Author Archives: rarefilm

Sister Emanuelle (1977) Giuseppe Vari, Laura Gemser, Mónica Zanchi, Gabriele Tinti, Drama, Erotic

sister_emanuelle
Renouncing her “sinful” past, Emanuelle has entered a convent and has dedicated herself to a life of service. Enter Monika, the free-spirited, free-loving daughter of a wealthy Baron. Emanuelle is charged with keeping Monika in line, but when the young girl’s wild ways bring back memories of her own sensual past, Emanuelle begins questioning her own religious and sexual identity. Advances from an escaped killer who is hiding in the convent serve to complicate matters further.
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Doto no taiketsu / Showdown at the Great Tone River (1959) Yasushi Sasaki, Utaemon Ichikawa, Chiezô Kataoka, Action, Drama

Doto no taiketsu AKA Showdown at the Great Tone River (1959)
One of the great stories from Japan’s rich history comes to life in this true tale of the bloody showdown between two rival yakuza gangs in the 1840’s. The battle between Boss Sukegoro of Iioka and Boss Shigezo of Sasagawa has been portrayed many times, most notably in the first Zatoichi film, where the blind man befriends the tubercular ronin Hirate Miki, before cutting him down in one of the great duels in cinema history. This all-star extravaganza pulls out all the stops, with appearances by virtually all of the great actors and actresses from Toei’s studio at the time. Ichikawa Utaemon’s portrayal of the kind-hearted, noble yakuza boss Shigezo of Sasagawa contrasts sharply with the devious Sukegoro of Iioka. Corrupt as he may have been, his men were all willing to give up their lives for him.
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Having Wonderful Crime (1945) A. Edward Sutherland, Pat O’Brien, George Murphy, Carole Landis, Comedy, Crime, Mystery

Having Wonderful Crime (1945)
Having Wonderful Crime spotlights Michael J. Malone, the murder-solving attorney created by author Craig Rice. The film is also ostensibly based on a novel by Rice, though precious little of the original actually made it to the screen. The story begins as Malone (Pat O’Brien) brusquely informs his newlywed friends Jake and Helene Justus (George Murphy and Carole Landis) that he’s not going to allow them to suck him into another murder mystery. Unfortunately for the attorney, Jake and Helene shortly afterward attend a stage magic show wherein the star magician (George Zucco) disappears for real! Their investigation leads to a resort hotel literally packed with murder suspects. When the newlyweds learn too much for their own good, it’s up to Malone to come to the rescue and nab the killer. One of the suspects is played by an actress named Anje Berens, who as “Gloria Holden” previously starred in Dracula’s Daughter (1936).
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Little Tony / Kleine Teun (1998) Alex van Warmerdam, Annet Malherbe, Ariane Schluter, Comedy, Drama, Romance

Little Tony (1998)
Farmer Brand can’t read and he is quite happy with that. His wife, Keet, who has to read him all the subtitles on the television, isn’t. She decides to hire a teacher for him. This is a beautiful young woman, called Lena. Brand falls in love with her. To his puzzlement and dismay Keet encourages him, because as she says she doesn’t want a husband with another woman in his head. She wants their love to grow stale. She also wants Lena to give Brand and her a son. The love between Brand and Lena does not grow stale easily and after the birth of little Teun, their strange menage a trois comes to a dramatic conclusion.
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Cola Candy Chocolate (1979) Sigi Rothemund, Olivia Pascal, Philippe Ricci, Dolly Dollar, Comedy, Romance, Erotic

Cola-Candy-Chocolate
After a nasty argument with her boyfriend Carl, young Gaby spontaneously accepts her girlfriend invitation to join her on a vacation to Manila. Her plans to forget about Carl succeed very rapidly as she meets Dr. Andreas Witzig, a young scholar who plans to marry his fiancee on the island. During the following days, Gaby tries her best to convince the man of her dreams to change his mind.
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The Birds (1963) Alfred Hitchcock, Rod Taylor, Tippi Hedren, Suzanne Pleshette, Horror, Mystery

The Birds (1963)
Melanie Daniels is the modern rich socialite, part of the jet-set who always gets what she wants. When lawyer Mitch Brenner sees her in a pet shop, he plays something of a practical joke on her, and she decides to return the favor. She drives about an hour north of San Francisco to Bodega Bay, where Mitch spends the weekends with his mother Lydia and younger sister Cathy. Soon after her arrival, however, the birds in the area begin to act strangely. A seagull attacks Melanie as she is crossing the bay in a small boat, and then, Lydia finds her neighbor dead, obviously the victim of a bird attack. Soon, birds in the hundreds and thousands are attacking anyone they find out of doors. There is no explanation as to why this might be happening, and as the birds continue their vicious attacks, survival becomes the priority.
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The Last Outpost (1935) Charles Barton, Louis J. Gasnier, Cary Grant, Claude Rains, Gertrude Michael, Action, Adventure, Romance

The Last Outpost (1935)
In World War I, British-officer Michael Andrews is captured by a band of Kurdish raiders on the Eastern Front, and is rescued by a man calling himself John Stevenson, although he refuses to tell his name to Andrews. The two men form a strange friendship, and help save an entire Kurdish village from a massacre and also avert a surprise attack on the British army-unit stationed there. Andrews suffers a wounded leg and is sent to the British military-hospital in Cairo. He falls in love with a nurse, Rosemary Haydon, and she with him, but she is married although she has not seen nor heard from her husband in over three years. It is at this point that the man who saved Andrews’ life turns up to claim his wife, who is Rosemary. The latter bids adieu to Andrews who does not know that the man he considers his best friend is also the husband of the woman he loves. But, by pure coincidence and chance, both Andrews and Rosemary’s husband come face-to-face again in a remote garrison that is under…
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Land Raiders (1969) Nathan Juran, Telly Savalas, George Maharis, Arlene Dahl, Action, Western

Land Raiders (1969)
Ruthless Vince Carden dominates the Arizona-territory town of Forge River and buys the scalps of murdered Indians. He has driven his brother Paul from his home, and this leads to the total disillusionment of his wife Martha. Haunted by the mysterious death of a girl he had loved, Paul ends his wandering and joins a wagon train heading for Forge River; with the train is Kate Mayfield, who is returning home after years of school in the East. Paul and Kate are the sole survivors when Apaches attack the train, in reprisal for a slaughter staged by Vince’s men. Vince uses the Indian attack on the train as an excuse to lead the raid on a defenseless Apache village, which sparks a massive assault on Forge River.
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The Man from the Diners’ Club (1963) Frank Tashlin, Danny Kaye, Cara Williams, Martha Hyer, Comedy

The Man from the Diners' Club (1963)
Mobster Foots Pulardos, who operates a health gym as a front, plans to flee to Mexico to evade government tax officials. His girl friend, Sugar Pye, suggests that he first arrange for the cremation of a man having his own peculiar identifying characteristic–feet of different sizes–and then apply for a Diners’ Club card for use in paying his fare. The request for the credit card comes to the desk of Ernie Klenk, a timid clerk. Nervous about his forthcoming marriage to the boss’s secretary, Lucy, Ernie inadvertently okays the application, then, discovering his mistake, rushes to the health gym to recover the club card he has issued.
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