The Film Detective

Sunset Carson stars in this drama from Yucca Pictures. Carson was a successful rodeo rider before appearing in several Republic westerns, and for a brief time was one of the top grossing cowboy stars in America. In this feature he encounters everything from rustlers to rigged ballot boxes. He's also betrayed by a youngster he tries to help, but no one stays mad at Sunset Carson for long. Also starring Al Terry, Pat Starling, and Polly McKay.

The propaganda is hot and heavy in this installment of Frank Capra's classic war series, shot under the auspices of the US War Department. Japanese war atrocities, dead babies, rabid Japanese soldiers at a rally, all add up to an ugly portrayal of Japan during the war years. Featuring narration by John Beal, Howard Duff, Walter Huston, and others, this is perhaps the best of the Capra war documentaries. Listen for the musical score by four time Oscar winner Dimitri Tiomkin (High Noon, The High...

The evil white powder has come to Small Town USA, and now everyone is snorting it in this legendary cult favorite. Wholesome young woman Jane Bradford gets mixed up with a drug dealer and becomes a fiendish addict. Witness desperate, coke-fueled acts of prostitution, murder and even suicide - all in the name of the devil's dandruff! Originally released as The Pace That Kills, this is one of the classic scare films of the era.

This peculiar 'movie' won an Honorary Oscar in 1948 for its careful blending of "artistry and patience " Alas, it didn't inspire more movies acted out by birds. In this one, prolific screenwriter Dean Reisner stepped into the director's seat for the first and only time, guiding a cast of birdies to tell the story of a town called "Chirpendale," where the peaceful residents are being terrorized by an evil black crow known as "The Black Menace." You'll have to see it to believe it, but you'll be...

Maybe they're just dogs wearing fake snouts and tails, in a low budget movie filmed in Texas by the same group that gave us The Giant Gila Monster. But suspend your disbelief, and they'll become mutant, killer shrews, created by a mad scientist. Starring James Best (TV's The Dukes of Hazzard), this howler has some good things going for it, namely a creepy musical score by Harry Bluestone and Emil Cadkin, and some solid direction by Ray Kellogg. If nothing else, this slice of schlock heaven may...

Rudolph Valentino stars in this tale of an engaged woman blackmailed into marrying a count in order to save her father from prison. Other cast members include Vera Sisson, Frank Newburg, and Lillian Leighton, but as Count Roberto di San Fraccini, Valentino steals the show. This was one of Valentino's earliest performances; the film was rereleased years later to take advantage of Valentino's growing stardom.

WHIRLING ROPES AND SNARLING GUNS IN THE GALLOPING GRIP OF A GLAMOROUS DRAMA! John Wayne stars as John Weston, a man hired to investigate shady doings at a local rodeo. It seems all the riders who are on the verge of winning end up dead. Along with Wayne, this tale of action on the range also stars the usual Lone Star Picture stock company, including Gabby Hayes and Yakima Canutt!

What could possibly happen when one woman leaves her job? When gangsters and $50,000 are on the line, a lot! In a release from Pine Thomas Productions, mobster gambling rackets and family betrayal is only the beginning of the story! Phillip Reed, Ann Gillis, and Hillary Brooke star is this dramatic feature from 1947.

Arthur Conan Doyle's epic tale comes to life in this classic from the silent era. Bessie Love, Lewis Stone, and Wallace Beery star as explorers who learn that dinosaurs still exist in South America. Of course, the expedition can't end without them trying to bring a prehistoric creature back to London, which results in catastrophe. This was the first full-length feature film to utilize stop-motion animation. The painstaking process perfectly enables us to see the mighty prehistoric monsters...

A millionaire offers ten thousand dollars to five people if they agree to stay overnight in a large, spooky, rented house. When you consider that the millionaire is Vincent Price, and the film is directed by Schlock master William Castle, you can bet the five guests are in for a long, bumpy night. This "super shocker of the century" was a smash hit upon its 1959 release. For architecture buffs, the home used for the exteriors of the haunted house was actually designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and...

HE'S TERRIFIC! Your favorite crime crusader is back! The second installment of the Dick Tracy film series released by RKO Radio Pictures, "Dick Tracy Vs. Cueball" stars Morgan Conway as the famously unstoppable detective based on the eponymous 1930s comic strip character. When ex-convict Cueball steals valuable diamonds and embarks on a gory killing spree, Dick Tracy allows his girlfriend Tess to act as a buyer for the gems, only to see his plan backfire when the homicidal Cueball captures...