad of soldiers led by Sgt. Harry G. Wells (Sean Pertwee) are on a training mission in the Scotish highlands when they come across Capt Ryan () the only survivor of a special opps squad that have all been ripped to shreds. But he's wounded and babbling. They then stumble on Megan (Emma Cleasby) a zoologist and an enemy they weren't expecting, werewolves. Can they maintain their discipline and last until dawn, or fight their out?
A low budget horror comedy, that plays with the format, whilst sticking to the basic game plan, which is no bad thing in this instance. Not the greatest horror you will see, but an entertaining one none the less.
Shown mostly in flashback as journalist Peter Stenning (Edward Judd) waits to see if a corrective bomb will save the earth from meteorological catastrophe. We see the reason why the earth has come to the brink, after the US and Russian authorities detonate nuclear devices at precisely the same time, and push the earth off its axis. Stenning and his friend and science correspondent Bill Maguire (Leo McKern) sense a cover up, and are determined to find out the truth, a truth that comes closer to being unveiled when Stenning starts dating Jeannie (Janet Munro), a secretary at the Met Office, who has access to vital information.
A fine British sci-fi with an intriguing concept, a realistic film style and cracking dialogue. You can almost feel the sweat dripping down the screen.
Spain following the inquisition and Barnard (John Kerr) arrives from England at a remote castle, to visit his sisters grave. Whilst there he meets Nicholas (Vincent Price), her husband. Barnard quizes Nicholas about her death, and is not satisfied by what he hears. Nicholas tries to convince the Englishman that he deeply loved Elizabeth (Barbara Steele), but Barnard insists that there is something untoward going on. So Nicholas relates the tale of Elizabeth's decline, due to the malignant atmosphere in the castle. Then they all hear a harpsichord playing and Nicholas proclaims it is Elizabeth, and a maid hears Elizabeth speak to her. These events start to push Nicholas towards a nervous breakdown. But who is doing this, and is Nicholas really loosing it or is there someone driving him to madness and why would they do so?
Another gothic horror masterpiece from Corman, who at this point in time was begining to make a habit of these Poesque films. A deliberately slow paced film full of atmospheric and chilling menace.
Tomboy Frances Lawrence (Sandra Dee) goes to the beach with her friends, but they ditch her as being 17 but looking more like 12 hinders their manhunting! Whilst there she's rescued by Moondoggie (James Darren) and meets his surfer buddies. She takes a fancy to him, but his indifferent and the rest of them laughing at her, makes her determined to get their attention. So she decides to learn to surf. Eventually she becomes a part of the gang, led by beach bum The Kahuna (Cliff Robertson) and is christened 'Gidget', a mix of girl and midget. But will Gidget get her man?
A fine example of the beach movie, that spawned a number of sequels and a tv series, with charming performances from all the leads. Makes following a girl with the usual teenage angst actually entertaining.
aka Trouble at Sixteen. Young Hellions.
A new kid in school Tony Baker (Russ Tamblyn), immediately starts to make an impression by muscling his way into the drug suppliers, the wheelers and dealers, run by J.I. Colridge (John Drew Barrymoore). The teachers try to reform him, and the kids dig his scene, but he seems to be above them all, following his own agenda, but what is it he's really after?
A typical 50's drugsploitation posing as a morality play, but this one is chock full of hip beat talking hep cats, hot broads, and the usual naive view of drugs. A real time capsule of the late 50's nihilistic American teen/beat world view. Worth watching just to hear some of the most fantastic one liners as Tony puts down all around him. Worth watching a few times just to catch it all.
aka Hands of a Strangler. Hands of the Strangler.
Stephen Orlac (Mel Ferrer) is a famous pianist, when tragedy strikes. Flying to his marriage to Louise Cochrane (Lucile Saint-Simon), the plane crashes. Orlac is lucky to be alive, but his hands have been ruined. His only hope is pioneering surgery and a hand transplant. Recovering from the surgery Orlac feels his hands are no longer his own, and has disturbing dreams. Could the donor hands be the hands of a recently executed murderer Louis Vasseur? Orlac runs away but Nero (Christopher Lee), a magician with a nice sideline in blackmail, spots him and decides Orlac could be a good source of revenue. Nero and his assistant, Li-Lang (Régina), set about wringing Orlac dry, but don't recon on his now wife Louise turning detective.
A rather lightweight version of a story that has been adapted numerous times, with a weak performance by Ferrer, which is shown up all the more by the devilishly evil Lee. The film tries to show the torment of a man undergoing a nervous breakdown, rather than a standard horror, but with Orlac doing little more than fretting, it lacks a sense of danger or urgency. On the up side there are two fine French Ye-Ye style pop performances to liven things up a bit.
aka Deadly Is the Female.
Bart Tare (John Dall) is a man with a lifelong fascination with guns, but whilst he likes to shoot them, he wouldn't hurt a fly. Returning from a stint in the army, Tare celebrates by visiting a travelling fair. There he meets and challenges sharpshooter Annie Laurie Starr (Peggy Cummins), impressing her and the fair owner who gives him a job, but their obvious attraction to one another gets them the sack, as the jealous owner also has eyes for Laurie. Soon, with no money Starr persuades Bart to rob a store, and inevitably this escalates into a crime spree, and bank jobs. Then Starr gets involved, eager to use her skills with a gun and not so squeamish about harming people. Whilst Bart wants to go straight and sees no good in their career path, Laurie can only see the excitement and the money. Somehow I cannot foresee a long and fruitful relationship with a happy ending...
A solidly made film noir, with great performances from the two leads, all lust and angst, funneled into the form of a pistol. The gun as phallic symbol and Peggy Cummins as the ultimate femme fatale. A low budget film that finds ways around such constraints.
A squad of soldiers led by Sgt. Harry G. Wells (Sean Pertwee) are on a training mission in the Scotish highlands when they come across Capt Ryan () the only survivor of a special opps squad that have all been ripped to shreds. But he's wounded and babbling. They then stumble on Megan (Emma Cleasby) a zoologist and an enemy they weren't expecting, werewolves. Can they maintain their discipline and last until dawn, or fight their out?
