Picture it: Sicily, 1925. The tough and incorruptible prefect, Cesare Mori (Giuliano Gemma), has had it with the ding dang mafia. The first thing he sees when he rolls up in Sicily is that the people at the bottom are starving because the gangsters at the top are taking their fill and leaving very little…
He Who Must Die Blu-ray review
He Who Must Die (French: Celui qui doit mourir) is a 1957 French-Italian film directed by Jules Dassin. It is based on the novel Christ Recrucified by Nikos Kazantzakis. It was also published as The Greek Passion. Taking place in a Turkish-occupied Greek village shortly after World War I, villagers want to stage a Passion…
Samson and the 7 Miracles of the World Blu-ray review
Also known as Maciste alla corte del Gran Khan, Seven and the 7 Miracles of the World, is a Riccardo Freda directed film which has Maciste (not Samson, which he’s called in the USA version) fighting against an army of Mongol warriors to save a princess! Screen legend Gordon Scott (Tarzan’s Greatest Adventure, Danger!! Death…
The Gestapo’s Last Orgy Blu-ray review
The Gestaopo’s Last Orgy is an Italian Nazi exploitation film directed and co-written by Cesare Canevari and starring Daniela Poggi. It’s one of the sleaziest films in cinema and not for the faint of heart or those with weak stomachs. Lise Cohen (Daniela Levy aka Daniela Poggi, Speed Cross, Last Harem), a Jewish WWII survivor…
Come September Blu-ray review
Come September is romantic comedy film from 1961 that is directed by Robert Mulligan and starring legendary actor Rock Hudson, along with legendary musician Bobby Darin, Gina Lollobrigida, and Sandra Dee. In this movie Rock Hudson (The Mirror Crack’d, Written on the Wind) stars as wealthy playboy Robert Taylor who visits his mistress Lisa…
The Last Man on Earth Blu-ray ( Kino Lorber release)
Movies about plagues and pandemics with a few survivors used to be a lot of fun to watch in the “reel” world until a real pandemic hit over a year ago. Okay, they are still fun and enjoyable to watch, and taught us how to survive but viewing films like this today does add a…
Pulsating Peplums, Manic Mondos and Sexy Subversions: A 1960s Italian Genre Marathon
As a follow-up to my previous marathon of Italian genre films of the ’70s, I thought I’d step back in time and do the same for the swinging ’60s. While the blood and gore might not be as generous in this decade, the Italians still hopped from genre to genre with shameless aplomb, latching onto…
Confuso e nervoso in una stanza buia: A ’70s Italian Genre Marathon
So I got the notion in my head to watch a genre film every year from 1920 to 2021 this month. While I probably won’t post about all of them, I thought I’d at least publish a couple of decades of my watches for shits ‘n’ giggles. To start it all off, I chose that…
Messalina / Messalina Venere Imperatrice Blu-ray review
British actress Belinda Lee, who passed away much too young, plays the lead role as Messlina in director Vittorio Cottafavi’s 1960 Italian sword and sandal film Messalina (aka Messalina Venere Imperatrice) which was one of her final films. In this story, Valeria Messalina is arranged to be married to an older man Claudius, who just…
The Hills Run Red (1966) Blu-ray review
Known in Italy as Un Fiume di dollari, which in English means A River of Dollars, but in America, it is recognized under the title The Hills Run Red, this picture is a 1966 Spaghetti Western film directed by Carlo Lizzani. The film stars Thomas Hunter along with legendary American actors Henry Silva and Dan Duryea….