Author Archive: Retro

An ‘angel-faced’ gunfighter is tasked with infiltrating a ranch overrun by Mexican bandits and saving their hostages, including the fiancée of the local sheriff.

IMPERIAL VENUS (1963) is an elaborate Italian-French co-production which chronicles the exploits of the sister of Napoleon Buonaparte from the time of the dictator’s initial conquests to his exile on Elba. As played by Gina Lollobrigida, Paulette (later dubbed Paolina after she marries a Roman prince) is beautiful, willful, impulsive, and not a little promiscuous, yet she remains devoted to her brother through thick and thin, the only family member who doesn’t abandon him in his darkest hours. It’s well-acted by an international cast and engages our interest because it strips a host of larger-than-life characters down to human scale and invests the drama with passion, emotion and flawed, recognizable behavior.

Two U.S. sailors sightseeing in Rome dream about the days of Nero. ITALIAN LANGUAGE ONLY.

Young woman gets more than she bargained for when she wins a “vacation” at an old mansion.

A witch uses the powers of black magic against her husband and his new bride.

In a South American jungle prison, female dissidents are tortured and assaulted by guards

A disturbed young man is plagued by horrific headaches that he believes make him commit murders.

When a sickly Victorian woman dies suddenly, a postmortem reveals that her body contains a fatal dose of arsenic. Suspicion falls on her husband and her companion, who are lovers. Inspector Martin of Scotland Yard solves the mystery of her death, over a cup of tea.

Old country traditions and values cause Ron Howard to honor the pleas of his brother (played by Mickey Rourke), a quadriplegic following a motorcycle accident, to end his life, and then to stand trial for first-degree murder after the mercy killing. Michael De Guzman’s teleplay was inspired by Paige.