Sinister Cinema

Six unruly kids break into a remote castle looking for kicks. The castle's owner, an odd white-haired man (Lee), asks them to find a missing girl hiding in the castle. Little do they know that Lee is actually a Mephistoles-like character in disguise. At this point the six set out on a search that takes them through the nightmarish corridors and staircases of the castle. They encounter massive spiders, ghosts, and a bizarre room containing a labyrinth of sheet glass and mirrors. These horrors...

King Minos sacrifices the 'required' number of virgins to the monstrous Minotaur. But as his wife is dying, she confesses that their daughter has a twin whom she has hidden away to avoid giving one of the girls to the Minotaur. The daughter raised by Minos then goes all out to land her unknown twin into the clutches of the Minotaur. Theseus, the mighty Greek hero, steps in to save the lost twin. In English (a few spots are in Italian with additional English subtitles). Great color, Widescreen,...

Another fine Italian horror thriller, obviously inspired by The Horrible Dr. Hichcock. Berger plays Dr. Vance, a strange physician who owns a clinic for the mentally ill, located in the wilds of a gloomy forest. He's surrounded by a bevy of pretty women, all of whom he has eyes for. Unfortunately, there's also a hooded killer on the grounds, slashing people to death with a straight razor. There's also a grotesque, club-footed lady living on the upper floor, whom the doctor is trying to cure of...

The setting is a 19th century castle. Lee plays a sadistic nobleman who whips the wife of his brother. Chris is later found dead, but his ghost comes back to haunt the castle, hoping to reignite through death his sadistic relationship with the beautiful Daliah Lavi. This top-notch Italian horror thriller features director Mario Bava's (aka Jon M. Old) cinematic handywork at its best, with an endless array of atmospheric scenes filled with somber hues that amplify a latent feeling of impending...

A space expedition is launched to the planet Venus. There they find the planet and its former inhabitants completely destroyed by atomic war. The crew faces many horrible dangers including a blob-like monster. We have a real soft spot for this classic early '60s space opera movie, now in full anamorphic widescreen.

Von Stroheim plays a financier who funds the work of scientist Dauphin who has an amazing invention a machine that can predict the date and time of your death. This turns the world on its ear, causing market crashes and other calamities with its dire predictions all of which come to pass. Dauphin is swept up by his success and turns into an ego-maniac, lusting for power, while Von Stroheim comes up with a nefarious plan of his own. Dauphin's gizmo is a huge machine with scads of connections,...

This is an amazing mad scientist film laced with espionage and intrigue. Garin is a mad inventor who has created (with stolen plans) an apparatus called the Hyperboloid. It is a death ray of unparalleled destructive power. He is bound and determined to hold supreme power over Earth and commits atrocity after atrocity, with little regard for the consequences of his actions or the effect they might have on mankind. He is of course bewitched by a beautiful woman, who helps speed him along on his...

A man drops dead on a lonely midnight street after hearing the wail of a ghost woman. In a nearby mansion, tales are told of ancient curses that will bring death upon the family's young son. There is a black-hooded figure lurking about secret passageways, seemingly waiting to strike. Soon the grandfather is found in the study, murdered, the sound of the wailing ghost reverberates through the house. Before long the black-hooded killer has snatched the son and fled to a sacrificial chamber in...

Mills (young Bill) enlists in the British Army to help his country against the Nazi threat. Not to be undone by his offspring, Graham (Old Bill) decides to do his part and sign up, too. There's a bit of trouble getting the upper echelons of the military to accept such an old recruit (who already served in WWI), but he's soon serving alongside his son in the war effort. No classic, but it's one of those "feel good" kind of movies that were so popular during WWII.

That marvelous costumed Turkish superhero Kilink finds himself thrown in the middle of hostilities between two criminal mobs, both of which are vying for precious microfilm showing the location of government missile sites. There are lots of curvaceous babes in this film some good, some bad. Watch for the amazing scene where Kilink punches out a miscreant babe, chokes her for good measure, then heaves her gorgeous bod off a balcony. There's a literal plethora of non-stop action: fistfights,...

What you've got here is a pretty well-made Euro horror comedy. Yes, there are plenty of laughs in this film, but they are blended in with many scary moments, all of which are enhanced by the film's chillingly gothic B&W photography. The setting is a school for wayward girls. One of the professors who's a bit beastly in appearance, has discovered a method of transferring his personality into the body of another. His first guinea pig is a handsome young professor, who then sets his sites on the...

Judith Dornys, Harold Lieb. The aged owner of an old gambling casino dies, making a young girl heir to his amassed fortune that lies hidden in a secret tomb. Under world members become the victims of greed--and the dread secret of the mysterious vault. 16mm.