BLACK PIT OF DR. M 1959 (CASA NEGRA)

Rare and very well made Mexican horror.

Excellent Mexican made horror thriller about a doctor who is trying to find a way to come back from the afterlife in the event of his death.

He manages to find a way thru the death of his good friend, but is warned about the dangers at the same time. He ignores these warnings and when he dies he finds that returning from death is not what it is cracked up to be. He finds himself inside the body of a scarred and badly burned doctor who committed suicide and also wrote a note saying he was a murderer!!

This is a pretty neat twist to a very moody horror thriller and Casa Negra brings us the movie in a beautiful widescreen pring with new English subtitles. Highly recommended so check it out if you can find it.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO.....

Herschell Gordon Lewis is 84, Joy Bang is 68, Antony Carbone is 88 and Judy Pace is 71.

MR. SARDONICUS 1961 (MILL CREEK)

Another William Castle shocker.

Director Castle works his movie magic with the inventive tale about a man, played by Guy Rolfe, who searches for a hidden lottery ticket on the corpse of his father and the fear makes his face stiffen in a grotesque grimace.

He sends for a doctor that was once in love with the woman who is now Mrs. Sadonicus played by the lovely Audrey Dalton. Sardonicus threatens to torture her if the doctor doesn't help him. Well the doctor does finally help him regain his normal face, but with even more horrible results.

This is classic castle horror with the "Punishment Poll" where the audience decides if Sardonicus lives or dies. The excellent cast is rounded out by Ronald Lewis as the Doctor, Oskar Homolka as the servant who enjoys torturing the maid with leeches and Vladimir Sokoloff as Sardonicus' father.

High;y recommended horror and Mill Creek brings us the licensed print from Columbia in beautiful black and white and widescreen.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO......

Yasmine Bleeth is 45.

WONDER WOMAN 1974 (WARNER ARCHIVE)

Another rare made for tv movie....

Cathy Lee Crosby is Wonder Woman, a top secret agent working for the US Government and trying to stop a laconic Lothario from making off with top secret code books of the Military.

This was the first incarnation of Wonder Woman and it is played very differently than the one by Lynda Carter. Crosby oes very well in this type of role and the rest of the cast is filled out by Andrew Prine, Ricardo Montalban and sultry Anitra Ford as a woman from Paradise Island that chooses to go a different path in life.

It's good to have this very obscure TV movie finally out on DVD and I Highly Recommend it to any fan of any kind of movie.

CRY OF THE BEWITCHED: YAMBAO 1957 (VCI)

Very rare Mexican film.....

Ninon Sevilla is a young woman who is accused of being a witch after she arrives at a Cuban sugar plantation and a mysterious plague hits.

Her late grandmother was a sorceress and so all the people believe she is guilty of bringing the plague to them. Ramon gay is the dashing hero who falls in love with Yambao. The color photography is stunning and it is nice to see VCI bringing this out into the DVD limelight.

It's pretty slow in spots but it might entertain you anyway.

DETROIT 9000 1973 (LIONSGATE)

A great and underrated blaxploitation gem.

Excellent movie about an armed robbery of a political fundraiser for a black candidate that heats up racial tensions in a city that is the murder capitol of the world.

Alex Rocco is a white cop, who along with his partner, uncover more and more corruption as they dig deeper into the crime. The ending surprised me a lot and the last 20 minutes or so is one of the best cops and robber shootouts I have ever seen committed to film.

Outstanding performances from Rocco, Hari Rhodes, Scatman Crothers and the always lovely Vonetta McGee make this a real winner that should not be missed by any action fan. Highly Recommended!!

MISTERIO EN LAS BERMUDAS 1979 (BCI)

Mystery Of The Bermuda Triangle...

Santo, Blue Demon and Mil Mascaras investigate some mysterious disappearances in the Bermuda triangle as well as try and protect an Iranian Karate Princess from abduction by people from same said triangle.

This movie seems to want to connect three different plots together but it fails to do so and everything is left very unclear...even the ending is somewhat of a head scratcher.

Santo would go on to make about a half dozen other films before his retirement and it also seems like Blue demon and Mil Mascaras were also on their last legs here. Not as bad as some of the films I have seen, but not as good either. If you like Mexican sci-fi you might want to see this.

CUBAN REBEL GIRLS 1959 (VCI)

The final film of Errol Flynn.

I have read so much negative stuff about this film and then when I saw it, I knew all of that negative crap was written by people who have no brains.

I actually enjoyed this little B picture about a young woman, played by Beverly Aadland, who was Flynn's very young girlfriend in real life, who goes to Cuba to help Castro overthrow the government because her boyfriend is working with the rebels. Flynn plays a news correspondent who tracks the story.

Flynn had a thing for much younger women and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that and you get to see Aadland, who really cannot act, but is easy on the eyes. Barry Mahon directed this semi documentary which is really a very Pro Castro film, and in light of what has happened in the last fifty years since he took over the country it is somewhat sad and misguided.

This is a very watchable film and I would recommend it to anyone who has a curious bone in their bodies.

MERMAIDS OF TIBURON 1962 (VCI)

Ahh yes, the Aqua Sex....

A diver looking for treasure is aided by a bevy of beautiful sea creatures.

VCI brings us this film in color and in it's uncut glory with all the scenes of topless women that were filmed at a later date and inserted into the film.

The plot isn't much, but that really doesn't matter. The music score is a haunting one and the addition of Timothy Carey as a crazed killer make this a winner.

I have only seen a DVD-R copy of this in Black and white and really enjoyed the lush color photography. VCI should be commended for finally bringing this obscure gem to light on DVD. Recommended!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO.....

Adrienne Barbeau is 68.

COMING ATTRACTIONS.....

Olive Films has "Fire Maidens Of Outer Space" coming out on July 30th while Shout Factory has some great 50's and 60's sci fi films due on September 3rd.

The first collection from Shout is called "Movies 4 You.....Sci Fi Classics and includes "Man from Planet X", "Beyond The Time Barrier", "The Time Travelers" and "Angry Red Planet".

The other set is "Movies 4 You...More Sci Fi Classics and will include "The Amazing Transparent Man", "Reptilicus", The Neanderthal Man" and "Brain That Wouldn't Die" which is said to contain a scene cut out of all international prints!! More details as they become available.

Looks like fans of classic sci-fi and horror have a good year in 2013 so far.

ATRAGON 1963 (TOKYO SHOCK)

Nifty Japanese science fiction adventure.

The undersea kingdom of Mu is attempting to take control of the surface world as well and a long retired Admiral of the Japanese Navy is called upon because he has a super submarine called Atragon which can burrow into the earth and also fly.

Ishiro Honda directs with his usual skill and the effects are top notch. The Mu empire releases their God Manda, a huge snake like reptile to destroy Atragon, but it too fails. Manda was back again in Destroy All Monsters. This is a very colorful and well made fantasy adventure that I recommend to anyone of any age.

FOUR SIDED TRIANGLE 1954 (ANCHOR BAY)

Interesting early Hammer production.

Stephen Murray and John Van Essen are two scientists who grow up and love the same woman, Lena, played by gorgeous Barbara Payton. As time goes by and they grow up together Lena marries Robin (Van Essen) and Murray's character of Bill is crushed and so he decides to create a duplicate of her.

He uses their creation to make a double and soon finds that the double has the same thoughts as the original!! Payton does a great job as Lena/Helen and Terence Fisher does a very capable job directing the film. Not a lot of action as today's idiotic movie fans demand, but a very good story with romance and sci-fi blended together.

I like this film and I recommend it for any sci-fi fan looking for something a bit different.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO......

Elizabeth Hurley is 48, Andrew Stevens is 58, and Luciana Paluzzi is 76.