Watch Tobor the Great (1954) Online

Tobor the Great (1954)iMDB Rating: 5.2
Date Released : 1 September 1954
Genre : Sci-Fi
Stars : Charles Drake, Karin Booth, Billy Chapin, Taylor Holmes
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 870 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

As projected here, a thinly-disguised NASA, working with nuclear rockets, is ready for manned flights in the mid-fifties...but Dr. Ralph Harrison doesn't think so, and resigns in protest. Colleague Prof. Nordstrom promptly enlists his aid in developing an alternative robot Spaceman! Naturally, foreign spies are keenly interested... Uses documentary footage of early space research.

Watch Tobor the Great Trailer :

Review :

Endearingly Clunky Relic

I have to admit having a soft spot for TOBOR THE GREAT, but not for the reasons one might expect. Oh sure, the robot is great, a towering behemoth of tin cans and toasters welded together into a clattering, somewhat clunky suit. He doesn't have much of a personality but he's cool. The scenes where Tobor goes postal and sets off to right wrongs are the best, especially when little Timmy is threatened by the bad Slavic accented spies who want to force his kindly scientist grandpa into spilling his state secrets for them.

And it's here where my interest in the film kicks in. It's a very subtle bit of indoctrination for young viewers into the wonders of America's cold war military industrial complex disguised as a giant rampaging robot movie. The heroes are all sharply uniformed military men or scientists working to further America's dominance in the space race, and the bad guys are all thugs who work for a foreign power with a vested interest in disrupting their progress. They probably don't even celebrate Christmas.

The film is rife with military lingo, helpful Air Force officers, well intentioned grandfatherly politicians who understand the need to keep secrets from the public, and little Timmy eagerly helping things along by his own deft contributions to ensuring for the common defense. It's a great little study about how national security really begins with each of us and our need for vigilance (sound familiar, War On Terror veterans?), hard work, and personal sacrifice. The biggest laugh comes in the opening monologue's passage regarding congress supposedly granting unlimited funding to the Tobor project -- those were the days!

The most interesting character in the film is actually the reporter, absurdly named Gilligan. He's a hard working leathershoe journalist who is determined to break his big story but is sympathetic to the government quashing his efforts when it comes to keeping the marvel of Tobor's development a secret from our enemies, and our friends. Everybody pitches in, including the shapely mom with her fresh, clean, good looks, representing that which we fight to protect back at home, which looks like Ward Cleaver's house. And just like the Beaver's mom I bet she'd be an animal in bed.

The big robot and his flashing lights & funky metallic shoes are just window dressing to keep the kids' interest -- and make no mistake, this film was aimed squarely at the bright 6 to 12 year old future defense industry workers in the audience. The lesson being that if you do well in school, mind your manners at home, and take an active role in the community you too might one day get to build friendly robotic soldiers who are immune to human weaknesses. It's a pretty fun little movie too and a harmless diversion for 9 year olds of all ages.

6/10

Watch Sins of Rome Online

Sins of Rome (1953)iMDB Rating: 6.5
Date Released : 1 June 1954
Genre : Adventure, History
Stars : Massimo Girotti, Ludmilla Tchérina, Yves Vincent, Gianna Maria Canale. 74 B.C. Somewhere in the Roman Empire, Spartacus, a young officer, is condemned to be a slave because he hit a superior. Brought back to Roma in a gladiators' school, he escapes and stirs up all the slaves in a revolt against the Roman Empire." />
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

74 B.C. Somewhere in the Roman Empire, Spartacus, a young officer, is condemned to be a slave because he hit a superior. Brought back to Roma in a gladiators' school, he escapes and stirs up all the slaves in a revolt against the Roman Empire.

Watch Sins of Rome Trailer :

Review :

SINS OF ROME (Riccardo Freda, 1953) **1/2

The version I watched of this peplum (dealing with the exploits of Spartacus – played by Massimo Girotti – here a mercenary prior to being made a slave!) is the edited-down (running 71 rather than 94 minutes!) English-dubbed version released in the U.S. by RKO. The result, at least, is good-looking (featuring lavish sets as befits the country that virtually invented the "Kolossal") despite the rather dark print at hand!

Obviously, however, the film under review does not stand up to comparisons with the 3¼-hours SPARTACUS (1960) and should not really be since the two are so different in tone and approach. For one thing, there is no gladiatoral action(!) in this case, but rather the arena contains a pool in which a ship is anchored! On it, a dance (with tied-up slaves as props!) is staged…before lions are unleashed upon them – which are eventually repelled by the hero's timely intervention! Leading lady Ludmilla Tcherina is rather underused throughout though, being foremost a renowned dancer, at least the obligatory routines in this vein are classier than usual for the genre! Thinking Spartacus killed her father, Tcherina starts out by hating Girotti but, predictably, falls for him regardless. Gianna Maria Canale, then, plays the daughter of an altogether ineffectual Crassus – a femme fatale who occasionally makes Spartacus stray from his mission…before the cries of a slave receiving an off-screen whipping brings him back to his senses! As for the Peter Ustinov figure from the later Hollywood rendition, he is here treated as an out-and-out villain!

The reasonably stylish film (bearing the mark of its maker, who happens to be Canale's own real-life husband!) also contrives 3 other well-handled action sequences: the slaves' dive to freedom, their sneak attack on the Romans (in which the latter army's tents are set on fire), and the standard open-field clash in which the hero ultimately falls (again, being of a more modest pedigree, there is no mass crucifixion this time around!). For the record, the Italians would return to this theme 10 years later with THE SLAVE aka SON OF SPARTACUS with their most popular muscleman, Steve Reeves, in the lead.

Watch The Sun Shines Bright Online

The Sun Shines Bright (1953)iMDB Rating: 7.2
Date Released : 2 May 1953
Genre : Comedy, Drama
Stars : Charles Winninger, Arleen Whelan, John Russell, Stepin Fetchit. John Ford weaves three "Judge Priest" stories together to form a good- natured exploration of honour and small-town politics in the South around the turn of the century. Judge William Priest is involved variously in revealing the real identity of Lucy Lake, reliving his Civil War memories, preventing the lynching of a youth and contesting the elections with Yankee Horace K. Maydew." />
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

John Ford weaves three "Judge Priest" stories together to form a good- natured exploration of honour and small-town politics in the South around the turn of the century. Judge William Priest is involved variously in revealing the real identity of Lucy Lake, reliving his Civil War memories, preventing the lynching of a youth and contesting the elections with Yankee Horace K. Maydew.

Watch The Sun Shines Bright Trailer :

Review :

And there's no need to ask where it's shining from...

It would be nice to be able to discuss this film without having to refer to its politically incorrect depiction of blacks, but it's impossible to do so. The film, which is a remake of director John Ford's own Judge Priest from the 30s (in which Will Rogers played the title role), must have seemed curiously dated even when it was released, and feels like it was made in the early forties rather than the mid-fifties. Whether that's because of its outdated attitude towards blacks and the presence of slow, scratchy-voiced Stepin Fetchit is open to conjecture – it could just be that the fog of nostalgia that hangs over the entire work is the reason.

Charles Winninger makes an amiable old judge whose quiet wisdom puts to shame the hypocritically puritanical attitudes of his small town's people and the racist assumptions of an unruly lynch mob out to hang a blameless teenage Negro. The storyline is kind of meandering, reflecting the apparently relaxed pace of life in the turn of the century Deep South, and you do really get a taste of Southern gentility – whether accurate not. Its various sub-plots are linked together by the judge's bid for re-election, which serves to emphasise the importance of standing by one's principles no matter what the possible personal costs may be. Of course, the truth is Billy Priest is too good to be true, but I don't think anyone was out to make him a more realistic figure in this milieu than Santa Claus or God would have been.

John Ford's notorious sentimentality is in danger of becoming cloying at times, but he just about manages to rein it in at key moments. The film says as much about Hollywood's take on American social attitudes in the mid-50s as it does about the same in the Deep South at the turn of the century, which isn't in itself a bad thing. I suppose it's even possible that one day films like this will be shown in classrooms to demonstrate the gigantic positive strides made in the cause of racial equality in the latter half of the 20th Century. Better that than they are wilfully ignored in the name of political correctness.

Streaming Unchained (1955) Online

Unchained (1955)iMDB Rating: 7.2
Date Released : 1 January 1956
Genre : Drama, Crime
Stars : Elroy 'Crazylegs' Hirsch, Barbara Hale, Chester Morris, Todd Duncan
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

A convict in a medium-security prison is torn between his need to finish his sentence and get back to his wife and family, and his desire to escape the confines of prison.

Watch Unchained Trailer :

Review :

A classic moral drama, high-lighted by fine performances and the unforgettable "Unchained Melody"

Long before Whoopi and Swayze, even before the Righteous Brothers, came this dandy little low budget tale of the men's prison at Chino, California. The drama centers on the division of one man's soul...part of him wants to continue his criminal ways, and attempt escape, while the other half wants to get home to his wife and family. Former sports great Hirsch turns in a surprising inspired performance, and Hale and Morris prove up to their respective tasks. And of course, the haunting "Unchained Melody" is enough to make you want to watch it over and over.

Watch Mad at the World Online

Mad at the World (1955)iMDB Rating: 5.6
Date Released : 30 January 1959
Genre : Crime, Drama
Stars : Frank Lovejoy, Keefe Brasselle, Cathy O'Donnell, Karen Sharpe. The infant baby of Sam and Anne Bennett is critically hurt after been hit by a bottle thrown by a gang of juvenile-delinquent hoodlums known as the Wolf Pack. Police Detective Tom Lynn takes charge of the investigation and orders shakedown of youth gangs in the city's toughest section, but this fails to locate members of the Wolf-Pack gang. A savage beating is given an innocent witness by Bennett..." />
Movie Quality : HDrip
Format : MKV
Size : 870 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

The infant baby of Sam and Anne Bennett is critically hurt after been hit by a bottle thrown by a gang of juvenile-delinquent hoodlums known as the Wolf Pack. Police Detective Tom Lynn takes charge of the investigation and orders shakedown of youth gangs in the city's toughest section, but this fails to locate members of the Wolf-Pack gang. A savage beating is given an innocent witness by Bennett, who takes matters in his own hands in the belief that the law authorities are too slow.

Watch Mad at the World Trailer :

Review :

It takes a while before reality is suspended in this one.

This begins with Wolf-Pack gang members...no, wait it begins with a prologue spoken by Tennessee Senator Estes Kefauver saying..."When young people become angry and violent, it affects the whole community...your town and mine. Anger breeds anger, until finally it sweeps over all age groups. Here now, is a story of how one police department in a great American city fought to bring this destructive human fire under control"...and then Wolf-Pack gang members Paul Dubov, James Delgado, and Spanley Clements go "on the town" and make an unprovoked attack on a young family.

The infant baby of Keefe Brasselle and Cathy O'Donnell is critically hurt after been hit by a bottle thrown by the hoodlums. Police Detective Frank Lovejoy takes charge of the investigation. Orders shakedown of youth gangs in the city's toughest section---pick up Aaron Spelling for one---but this fails to locate members of the Wolf-Pack gang. Savage beating is given innocent witness by Brasselle, who takes matters in his own hands in the belief that the law authorities are too slow. Plausible. Brasselle slugs Lovejoy and rushes out to make a one-man probe of the gang. Still plausible. Brasselle locates Karen Sharpe, girlfriend of the Wolf-Packers, and she says she likes being useful and what can she do for Brasselle. He asks her to get him into the gang.

Karen Sharpe is leaning over her bed and asks Brasselle what can she do to be "useful" and all he asks for is an address? Not plausible.

Streaming Desert Legion (1953) Online

Desert Legion (1953)iMDB Rating: 5.7
Date Released : 8 May 1953
Genre : Adventure
Stars : Alan Ladd, Richard Conte, Arlene Dahl, Akim Tamiroff
Movie Quality : HDrip
Format : MKV
Size : 870 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Paul Lartal leads a troop of legionnaires into ambush at the hands of Omar Ben Calif. Returning later at the request of Princess Morjana he is led to the hidden city of Madara, currently harrassed by the evil Crito. Lartal must do in the bad guys (which includes participating in a bare chested spear-throwing contest), save the city and comfort the Princess.

Watch Desert Legion Trailer :

Review :

A treasure chest for Alan Ladd fans

Take a bit of "Beau Geste," add a dab of "Lost Horizon," and you'll wind up with an enjoyable bit of escapism called "Desert Legion." It's just one of those modestly-scaled but colorfully-mounted 1950's movies which placed not-quite-A-list stars against exotic backgrounds in plots filled with traditional elements of action and romance. While predictable and unremarkable in most respects, these movies hold up surprisingly well today and remind us of a time when a trip to the movies meant stepping, however briefly, into a world of carefully-controlled glamor.

Though pushing 40 at the time he filmed this, Alan Ladd still makes an attractive hero and his fans are treated here to three scenes featuring him in "beefcake" situations. First, at the 38-minute-mark, he's seen in a bathtub being lathered by muscular black servants. Then, at the 55-minute-mark, we see him bare-chested in bed as he's attacked by a man with a dagger. Finally, at the 59-minute-mark, he fights a spear-duel with Conte while both men are stripped to the waist. Curiously, all three situations are placed within virtually all-male milieus so that only other men can get a close-up look at Ladd's physique.

Another touch of "beefcake" occurs when a bare-chested legionnaire played by George Lewis is whipped in an attempt to force information from him. (This flogging ranks 32nd in the book, "Lash! The Hundred Great Scenes of Men Being Whipped in the Movies.") Once again, this scene occurs only with other men as witnesses.

Note: the scene of the acrobats entertaining at the planned marriage of Arlene Dahl to Richard Conte is actually a clip from Universal's 1942 movie, "Arabian Nights."

Addendum (April 4, 2010): "Desert Legion" uses the main characters and general plot outline of its source, a 1927 novel by Georges Surdez titled "The Demon Caravan." However, some of the movie's more memorable incidents were invented by the screenwriters: the assassination attempt on Alan Ladd while he sleeps, for example, or the spear-duel between Ladd and Richard Conte, or the flogging of Legionnaire Lopez. Also, the character played by Akim Tamiroff, apparently added for "comic relief," does not appear in the book. The book's 18-year-old female lead bears only a passing resemblance to the movie's Arlene Dahl and the unnamed "lost city" in the book is referred to as "Madara" in the movie. Incidentally, one of the screenplay's two writers was Irving Wallace who later achieved fame as the author of such popular novels as "The Chapman Report" and "The Prize."

Watch Casta diva (1954) Online

Casta diva (1954)iMDB Rating: 5.8
Date Released : 14 July 2014
Genre : Biography, Drama, Music, Romance
Stars : Antonella Lualdi, Nadia Gray, Maurice Ronet, Fausto Tozzi. Appena diplomato al conservatorio di Napoli, Vincenzo Bellini incontra Maddalena Fumaroli e immediatamente si innamora di lei. Per farle un ritratto musicale scrive la romanza "Casta Diva" di cui le fa omaggio. Bellini è l'allievo più promettente del Conservatorio, ma desidera solo tornare in Sicilia e vivere con Maddalena. Rifiuta quindi l'offerta della famosa cantante Giuditta Pasta di andare a..." />
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Appena diplomato al conservatorio di Napoli, Vincenzo Bellini incontra Maddalena Fumaroli e immediatamente si innamora di lei. Per farle un ritratto musicale scrive la romanza "Casta Diva" di cui le fa omaggio. Bellini è l'allievo più promettente del Conservatorio, ma desidera solo tornare in Sicilia e vivere con Maddalena. Rifiuta quindi l'offerta della famosa cantante Giuditta Pasta di andare a Milano con lei. Maddelana non vuole però che vincenzo rinunzi alla fama e lo lascia. Bellini parte allora per Milano con Giuditta dove ha successo con l'opera "Il Pirata" e si incontra-scontra con Donizetti. Maddalena è però sempre nel suo cuore e per questo lascia Giuditta e scrive un'opera aspra, "Norma", che non ha successo. Maddalena, saputolo, porta a Giuditta la romanza "Casta Diva" che viene aggiunta all'opera e la porta al successo. Bellini corre a Napoli, ma Maddalena, malata, è in fin di vita ed egli arriva troppo tardi per vederla.

Watch Casta diva Trailer :

Streaming Border River Online

Border River (1954)iMDB Rating: 6.2
Date Released : 6 January 1954
Genre : Romance, Western
Stars : Joel McCrea, Yvonne De Carlo, Pedro Armendáriz, Alfonso Bedoya
Movie Quality : HDrip
Format : MKV
Size : 870 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Zona Libre is a small enclave across the river from America. Despotically ruled by General Calleja, it offers sanctuary to outlaws, at a price. Newly arrived is Clete Mattson who has $2million in gold to buy guns for the Confederacy. But who can he trust with so much money around? Certainly not Calleja, but maybe the eye-catching Carmelita? The General thinks she's his property but she seems rather to fancy Mattson. Whatever's going on, Mexico wants the place back.

Watch Border River Trailer :

Review :

excellent example of western genre

this was yet another solid performance by joel mccrea. yvonne de carlo also adds strength to this feature. the film portrays a turbulent time in our history and the the film portrays just how dedicated some membersof the confederacy were in prolonging the war.

Streaming Target Earth Online

Target Earth (1954)iMDB Rating: 5.8
Date Released : 7 November 1954
Genre : Horror, Sci-Fi
Stars : Richard Denning, Kathleen Crowley, Virginia Grey, Richard Reeves
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

A large city is ordered to be completely evacuated as an army of robots, believed to be from the planet Venus, attack it. Left behind are Nora King and Frank Brooks, strangers until their chance meeting in the deserted streets. They meet a celebrating couple at a café, Vicki Harris and Jim Wilson. The quartet escape the robot patrol and take refuge in a large hotel. There, they encounter a new danger in Davis, a psychopathic killer. Venus robots or not, Davis practices his profession.

Watch Target Earth Trailer :

Review :

TARGET EARTH (Sherman A. Rose, 1954) **1/2

Since it was co-written by the man behind ROBOT MONSTER (1953), I really wasn't expecting anything from this one (whose SE DVD I bought dirt-cheap from VCI outright). However, the film proved worthy of some attention – though failing to keep up the initial momentum, despite a brief 75-minute duration.

The plot starts off with a typical 'Last Man On Earth' scenario (albeit restricted in this case to just one big American city, and the reason it's deserted is due to evacuation rather than decimation). Eventually, a handful of people (including a constantly squabbling couple) band together in a hotel; we gradually learn their individual reasons for being left behind – which would actually be replicated in the much later THE QUIET EARTH (1985) – and, amidst fighting one another (especially the bossiness of an armed criminal on the run), they heroically withstand the alien invasion (consisting of a single solitary robot!) which is threatening the planet. Ultimately, the military springs into action – scientist Whit Bissell having finally hit upon a particular sound wave which can 'kill' the clunky automaton(s), also able to shoot a deadly ray a' la Klaatu from THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL (1951) – and rescues those still standing (obviously the hero and heroine).

The male lead is once again played by Richard Denning, whom I had just watched in THE BLACK SCORPION (1957): amusingly, as in that film, for all his ruggedness he's made up to be something of a dope as well, since Denning cluelessly purports to defend himself with a mere firearm (at the end, when he's told the alien was actually a robot, his character displays genuine amazement – duh!). In the end, though no classic, the film is extremely typical of its time and reasonably entertaining while it's on (with, as I said, the best moments coming at the very beginning via the eerie depiction of deserted city streets).

The extras are perhaps over-generous for such minor genre fare: that said, I haven't listened to its late producer Herman Cohen's Audio Commentary – while I was already familiar with the tribute featurette to him from its inclusion on VCI's own edition of HORRORS OF THE BLACK MUSEUM (1959).

Watch Son of Geronimo: Apache Avenger Online

Son of Geronimo: Apache Avenger (1952)iMDB Rating: 7.6
Date Released : 6 November 1952
Genre : Western
Stars : Clayton Moore, Bud Osborne, Tommy Farrell, Rodd Redwing. Columbia's 50th serial (between "Blackhawk" and "The Lost Planet") and made during the production season, 1952-53, when Clayton Moore left "The Lone Ranger" television series and was replaced by John Hart for a year. Story has frontier trouble-shooter Jim Scott seeking to put an end to the bloodshed between whites and Indians on the Western frontier. He is aided by Tulsa, the boss of a wagon ..." />
Movie Quality : HDrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Columbia's 50th serial (between "Blackhawk" and "The Lost Planet") and made during the production season, 1952-53, when Clayton Moore left "The Lone Ranger" television series and was replaced by John Hart for a year. Story has frontier trouble-shooter Jim Scott seeking to put an end to the bloodshed between whites and Indians on the Western frontier. He is aided by Tulsa, the boss of a wagon train, and by frontier settlers Frank Baker and his sister Ann. A band of Apaches headed by Porico, son of Geronimo, continually attack the settlers, their wagon trains and a new stage line. In vain Jim seeks a meeting with Geronimo. A band of white renegades, led by Ace Devlin and Rance Rankin, manage to worsen the situation. After scores of savage battles and hair-raising escapes (14 to be exact, as Chapter 15, "The Peace Treaty," had no need for a cliffhanger), Jim succeeds in killing or capturing the outlaws, and convinces Porico to arrange a peace-accomplishing mission with Geronimo.

Watch Son of Geronimo: Apache Avenger Trailer :

Review :

A great serial from the golden age ........

Clayton Moore stars in this great western serial that provides all the thrills, chills and cliffhangers that best characterized the genre. Moore, on temporary hiatus from his Lone Ranger role, tries to calm frontier hostilities between the son of the famed Indian leader Geronimo and local citizens.

As the heroic Moore works to bring peace with Geronimo's band, a band of local scoundrels moves to escalate hostilities. As can be imagined, wild chases, shootouts and fistfights are the exciting result.

This serial is one of the best of the 1950's. Clayton Moore excelled in this type of role, with great humor coupled with determined strength. This is grand entertainment and is highly recommended.

Watch The Royal African Rifles (1953) Online

The Royal African Rifles (1953)iMDB Rating: 6.0
Date Released : 27 September 1953
Genre : Adventure
Stars : Louis Hayward, Veronica Hurst, Michael Pate, Angela Greene. A shipment of Vickers machine guns is stolen from a British warship in Bombasa Harbor, Africa, in 1914, and Denham is assigned to track them down. He poses as a hunter and follows a trail that leads him to Cunningham, a trader, who intends to sell the rifles to the Germans, and whose daughter, Jennifer, Denham loves." />
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

A shipment of Vickers machine guns is stolen from a British warship in Bombasa Harbor, Africa, in 1914, and Denham is assigned to track them down. He poses as a hunter and follows a trail that leads him to Cunningham, a trader, who intends to sell the rifles to the Germans, and whose daughter, Jennifer, Denham loves.

Watch The Royal African Rifles Trailer :

Streaming Prince of Players (1955) Online

Prince of Players (1955)iMDB Rating: 6.9
Date Released : 24 June 1955
Genre : Biography, Drama
Stars : Richard Burton, Maggie McNamara, John Derek, Raymond Massey. A tragic and sentimental story that depicts the early career of the 19th century American actor, Edwin Booth with some mention of the events leading to the assassination of President Lincoln by Edwin's brother, John Wilkes Booth. In the film, Edwin's days in the spotlight dwindle shortly after his brother is caught and killed for assassinating Lincoln." />
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 870 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

A tragic and sentimental story that depicts the early career of the 19th century American actor, Edwin Booth with some mention of the events leading to the assassination of President Lincoln by Edwin's brother, John Wilkes Booth. In the film, Edwin's days in the spotlight dwindle shortly after his brother is caught and killed for assassinating Lincoln.

Watch Prince of Players Trailer :

Review :

The Stage

The story of the Booth family of actors with the heavy drinking and mad father, Junius Brutus, played by Raymond Massey who is accompanied on his tours out west to the mining camps by son Edwin, a child actor who morphs into Richard Burton), while John Wilkes (John Derek) hones his acting skills and soaks up secessionist fervor in the South. The various stages are set for the young actors, with John Wilkes choosing to act on a bigger stage, as he says to his brother in one scene. The movie focuses on Edwin played by Richard Burton who takes over the Shakespeare roles his father leaves behind when he (the father) cannot carry on any longer. The big dramatic question is if Edwin will follow in his father's footsteps. Who rescues him from the same fate of his father but the beautiful Juliet to his Romeo played by Maggie MacNamara. It may seem a little contrived, but actually the film captures the times really well, portraying the pivotal roles of the theater, the stage, and the actors.

Streaming Duel on the Mississippi Online

Duel on the Mississippi (1955)iMDB Rating: 6.3
Date Released : 16 September 1955
Genre : Drama
Stars : Lex Barker, Patricia Medina, Warren Stevens, Craig Stevens." />
Movie Quality : HDrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Watch Duel on the Mississippi Trailer :

Review :

An usual Sam Katzman production

No surprises from this movie. But a rare one. It Takes on the shores on the Mississippi, with gamblers, land owners, planters, pirates and pistol duels between Lex Barker and the bad guy - I don't remember his name. I have already seen that a thousand times.

Patricia Medina is also foreseeable in this second rate production.

But what could we wait from a Sam Katzman one, even directed by William Castle, no the Castle who will amaze us several years later with his chillers such as Macabre, Tingler, House on the Haunted Hill, Mr Sardonicus, etc...

We can however watch it without boredom.

Watch Curtain Up (1952) Online

Curtain Up (1952)iMDB Rating: 6.6
Date Released : 31 January 1953
Genre : Comedy
Stars : Robert Morley, Margaret Rutherford, Kay Kendall, Michael Medwin. In a small town in the 1950's a repertory company meets on Monday morning to start rehearsing the following week's play. This is a ghastly thing written by the aunt of one of the theatre's directors. The producer doesn't try to hide his annoyance about it, and is further exercised when the authoress herself arrives to help. The cast have to try and sort out real-life problems that keep intruding ..." />
Movie Quality : HDrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

In a small town in the 1950's a repertory company meets on Monday morning to start rehearsing the following week's play. This is a ghastly thing written by the aunt of one of the theatre's directors. The producer doesn't try to hide his annoyance about it, and is further exercised when the authoress herself arrives to help. The cast have to try and sort out real-life problems that keep intruding as they wrestle with the play's dire dialogue.

Watch Curtain Up Trailer :

Review :

A gorgeous old fashioned bit of fun

Yes the love interest bit between two of te characters is tacked on. Yes it is rather small and cramped in it's setting. But this picture is great fun.

Margaret Rutherford does what she does best, and watching this film I couldn't help but lament at the current lack of any good female character actors. Women who are over 40 and don't mind showing it.

I loved this film, as much for it's humour, which is as funny today as it was then, as for the gorgeous touch of nostalgia it inspired. Surprising considering i was not even thought of in 1953 and i am not english.

See it it's fun, unoffensive and unashamably silly.

Watch One Step to Eternity (1954) Online

One Step to Eternity (1954)iMDB Rating: 6.4
Date Released : 17 December 1954
Genre : Thriller, Drama
Stars : Danielle Darrieux, Michel Auclair, Corinne Calvet, Miriam Di San Servolo. Francois Roques, a power-and-money-mad editor of a Paris newspaper (who justifies his actions by calling attention to his poverty-stricken childhood), invites four women to a housewarming at his penthouse apartment. He plans on one of them to meet death by means of a loose railing on the balcony. The invitees are: Constance, Francois' first wife, whose love and integrity also stood in the way of ..." />
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Francois Roques, a power-and-money-mad editor of a Paris newspaper (who justifies his actions by calling attention to his poverty-stricken childhood), invites four women to a housewarming at his penthouse apartment. He plans on one of them to meet death by means of a loose railing on the balcony. The invitees are: Constance, Francois' first wife, whose love and integrity also stood in the way of his schemes; Vera Volpone, his second wife, from whom he is seeking a divorce, and who, with the aid of her lover, is blackmailing Ffancois; Maggy, his mistress who aids him in his illegal transactions; and Cecile, his fiancée, who is pregnant by another man. The women arrive, tension overwhelms them and the host, three of the women depart...and Francois is alone with his intended victim. Despite a misleading Review/Comment on this site-page, the keyword is "intended."

Watch One Step to Eternity Trailer :

Review :

Did she jump or was she pushed?

She was there one minute Lying in a pool of herself

And then she was gone the next

With a twisted neck.

O she fell from the roof to the ground....

A crowd gathers around the building as the cops shout " move along!" .Someone fell from the terrace of "Larry" 's luxury flat. Larry (Michel Auclair)had gathered for a formal occasion his ex-wife (Darrieux),his wife (Corinne Calvet),his fiancée and his mistress.An ominous stormy evening in a chic apartment with champagne served by a Chinese butler.There was a bad moon on the rise;it seemed that someone was going to get killed tonight.But which of the four women?

The ex-wife?

She crossed a lot of people

Some she called friends

She thought she'd live forever

But forever always ends.

Darrieux portrays a painter who remained loyal and true to her friends,which her ex-husband did not.

The fiancée?

She used to live the life she used

To live life with a vengeance

And the chosen would dance

The chosen would dance in attendance

The fiancée is a spoiled child,she thinks that her dad's money can buy her anything .She's pregnant by a student who disappeared but she won't care if Larry passes for the father in her folk's eyes.

The wife?

She used to have style

She used to have style and to use it

And they say it turned bad

When the truth came around and she refused it

She married Larry just because thanks to him,an unscrupulous journalist,her false suicide made the headlines.(It's thoroughly credible:a French actress did that in 1947) Like Larry, would do anything to get fortune and fame.

The mistress?

They did not find no killer

and they did not find no note.

Maggy is a shady lady,who seems to blackmail Larry ;he' d like to recover a receipt she owns.

This is a fine film noir by Henri Decoin,which does not equal his best in the field ("non Coupable" "La Vérité sur Bébé Donge" ),but where the suspense is sustained till the very end and its unexpected twist.The flashbacks are introduced in an unusual aggressive way.They begin with bells: they herald a wedding but they sound like a toll.

Darrieux and Auclair would team up again in Périer's "Meurtres en 45 tours" (1960)

Many lines of this comment were taken from the lyrics of Richard Thompson's extraordinarily gloomy song "Did she jump " on his "Shoot out the lights' majestic album (1982).

Streaming Southwest Passage Online

Southwest Passage (1954)iMDB Rating: 5.7
Date Released : 1 April 1954
Genre : Western
Stars : Rod Cameron, Joanne Dru, John Ireland, John Dehner
Movie Quality : HDrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

Edward Beale is in charge of finding a shorter trail across the American desert and to also test the practicality of using camels in the west in this 3-D western. (An actual test once conducted in the Big Bend area of Texas.) Clint MacDoanld, a bank robber one jump ahead of a posse, joins the caravan by posing as a doctor. His sweetheart, Lilly, also comes along and signs on. There is a whole lot of footage of the grueling trek across the desert, but it begins to move when mule-skinner Matt Carroll becomes aware of MacDonald's true profession and he wants the gold from the bank robbery. The Apaches have shied away from attacking the train, because of their fear of the camels, but a camel dies and the jig is up as they lose their fear and here they come.

Watch Southwest Passage Trailer :

Review :

Joanne Dru Is Lovely in Her Cowboy Hat

Making the film must have taken great effort with location shooting in Utah. I would like seeing it in 3-D; the colour is vivid, well saturated. Director Ray Nazzaro knew his business; writer Harry Essex was not as skillful. The plot works but the dialogue often sounds silly.

The cast with beautiful Joanne Dru, her husband John Ireland, and Ron Cameron, along with excellent stock actors make watching this movie fun. You realise that actors like John Dehner, Darryl Hickman, and Stuart Randall enriched many films and television programs we enjoy.

I almost forgot about the camels while watching the movie. The hook works, I suppose, but that is not what makes it work. The fine cast, good direction, interesting photography, crisp editing, and great location do.

I enjoyed watching this movie.

Watch The Pickwick Papers Online

The Pickwick Papers (1952)iMDB Rating: 7.1
Date Released : 5 May 1954
Genre : Comedy, Drama
Stars : James Hayter, James Donald, Nigel Patrick, Joyce Grenfell. The Pickwick Club sends Mr. Pickwick and a group of friends to travel across England and to report back on the interesting things they find. In the course of their travels, they repeatedly encounter the friendly but disreputable Mr. Jingle, who becomes a continual source of trouble for all who know him. Pickwick himself is the victim of a number of misunderstandings that bring him both ..." />
Movie Quality : BRrip
Format : MKV
Size : 700 MB

Download Trailer Subtitle

The Pickwick Club sends Mr. Pickwick and a group of friends to travel across England and to report back on the interesting things they find. In the course of their travels, they repeatedly encounter the friendly but disreputable Mr. Jingle, who becomes a continual source of trouble for all who know him. Pickwick himself is the victim of a number of misunderstandings that bring him both embarrassment and problems with the law.

Watch The Pickwick Papers Trailer :

Review :

British Talk-fest

This film doesn't comfortably fit in any American format of humor. There's a tiny bit of slapstick but not much, it's not screwball, it's not a situation comedy or a sophisticated one, it's not particularly visual...The Brits had their sparkling Ealing comedies, beloved around the world, tightly directed by some great people. These comedies were brilliantly written and wonderfully acted. And they all had places to go. This is a roller-coaster ride of words following words, non-stop. The comedy is broad to say the least - no subtlety here - and I found myself waiting it out until the end. No, it's not Lean, of course, but the Pickwick Papers couldn't match David Copperfield either I wish I could find something positive to say. The "Carry On" series had the public in Great Britain begging for more. They flopped here so maybe that's the answer - the cultural approach to humor that works better for some countries than others.