Written by James M. Tate / 12/31/2023 / No comments / action , adventure , alex nicol , anthony mann , arthur kennedy , cathy o'donnell , donald crisp , jack elam , james stewart , mystery , thriller , wallace ford , western
JAMES STEWART WITH DONALD CRISP IN 'THE MAN FROM LARAMIE'
Title: THE MAN FROM LARAMIE Year: 1955 Rating: ****1/2 Within moments of Anthony Mann's THE MAN FROM LARAMIE, the old and new aspects of...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/30/2023 / No comments / allen garfield , comedy , counter-culture , john astin , katharine ross , m. emmett walsh , orson welles , seventies , tom smothers
TOM SMOTHERS & ORSON WELLES IN 'GET TO KNOW YOUR RABBIT'
Title: GET TO KNOW YOUR RABBIT Year: 1972 Rating: *** Ironically, Brian De Palma's GET TO KNOW YOUR RABBIT... an anti-corporate, counter...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/27/2023 / No comments / claire trevor , daun kennedy , dick powell , film noir or melodrama , forties , gumshoe , mike mazurski , raymond chandler , suspense , thriller
DICK POWELL'S PHILIP MARLOWE TACKLES 'MURDER, MY SWEET'
Claire Trevor with Dick Powell & Anne Shirley in MURDER, MY SWEET Year: 1944 Rating: ****1/2 "You go barging around without a clear...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/25/2023 / No comments / comic book , cop , crime , dragnet , exploitation , harry morgan , jack webb , sixties , tv series
INFAMOUS CRIMSON CRUSADER EPISODE FROM 'DRAGNET 1969'
Tittle: GOLIATH AWAITS 1981 Emma Samms, Mark Harmon, Robert Forster Rating: ***1/2 Here's proof that young people worshiping comic book ...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/21/2023 / No comments / ana gabriel , brion james , eric roberts , lance henriksen , neo noir , nineties , road movie , rural , serial killer , suspense
LANCE HENRIKSEN & ERIC ROBERTS IN 'THE NATURE OF THE BEAST'
Eric Roberts & Lance Henriksen in THE NATURE OF THE BEAST Year: 1995 Rates: ***1/2 An exploitation Oscar and Felix casts Eric Roberts a...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/19/2023 / No comments / brett halsley , dana lund , exploitation , fifties , gang , high school , teen , yvonne lime
YVONNE LIME IN 'HIGH SCHOOL HELLCATS' WITH SUSANNE SIDNEY
Title: HIGH SCHOOL HELLCATS Year: 1958 Rating: ***1/2 HIGH SCHOOL HELLCATS seems like three movies in one, and the titular tale... about a g...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/18/2023 / No comments / alan hale sr , bert lahr , comedy , forties , lloyd gough , max showalter , milton berle , ruth roman , virginia mayo , warner archives
MILTON BERLE & VIRGINIA MAYO IN 'ALWAYS LEAVE THEM LAUGHING'
Title: ALWAYS LEAVE THEM LAUGHING Year: 1949 Rating: **** In the frame story of the first television star Milton Berle's 1949 big screen...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/15/2023 / No comments / antonio margheriti , exploitation , frank pesce , heist , james francsiscus , jaws-clone , karen black , karen black interviews , lee majors , margaux hemingway , marisa berenson , neo noir , piranha , seventies
LEE MAJORS, MARGAUX HEMINGWAY & KAREN BLACK IN 'KILLER FISH'
The Naked Sun poster aka KILLER FISH Year: 1979 This infamous low-budget Brazilian import isn't so bad: Centering on a group of diamond...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/12/2023 / No comments / action , adventure , biker , bruce dern , counter-culture , diane ladd , dick miller , drama , frank maxwell , hangout , michael j. pollard , nancy sinatra , peter fonda , sixties
BEFORE 'EASY RIDER' WAS ROGER CORMAN'S 'THE WILD ANGELS'
Peter Fonda and Nancy Sinatra in THE WILD ANGELS Year: 1966 Rating: **** Roger Corman's THE WILD ANGELS was the most significant precurs...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/08/2023 / No comments / ben johnson , bill mckinney , charles bronson , ed lauter , jill ireland , mystery , rayford barnes , richard crenna , sally kirkland , thriller , tom gries , western
CHARLES BRONSON WITH JILL IRELAND IN 'BREAKHEART PASS'
Charles Bronson in BREAKHEART PASS Year: 1975 Rating: ****1/2 British actress Jill Ireland sporadically appearing in husband Charles Bronson...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/06/2023 / No comments / action , charles bronson , crime , film noir or melodrama , howard mcnear , lawrence tierney , sixties , thriller , tv series , yvonne craig
CHARLES BRONSON'S 'MAN WITH A CAMERA' WITH YVONNE CRAIG
Yvonne Craig & Charles Bronson in Man With A Camera: Hot Ice Cream 1960 Rates: ****1/2 At the end of Lawrence Tierney's career's...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/05/2023 / No comments / action , article , charles bronson , crime , hit-man , jan-michael vincent , jerry fielding , jill ireland , michael winner , neo noir , seventies , team-up , thriller
PARENTHETICAL ANALYSIS OF MICHAEL WINNER'S 'THE MECHANIC'
Charles Bronson in THE MECHANIC from 1974 Rating: **** By the time professional hit-man Arthur Bishop, skillfully underplayed by Charles Bro...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/04/2023 / No comments / body count , cannon , charles bronson , eighties , exploitation , franchise , gang , jimmy page , laurence fishburne , michael winner , sequel
MICHAEL WINNER REDIRECTS CHARLES BRONSON IN 'DEATH WISH II'
Title: DEATH WISH II Year: 1982 Rating: **** Losing his wife entirely and daughter mentally to lethal hoods from the first movie had aged Ch...
Written by James M. Tate / 12/02/2023 / No comments / action , body count , charles bronson , christopher guest , death wish , edward grover , exploitation , hope lange , jeff goldblum , michael winner , seventies , steven keats , stuart margolin
MICHAEL WINNER DIRECTS CHARLES BRONSON IN 'DEATH WISH'
Title: DEATH WISH Year: 1974 Rating: ***** Of director Michael Winner and actor Charles Bronson's crime-trilogy spanning three consecuti...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/22/2023 / No comments / dana andrews , jeffrey hunter , kathie browne , neo noir , sixties , thriller , viveca lindfors , warner archives , william conrad
JEFF HUNTER & DANA ANDREWS IN WILLIAM CONRAD'S 'BRAINSTORM'
Title: BRAINSTORM Director: William Conrad Year: 1965 Rates: ****1/2 In 1965, veteran actor Dana Andrews was busier acting than his BRAINSTO...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/21/2023 / No comments / barry sullivan , jazz-score , jeanette nolan , joey heatherton , melodrama , neo noir , nicolas coster , romance , sixties , thriller , troy donahue , william conrad
WILLAM CONRAD REINCARNATES NOIR WITH 'MY BLOOD RUNS COLD'
Title: MY BLOOD RUNS COLD Cast: Troy Donahue, Joey Heatherton Year: 1965 Year: **** Along with throwaway horror flick TWO ON A GUILLOTINE ...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/17/2023 / No comments / bel air productions , fifties , film noir or melodrama , jazz-score , john bromfield , joi lansing , mark dana , robert osterloh , thriller
JOI LANSING STEALS 'HOT CARS' STARRING JOHN BROMFIELD
Joi Lansing, John Bromfield, Carol Shanno & Mark Dana in HOT CARS Year: 1956 Rates: **** * Despite not making any Film Noir lists, HOT C...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/16/2023 / No comments / action , adventure , denver pyle , fifties , howard duff , john mcintire , leo gordon , lex barker , mala powers , treasure , western , william demarest
LEX BARKER, MALA POWERS & LEO GORDON 'THE YELLOW MOUNTAIN'
Lex Barker & Leo Gordon in THE YELLOW MOUNTAIN Year: 1954 Rating: ****1/2 Any movie about mining for gold will eventually include double...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/15/2023 / No comments / adventure , barton maclane , bruce bennett , forties , humphrey bogart , john huston , mexico , robert blake , thriller , tim holt , treasure , walter huston
HUMPHREY BOGART STEALS 'THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE'
Title: THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE Year: 1948 Rating: **** By the time TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE came out, Humphrey Bogart was alrea...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/13/2023 / No comments / action , adventure , candice rialson , clint eastwood , george kennedy , gregory walcott , hit-man , jack cassidy , neo noir , seventies , thayer david , vonetta mcgee
CLINT EASTWOOD IN 'THE EIGER SANCTION' WITH GEORGE KENNEDY
Title: THE EIGER SANCTION Year: 1975 Rating: *** Grade: C+ Clint Eastwood's THE EIGER SANCTION foreshadows RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK havin...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/10/2023 / No comments / 2023 , alexander payne , comedy , counter-culture , drama , new , paul giamatti , teen , time period
ALEXANDER PAYNE & PAUL GIAMATTI REUNITE FOR 'THE HOLDOVERS'
Title: THE HOLDOVERS Year: 2023 Rating: ** Director Alexander Payne is passive/aggressive when it comes to his previous SIDEWAYS star Paul G...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/09/2023 / No comments / andrew duggan , comedy , dan aykroyd , donna dixon , eighties , fran drescher , george furth , hank salas , howard hesseman , lynda lei , prostitute , t.k. carter
DAN AYKROYD WITH HOWARD HESSEMAN IN 'DOCTOR DETROIT'
End Credit Fake Sequel Gag from DOCTOR DETROIT Year: 1982 Rating: ***1/2 By 1982, Dan Aykroyd wasn't completely into playing a total go...
MICHAEL MADSEN AND SCOTT HAMM DUENAS IN 'FINAL WAGER'
Michael Madsen in FINAL WAGER Year: 2024 Michael Madsen's famous tough guy voice has become even harsher with age, providing an underlin...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/05/2023 / No comments / action , christina gregg , exploitation , luana anders , mark damon , melodrama , race car , roger corman , romance , sixties , sport , william campbell , william shatner
CHRISTINA GREGG IN ROGER CORMAN'S 'THE YOUNG RACERS'
Christina Gregg with Mark Damon in THE YOUNG RACERS Year: 1963 Rates: ** There are bad b-movies that are still entertaining, and then there ...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/03/2023 / No comments / dorothy malone , film noir or melodrama , gumshoe , howard hawks , humphrey bogart , lauren bacall , martha vickers , mystery , raymond chandler
HUMPHREY BOGART WITH LAUREN BACALL IN 'THE BIG SLEEP'
Title: THE BIG SLEEP Year: 1946 Rating: ***1/2 One of the most important agendas director Howard Hawks had for Humphrey Bogart in THE BIG SL...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/02/2023 / No comments / action , adventure , british film noir/melodrama , ernest hemingway , forties , howard hawks , humphrey bogart , lauren bacall , walter brennan , world war II
HUMPHREY BOGART & LAUREN BACALL 'TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT'
Title: TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT Year: 1944 Rating: ***1/2 After Lauren Bacall, in her first feature film, says her iconic line about knowing how...
Written by James M. Tate / 11/01/2023 / No comments / boxing , expose , felice orlandi , fifties , humphrey bogart , jan sterling , marian carr , mark robson , melodrama , nehemiah persoff , rod steiger , sport
HUMPHREY BOGART AND ROD STEIGER IN 'THE HARDER THEY FALL'
Title: ANTS Year: 1977 Rating: **** The legendary Humphrey Bogart's last movie, during the mid-1950's when the big message could bec...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/31/2023 / No comments / ants , barry van dyke , bernie casey , brian dennehy , creature , eco horror , myrna loy , robert foxworth , seventies , steve franken , suzanne somers
SUZANNE SOMERS, ROBERT FOXWORTH & BERNIE CASEY IN 'ANTS'
Title: ANTS Year: 1977 Rating: **** Television-movie originally titled IT HAPPENED AT LAKEWOOD MANOR sounded more like a ghost story than ec...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/30/2023 / No comments / body count , brian donlevy , creature , fifties , gordon jackson , hammer films , harold lang , horror , jack warner , jane aird , jane asher , richard wordsworth , science-fiction , val guest
VAL GUEST DIRECTS HAMMER'S 'THE QUATERMASS XPERIMENT'
Richard Wordsworth in QUARTERMASS XPERIMENT Year: 1955 Rates: **** Very much like an astronaut's return episode of THE TWILIGHT ZONE fou...
VAL GUEST DIRECTS HAMMER'S 'QUATERMASS 2' WITH BRIAN DONLEVY
Original British Title: QUATERMASS 2 American: ENEMY FROM SPACE Year: 1957 Rating: **** Both of Val Guest's 1950's Hammer QUATERMASS...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/29/2023 / No comments / christopher lee , eighties , emma samms , john carradine , mark harmon , robert forster , world war II
MARK HARMON, EMMA SAMMS & ROBERT FORSTER 'GOLIATH AWAITS'
Tittle: GOLIATH AWAITS 1981 Emma Samms, Mark Harmon, Robert Forster Rating: ***1/2 Less than two-hours into the three-plus-hour GOLIATH AWAI...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/28/2023 / No comments / ian ziering , jason priestley , matthew perry , memorial , neo noir , nicolas coster , nineties , tv series
MATTHEW PERRY NEO NOIR EPISODE OF 'BEVERLY HILLS 90210'
Matthew Perry and Jason Priestly Beverly Hills 90210 Year: 1991 Rates: *** Having caught an extremely horrific strain of COVID and suffering...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/20/2023 / No comments / 2023 , album , bill wyman , charlie watts , keith richards , mick jagger , mick taylor , music , rolling stones , ron wood
NOSTALGIC REVIEW OF NEW ROLLING STONES 'HACKNEY DIAMONDS'
THE ROLLING STONES: HACKNEY DIAMONDS Year: 2023 Grade: A After several uneventful new wave attempts of solo stardom, many forget or won...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/19/2023 / No comments / carlos romero , craig hill , dayton lummis , irene tedrow , marcia henderson , neo noir , robert lowery , sixties
MARCIA HENDERSON AND MARCIA HENDERSON IN 'DEADLY DUO'
Title: DEADLY DUO Year: 1962 Rating: ***1/2 From George Montgomery to Rock Hudson, actress Marcia Henderson usually played the good girl to ...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/12/2023 / No comments / action , british , cop , dennis waterman , janet key , john thaw , kidnapping , seventies , stuart wilson , sweeney
JOHN THAW IN 'THE SWEENEY: ABDUCTION" WITH STUART WILSON
Stuart Wilson and Janet Key in THE SWEENEY: ABDUCTION Year: 1975 Rates: ***1/2 John Thaw's Inspector Regan is the kind of sex symbol tha...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/11/2023 / No comments / action , british , cop , dennis waterman , garfield morgan , john clive , john thaw , maurice roëves , seventies , sweeney
JOHN THAW WITH JOHN CLIVE IN 'THE SWEENEY: BIG BROTHER'
John Clive in THE SWEENEY: BIG BROTHER Year: 1975 Rating: ***1/2 Like the film noir WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS, as an otherwise brutal cop look...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/10/2023 / No comments / action , bill maynard , british , cop , dennis waterman , john thaw , seventies , sweeney , tv series
JOHN THAW & DENNIS WATERMAN IN 'THE SWEENEY: SUPERSNOUT'
John Thaw and Dennis Waterman in THE SWEENEY: SUPERSNOUT Year: 1975 Rates: *** Whenever THE SWEENEY writers want to get under John Thaw'...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/09/2023 / No comments / alfred marks , british neo noir , crime , gangster , herbert lom , julie shearing , melodrama , sixties
SEAN CONNERY & YVONNE ROMAIN IN 'THE FRIGHTENED CITY'
Poster image of Yvonne Romain for THE FRIGHTENED CITY Year: 1961 Rating: ** With a terrific title like THE FRIGHTENED CITY, a British Neo No...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/08/2023 / No comments / action , depression-era , frank mchugh , gangster , gladys george , humphrey bogart , james cagney , jeffrey lynn , joe sawyer , priscilla lane , raoul walsh , robert armstrong , thirties , world war I
JAMES CAGNEY & HUMPHREY BOGART IN 'THE ROARING TWENTIES'
Title: THE ROARING TWENTIES Year: 1939 Rating: ***** At one point, only fifteen-minutes in, when James Cagney shuffles across the cheap apar...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/06/2023 / No comments / crime , film noir or melodrama , frank craven , james cagney , joan blondell , mob , romance , thirties , victor jory
JAMES CAGNEY & JOAN BLONDELL HIDE OUT IN 'HE WAS HER MAN'
Lobby Card for HE WAS HER MAN Year: 1934 James Cagney dime-novel-style programmer has his character Flicker Hayes, newly released from priso...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/05/2023 / No comments / adventure , film noir or melodrama , forties , howard hawks , humphrey bogart , lauren bacall , walter brennan
HUMPHREY BOGART & LAUREN BACALL 'TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT'
Title: TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT Director: Howard Hawks Year: 1944 Rating: ***1/2 Energetic, adventurous melodrama, which might evoke a great sen...
Written by James M. Tate / 10/01/2023 / No comments / ann sheridan , anthony quinn , donald crisp , elia kazan , forties , james cagney , melodrama , music , romance
JAMES CAGNEY WITH ANN SHERIDAN IN 'CITY FOR CONQUEST'
James Cagney and Ann Sheridan in CITY FOR CONQUEST Year: 1940 Rates: ***1/2 James Cagney, as a talented yet reluctant boxer, in one scene......
Written by James M. Tate / 9/30/2023 / No comments / action , gangster , james cagney , jean harlow , joan blondell , mae clarke , melodrama , thirties
JAMES CAGNEY REPLACES EDWARD WOODS FOR 'THE PUBLIC ENEMY'
Title: THE PUBLIC ENEMY Year: 1931 Rating: **** It's already known but equally confusing when THE PUBLIC ENEMY prologue introduces a tal...
Written by James M. Tate / 9/24/2023 / No comments / agathe natanson , anthony perkins , charles bronson , french , jill ireland , mystery , nicolas gessner , seventies , thriller
CHARLES BRONSON 'SOMEONE BEHIND THE DOOR' ANTHONY PERKINS
Title: 1971 Title: SOMEONE BEHIND THE DOOR Rating: ***1/2 French shot/English speaking psychological thriller mirroring François Truffaut mi...
Written by James M. Tate / 9/23/2023 / No comments / adaptation , akim tamiroff , anthony perkins , franz kafka , import , jeanne moreau , jess hahn , mystery , neo noir , orson welles , romy schneider , sixties , thriller
ORSON WELLES PUTS ANTHONY PERKINS THROUGH 'THE TRIAL'
Anthony Perkins in Orson Welles's THE TRIAL Year: 1962 Rating: ***1/2 Before his final William Shakespeare adaptation CHIMES AT MIDNIGHT...
Written by James M. Tate / 9/22/2023 / No comments / agnes moorehead , classic , delores del rio , everette sloane , film noir or melodrama , forties , hit-man , joseph cotten , mystery , nazi , norman foster , orson welles , ruth warrick , suspense
ORSON WELLES WARTIME CRIME POTBOILER 'JOURNEY INTO FEAR'
Joseph Cotten in JOURNEY INTO FEAR Director: Norman Foster Producer: Orson Welles Year 1943 rating **** An entertaining, lightweight crime ...
Written by James M. Tate / 9/20/2023 / No comments / action , bruce dern , car , crime , edward walsh , felice orlandi , getaway driver , isabelle adjani , matt clark , neo noir , rudy ramos , ryan o'neal , seventies , suspense , thriller , twilight time , walter hill
BRUCE DERN TAILING RYAN O'NEAL IN WALTER HILL'S 'THE DRIVER'
Title: THE DRIVER Year: 1978 Rates: **** An action vehicle but not entirely, Walter Hill's THE DRIVER is more a meticulous, character-dr...
All Time Popular
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Robyn Hilton enters into an eclectic exploitation comedy career in Wonder Women circa 1973 As mentioned a few posts ago, ROBYN HILTON, b...
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year: 1978 cast: Allen Garfield, Leif Garrett, Kathleen Lloyd, Tony Alva, Pam Kenneally rating: ***1/2 Although promoted as a Leif Garr...
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Kari Michaelsen in Saturday the 14th year: 1982 In LOVE AT FIRST BITE, a popular comedy that took the vampire genre by satire, Richard ...
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Cornelia Sharpe in BUSTING Year: 1974 Rating: **** Starring Elliott Gould and Robert Blake as determined vice cops BUSTING hookers, makin...
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Mary-Louise Weller in NATIONAL LAMPOON'S ANIMAL HOUSE ANIMAL HOUSE, directed by John Landis and produced by Ivan Reitman, stars John Be...
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Kerri Green and John Candy in SUMMER RENTAL Year: 1985 John Candy, in his first leading role, plays a burnt-out air traffic controller ...
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Robyn Hilton on STARSKY AND HUTCH Model/Actress ROBYN HILTON played Mel Brook's secretary in BLAZING SADDLES and turns up in an epis...
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Robyn Hilton in Video Vixens the same year as Blazing Saddles: 1974 The Anthology of Comedic Parodies, already done in several Woody All...
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CADDDYSHACK is best known for the iconic leading actors: Rodney Dangerfield, Chevy Chase, Ted Knight, and Bill Murray, but originally the ...
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Elizabeth James and Tom Laughlin on equal ground YEAR: 1967 THE BORN LOSERS wasn't supposed to happen but thank God it did since BIL...
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JOHN GUILLERMIN DIRECTS RICHARD ROUNDTREE 'SHAFT IN AFRICA'
Richard Roundtree from SHAFT IN AFRICA Year: 1973 Rates: ***1/2 Director John Guillermin's SHAFT IN AFRICA is such a deliberate espionag...