the demon (1981)

aka Midnight Caller. Night Demon.
"Did your extrasensory perception prepare you for this?"
A girl is kidnapped from her parents home, and a man killed after picking up a hitchhiker. How are these events linked? The parents bring in psychic Bill Carson (Cameron Mitchell) to find their daughter, but he doesn't forsee the events he is about to get involved in.
A story that goes nowhere and is infuriatingly unexplained.

carry on follow that camel (1967)

"The behaviour of the white infidels is like blood coming from a stone. Bleedin' mystery."
A bogus legionaire proves his mettle during an arab attack.
Bo West (Jim Dale) joins the Foreign Legion to clear his reputation, but there is trouble brewing with the locals, amd unknown to Bo, his fiance (Angela Douglas) has followed him in disguise...
One of the few Carry On's that breaks with tradition, using a known American star, in this case Phil Silvers as the star of the show, possibly showing the producers felt this was not one of their finest moments. One for the completists.

the secret beyond the door (1947)

"...he resents domination...."
An heiress Celia Lamphere (Joan Bennett) marries Mark (Michael Redgrave), a man she hardly knows after a whirlwind romance, and finds to late of his strange obsession.
Thriller that introduces an interesting premise, then loosens its grip through its slow pacing.

scarlet street (1945)

"How can a man be so dumb..."
A henpecked older man Chris Cross (Edward G. Robinson) goes to the defence of a beautiful young woman (Joan Bennett) one night, when she is attacked in the street. This chance encounter turns his head and sets him up as a patsy for her boyfriend (Dan Duryea) who believing Chris to be rich sets out to fleece him.
Neglected noir, that features a wonderful performance by Robinson as the repressed gent.

the sleeping tiger (1954)

"What do you think of him, Glenda? Is he worth saving?"
A prison psychologist takes in a petty criminal, Frank Clemmons (Dirk Bogarde), so he can study his motivations and treat him. Unfortunately he has a beautiful young wife Glenda (Alexis Smith), who soon falls for Franks rough ways, and thus starts the psychological games-playing between dispassionate psychologist, career criminal and the frustrated wife.
A standard potboiler is lifted byLosey, using the film noir staples of, jazz. crime, and passion, all centred around Bogarde as the young man in turmoil.

eraserhead (1977)

"Did you and Mary have sexual intercourse?"
Henry Spencer (Jack Nance) stumbles through his life cowed by his industrial environment, his angry girlfriend (Charlotte Stewart), and the neverending cries of their new born mutated child. The only distraction is the radiator woman (Laurel Near), who appears to him and sings about the happiness of heaven.
The film that established Lynch as a maveric genius loaded down with neuroses and more than willing to pour them out onto the screen.

please murder me (1956)

"...in 55 minutes I will be dead..."
A lawyer Craig Carlson (Raymond Burr) falls for his best mates wife Myra (Angela Lansbury), and plucks up the courage to tell his friend. His friend is subsequently shot by Myra. She cries self defence, but is tried for murder. Craig successful defends Myra against the charge, only to then find she actually did it, and has manipulated him all along. Now he's in a dilema knowing her guilty, but also that she can't be tried again for the killing...
An obviously small film, but one that holds the attention due to he intriguing plot twists.

the delavine affair (1954)

aka Murder Is News.
"I'll be careful. You be good."
Reporter Rex Banner (Peter Reynolds), gets caught up as a suspect in the murder of acquaintance Gospel Joe. But how was Joe connected to the theft of the Delavine diamonds?
Standard B movie thriller, more notable for its cast, than the story itself, with turns by Gordon Jackson, and Honor Blackman, who would find better vehicles for their talents.

metamorphosis (1990)

aka Regenerator.
"He won't die. He won't ever die."
Geneticist Dr. Houseman (Gene LeBrock) is working on a serum to stop human aging. But when his university funding is threatened the doctor administers the serum on himself, with the expected results!
Stilted and unedifying mix of "The Fly" and "Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde", with a twist that by the time it is revealed I'd lost the will to notice...

land of the minotaur (1976)

aka The Devil's Men.
"The old customs remain and the ancient gods live on."
A Greek village revives an old Pagan religion, the cult of the Minotaur, and kidnaps a trio of young archaeologists. It's up to Father Roche (Donald Pleasence), Costas Skouras (Kostas Karagiannis), and Laurie Gordon (Luan Peters) to save them from the hands of the evil cult led by Baron Corofax (Peter Cushing).
We've seen this all before, but what makes this work is the acting of Cushing and Pleasance. Still this just balances out to become an OK thriller at best.

war of the robots (1978)

aka La guerra dei robot.
"Here this. Enemy formation at ten o'clock."
A civilization facing extinction decides on drastic action and kidnap a couple of famous scientists from Earth. Earth retaliates by sending soldiers to rescue the scientists and defend itself from their robot army.
Another Italian space epic featuring silvery costumes and robots in blond wigs!
Enjoyable in a cheesy unintential way.

star odyssey (1979)

aka Space Odyssey. Captive Planet. Sette uomini d'oro nello spazio.
"Great integrated circuits! What's that thing? Look Tilly! A prehistoric cave robot!"
Earth is attacked by an intergalactic villain and his army of blonde haired androids.
Gives a bad name to cheap and nasty! The earth is being threatened by an inter-galactic being...and our response, to try and talk each other to death!