An alien (Klaatu) with his mighty robot (Gort) land their spacecraft on Cold War-era Earth just after the end of World War II. They bring an important message to the planet that Klaatu wishes to tell to representatives of all nations. However, communication turns out to be difficult, so, after learning something about the natives, Klaatu decides on an alternative approach.
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Monthly Archives: July 2015
Das Phantom von Soho / The Phantom of Soho (1964) Franz Josef Gottlieb, Dieter Borsche, Barbara Rütting, Hans Söhnker
Sgt. Halan and Chief Ins. Patten of Scotland Yard are called in to investigate several murders which have taken place near the Sansibar, a Soho nightclub. They soon discover the true story of the hooded killer in a grisly skull mask and golden gloves killing off the survivors of the shipwrecked “Yolanda”.
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La 317ème section / The 317th Platoon (1965) Pierre Schoendoerffer, Jacques Perrin, Bruno Cremer, Pierre Fabre
In 1954, the Indochina War begins to come to a close following France’s defeat by the Viet Minh at the deadly Battle of Dîen Bîen Phû. French forces are in full retreat and risk being overrun at every turn — including the 317th Platoon, a unit of French soldiers and Laotian allies who are led by the idealistic but inexperienced sous-lieutenant Torrens and adjutant Willsdorf, a former soldier in the German Wehrmacht during WWII. Their survival depends on completing a trek through the dense, jungle-laden, expanse of enemy territory that stands between them and the safety of the nearest French outpost.
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L’enfer dans la peau / Sexus (1965) José Bénazéraf, Willy Braque, Yves Duffaut, Annie Josse
A beautiful heiress is kidnapped and held hostage until her wealthy father comes up with a ransom. The heiress develops an attraction to one of her kidnappers, but another member of the gang tries to rape her, leading to a deadly triangle.
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Sûpâ no onna / Supermarket Woman (1996) Jûzô Itami, Nobuko Miyamoto, Masahiko Tsugawa, Ryûnosuke Kaneda
Goro’s supermarket is not doing well; the rival “Bargains Galore” threatens his business. A chance encounter with Hanako, an energetic woman he knew in grade school, results in big retail and life changes.
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The End of the Affair (1955) Edward Dmytryk, Deborah Kerr, Van Johnson, John Mills
In wartorn London Maurice Bendrix falls in love with neighbor Sarah Miles. They begin an illicit romance behind Sarah’s husband’s back. While war does not last forever, neither does love in this existentialist tale.
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The Last of the Fast Guns (1958) George Sherman, Jock Mahoney, Gilbert Roland, Linda Cristal
A rich, dying Easterner hires gunfighter Brad Ellison to find his brother and heir in Mexico. En route, it becomes clear to Ellison that his is a dying profession. At a remote rancho, Ellison enlists ranch foreman Miles Lang to help him search the hills where the missing man is rumored to have lived. They find nothing …except that someone wants to kill them; and Ellison becomes wrapped in a maze of double crosses.
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Three Hours to Kill (1954) Alfred L. Werker, Dana Andrews, Donna Reed, Dianne Foster
After three years on the run, Jim Guthrie returns with the scar of a rope burn on his neck. In flashback we learn how he was framed for murder but then escaped from the lynch mob just as he was about to be hung. Tired of running, he has returned to find the real killer and the Sheriff has given him just three hours to do it.
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Norma Rae (1979) Martin Ritt, Sally Field, Beau Bridges, Ron Leibman
Norma Rae is a southern textile worker employed in a factory with intolerable working conditions. This concern about the situation gives her the gumption to be the key associate to a visiting labor union organizer. Together, they undertake the difficult, and possibly dangerous, struggle to unionize her factory.
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Saddle The Wind (1958) Robert Parrish, John Sturges, Robert Taylor, Julie London, John Cassavetes
Steve Sinclair is a world a world-weary former gunslinger, now living as a peaceful farmer. Things go wrong when his wild younger brother Tony arrives on the scene with his new bride Joan Blake.
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Room for One More (1952) Norman Taurog, Cary Grant, Betsy Drake, Lurene Tuttle
Anne and “Poppy” Rose are the average American family, with three quirky kids. Anne has a good heart and gives lost cats and dogs a home – and one day also the orphan Jane, a problem child who already tried to kill herself once. At first Poppy is worried and wants to get rid of her, but with love and patience they finally manage to integrate her into the family. Just then Anne invites another orphan, the aggressive handicapped Jimmy-John, to their summer vacation.
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The Swordsman (1948) Joseph H. Lewis, Larry Parks, Ellen Drew, George Macready
In the eighteenth century, in Scotland, families and Glowan McArden support a violent and long enmity. Alexander, an attractive member of the clan McArden, falls for the beautiful lady Barbara Glowan. Quickly, their relationship arouses anger Barbara’s cousin, Robert Glowan, trying to destroy the enemy forever family. Groom, anxious to marry his sweetheart, try the two irreconcilable positions coexist peacefully.
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Giordano Bruno (1973) Giuliano Montaldo, Gian Maria Volontè, Hans Christian Blech, Mathieu Carrière
Flying from his enemies in the Catholic Church, the free thinking philosopher, poet and scientist Giordano Bruno (1548-1600) has found some protection in Venice. But the Roman Inquisition, fearing his influence in Europe, wants to bring him on trial for ‘heresy’.
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Death of a President (2006) Gabriel Range, Hend Ayoub, Becky Ann Baker, George W. Bush
Years after the assassination of President George W. Bush in Chicago, an investigative documentary examines that as-yet-unsolved crime.
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Prince Valiant (1954) Henry Hathaway, James Mason, Janet Leigh, Robert Wagner
Young Prince Valiant, son of the exiled King of Scandia, journeys to Camelot to become a knight at King Arthur’s Round Table. He hopes to help his father reclaim his throne from the pagan usurper Sligon and restore the Christian faith to their homeland. On his journey he stumbles on the mysterious Black Knight plotting with the Viking pretender to overthrow Arthur. Barely escaping with his life, Valiant encounters Sir Gawaine, a friend of his father’s who tutors the young Viking in the skills needed to be a knight. Valiant and Gawaine’s pupil/mentor relationship is complicated by their romantic involvement with Princess Aleta and her sister Ilene, daughters of a British nobleman. If Valiant is to restore his father’s throne and prevent the coup d’etat against Arthur, he must uncover the true identity of the Black Knight.
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