• John Huston – Beat the Devil (1953)

    1951-1960AdventureComedyJohn HustonUnited Kingdom

    Humphrey Bogart stars as one of five disreputable adventurers who are trying to get uranium out of East Africa. Bogart’s associates include pompous fraud Robert Morley, and Peter Lorre as the German-accented “O’Hara”, whose wartime record is forever a source of speculation and suspicion. Becoming involved in Bogart’s machinations are a prim British married couple (Edward Underdown and blonde-wigged Jennifer Jones). As a climax to their many misadventures and double-crosses, the uranium seekers end up facing extermination by an Arab firing squad. The satirical nature of Beat the Devil eluded many moviegoers in 1953, and the film was a failure. The fact that the picture attained cult status in lesser years failed to impress its star Humphrey Bogart, who could only remember that he lost a considerable chunk of his own money when he became involved in the project. Peter Viernick worked on the script on an uncredited basis. Beat the Devil eventually fell into public domain, leading to numerous inferior editions by second and third-tiered labels.Read More »

  • John Goldschmidt – Play for Today: Vampires (1979)

    1971-1980DramaHorrorJohn GoldschmidtThe Wednesday Play & Play for TodayUnited Kingdom

    “Vampires” is set in (then) present-day Liverpool and is about a young lad who finds proof in some catacombs that a vampire exists. Along with his classmates he organises a big hunt for it.
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  • Almantas Grikevicius – Ave, Vita! (1969)

    Drama1961-1970Almantas GrikeviciusArthouseLithuania

    This philosophical drama offers a psychological reflection of the post-war period. Caesar, a former Nazi concentration camp prisoner, sifts through his traumatic experiences. His memories materialize against the background of the new modern buildings of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, and become even stronger when Caesar learns of the death of a friend and fellow traveler. Caesar’s daughter Veronica is a fervent young playwright seeking to immortalize her father’s experience on film. However, her attitude towards her father’s past is quite different from his own. Adopting a boldly non-linear narrative, AVE, VITA! takes the audience on a hallucinatory journey from the war years to the then-contemporary realities of the Soviet era.Read More »

  • Geoffrey Sax – Broken Trust (1995)

    1991-2000Geoffrey SaxThrillerUSA

    Judge Nash is highly regarded for his position and decisions in the courtroom. He’s approached by a special agent from a government task force investigating corrupt judges and lawyers, and asked to participate in a sting operation. Initially it’s against some people Nash has no trouble believing are corrupt, but as the scope of the sting widens to include some of his friends, he tries to get out. That’s when the agent threatens to reveal information that would embarrass Judge Nash if he doesn’t continue.Read More »

  • Nicolás Echevarría – Eco de la montaña AKA Echo of the Mountain (2014)

    2011-2020DocumentaryMexicoNicolás Echevarría

    Echo of the Mountain presents a look into the life and work of Santos de la Torre, a great Huichol artist who, like his people, lives in oblivion. Ironically, one of Santos’ murals was selected by then-President Ernesto Zedillo to represent Mexican culture in a privileged location in Paris. The artist was never paid for his work. We will follow Santos during his pilgrimage to Wirikuta, where he will ask the gods’ for permission to create a new mural. This new mural will portray the history, mythology, and religious practices of the Huichol people. We will take the audience on a journey across 385 miles of the “Peyote Route,” which is in danger of disappearing unless it receives the protection of UNESCO.
    Written by Echo of the MountainRead More »

  • Ryûtarô Nakagawa – Yagate umi e to todoku AKA One Day, You Will Reach The Sea (2022) (HD)

    Drama2021-2030JapanRyûtarô Nakagawa

    Quote:
    Mana Kotani was friends with Sumire Utsuki for years. She admired Sumire’s freewheeling ways and mysterious charm, but Sumire broke off connections with her. Later, Mana hears of Sumire’s death, which she cannot get over.Read More »

  • Jazzsiam – Kon Song Jao AKA Silhouette of God (1989)

    Drama1981-1990AsianJazzsiamThailand

    Everybody wants to lead a good life such as Karm, a young farmer who foolishly believes in communion with spirits. Karm has been used by Boonma to fool the people off their money. Karm falls in love and then realizes that everything he has done was wrong. In the end Karm destroys those believes that he had created.Read More »

  • Konstantin Eggert & Vladimir Gardin – Medvezhya svadba AKA The Bear’s Wedding (1925)

    1921-1930HorrorKonstantin EggertSilentSoviet silent cinemaUSSRVladimir Gardin

    Quote:
    Grigorii Grebner and Anatolii Lunacharskii adapted Lunacharskii’s play (based on a story by Prosper Merimee) to the screen. Since it was yet another glaring example of the commercial “line” of the studio Mezhrabpom Rus’, “The Bear’s Wedding” was an odd effort indeed for the Commissar of Enlightenment to be associated with.Read More »

  • Nikos Nikolaidis – Proini Peripolos AKA Morning Patrol (1987)

    1981-1990GermanyNikos NikolaidisSci-FiThriller

    A woman is walking alone through an abandoned city. She approaches the forbidden zone and tries to pass through. Everywhere the Morning Patrol and deceptive traps are watching. The city itself is alive but uncontrolled. Computer voices warn non-existing inhabitants to leave the city. The communication system works… cinemas show films… classic faces of a past era flash across TV screens. She is confronted by one of the few survivors guarding the city. They will come close to each other ; they will try to recall the past. Together they unravel their tangled memory – threads of this catastrophe and decide to penetrate the zone together ; They are linked by the bonds of violence and death since no other behaviour is possible in this kind of world. Is there an end? Is there hope and any future since no person that was allowed through ever returned to tell us whether the freedom of the sea exists. The fugitives encounter increasing dangers… A story of love in this unbearable world… what point can it have?Read More »

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