Tag Archives: USA

Tower of Evil / Horror on Snape Island (1972) Jim O’Connolly, Bryant Haliday, Jill Haworth, Mark Edwards, Horror

Tower of Evil (1972) Horror on Snape Island
This gory low-budget British outing involves a team of archaeologists landing on fog-shrouded Snape Island – recently the site of a hideous double murder – in search of the tomb of a Phoenician chief and subsequently falling victim to an unseen maniac. Accompanying the shore party is a private detective (Bryant Halliday), hired by the family of the young woman suspected of the crimes (Candace Glendenning), who is determined to get to the bottom of the mysterious murders. Though it is eventually determined that the real killer is still at large, the archaeologists stubbornly refuse to abort their dig…and summarily suffer the consequences. Released originally in 1972, this crass, exploitative potboiler (based on a story by horror author George Baxt) found its way to American theaters in 1981 as Beyond the Fog in an attempt to cash in on John Carpenter’s 1980 film. Released later to video and cable as Tower of Evil.
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The Single Standard (1929) John S. Robertson, Greta Garbo, Nils Asther, Johnny Mack Brown, Drama, Romance

The Single Standard (1929)
The wealthy Arden Stuart is bored in a party; after refusing the wedding proposal of Tommy Hewlett, she drives her car with her driver to a lonely place. She has one night stand with him and returns to the party; then she witnesses the driver being fired by a relative and committing suicide. In a rainy day, Arden goes to an exposition and meets the painter and aspirant boxer Packy Cannon. They sail to the South Seas together in his sailboat and Arden falls in love for him. However, a couple of months later, Packy dumps her and brings her back to her city, traveling to China alone. The heartbroken Arden is proposed again by Tommy and gets married with him. Three years later, Arden meets Packy by chance and becomes divided between her unconditional love for Packy and the love for her son.
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The Halliday Brand (1957) Joseph H. Lewis, Joseph Cotten, Viveca Lindfors, Betsy Blair, Drama, Western

The Halliday Brand (1957)
As a man returns home to see his dying father, the story of the alienation between father and son is told in flashback. Purposely letting his daughter’s lover get lynched, shooting the lynched man’s father when he threatens him with a gun, and the bullying tactics used by him as a Sheriff causes the son to leave. The son now plans to ruin his father and get his Sheriff’s badge removed.
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Francis of Assisi (1961) Michael Curtiz, Bradford Dillman, Dolores Hart, Stuart Whitman, Biography, Drama, History

Francis of Assisi (Michael Curtiz, 1961)
Francis Bernardone (Bradford Dillman) is the son of a wealthy cloth merchant in Assisi, who gives up all his worldly goods to dedicate himself to God. Clare (Dolores Hart) is a young aristocratic woman who, according to the film, is so taken with St. Francis that she leaves her family and becomes a nun. By this time (1212 A.D.), St. Francis has a well-established reputation for his vows of poverty. The movie goes on to note miracles (such as the appearance of the stigmata on Francis’s hands and feet) and other aspects of his life, up to and including his death on October 3, 1226.
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Seven Thieves (1960) Henry Hathaway, Edward G. Robinson, Rod Steiger, Joan Collins, Crime, Drama

Seven Thieves (1960)
In Monte Carlo, Theo Wilkins recruits his young protégé Paul Mason – just released from prison – to help him rob the famous casino of $4 million. The plan is straightforward. On the night of the Governor’s Ball, Theo will create a distraction in the casino by having one of the team collapse requiring urgent medical attention. During that time Paul and another member of the crew will get the money from the vault. When the ambulance arrives, the money will leave with the sick man. The plan is a good one but not everyone will survive the robbery and no one will get rich from it.
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Beginning of the End (1957) Bert I. Gordon, Peter Graves, Peggie Castle, Morris Ankrum, Sci-Fi

Beginning of the End (Bert I. Gordon, 1957)
An attractive reporter investigating the mysterious destruction of an Illinois town stumbles upon a secret government laboratory conducting radiation experiments on vegetables. The lead scientist is eager to help find out what happened. Together they discover that giant grasshoppers are behind the devastation. Worse yet, thousands of them are headed toward Chicago! Can they be stopped… or is this the BEGINNING OF THE END?
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