BLACK ICE 1992 (TUBI)

Very well made thriller.

This movie actually turned out to be better than I thought it was going to be.

A young woman named Vanessa (Joanna Pacula) is having an affair with a big time political candidate who is married. She decides that she doesn't want see him anymore, but he is persistant.

He is killed by Vanessa when he assaults her and she gets a ride froma cab driver named Ben (Michael Nouri). After a mishap at the airport where she is almost shot and kiled by a rogue government agent played by Michael Ironside, Vanessa offers to pay Ben 4500 to drive her from Detroit to Seattle.

Thru the rest of the movie is a croos country chase with Ironsides' character of Quinn in hot pursuit. The end of the movie is an interesting one.

As usual I won't give anything away in case you haven't seen this. Pacula is gorgeous as always and Ironside steals the show with his over the top performance as a slightly insane government cop who stops at nothing, including murder to get Vanessa.

As I write this, this movie is available to see on TUBI. The rest of the cast includes Brent Neale, Mickey Jones, Harry Nelkin and Lee J. Campbell.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Frankie Avalon is 84.

CASTLE SINISTER 1948 (RENOWN)

A very rare film with a mixture of WW2 adventure and horror.

A British agent is sent to a castle in Scotland after an officer is murdered by a mysterious phantom that wears a cape and looks like a skeleton.

The story is told mostly in flashback as we see other attacks by the Phantom before the officer was killed.

This film is ony 48 minutes long and moves at a good pace, but I do have to admit some of the acting is rather stiff and wooden. It always seems like this was done in a hurry, and it very well might have been.

The Phantom looks rather creepy and if you're over the age of 50 you might remember seeing this creature in pictures in various monster movie books when you were younger.

If you're looking for something a little different you will want to check this rare film out. I'm glad a lot of these are slowly being brought back out for people to see.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Cassandra Peterson is 73.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Ed Begley, Jr. is 75, Jennifer Tilly is 66, and Linda Henning is 80.

RIP FRANCA BETTOIA 1936-2024

The Italian actress has passed away.

In her almost 40 year career she appeared in dozens of movies made in Italy.

The ones most people know here are "Don't Touch the White Woman", "Sandokan And The Leopard of Sarawak", "Lion Of St. Mark" and her most famous role outside of Italy was "Last Man On Earth" along side Vincent Price.

Bettoia passed away on September 13, 2024 at the age of 88.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

A belated birthday to Jada Fire who turned 48 on September 1st.

JUNGLE RAIDERS 1985 (DVD LADY)

I don't care what anyone says...this was an enjoyable film.

Antonio Margheriti directed this Italian adventure film many have compared to "Indiana Jones", and while it may be a rip-off, it's still more enjoyabllle than anything made today.

Christopher Connelly stars as Captain Yankee and man who, as we see in the opening 15 minutes is a master of deception and false hopes. After he swindes a man out of money on a phoney adventure scheme he is visited by Warren (Lee Van Cleef) who works for the US Government.

He is sent on a mission to find a rare ruby that is hidden very deep in the jungle. He takes along a beautiful young woman seeking the ruby. Her name is Maria Janez (Marina Costa) and his long time friend Gin Fizz played by Margheriti regular Luciano Pigozzi whom I have seen in hundreds of Euro films over the course of my life.

There is non stop action as the adventurers fight gangsters, hostile natives and the forces of nature themselves. I don't understand all the negative press about this movie because I enjoyed it and wasn't bored for a minute.

I really think you should check it out. It was a great trip back to the 80's for me. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Peggy Webber is 99, and Judith Ridley is 78.

JUNGLE ASSAULT 1989 (TUBI)

Another obscure late 80's action films.

William Smith stars as Mitchell, a General in the army whose daughter Elaine (Jeanie Moore) has joined a terrorist group thinking they are right and America is wrong.

Mitchell wants her out of there so he gets his two best men, Kelly (William Zipp) and Becker (Ted Prior) to go and get her.

Most of these film from David Prior are interesting to say the least. They aren't very good, but they are entertaining. There are some classic lines in here and I did learn that every and I mean EVERY explosion will throw the human body in the same direction.

Kelly and becker must overcome Rosa (Maria Rosado) who heads the organization and her right hand man McClusky (David Marriott) who is ALWAYS drinking a bottle of Jim Beam.

This is perfect for a Saturday night late show, and if you have been drinking it's a help. Hoestly, I do recommend this is you're a fan of Prior's other films.

The rest of the cast includes Darwyn Swalve, Chris Gable and Deke Anderson.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Joey Heatherton is 80, and Joyce Taylor is 87.

JUNGLE VIRGIN FORCE 1988 (MUTANT SORORITY)

WOW!! What a bizarre movie.

This made in Indonesia action/horror film is one of the wildest films I have ever seen!!

The plot is pretty basic. It involves college students and criminals as both parties fight evil black magic, cannibals and each other over a long lost treasure hidden deep with the jungle.

This movie has everything....non stop action which includes many fights...beautiful women...cannibalism...torture and some of the worst special effects I have seen in a movie for a very long time, but it didn't ruin the film at all.

It's a hard movie to follow because of the constant switching action scenes and sometimes choppy editing, but I am sure if you watch this film you'll stay with it.

You even get a female Tarzan who appears to communicate with animals and does her best Tarzan yell imitation. There is really nothing to dislike about the film unless you have a hatred for films made like this.

I'm not giving too much away here as I think this is REQUIRED viewing, and it may make you want to see other Indonesian films. RECOMMENDED!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Jacqueline Bisset is 80, and Kathleen Lloyd is 76.

MINISTRY OF VENGEANCE 1989 (ECHO BRIDGE)

Not too bad of an action film.

John Schneider stars as David Miller, a priest who is on is way back home from a trip overseas with his wife and little daughter. At the airport both his daughter and wife are shot and killed by terrorists.

This shatters David and makes him question both hie religious faith and his life in general. He makes up his mind to go to the Middle East and find the killer of his family.

There are a lot of twists and turns in this film, which was nice to see. It follows the usual pattern of these films, but it changed the ballgame just a bit at the end, which I didn't see coming either. I won't give it away here.

The rest of the very familiar cast includes Ned Beatty, Ken Abraham, George Kennedy, Yaphet Kotto, Apollonia Kotero and James Tolkan.

You might like this movie or you might not, but I liked it for what it was and I have to admit it was never boring or very slow. It's available on both DVD and streaming.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Anne Helm is 86, Linda Gray is 84, and Christopher Neame is 77.

MOVING TARGET 1988 (TUBI)

This is an Italian film lensed in Florida by Marius Mattei.

I don't believe this film is available anywhere but on streaming. it's an odd one indeed.

It starts off with the killing of a man by someone in a motorcycle outfit. This person also goes after the man's ultra sexy girlfriend, Allison (Janine Lindemulder).

She developes amnesia after an accident and cannot remember why someone would want to kill her. A police detective named Morrison (Ernest Borgnine) is on the case and he works closely with a doctor, Sally Tyler (Linda Blair) to uncover the mystery.

In the meantime a tennis instructor named Ferry Spencer (Charles Pitt) gets involved and ends up taking Allison in after she shows up at his place unannounced.

The man behind her attempted murder is played by Stuart Whitman and everything leads to an interesting climax with a double twist I didn't see coming at all.

Most people have nothing good to say about this movie, but I have to admit I rather liked it. Janine Lindemulder is one gorgeous woman and she later went into the adult film business as well as served 6 months in prison for tax evasion. She has indeed had a very interesting life, much better than any movie she ever did, except maybe for "Blondage" in 1994.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Earl Holliman is 96, Lola Falana is 82, Tiffany Shepis is 45, and Paul Heyman is 59.

TOPEKA TERROR 1945 (TUBI)

Well done Republic western.

This super fast paced western involves a land rush opening in the Cherokee Strip in Oklahoma. Many have put in their claims and rush to the newly bought land.

However when they arrive they discover that the land has already been claimed by many others. A crooked promoter named Trent Parker (Frank Jacquet) and his henchmen have stolen the land to make a huge profit.

Chad Stevens (Rocky Lane) investigates and has to put a stop to the crimes. Lane always mkes a great good guy and this time his interest lies also in the beautiful June Hardy (Linda Sterling).

There are many gun fights and fisticuffs and finally Stevens reveals himself to be a government agent who has been working on the Parker case for 3 years.

All ends well as is usually the case in Republic westerns. I really enjoyed this film. The cast is top notch and also includes Earle Hodgins, Twinkle Watts, Roy Barcroft, Eva Novak, Tom London and Robert J. Wilke.

Highly Recommended fun.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Judy Geeson is 76, and Fred Olen Ray is 70.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Angela Cartwright is 72, and Jeffrey Combs is 70.

HOUSE OF BLACKMAIL 1953 (RENOWN)

Good little mystery film.

A woman named Carol (Mary Germaine) is on her way to meet her brothers' blackmailer when she picks up a man who is hitchhiking. His name is Jimmy (William Sylvester).

She offers him some money if he can pose as a lawyer during her coming meeting. Jimmy agrees, but soon both find themselves trapped in a huge house with a murdered man and several other suspects.

The movie is well done and the cast is very good as well as the direction. William Sylvester always impresses me with his ability to make any role he has interesting.

There are several red herrings, of course, and the final when we discover who the killer is, is somewhat bland, but nontheless entertaining.

I am glad Renown is turning out a lot of these rare British films for people to see. They are a treat. The rest of the cast includes Alexander Gauge, John Arnatt, Ingeborg von Kusserow and a very young and sexy Patricia Owens.

I would recommend this undiscovered gem. I do want to mention that the opening music with the credits make you believe you are watching a comedy, but that is far from the case. It was a bizarre choice in music, but it does add a strange quality to this film.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Heather Thomas is 67, and Rachel Hunter is 55.

RAVAGERS 1979 (IMPRINT) BLU-RAY

What a misfire from Columbia.

Richard Harris stars as Falk a man just trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world with beautiful wife Miriam (Alana Stewart). One day Miriam is raped and killed by a group called Ravagers led by actor Anthony James.

Falk gets revenge by killing the leaders best friend, and that starts trouble.

Falk leaves the area, but the Ravagers are following him. On his trip Falk meets some interesting characters including a blind lawyer played by Seymour Cassell, an army Sergeant played by Art Carney who in turn introduces Falk to a young woman named Faina (Ann Turkel).

None of this makes much sense as Falk is actually looking for something his now dead wife used to talk about...something called the Land Of Genesis.

There are a lot of small bit parts with characters that never go anywhere and come and go out of the movie llike a revolving door. I think Harris is miscast as Falk. He just doesn't seem the type for the role.

The other problem is we never find out what happened to put the world in this state and some of the dialogue makes you believe it happened decades before, when that just isn't the case.

The rest of the cast includes Woody Strode, Ernest Borgnine, and Brian Carney.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Angie Everhart is 55, Dario Argento is 84, Thordis Brandt is 84, and Luigi Cozzi is 77.

DARKER THAN AMBER 1970 (MEDUSA FILMS)

This is a long OOP movie that really needs a Blu-ray revival.

Rod Taylor stars as Travis McGee in this movie based on the novel from John D. McDonald.

One night while out on a boat with a friend named Meyer (Theodore Bikel), McGee sees a young woman thrown into the lake. He saves her from her horrible fate, only to be drawn into a web of brutal murder.

The woman named Vangie (Suzy Kendall) tells Travis about her problems with a vicious killer named Terry (William Smith). McGee tries to protect her, but she is brytally killed by Terry.

Another good friend of McGee's is also brutally beaten and killed by Terry and this makes McGee determined to catch this killer.

Thereb are a lot of brutal scenes in this film and the final confrontation between McGee and Terry is one of the wildest things I have ever seen in a movie.

I enjoyed this movie a lot and think you will to, if you can find it. The rest of the cast includes Ahna Capri, Jane Russell, Robert Phillips, Janet MacLachlan and James Booth.

I believe this is also currently on TUBI for streaming.

13 STEPS OF MAKI: THE YOUNG ARISTOCRATS 1975 (TUBI)

What a wild ride this movie was.

Etsuko Shihomi stars as Maki, the leader of an all girl gang that fights for justice and honor.

The movie opens with a wild scene where two young women are tied to railroad tracks by a gang of women. Maki and her gang show up and fight the others and free the women from the tracks.

As the story goes on we see Maki and her girls cross paths with a violent crimelord and soon they find themselves in more trouble than they ever knew.

Maki's girls are kidnapped and forced into sexual slavery and she is framed and set to a women's prison run by a sadistic warden. Things culminate in a spectacular climax full of great action, violence and blood.

This is from the same company that brought us "Horrors Of Malformed Men" so you know it's got to be good and different. The movie runs quickly and is NEVER boring.

It's in Japanese language, but you can watch it on TUBI with subtitles. RECOMMENDED!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

William Devane is 85, George Lazenby is 85, and Lone Fleming is 79.

I'LL DIE FOR VENGEANCE 1968 (TUBI)

A very interesting and well done western.

Kirk Morris stars as Jeff Smart, a young man who is seeking the killer of his parents. He doesn't have the best of luck because he is almost killed when he runs across a man dying in the desert and bandits take shots at him.

He is rescued by a small family and taken to their home to recover. After recovery he goes about his plans of finding the killer or killers.

There are a lot of twists and turns in this film and to me it's very unique as the movie stars 3 former "peplum" actors. Of course I mentioend Kirk Morris but we also have Alan Steel as the main bandit Pedro and Gordon Mitchell as a black clad card cheat who gets his comeuppance in a shootout with Morris.

You add to this mix the very sexy eye candy women, Gisella Arden, Dada Galotti, and Ana Castor and you have what I call entertainment of the first order.

I would recommend this to any western fan and any fans of the above mentioned actors and actresses. It's a fun ride and the movie move along smoothly with some very good set pieces.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Michael Berryman is 76, Patricia Tallman is 67, and Jennifer Salt is 80.

RIP JAMES DARREN 1934-2024

The multi-talented actor has passed away.

James Darren started his acting career in 1956 in a wonderful little movie entitled "Rumble On The Docks" which I reviewed here a few months ago.

Darren appeared in many TV series including "Hawaii 5-0", "Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea", "Love American Style" and many, many more. His most famous TV role is that of Dr. Tony Newman in Irwin Allen's "Time Tunnel" which ran for one season back in 1966-67.

James Darren also did a lot of movies including "Gidget", "Gidget Goes Hawaiian", "Guns Of Navarone", "Venus in Furs", and the TV movie "City Beneath The Sea".

I grew up watching him and always welcomed his performances. Darren passed away on Sept. 2, 2024 at the age of 88.