The Film Detective

This epic of America's westward march stars Leo Carrillo and Preston Foster in a tale of men building a cattle empire, only to battle rustlers, the weather, and each other! The romantic adventure from director William C. McGann (In Old California, Alcatraz Island) features a strong leading performance by Oscar nominated RKO star Richard Dix (Cimarron, The Ghost Ship) plus cinematography by six-time Oscar nominee Russell Harlan (To Kill a Mockingbird, Rio Bravo).

Mary Astor (The Maltese Falcon, Dodsworth) heads the cast in this tale of workplace intrigue and romance. She plays Mary Linden, the unrecognized brains behind successful executive James Duneen (Robert Ames). A rival (Ricardo Cortez) is interested in hiring her away from Duneen, but Mary only has eyes for her boss. Will she smarten up, or will she continue to let herself be taken for granted? The pre-Code drama from RKO Radio Pictures was directed by Melville W. Brown and shows us where sexual...

A nuclear explosion near Yucca Flats infects a renegade Soviet scientist. Not surprisingly, he must now roam around as a mutated beast! Former wrestler and cult movie favorite Tor Johnson (Plan Nine From Outer Space, Bride of the Monster) stars for director/writer Coleman Francis (The Sky Divers, Night Train to Mundo Fine) For trivia buffs: Tor Johnson kept his head shaved to appear more villainous, but in actuality had blond hair.

Turhan Bay (Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, Climax) stars in this sinister tale of ghosts and lost love. Director Bernard Vorhaus found himself on the Hollywood blacklist for his alleged link to the communist party, but this story of phony spiritualists remains a kind of masterpiece, bolstered by the gorgeous presence of Lynn Bari (Shock, The Bridge of San Luis Rey) For movie buffs: Vorhaus gave Oscar-winning director David Lean his first job as a film cutter.

Angel and the Badman stars John Wayne as wounded outlaw Quirt Evans. When sheltered by a Quaker family, he falls for the family's angelic daughter, Penelope (Gail Russell). Though she brings on a transformation in Quirt's hard-boiled character for the better, he is ever-obsessed with avenging the killing of his foster father. The first starring vehicle that John Wayne produced himself, Angel and the Badman is an unconventional Western romantic classic that is richly entertaining for both fans...

One of the most well-known films from director Roger Corman, A Bucket of Blood tells the story of Walter Paisley (Dick Miller), a busboy who, after accidentally killing his landlady's cat and covering the body in plaster to hide the evidence, is acclaimed as a brilliant sculptor. Walter finds himself resorting to the same methods to produce new work, and soon people start mysteriously disappearing. Not wanting to direct another conventional horror flick, Corman and screenwriter Charles B....

The Big Lift is a true account of the Berlin Airlift, which provided food and supplies to the Western sector of Berlin during the Soviet's blockade of Berlin. Sgt. Danny MacCullough (Montgomery Clift) and his friend Sgt. Hank Kowalski (Paul Douglas) are among the Americans called upon to risk their lives to transport supplies to the desperate citizens. The grim war is soon left behind as budding romances emerge between two women and the soldiers. Director George Seaton filmed on location with...

Carnival of Souls is the story of a young woman who goes along for the ride when two hot-rodders hold a drag race and are forced off a bridge, plunging into the flooded river below. The sole survivor of the accident, Mary, accepts a job in a new town as a church organist where she is repeatedly troubled by visions of a nearby abandoned carnival and a smiling, white-faced man with dark rimmed eyes. One of the most atmospherically eerie works of American horror cinema, the film garnered a...

D.O.A. stars Edmond O'Brien as small-town accountant Frank Bigelow who, while in San Francisco for some fun prior to settling down with his fiancee, wakes up after a night on the town with more than a hangover. Doctors tell him he's been given a "luminous toxin" for which there is no antidote and he has a week to live, at most. Frank desperately retraces his steps over the past 24 hours, embarking on a frantic odyssey to find his own murderer. The 1988 remake was also entitled, D.O.A., with...

Written and directed by a 24-year-old Francis Coppola, Dementia 13 centers on the dysfunctional Haloran family, who have converged at Haloran Castle to enact a morbid ritual in remembrance of Lady Haloran's (Ethne Dunn) deceased daughter, Kathleen (Barbara Dowling). Secrets shroud Kathleen's demise, and soon there is a mysterious interloper prowling the grounds with a big axe to grind Genuinely engaging and well-photographed, Dementia 13 is a bone-chilling horror classic sure to thrill horror...

In Dick Tracy's Dilemma, Tracy is after a group of fur thieves who empty a dealer's vault and leave a dead night guard at the scene. Tracy's investigation reveals the crimes were committed by an ex-con with a bum leg and a missing a hand known as "The Claw". Ralph Byrd stars as Dick Tracy, reprising the role when exhibitors insisted he return after Morgan Conway played Tracy in two previous films. Filled with noir elements and suspenseful moments, Dick Tracy's Dilemma is an old-school crime...

Go for Broke follows the exploits of the most decorated unit in US Army history - the 442nd Regiment - the first all-Nisei (Japanese- American) combat team in WWII. Van Johnson stars as a commanding officer who must overcome his own prejudices as he trains and leads his men through battles on the European Front. Several of the main roles are played by actual Nisei members of the 442nd, lending a beautiful authenticity to the storytelling. Go for Broke represents a landmark in the portrayal of...