BARB WIRE 1996 (UNIVERSAL)

Ok, I have heard a lot of bad things about this film.

Watched this on Blu-ray the other day and found myself enjoying it. In the 21st century there has been a 2n civil war and America is now a fascist country. In the last remaining free city in the US lives a woman named Barb Wire who owns a bar called the Hammerhead and is also a bounty hunter on the side.

Barb finds herself involved in the smuggling of a special kind of contact lens that allows anyone to pass a retinal scan, which is something the fascists don't want. There is plenty of action an plenty of Pamela Anderson, as Barb Wire on display. The opening credit striptease is interesting as well some of the outfits Bar wears.

This, sadly was one of the biggest bombs in motion picture history at the time of it's release. It is nothing but a remake of "Casablanca", and if one just wants to enjoy a film I think this may work for you. I enjoyed it an would recommend it to you, but to each their own.

Some of the supporting cast includes Clint Howard, Steve Railsback and Udo Kier.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Cloris Leachman is 88, Allan Arkush is 66, and Debbie D is 42.

SLEEP MY LOVE 1948 (OLIVE)

Good film noir finally brought to Blu-ray.

Claudette Colbert is Alison Courtland, a woman who awakens on a train with no memory of how she got there. Don Ameche is her husband who may or may not be trying to kill her. She is befriended by Bruce Elcott a young man played by Robert Cummings.

This film takes the plot of "Gaslight" in which the husband is trying to convince the wife she is going crazy. Ameche is perfect in this role as the devious husband an Colbert is his perfect victim. George Coulouris is a phoney and totally evil psychologist who is helping Ameche drive his wife crazy.

Douglas Sirk directed this film with a flair for the material. The Blu-ray from Olive has this film looking magnificent and I highly recommend it for any fan of film noir.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Uma Thurman is 44, Michelle Pfeiffer is 56, Eve Plumb is 56, Akira Takarada is 80, Cheri Caffaro is 69,and Ted V. Mikels is 85.

ISLAND OF TERROR 1966 (SINISTER CINEMA)

One of my 10 favorite horror films of all time!

Peter Cushing and Edward Judd stars in this top notch thriller about bone eating silicate monsters created by accident on a small island off the coast of Ireland.

A scientist seeking a cure for cancer creates a race of almost indestructible monsters that eat human bone and multiply rapidly. Cushing and Judd are scientists who arrive on the island and discover what is happening. The monsters are pretty damn cool and the sickening sound they make as they slurp human bone is something I will never forget after hearing it for the first time. I think of it every time I finish a milkshake with a straw.

The climax of the film is both very exciting and tense as the monster converge on a small building in which most of the island's citizens have gathered for protection. There are many scenes that are forever etched in my mind including the look of the first victim who has been killed, the cutting off of Peter Cushing's hand, the constable being killed in the basement lab and much more.

This is a film that never fails to keep me on the edge of my seat no matter how many times I watch it. Carole Gray is sexy as Toni Merrill a young woman who accompanies Eddward Judd to the island. The rest of the cast includes Eddie Byrne, Sam Kydd and Niall MacGinnis.

I cannot recommend this enough. It is a must for every horror fan. Yes, I have reviewed this before, but hey I wanted to do it again because I love this film so much and it needed revisiting.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO.....

Jessica Alba is 33, Ann-Margret is 73, and Kari Wuhrer is 47.

HONG KONG CONFIDENTIAL 1958 (MGM)

A very low budget film noir from Edward L. Cahn.

You can always tell an Edward Cahn film. The credits are usually the same as well as the narrator and the music. This to me is a sign of excellence.

This tight little film stars Gene Barry as a secret agent who disguises himself as a nightclub singer. His mission is to find a kidnapped Arab prince. The prince has been kidnapped by communists to force a small Arab country called Thamen to cancel a contract to have a US missile base built there.

Barry's character is Casey Reed and Reed is sent to a beautiful woman named Elena Martine, played by the gorgeous Allison Hayes. She is the one in charge of the smuggling operation Reed gets involved in while trying to find the prince.

Filmed entirely at the KTTV studios in California, this little film works better than one would think. The rest of the cast includes Beverly Tyler, Noel Drayton, Phillip Ahn, Michael Pate and Ed Kemmer. Check it out if you get a chance.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO......

Casey Kasem is 82, and Sheena Easton is 55.

RAW DEAL 1948 (VCI)

Excellent film noir directed by Anthony Mann.

Dennis O' Keefe is Joe Sullivan, who has been sprung from jail by a man who set him up and owes him 50 grand. The reason for this is because Joe will probably be shot and killed or caught and sentenced to a longer spell in the pen. The problem is that Joe gets much further than he was supposed to with the help of a lady friend.

The man who sprang Joe is Rick Coyle, played by Raymond Burr and he plays the role of the heartless killer perfectly. Claire Trevor is Pat, the woman who helps Joe and who loves him deeply, but Joe has other things on his mind.

The story builds well under the direction of Mann, and the movie moves along at a very quick pace. When Joe finally catches up to Rick all hell breaks loose and we find Joe wasn't as bad as he wanted people to believe.

The rest of the cast for this top notch noir includes Marsha Hunt, John Ireland, Curt Conway, and Whit Bissell. Highly Recommended for any cinema buff.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO.....

Claudine Auger is 73.

NOOSE FOR A GUNMAN 1960 (MGM)

Finely crafted western from Edward L. Cahn.

Jim Davis is Case Britton, a wrongly perceived killer who returns to his hometown to meet his bride to be an finds himself embroiled in a way to stop an evil killer and his gang from robbing the stage and/or taking over the small town.

Barton MacLane is Carl Avery, the head of the town who is also in on the robbery with Jack Cantrell, played by the wonderful Ted de Corsia, Lyn Thomas is Della, the woman Case is going to marry, Walter Sande is the Sheriff and the best role goes to Leo Gordon as Link Roy. Gordon knows how to make his character work and he is always pushing the buttons of the Sheriff and Britton.

This is a very low budget western, but yet very entertaining. Director Cahn is one of my favorites as he knew how to work within very limited confines of money. This is finally available from MGM on an MOD basis, and I recommend you get this one if you are a fan of B Westerns.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO.......

Denny Miller is 80, and Gina Torres is 45.

VARAN THE UNBELIEVABLE 1958 (TOKYO SHOCK)

Underrated Japanese sci-fi film.

This review is for the Japanese version, not the US version with Myron Healey.

A small Japanese village in the mountains worship a strange God. When two explorers are killed the rumors spread and finally a huge monster called Varan appears and destroys the village and heads for civilization.

Varan is a pretty cool looking monster than can also fly due to membranes between his arms and legs. He heads for Tokyo and nothing can stop him. Many are killed during the fights and Varan makes his way to Tokyo and proceeds to destroy some of it before a professor comes up with a way that might just stop him.

As a monster Varan never went anywhere in the Japanese cinema market and that is a shame. I like this film a lot. Varan only appeared in one other film which was "Destroy All Monsters: in 1969, and then only very briefly as he is seen flying.

Tokyo Shock turned this out in a beautiful widescreen version with Japanese subtitles and it is one of my favorite discs. I highly recommend this.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Stacy Haiduk is 46.

CRY DANGER 1951 (OLIVE)

Another fine film noir on Blu-ray.

This film noir gem was filmed in just 22 days and stars Dick Powell as an ex con sent to jail on a frame up. Once he is out he begins looking for the real thieves of a $100,000 bankroll. His goal is to clear his name and that of his friend Dan, who is also in jail for the same crime.

Along the way he meets Delong, a disabled vet who evidence freed him. Powell's character of Rocky is a hard and cold one while elong, played by Richard Erdman is only interested in women and booze.

Rocky also meets Nancy, the wife of his friend Danny. Nancy is played by the lovely Rhonda Fleming and she and Powell are a very good combination. There are a lot of twists and turns along the way as Rocky tries to find out who framed him. He is eventually led to Castro, a big burly crime boss played by William Conrad. Castro is the man who framed Rocky and much to Rocky's surprise so did Danny and Nancy.

This is a gritty and very realistic film noir that uses actual Los Angeles locations for most of the filming. Thank goodness this has been restored by the UCLA Film and Television Archive. Funding for this Blu-ray release was provided by the Film Noir Foundation. Olive has done a great job with bringing this to DVD. If you're a film noir buff, this is a must see.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO......

Lee Majors is 75.

HIGH SCHOOL CONFIDENTIAL 1958 (DVD-R)

A classic exploitation film.

You can always tell a movie is great is someone like Jerry Lee Lewis comes riding into a high school campus banging on the piano singing a damn good rocking tune.

Russ Tamblyn is a student new to a high school who quickly moves in and takes over the local drug scene. He steps on everyone's toes and is finally taken to see the big shot named "Mr. A". During his rise to the top he meets Joan Staples, a very attractive student who is hooked on reefers. His teacher, the lovely Jan Sterling tries to help but it seems all Tamblyn wants to do is jive talk and get her in the sack.

The real highlight of this movie is Mamie Van Doren as Tamblyn's aunt, who is always trying to seduce him. When we are first introduced to her character of Gwen it's hard to understand how Tamblyn can possibly resist her. I know I couldn't. Jack Arnold directed this Albert Zugsmith production and the rest of the cast is a b-movie lovers dream and includes, John Drew Barrymore as the drug pusher Tamblyn tries to put out of business, Diane Jurgens is Joan, Ray Anthony, Mel Wells, Jackie Coogan is "Mr. A", Charles Chaplin, Jr., Michael Landon, Jody Fair, and Lyle Talbot.

It turns out that Tamblyn's character of Tony isn't really what he seems to be. There is no two ways about it, this is a great movie for fans of exploitation and of course, Mamie Van Doren. For some reason this hasn't come out on DVD so it may be hard to find. It does run on TCM once in a while,a nd if it does WATCH IT!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO.....

Jack Nicholson is 77, John Waters is 68, Peter Frampton is 64, and Glen Campbell is 78.

KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE 1988 (MGM)

Step right up.

This is a perfect combination of horror/sci-fi/comedy. When two young people see a meteor land in the woods they investigate and find a circus tent, but it is no circus tent. Instead it is an alien spaceship with evil killer clowns who keep people in cotton candy cocoons in order to eat them later.

John Vernon stars as Officer Mooney, a cynical and hateful cop who refuses to believe in anything he cannot understand. He fits the role perfectly. The aliens use toy guns to kill humans, balloon dogs to track people down and all of the other things you'd usually see in a circus.

Director Stephen Chiodo co-wrote with his brother Charles Chiodo an they have made a timeless classic. The rest of the cast in this bizarre thriller includes Grant Cramer, Royal Dano, Suzanne Snyder and John Allen Nelson. If you haven't seen this film yet, you really need to. There is still nothing quite like it.

You will also enjoy the theme song entitled "Killer Klowns From Outer Space" by the Dickies. It is a very unique song and if you find the video on YouTube you'll be entertained.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Ed Leslie is 57, and Dee Hartford 86.

DAGORA THE SPACE MONSTER 1964 (TOKYO SHOCK)

Fun Japanese sci-fi.

Huge diamond thefts are being reported all over the world and it soon becomes apparent that it's more than the usual run of lawlessness.

It's discovered that a huge space amoeba is eating the diamonds as well as coal for it's carbon content. This is an interesting mixture of gangster film and monster movie. One of the more neglected Toho films of the time, this is a very interesting film with it's cross plotting working very well.

The delectable Akiko Wakabayashi is a gangster moll and every time she is on camera I melt. Robert Dunham is an American detective on the case of the stolen diamonds and has what is his biggest role ever in the many Japanese productions he was involved in, at least up until Godzilla Vs. Megalon.

This is a fun film, and well worth checking out.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Carmen Electra is 42, Clint Howard is 55, Veronica Cartwright is 65, Judith O' Dea is 69, Gary Raymond is 79, Elena Verdugo is 88, and Olga Karlatos is 67.

TALES FROM THE CRYPT SEASON 5 (WARNER)

Another very good season.

13 episodes comprise this season, and as usual there are some standouts. The first three episodes are unforgettable and it gets the season off and running.

Some of the many guest stars include Yvonne DeCarlo, Ed Begley, Jr., Adam West, Roger Daltry, Bill Paxton, Brooke Shields, Traci Lords, Kate Vernon, Frank Stallone and Priscilla Presley.

Here are the episodes.

Death Of Some Salesmen (10/2/93) A crooked cemetery salesman meets a bizarre backwater family.

As Ye Sow (10/2/93) A jealous hubby thinks his wife is having an affair with a priest.

Forever Ambergris (10/2/93) Two war photographers love the same woman

Food For Thought (10/6/93) A mind reader can read is lovely assistant's thoughts.

People Who Live in Brass Hearses (10/13/93) An ice cream vendor has a big surprise for his murderer.

Two For The Show (10/20/93) A man who kills his wife and stuffs her body in a trunk gets an even bigger shock.

House Of Horror (10/27/93) Frat pledges face horror in a haunted house.

Well Cooked Hams (11/3/93) One magician murders another to steal his "Box of Death" trick, but it doesn't end there.

Creep Course 11/10/93) An Egyptology professor's deadly scheme backfires in a most horrifying way.

Came The Dawn (11/17/93) A man picks up a woman stranded on the roadside in the rain. the twists never stop on this road to terror.

Oil's Well That Ends Well (11/24/93) Two flimflammers run an oil scheme to get cash, but they get so much more.

Half Way Horrible (12/1/93) A business executive wants to market a preservative that keeps food from spoiling forever. Maybe it will preserve other things as well. (I was so impressed with this story in the original comics I made this story myself in my film Tales of The Damned).

Till Death Do We Part (12/8/93) A gigolo romancing an older, mob connected woman begins eyeing an attractive waitress.

No fan of the show should miss this season. It is one of the best.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO.....

Tim Curry is 68, Hugh O' Brian is 89, Ox Baker is 80, Rhodes Reason is 84, and if she were still with us Jayne Mansfield would be 81.