Franco Columbu Movies

A hunt for biochemical terrorists gets a supernatural twist as a band of heroic soldiers stumble into a mine inhabited by angry spirits in Walter von Huene's unusual hybrid action entry. Special Forces captain Aldo Paccione (Franco Columbu) has never found a mission too dangerous to tackle, and when the government discovers that a rouge group of mercenaries are developing biochemical weapons deep in the mines of Sardinia, he assembles a crack Delta Force team to move in and eliminate the threat. As Captain Paccione and his team descend into the mines, the disturbance soon awakens the angry souls of ancient warriors who aren't too pleased to be woken from their centuries-long slumber. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

When a gang battle costs a man one of his closest relatives, he sets his sights on evening the score in this crime drama. When two rival crime factions begin waging war on each other over control of prostitution and drug trafficking, a woman who was merely an innocent bystander is killed in the crossfire. Her brother, devastated by the loss, is determined to get revenge and enlists the help of a street-smart prostitute to find out who was responsible for his sister's death. Ritmo del Silenzio, also released under the titles Desperate Crimes, Port of Crime, and Mafia Docks, stars Franco Columbo, Traci Lords, and Denise Crosby as the streetwalker. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Paul Reubens's followup to the box-office hit Pee-Wee's Big Adventure is just as outrageous and cartoonish, though not as good. This time, child-man Pee-Wee runs a colorful farm, chock full of talking animals and outsized produce. On the morning after a tornado of Wizard of Oz dimensions, Pee-Wee awakens to discover that a travelling circus has been deposited in his back yard. Befriended by circus owner Kris Kristofferson, Pee-Wee takes an acrobatic job, hoping to impress lovely trapeze artist Valeria Golino--thereby incurring the jealous rage of his hometown sweetie Penelope Ann Miller. When the circus is faced with bankruptcy, Pee-Wee comes up with a brilliant idea: why not stage a three-ring spectacular celebrating the wonders of agriculture? A partial takeoff of such earlier sawdust-trail flicks as Martin and Lewis' Three Ring Circus and Disney's Toby Tyler, Big Top Pee-Wee is generally entertaining, but goes off in too many directions at once, leaving a lot of loose plot ends and underdeveloped characters. Also, Pee-Wee's overactive libido (at least in this film!) is not all that suitable for his younger fans. Even so, there are plenty of hilarious set-pieces. Big Top Pee-Wee was produced and cowritten by Paul Reubens. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

After being mugged by two men, aspiring actress Kendall Gibley (Alexandra Paul) vows that she'll be ready for any future attacks. Kendall decides to "beef up" by undergoing a body-building regimen that would kill a lesser woman. Her devotion to physical culture sorely threatens her personal relationships with her friends, family and boyfriend, Mickey Ritter (David Naughton). Star Alexandra Paul's impressive physique is lovingly photographed by Howard R. Schwartz, as disco music pulsates on the soundtrack. A number of real-life bodybuilders of both sexes appear in supporting and bit roles. Made for television, Getting Physical debuted March 20, 1984. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

John Milius's jingoistic direction and pulpy screenplay fit perfectly into this film version of the Robert E. Howard fantasy story of the sword and sorcery hero, Conan the Barbarian. Complementing Mulius's heavy metal production is Arnold Schwarzenegger's leaden acting, which in any other context would be deadly, but here (as in The Terminator) corresponds nicely with the whole sonorous project. The story begins when a horde of rampaging warriors massacre the parents of young Conan and enslave the young child for years on The Wheel of Pain. The Wheel of Pain seems to have as its only purpose the building up of Conan's muscles, so it's no surprise that one day Conan grows up to become Arnold Schwarzenegger. As the sole survivor of the childhood massacre, Conan is released from slavery and taught the ancient arts of fighting. Transforming himself into a killing machine, Conan travels into the wilderness to seek vengeance on Thulsa Doom (James Earl Jones), the man responsible for killing his family. In the wilderness, Conan takes up with the thieves Valeria (Sandahl Bergman) and Subota (Gerry Lopez). The trio comes upon a weird snake cult, linked to Doom, and Conan wants to trek off to Doom's mountain retreat to kill him. But he is prevented from doing that by King Osrik (Max Von Sydow), who wants the trio of warriors to help rescue his daughter who has joined Doom in the hills. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Arnold Schwarzenegger gained his first real notoriety outside body-building circles with this documentary about a group of men training for the Mr. Olympia contest. Arnold had already won the title six times before, and was training for his seventh victory before retiring to fully pursue his acting career (which began to catch fire with his likable turn in Stay Hungry, released the same year) when this was shot. Here he displays an easy charm and wicked sense of humor as he plays mind games with his competitors and explains how getting pumped up for competition always reminded him of sex (which might explain why he seems so cheerful). And what is Arnold smoking in his dressing room after the contest? Future Incredible Hulk Lou Ferrigno is also on hand, and his fierce determination as he goes through a brutal weight lifting regimen shouting "Arnold! Arnold!" speaks both to his own desire to win and how strong a presence Schwarzenegger was in body-building at the time. You don't have to be a body building fan to enjoy Pumping Iron, though Arnold is the one contestant who shows obvious star quality. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide