WEST OF THE LAW 1942 (ALPHA)

This is a fun little Monogram western.

This is one of the long line of Rough Rider movies to come out from Monogram. The riders are called in to investigate a gang of outlaws who are taking over cattle ranches and mines.

Marshal Buck Roberts (Buck Jones), Marshal Tim McCall (Tim McCoy) and Marshal Sandy Hopkins (Raymond Hatton) arrive undercover in a small Nevada town and seek to put an end to the terror the town is living in.

It seems a man named Jim Rand (Harry Woods) is in charge of a gang of hoodlums who are determined to take over the town.

There is a lot of action in this hour long western drama and it was the final Rough Riders oater from Monogram. The leads are all in top form as usual.

If you're a fan of the Rough Riders then you know what a treat it is to see them on screen and fighting the baddies. By the way, there are a couple of very well done fight scenes in this film.

It's a fun way to kill an hour and I recommend it highly. The rest of the cast includes Jack Daley, Malcolm McTaggert, Evelyn Cook, and Roy Barcroft.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Jeannie Bell is 81.

GODZILLA MINUS ONE 2023 (TOHO) BLU-RAY

I know everyone has probably seen this already.

Going into this film I didn't feel like I do when I see American movies made in this day and age. I knew it would be entertaining and I wasn't wrong.

The basic premise is that in very early post World War 2 Japan, a giant radioactive monster appears and starts to wipe out people by the thousands.

Around this story is wrapped another one about a man who was a kamakazi pilot and lived thru the war because he is afraid to die. After the war he must deal with the inner torment of being a coward to his fellow soldiers and himself.

All of this works very well and bringing both stories together and blending them together is done seemlessly. The effects in the film and I believe they are CGI, but it looks much better than anything America can do.

The scenes involving Godzilla, especially when he spits out his radioactive breath are amazing and it really hits home. These are probably the most destructive scenes in the movie. This Godzilla is so different from all the others we have ever seen. This creature is nothing but a killing machine.

The Blu-ray presentation is gorgeous and comes with two discs. One is the movie, the other is all of the bonus material, which I have yet to get thru. You can watch this in subtitled or dubbed versions.

I highly recommend this classic monster movie for two reasons. Number One it's great to see a Japanese made Godzilla movie again, and number Two, the human story is very, very compelling. The end will have an effect on you, I guarantee it.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Scarlett Johansson is 40, and Margaret Markov is 76.

HIS BROTHERS GHOST 1946 (ALPHA)

It has been over 30 years sine I had a chance to watch this.

This little PRC western stars Buster Crabbe as Bill Carson, an undercover agent investigating a gang that is slowly wiping out the ranches in the area.

When Andy Jones (Al "Fuzzy" St. John) is killed, Bill gets the idea to use Andy's twin brother to make the gang believe they are seeing a ghost.

The plan works very well and the gang begins to fall apart. The movie runs little under an hour and so it moves very swiftly. I remember I first saw this on a Goodtimes VHS tape I bought from K Mart.

I like this low budget cheapie, and if you like "weird" westerns I would recommend this very much. The rest of the cast includes Charles King, Arch Hall Sr., Roy Brent and Ken Osborne.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Nicollette Sheridan is 62, Deborah Shelton is 76, Nikki Garcia is 41, and Brie Garcia is 41.

THE RESTLESS BREED 1957 (01 DISTRIBUTION)

It's sad that this very well done western is available only from Italian or british import DVDs.

Allen Dwan directed this Edward L. Alperson production. Scott Brady stars as Mitch, a young man who arrives in a small town called Mission, Texas in order to find the men who killed his father who was a secret service man.

Mitch meets the reverend Simmons (Rhys Williams) and is offered a room to stay in. He meets a lovely young woman named Angelita (Anne Bancroft).

Mitch does not let on as to who he really is and what is reasons are for being in town, but he does gun down a few baddies including Cherokee (Leo Gordon). Cherokee vows revenge.

This is a fast paced western that has a great cast and everyone involved in the film takes their roles and does the best they can with them.

The ending of the film is not a surprise, but the way it's handled is perfect. I really enjoyed this and the way it feels different from other westerns at the time.

The rest of the cast includes Jay C. Flippen, Jim Davis, Scott Marlowe, Myron Healey, Gerald Milton, Eddy Waller and Marilyn Winston.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Mie Hama is 81.

SAN ANTONIO KID 1944 (VCI)

This is a very entertaining western.

Bill Elliot again stars as Red Ryder.

In this outing Ryder is trying to stop Ace Hanlon (Glenn Strange) from buying all the ranches in the valley after having the former residents either burned or shot out.

Hanlon and his partner Walter Garfield (LeRoy Mason) have discovered that the valley is very rich in oil and want all of it to themselves.

Running about one hour this movie is very fast paced and it's all good fun. Of course for me it really helps that beautiful Linda Stirling is in it. What a woman!!

The rest of the cast includes Robert Blake, Alice Fleming, Duncan Renaldo, Tom London, Robert J. Wilke and Jack Kirk.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Lorna Maitland is 81.

BEHIND GREEN LIGHTS 1942 (ALPHA)

Very well made film noir.

20th Century Fox distrubuted this little and obscure thriller.

A police lieutenant named Sam Carson (William Gargan) is thrust into a case of political murder when a dead body is dumped onto the steps of a police station one rainy night.

Since this tale takes place in one night the action never seems to stop as there are plenty of suspects. One of the main suspects is Janet Bradley (Carole Landis) who was trying to pay the victim off in a blackmailing scheme.

Carson beings to see too many holes in the case and soon suspects someone else of the killing and not Janet. Who the killer is might surprise you, so I won't give it away.

If you're a mystery or film noir fan you'll want to see this fine little film. As I said, it's somewhat obscure but well worth checking out.

The rest of the cast includes Richard Crane, Mary Anderson, John Ireland, Charles Russell, Charles Tannen, Don Beddoe and Mabel Paige. I've always had a crush on gorgeous Landis and both she and Mary Anderson are very sexy in this movie.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Peta Wilson is 54, Shari Shattuck is 64, Ian McCulloch is 85, and Monica Randall 82.

MAYA 1989 (VINEGAR SYNDROME) BLU-RAY

Weird and confusing horror from Italy.

Director Marcello Avallone directed only two horror films, and this is the second. The other is "Specters" which I have already talked about here.

This film concerns an evil powr taking over a small Mexican village which kills many people in gruesome ways. A mystical doctor and a young man must try and stop the evil.

There are too many loose ends in this movie, and it seems like a bunch of short stories woven into one film. There are really no likable characters in this film except for the luscious Mariella Valentini as a young woman named Lisa who has arrived in the village after the death of her father played by William Berger.

It's not a well constructed film but there are a few interesting set pieces. However, this does not make for a good film. This movie kind of shows me that the Italian fim industry was really, really waning in this time.

It's an interesting film if you're not a crazed horror fan like I am. I LOVE Italian cinema and I expected so much more than this.

CHECKMATE 1935 (RENOWN)

Run of the mill crime caper.

Maurice Evans stars as Phillip Allen, a man boarding with another man and his daughters. Nobody is aware that Phillip is an undercover agent working for Scotland Yard.

He is trying to get the goods on diamond smugglers. The two daughters Jean Nicholls (Sally Gray) and Mary (Evelyn Foster) don't suspect that their father is also involved with the smuggling ring.

I was hoping for a little more from this film, but it was pedestrian as best. The acting is fine but they never do anything with the story but let it run its course.

The rest of the cast includes Donald Wolfit, Felix Aylmer, Wilfred Caithness and Ernest Jay. I was sorry they didn't make a better film out of this...it could have been so much more.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Joanna Pettet is 82, Gemma Atkinson is 40, Steve Railsback is 79, and Barbara Leigh is 78.

JUNGLE GIRL 1941 (TUBI)

I caught this on streaming a while back and have to admit it's one of the best serials I have ever seen, and for numerous reasons.

I have never had the chance to catch this fine Republic serial until now. John English and William Whitney handled the directing chores on this fast and fun 15 chapter serial.

The story concerns Dr, Meridith (Trevor Bardette) who has come to the jungle to live with his daughter Nyoka (Frances Gifford) after the crimes of his twin brother has foreced him to leave. Nyoka does not know of her father's twin sibling however.

Years later a man named Jack Stanton (Tom Neal) flies another man called Slick Latimer (Gerald Mohr) into the jungle. Latimer has his eyes set on a huge cache of diamonds owned by the Masamba tribe.

The action is non stop as is usual with Republic serials. I loved "Nyoka and The Tigermen" and think the lead, Kay Aldridge as Nyoka was sexy as hell. I have to say Frances Gifford is stunningly gorgeous as Nyoka in this one, the first.

A somewhat tragic figure in real life, Gifford makes the perfect comic book translation to the screen of a jungle woman. Man, they just don't make women like Gifford anymore.

The rest of the cast include Eddie Acuff, Tommy Cook, Frank Lackteen, Kenneth Terrell and Al Kikume. This is one that shouldn't be missed. It's nothing but fun from start to finish. Oh and did I say Frances Gifford is stunning.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Anni-Frid Lyngstad is 79.

COLD EYES OF FEAR 1972 (REDEMPTION) BLU-RAY

A fine thriller directed by Enzo Castellari who also co-wrote the film.

The film concerns a playboy named Peter (Gianni Garko) who meets a beautiful young woman named Anna (Giovanna Ralli) in a nightclub and he offers to take her to his place.

His place is really the home of his father who is a very sucessful judge named Bedell (Fernando Rey). When they arrive they find the dead body of the butler and then are taken hostage by two men.

One of the men wants revenge on the judge for sending him to prison and the other wants money. The young one is named Quill (Julian Mateos) and he is money hungry as well as being attracted to Anna.

The older one, Arthur Welt (Frank Wolff) wants revenge. The film is very brutal and there is a lot of savage beatings in this film, but it doesn't have as much sex as usual Giallos of the period.

Ralli is fantastic looking and makes the movie even better. The final is typical of this kind of movie, much like American film noir. Again, however, things are not as they appear.

I liked this film and found it very engrossing. The opening scene is a kicker indeed, at least I think so. I recommend this movie.

The rest of the cast includes Karin Schubert, Leonardo Scavino, and Franco Marletta.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Sandahl Bergman is 73, and Kathleen Hughes is 96.

DEATH AT OWELL ROCK 1967 (KOCH)

Very well made western from Italy.

Riccardo Freda directed this film about a man named Lawrence White (Stephen Forsyth) who returns to a small toen called Owell Rock to avenge the killing of his father.

Another man named Harry Boyd also arrives in town and finds it most unfriendly as he has to fight for almost everything. Mark Damon is perfect for the role of Harry and carries it off very well.

There are a lot of gunfights, fistfights and there are even many twists and turns in this movie. I like the fact that the biggest twist is one involving who is who amongst the heroes of the tale.

With Freda at the helm one expects a great quality film, and the viewer gets that in spades. Any westerns fan should enjoy this fast moving saga.

The rest of the cast includes luscious beauties such as Luciana Gilli and Pamela Tudor plus familiar faces like Luciano Pigozzi, Nello Pazzafini, Ignazio Spalla and Aldo Cecconi.

This is a very highly recommended film.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Tracy Scoggins is 71, and Tom Atkins is 89.

SCARED STIFF 1945 (TUBI)

A light and fun comedy.

Jack Haley stars as Larry Elliot, a nervous chess editor for a local paper. Elliot is the kind of reporter who always lets the big story get away and this drives his editor crazy.

Larry soon finds himself on a road trip and accidentally getting involved in a murder at a hotel run by two very bizarre brothers.

From this point on it's the usual haunted house type comedy, but it never fails to entertain me. Also in the hotel is Sally Warren (Ann Savage) who really like Larry who is too blind to notice.

There are a lot of other suspects running aroud as the local Sheriff (Paul Hurst) tries to solve the murder. This is a simple little movie and one that I hope would entertain you as much as it did me.

The rest of the cast includes Barton MacLane, Veda Ann Borg, Roger Pryor, Lucien Littlefield. Check it out, you won't be sorry. The title card on the print I saw was "Treasure Of Fear".

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Valerie Leon is 81, and Rhonda Shear is 70.

BLOODSTAINED SHADOW 1978 (VINEGAR SYNDROME) BLU-RAY

Another well made slice of Italian Giallo.

This story starts out with the slowmotion murder of a young girl in a meadow on an island.

The murderer is never caught. Years later a young man named Stefano (Lino Capolicchio) comes to the small island to visit his brother Don Paolo (Craig Hill), who also happens to be the village priest.

During his visit the brother become entangled in web of murders that reflect the killing of several years ago.

Stefano is determined to get to the bottom of it as his brother is a witness to one of the killings and now the killer is leaving him notes about his coming murder.

There are tons of twists and turns in this well made film, and nothing is as it seems. The final reveal of the real killer is a surprise and may blindside you, as it was meant to do.

The rest of the cast includes Stefania Casini, Massimo Serato, Laura Nucci, Juliette Mauyniel and Attilio Duse.

The Blu-ray presentation from VS is beautiful and the film looks magnificent. I highly recommend you check this one out and see if you ike it.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Suzanne Lloyd is 90, and Jill Whitlow is 61.

THOU SHALT NOT KILL...EXCEPT 1985 (SYNAPSE)

A totally off the wall film.

A soldier returns from Viet Nam and wants to just live a quiet life. However Jack Stryker (Brian Schulz) finds that very difficult to do.

A gang of murdering hippies has invaded the isolated community where he lives and kidnap his girlfriend Sally (Cheryl Guttridge). He and three of his friends from the war wage a mini war on the hippies.

Bruce Campbell was one of the writers and many others who worked on the "EVIL DEAD" are also involved. The films looks like it was made in 1969 as every effort was taken to replicate the era in time.

I was impressed with that. There is a lot of dry comedy in there just like in the "Evil Dead" but I did find in sometimes slow moving and wishing it would end.

I can't say I liked the movie, but I sure didn't not like it either. It's a good effort considering the very, very low budget and I can easily say this isn't going to be for everyone.

RIP GENEVIEVE GRAD 1944-2024

The French actress has passed away.

Grad made 38 movies in 24 years and while she wasn't well known here in the USA, she was in several movies I believe we all saw when we were younger.

Her most famous acting credits in the USA includes "The Centurion", "Beast Of Babylon Against The Son Of Hercules", "Sandokan The Great" and "Conquest Of Mycene".

Genevieve Grad passed away on November 8, 2024 at the age of 80.

RIP TONY TODD 1954-2024

The talented actor has passed away.

Todd started acting in films in 1986 with the movie "Sleepwalk" and then he moved on to "Platoon" before hitting some TV with "Kate & Ally" as well as "Werewolf".

His first starring role was in the 1990 remake of "Night Of The Living Dead". He then landed the role in "Candyman" in 1992 and his career in horror took off. After the sequel "Candyman 2" he was famous among horror fans.

Other credits for Tony Todd includes "Candyman: Day Of The Dead", "Final Destination", "Final Destination 2", "Final Destination 3", "Dark Reel" and many more.

Tony Todd passed away on November 8th, 2024 at the age of 69. He was about one month short from turning 70. Cause of death has not been released as of my typing this.

APACHE BLOOD 1973 (TUBI)

This is a weird one indeed.

It's a very low budget effort about an Apache warrior called Yellow Shirt (Ray Danton) and his relentless chase and attemp to kill Sam Glass (Dewitt Lee).

That is the story in a nutshell. Both men try to survive the extreme heat of the desert and many other dangers in their fight against each other.

My one major complaint is the editing. It seems to be done in a blender and some of the scenes are awful choppy. The film moves along ok, and if you stick with it to the end, you get a twist that nobody sees coming.

There is minimal dialogue here and that is just as well. I wish this film had been better than it was, but I stayed with it and never felt cheated as I have with so many modern movies.

Ray Danton seemed out of place in this movie. I guess because he is the ony one I know anything about. This filmed in Tucson western is pretty obscure.

I will say if you're a die hard western fan you might want to check it out.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Emily Compagno is 45.

JOYRIDE TO NOWHERE 1977 (TUBI)

Intersting time capsule of a movie.

Two beautiful teenage girls Leah (Leslie Ackerman) and Cindy (Sandy Allen) decide to leave their hometown and head for the bright lights of Loa Angeles. Both girls have a terrible home life and want a change.

As is expected they run into the usual creeps and weird people including a man named Charlie (Len Lesser) who offers them a ride after their car breaks down.

One things leads to another and they end up as "guests" of Tank McCall (Mel Wells). The girls decide they don't like Tank and steal his car. Of course Tank wants the car back because it has over 2 million in money he just stole and intends to take across the border to Mexico.

The chase is on as the two girls try to outwit the gangsters. I liked this movie as well, and I found the two leads to be very attractive. However this was more of a time capsule for me.

They say movies reflect the period they were made in, and this one captures 1977 to a tee. The rest of the cast includes Speed Stearns, Dino Nova, Ron Ross and Linda Gary.

HAVE GUN-WILL TRAVEL 1957-1963 (CBS)

This is probably one of the greatest western series ever produced.

I picked this set up a while back at an estate sale and have slowly made my way thru the years.

Richard Boone stars as Paladin, a very cultured and well read gun for hire. Things in this show weren't always solved by the gun and a lot of the writing and characted development was top notch.

Boone played Paladin to the hilt, but what makes this unique is that his character never overshadows the others. The other characters in the episodes are allowed to develope and we sometimes see much more of them than Paladin.

This ran on CBS for 6 seasons and contains 225 classic episodes. I can't remember any episode that I disliked and I found most of them to be very well written and acted.

It's a good thing they never made this an hour long show as I believe more padding would have killed it. I don't know if anyone who reads this has seen this show or not, but if you have I hope you liked it. I know I did and still do to this day.

Some of the guests who appeared on the show include Hank Patterson, Olan Soule, John Anderson, Susan Cabot, Denver Pyle, Harry Carey Jr., Mary Gregory, Patricia Medina, Vitina Maecus and Mark Dana plus hundreds more.

One of the best, and if you get a chance you might want to check out some of the episodes, then you might get hooked and have to watch them all.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Shannon Whirry is 60, and Jackie Joseph is 91.

EYEWITNESS 1956 (TUBI)

Murder mystery would have better at one hour.

This 82 minute J. Arthur Rank production is ok, but it could have used some trimming as it lost my attention several times.

A woman witnesses a robbery at a theater and in fleeing from the crooks chasing her she is hit by a bus.

The resulting plot consists of the gangsters trying to get her out of the hospital after they discover that she is still alive. The woman, Lucy Church (Muriel Pavlow) is married and her husband spend the entire film trying to track down where she went.

The last 15 minutes or so are very well done as one of the gangsters turned killer is trying to get Lucy out of the way so there are no witnesses.

Those scenes are very well done with plenty of suspense, but some of the earlier scenes really needed to go, in my opinion. You might want to check this out, and you may like it more than I did.

FRIGHT 1956 (MILL CREEK)

A somewhat rare film from W. Lee Wilder.

Eric Fleming stars as Dr. James Hamilton, a psychiatrist who talks a killer off of a bridge, and is then thrust into the news headlines where he becomes a very reluctant "hero".

He stumbles across a young women who claims to be the reincarnation of a princess. The woman, Ann Summers (Nancy Malone) and James develope a close relationship as they work together to discover what is happening to her.

Soon there is indeed another personality trying to take over Ann's body and the good Doctor must take some drastic action to stop the other personality from winning.

Being a W. Lee Wilder production will tell youthere isn't much action, but there are a few good things, such as Malone's performance, which I liked a lot and I have always been a fan of Fleming.

There were better films made on this subject such as "The She Creature" and "The Undead" and maybe you should watch those instead. All kidding aside, you might want to check this out if you inclined to, but be warned..it is a slow film.