The Challenge 1960  N/R, 95 min.
Genre: Drama
aka: It Takes a Thief
Director: John Gilling
Cast: Jayne Mansfield, Anthony Quayle, Carl Mohner, Peter Reynolds, Barbara Mullen, Robert Brown, Dermot Walsh, Edward Judd, Patrick Holt, John Stratton, John Bennett, Percy Herbert
Billy (Jayne Mansfield) leads a gang of thieves. During one heist, Jim (Anthony Quayle) is captured after he hides the loot, and Jim serves his time leaving the gang without the money. When Jim is released, the gang kidnaps Jim's child to hold for ransom and retrieve the cash.
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The Flesh and the Fiends 1959  N/R, 87 min.
Genre: Horror / Thriller
aka: The Fiendish Ghouls
Mania
Psycho Killers
Director: John Gilling
Cast: Peter Cushing, June Laverick, Donald Pleasence, George Rose, Renee Houston, Dermot Walsh, Billie Whitelaw, John Cairney, Melvyn Hayes, June Powell, Andrew Faulds, Philip Leaver, George Woodbridge, Garard Green, Esma Cannon
Dr. Knox (Peter Cushing) requires cadavers for his research, and the corpse suppliers resort to killing the locals to provide the needed bodies. Things get sticky when the good doctor's girlfriend shows up as a specimen. A good tale, though some gory parts–a few of which have been deleted in the various rereleases.
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Fury at Smugglers Bay 1961  N/R, 92 min.
Genre: Adventure
Director: John Gilling
Cast: John Fraser, Peter Cushing, Bernard Lee, Michele Mercier, William Franklyn, George Coulouris, Liz Fraser, Miles Malleson, June Thorburn, Katherine Kath, Tommy Duggan, Christopher Carlos, Juma, Maitland Moss, Humphrey Heathgate
Pirates, led by Black John (Bernard Lee), have been smuggling in and around Christopher's (John Fraser) 18th-century village, which is run by his constable father, Squire Trevenyan (Peter Cushing). It falls on Christopher's shoulders to enlist aid in fighting the pirates. He performs his duty, and the fighting begins–and ends with both Black John and Squire Trevenyan dead. Christopher becomes the new leader of the town.
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High Flight 1956 N/R, 95 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: John Gilling
Cast: Ray Milland, Bernard Lee, Kenneth Haigh, Anthony Newley, Leslie Phillips, Ian Fleming, Kenneth Fortescue, Sean Kelly, Helen Cherry, Duncan Lamont
Behind-the-scenes conflicts involving pilots undergoing RAF jet-fighter training is the focus of this weak film.
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The Man Inside 1958 N/R, 97 min.
Genre: Action
Director: John Gilling
Cast: Jack Palance, Anita Ekberg, Nigel Patrick, Anthony Newley, Donald Pleasence, Sid James, Eric Pohlmann, Bonar Colleano, Sean Kelly, Josephine Brown
After successfully planning and carrying out a diamond heist, Sam Carter (Nigel Patrick) is tracked throughout Europe by a determined detective, Milo March (Jack Palance), with the diamond's real owner, Trudie Hall (Anita Ekberg) in tow.
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Mother Riley Meets the Vampire 1952  N/R, 74 min.
Genre: Comedy
aka: My Son, the Vampire
Vampire over London
Director: John Gilling
Cast: Bela Lugosi, Arthur Lucan, Dora Bryan, Richard Wattis, Judith Furse, Philip Leaver, Maria Mercedes, Roderick Lovell, David Hurst, Charles Lloyd Pack
This is the last in the long-running UK series of Old Mother Riley tales, all of which starred Arthur Lucan in drag as the Irish scrub woman, Mother Riley. Mother Riley is always getting herself in all sorts of tough spots, and this time she comes across mad scientist Baron Von Housen (Bela Lugosi) who is in search of uranium to fuel his monster robot so he can rule the world.
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The Mummy's Shroud 1967 N/R, 90 min.
Genre: Horror / Thriller
Director: John Gilling
Cast: Andre Morell, John Phillips, David Buck, Elizabeth Sellars, Maggie Kimberly, Michael Ripper, Andreas Malandrinos, Tim Barrett, Richard Warner, Roger Delgado, Catherine Lacey, Dickie Owen, Bruno Barnabe, Toni Gilpin, Eddie Powell
British archaeologists Sir Basil Walden (Andre Morrell), Paul Preston (David Buck), a photographer (Tim Barrett), and psychic linguist Claire (Maggie Kimberley) make the mistake of digging up the mummified remains of an Egyptian Pharaoh and now must pay the consequences of being killed off–one by one.
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Pirates of Blood River 1962 N/R, 87 min.
Genre: Action / Adventure / Drama / Romance
Director: John Gilling
Cast: Kerwin Mathews, Christopher Lee, Glenn Corbett, Marla Landi, Oliver Reed, Andrew Keir, Peter Arne, Michael Ripper, Jack Stewart, David Lodge, Marie Devereux, Diane Aubrey, Dennis Waterman, Desmond Llewelyn
Hammer Films presents this high-seas adventure about young Jonathan Standing (Kerwin Mathews) who is exiled by his father (Andrew Keir) to a penal colony. The penal colony is invaded by pirates led by Captain LaRoche (Christopher Lee), and Jonathan leads LaRoche and his pirate ship to his Caribbean home where LaRoche believes a treasure is buried. LaRoche takes control of the town while searching for the treasure, and many are killed in the process. Finally, LaRoache finds the treasure–a gold statue of Jonathan's grandfather–and attempts to haul it away. But, Jonathan and his cohorts attack the raft, the statue falls overboard and sinks to the bottom of the sea, La Roche is killed, and the survivors return home.
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The Plague of the Zombies 1966 N/R, 90 min.
Genre: Horror / Thriller
aka: The Zombies
Director: John Gilling
Cast: Andre Morell, Diane Clare, John Carson, Brook Williams, Jacqueline Pearce, Alexander Davion, Michael Ripper, Marcus Hammond, Dennis Chinnery, Ben Aris, Louis Mahoney, Roy Royston
Doctor Thompson (Brook Williams) becomes suspicious over the mysterious deaths that are occurring in the village. He asks his mentor, James Forbes (Andre Morell), to investigate, and it is soon clear that the mad squire (John Carson) orders young workers killed and, through voodoo, the squire brings the bodies back to life as zombies to work in his tin mine. But there are obstacles to James' cleaning up this mess. Good plot and atmosphere.
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The Reptile 1966 N/R, 86 min.
Genre: Horror / Thriller
Director: John Gilling
Cast: Noel Willman, Jennifer Daniel, Ray Barrett, Jacqueline Pearce, Michael Ripper, John Laurie, Marne Maitland, Harold Goldblatt, Charles Lloyd Pack, Harold Pinter, David Baron
Mysterious deaths occur in an English village, and a naive young couple, Valerie (Jennifer Daniel) and Harry (Ray Barrett) Spalding, seem to be right in the middle of the action after they move into the cottage inherited by Harry's brother Charles (David Baron) who has died.
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| 1. The Challenge (1960)
aka: It Takes a Thief
2. The Flesh and the Fiends (1959)
aka: The Fiendish Ghouls
aka: Mania
aka: Psycho Killers
3. Fury at Smugglers Bay (1961)
4. High Flight (1956)
5. The Man Inside (1958)
6. Mother Riley Meets the Vampire (1952)
aka: My Son, the Vampire
aka: Vampire over London
7. The Mummy's Shroud (1967)
8. Pirates of Blood River (1962)
9. The Plague of the Zombies (1966)
aka: The Zombies
10. The Reptile (1966)
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