Sinister Cinema

Blanchar is a Nazi war criminal who lives in a magnificent old castle. He gathers a number of his old allies for nefarious purposes. Among others is an Italian fascist, another German, and a Russian. One visitor however a Frenchman with a black monocle (Meurisse) is actually there to apprehend Blanchar. Whether or not he will succeed remains to be seen as he and his partner play a cat and mouse game within the castle walls. English subtitles. From a beautiful 35mm anamorphic print.

Kortner is great as the Sultan Abdul Hamid, who rules precariously over the Turkish Empire. He lives in constant fear of assassination, but his chief of security (Asther) does a good job making his enemies "disappear." But he is swept off his feet when a beautiful British stage star comes into his life. Lots of action and intrigue in this well-made thriller that features Aster in a particularly menacing role. A great music score. From 35mm.

In what is clearly a set-up by corrupt police officials, a pretty young model ends up stuck in a small town sheriff's office, unable to pay for a traffic violation. When a pudgy businessman arrives also caught for speeding he offers to pay her fine, which she thankfully accepts. Little does she know that her recompense will throw her into a sordid life as an escort girl, chained to drugs and criminals. Can she free herself from her life of shame? Cheap but oh so engaging. From 35mm.

What a treat this film turned out to be! In 1905, as the Panama Canal is being built, a group of doctors try to discover a cure for yellow fever (Yellow Jack), which is ravaging the canal workers. You're shot dead if you try and escape quarantine! The plot here is similar to the entire Covid situation of today as workers are locked down, unable to leave. There's even a U.S. Senator on hand to protest being forced to undergo treatment! The film later takes a hard turn into the horror genre (and...

A superb Finnish fantasy epic about an evil witch who steals the sun and causes just about everything on the Earth to freeze. Also featured are magic harps, fields of snakes, a wizard, and a magic mill. Released here by AIP. Disc One features the original foreign language edition, Sampo, subtitled in English and taken from a mint 35mm anamorphic widescreen print with beautiful color. Disc two is the AIP American edition, dubbed in English and taken from a nice 16mm color print.

Being that this is a communist film from Czechoslovakia, it's quite well done and genuinely exciting at times a little grim, too, in places. The story concerns the Czech border guards of the late 1940s and their constant challenges in keeping the smuggler and refugee problem in check (pun intended). It's easy, though, to cheer for the "wrong guys." Subtitled in English. From 16mm.

Like any good train murder mystery, there is an assortment of interesting characters, each seemingly with something to hide an American movie star, illicit lovers, a golfing aficionado, there's even a Hercules Poirot-type French police inspector. But perhaps the most tantalizing characters are Hardwicke and his assistant, who share a strange love-hate relationship. Yet it is Veidt who is the most mysterious, playing a suave yet sinister fellow who boards the Rome Express on the trail of a...

Dullea, as Devon, has been seriously injured. Rowan, as Rachel, sends out a request for help to an astro-medic ship. However, there is an alien spacecraft in the area also seeking help. With lives hanging in the balance, the astro-medics are torn over whom to respond to first. Meanwhile, a power-hungry servant hatches a sinister plot to take over the biosphere. Nice color.

A classic spectacle film with a 7.1 IMDB rating. This is the story of Khvicha, a young boy from a Georgian (Russian) village is kidnapped, sold into slavery, and raised as a Mamluk warrior in far off Egypt. He is reunited with his childhood friend (also kidnapped), only to be torn apart again. Years later, during the French invasion of Egypt, fate pits him against a most unexpected foe in a grand battle sequence. This film is filled with wonderful moments. Khvicha is torn between his Georgian...

Tim plays agent Bill Carson again, who, disguised as a sinister bandit, "The Phantom," seeks out the man who killed his partner. The murderer is after a local ranch and his gang are rustling its cattle. Bill, again posing as the Phantom, soon crashes head-on with the killer. From a great 16mm print.

There's a werewolf afoot in a sinister old castle! It all centers around the surviving admirers of an aging countess (wonderfully played by Whitelaw) who have gathered in her isolated castle to pay their respects. However, it doesn't take them long to realize that they will never be permitted to leave alive! There are scores to settle from the past and a vicious lycanthrope is out for revenge. And furthermore night is beginning to fall. The climax of this short British made-for-TV feature...

A classic Japanese horror movie. The conniving mother of a Samurai warrior convinces her son to do away with his wife. He poisons her and kills her "supposed" lover. But the two come back from the grave and haunt him, seeking revenge. The scene where the dead rise from the swamp is amazing. And when the ghosts materialize, no samurai sword can fend them off. Chilling is an understatement. The climactic graveyard sequence is unforgettable. Wow. Creepy B&W cinematography. In Japanese with...