Tony (Issei Ogata) a man comfortable in his own insular nature is shaken by the intrusion into his life of a beautiful young workmate named Eiko (Rie Miyazawa). He woos and marries her but when Tony perceives Eiko’s obsession with buying expensive clothes to be out of control he asks her to stop. Eiko agrees but shortly thereafter she dies … Read the rest
Author: rob
The Heroin Busters (Enzo G. Castelleri, Italy, 1977)
A cop named Mike (David Hemmings) and an undercover agent named Fabio (Fabio Testi) work together to infiltrate a vicious heroin smuggling ring so they can identify and arrest the mastermind behind it. But when Fabio’s attempt to ingratiate himself with the gang’s boss (Joshua Sinclair) – by walking into police headquarters and stealing back some valuable heroin the gang … Read the rest
Sully (Clint Eastwood, US, 2016)
In the immediate aftermath of a miraculous landing by a crippled aircraft in New York’s Hudson river its captain Chesley ‘Sully’ Sullenberger (Tom Hanks) finds himself acclaimed as a hero for saving the lives of all onboard. But an official investigation questions his decision to make a water landing when all their computer simulations suggest a return to the airport … Read the rest
The Shadow Whip (Wei Lo, Hong Kong, 1971)
When pretty Kaiyun Yang (Cheng Pei-pei) uses a whip to break up a fight in the village guesthouse she works at her exceptional prowess attracts the interest of swordsman Wang Jianxin (Hua Yueh), formidable Kung Fu master Hong Dapeng (Ku Feng), some thugs known as The Serial Trio and a gang called the 16 Bandits of Yanyun. All four come … Read the rest
A Wife Confesses (Yasuzo Masumura, Japan, 1961)
Housewife Ayako (Ayako Wakao) stands trial for the death of her husband on a climbing expedition in the Japanese Alps. An accident left Ayako, cruel elderly hubby Ryokichi (Eitaro Ozawa) and friend Osamu (Hiroshi Kawaguchi) – for whom Ayako harbours strong romantic feelings – dangling from a single rope. Ayako claims she cut the rope which sent her husband plunging … Read the rest
Hideko The Bus Conductress (Mikio Naruse, Japan, 1941)
Hideko Takamine (displaying real star wattage here even though she was only 17 at the time) plays the titular heroine Okoma, who works for a financially struggling bus company in a small, sleepy town and comes up with the idea of giving a speech to passengers about places of interest on her local bus route in order to drum up … Read the rest
4th Period Mystery (Lee Sang-Yong, South Korea, 2009)
Student Jung-Hoon (Yoo Seung-Ho) arrives late for class to find the body of hated rival Tae-Gyu (Jo Sang-Keun) stabbed to death. Before you know it he’s gotten blood on his shirt and picked up the murder weapon (the fool!) And then in walks fellow classmate Da-Jung (Kang So-Ra), a quiet, nerdy girl and fanatical mystery novel buff who despite her … Read the rest
Invisible Man Vs The Human Fly (Mitsuo Murayama, Japan, 1957)
A man is killed aboard a packed jet flight but none of the crew or passengers see or hear a thing. Inspector Wakabayashi (Yoshiro Kitahara) discovers that fellow passenger Professor Hayakawa (Shozo Nanbu) has invented an invisibility ray and wonders if that’s the link to a series of baffling murders and bank robberies. But when the culprit turns out to … Read the rest
Empress Wu (Li Han-Hsiang, Hong Kong, 1963)
Gob-smackingly gorgeous and lavishly staged drama, in colour and widescreen, about the rise, reign and fall of China’s first and only female ruler Wu Tse-Tien (Li Hua Li). Well acted and well-written, its chief strength is a satisfyingly even-handed portrait of Wu herself thanks to a compelling performance from veteran Hong Kong superstar Hua Li. It’s certainly possible to see … Read the rest
Last Known Address (Jose Giovanni, France, 1970)
Leonetti (Lino Ventura) is a tough, experienced copper who after nicking a lawyer’s son for drunkenness ends up reassigned because the kid’s father has political connections. Kicking his heels in the sticks Leonetti finds himself teamed with a rookie cop named Jeanne Dumas (Marlene Jobert) in the search for an important witness in a major criminal trial. But as the … Read the rest
