A FISTFULL OF DOLLARS 1964 (MGM)

Sergio Leone directed this classic film which is the first of a trilogy.

Clint Eastwood stars as "the man with no name" who some call Joe. He arrives in a small town and plays two rival families against each other.

The wondering gunfighter is quick on the draw and backs up everything he says. Eastwood made an entirely different kind of hero that people had never seen before. Director Leone knew how to get the best out of his leading man and it shows.

There is plenty of violence and action to keep any spaghetti western fan happy. Two more films followed this one and each was a bigger success than the last. Recommended!!

THE SPY WITH MY FACE 1965 (DVD-R)

This movie is culled from two episodes from the first season of Man From U.N.C.L.E.

THRUSH kidnaps Napoleon Solo and replaces him with a double to infiltrate U.N.C.L.E. They are trying to interfere with a project called "The August Affair" and bring on world chaos.

If you're a fan of the series, like I am, you'll enjoy all the great 60's touches here. The cast includes Robert Vaughn as Napoleon Solo, David McCallum as Illya Kuryakin and Leo G. Carroll as Alexander Waverly.

The women all look good as usual from the 60's and Senta Burger is a standout. Check it out if you get a chance.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Burt Reynolds is 79, Tina Louise is 81, Brandy Norwood is 36, Catherine Hickland is 59, and Becky LeBeau is 53.

PHANTOM FROM SPACE 1953 (TREELINE)

Another sci-fi film from W. Lee Wilder.

This one is about an invisible alien who accidentally kills two people and then is pursued by the authorities. The film starts out at a great pace and does slow down some after the alien takes off his suit to hide from the people chasing him.

The movie is an excellent way to spend a Saturday afternoon because it's fun in a goofy sort of way. It really isn't made clear what the alien is doing on Earth, but what is made clear is that he doesn't really want to be here with all the hostility.

The cast includes Ted Cooper, Rudolph Anders, Noreen Nash and James Seay.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Robert Wagner is 85.

KILLERS FROM SPACE 1954 (TREELINE)

No, this isn't the pristine print from Sinister Cinema.

Watching a movie like this again is like visiting an old friend you haven't seen in a while. Yep, I do like this goofy movie.

Peter raves is a test pilot whose plane crashes while he and his co-pilot are taking readings of an atom bomb blast. The co-pilot is killed, but Graves somehow survives and remembers nothing except stumbling back to the Army base.

He is given a drug to help him tel the truth after he is caught giving secrets to unknown people. Under the drug he re-lives the experience of being kidnapped by aliens who bring him back to life and use him to steal atomic secrets. Of course nobody believes him and he has to take things into his own hands.

This is a good old fashioned monster film we all remember as kids. See it again sometime..for there is fun to be had with this.

HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD 1976 (DVD-R)

I decided to re-watch this classic a while back.

Sexy Candice Rialson is a young actress who wants to make it in movies so she comes to Hollywood and gets a job at "Miracle Pictures" where the motto is "if it's a good movie-it's a Miracle".

Paul Bartel is the director of a film entitled "Machete Maidens of Mora Tau" and some mysterious person is killing off the actresses one by one.

Joe Dante and Allen Arkush directed this with love and care and it shows. This is a project about people who make low budget crap that fans love and critics hate. There are tons of hilarious sight gags in this film and it is required viewing for any fan of Roger Corman. I have worked on very low budget films, and this film strikes a chord very deep.

It's always nice to see Candice in any film. The rest of the cast includes Mary Woronov, Dick Miller (as Walter Paisley), Jonathan Kaplan and Tara Stromeier.

I can't recommend this film enough and I keep hoping it gets a Blu-ray treatment soon. If you can find it, watch it and have a great time.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Marianna Hill is 74.

GURU THE MAD MONK 1970 (SINISTER CINEMA)

An unbelievable Andy Milligan gem!!

In the 15th century, a monk uses a vampire mistress and a one eyed hunchback to commit murders for him, all in the name of getting money to keep his church open.

This is typical Milligan as the actors have heavy new York accents, but play like it's the 15th century. The acting isn't all that great and some of the sets look like a grade school play, but hey the film does manage to entertain for a meager 56 minute running time.

the budget was $11,000, and I know how difficult it is to make a film like that. I will recommend this for horror fans, and fans of the bizarre in general. See it, and it will open up your eyes to poverty row film making at it's best.

WHILE THE CITY SLEEPS 1956 (WARNER ARCHIVES)

Well made Fritz Lang film noir.

This is a good film noir about a news service which is on the trail of a killer they dub "Lipstick Killer". Dana Andrews is a television newsman who dares the killer to come out in the open.

John Drew Barrymore is the mamas boy killer who is stalking the city. He plays the part very well and director Lang underplays the killer part of the story at certain points while concentrating on the interpersonal stories of the people working on the paper.

This is Lang's next to last film and it has a fine ensemble cast including gorgeous Rhonda Fleming, George Saunders, Howard Duff, Thomas Mitchell, Vincent Price, Sally Forrest and Ida Lupino.

If you like film noir, you'll enjoy this film. I know I did.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Brooke Adams is 66, Jack Larson is 87, Paul Wight is 43, and Mathilda May is 50.

LEGEND OF BIGFOOT 1976 (RETROMEDIA)

Legendary Ivan Marx made this film about his encounter with Bigfoot.

Marx first person narrative coupled with re-enactments make for some bizarre viewing. The ending purports to show actual footage of the Bigfoot creature shot by Marx himself.

This isn't a bad documentary. It's no worse than the many others out there, but if you're a Bigfoot enthusiast you will enjoy this. Marx is very sincere in his belief and he went to his grave telling everyone the footage is real and not staged.

Watch this on a rainy Saturday night and have fun with it.

AT THE EARTH'S CORE 1976 (KINO)

Oh yes, this finally arrives on Blu-ray.

Peter Cushing and Doug McClure are two men who use a device invented by Cushing to drill into the earth. They have an accident and end up in a very bizarre world within the earth called Pellucider.

This world is garish in color and is inhabited by strange monsters and a warrior-like race that enslaves others for labor. They are themselves controlled by giant prehistoric birds with telekinetic powers called Mahas.

Along the way the two men run into a lovely cave woman played by Caroline Munro, who is so beautiful in Blu-ray it is hard for me to describe. Together they must ban together and destroy the Mahas.

I first saw this when it played in theaters in 1976, and at the time I was a projectionist and saw it twice a night for a week. I LOVE this film. It captures the spirit and atmosphere of the original source material which is a novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs. I read a lot of negative crap written about this film by young people who have never read a Burroughs book, or even know who he is.

Total entertainment on a small scale, and a huge thanks to Kino for the Blu-ray release.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO....

Dona Speir is 51.

RIP LIZABETH SCOTT 1922-2015

One of the most memorable actresses of my time has passed away.

Lizabeth Scott passed away on Feb. 6th from natural causes. She was 92.

Lizabeth had a screen career that lasted 12 years, but it left us some memorable film noir movies that will never be forgotten. She starred in such classics as "Dark City", "Strange Love Of Martha Ivers", "Pitfall" and many others.

I never saw her in a film I disliked and that is saying something. She rarely made comedies yet she appeared in "Scared Stiff" with Dean martin and Jerry Lewis, which is a favorite of mine. She will be missed.