Horst Frank Movies
Few of German actor Horst Frank's films made the crossing to American audiences--and when they did, the English-language dubbing made an assessment of Frank's talents quite difficult. The actor was most familiar to horror fans for his appearance as transplant-happy Dr. Ood in the cheap German horror flick The Head (1959). In the mid '60s, several of Frank's European-filmed westerns gained brief American TV exposure, due to audience demand for any movie filmed in Technicolor. Evidently not one to turn down a role on the basis of aesthetics, Horst Frank was seen in such international co-productions as The Pirates of the Mississippi (1963), The Corpse of Beverly Hills (1964), Vengeance of Fu Manchu (1968), and the immortal South African epic Whispering Death (1971), wherein Frank surpassed his previous cinematic triumphs by playing a black Albino-African rapist. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1980
When four young people move into a run-down villa in West Berlin, their attempts at converting it into an environmentally friendly place with a garden and a few farm animals just begin to bear fruit when the city notifies them that the whole place is to be razed - a modern housing complex is going up. The architect-father of one of the young women in the villa (formerly unaware he even had a daughter) is inveigled into taking up their cause and the five of them go to bat against the woman contractor in charge of the new development project. It turns out that the architect and the contractor had known each other before, making his task all the more challenging. Inspired by the commitment of the four youths, the architect installs solar panels, does a major rehaul on the house, hopefully enough to convince the city to rescind their order to destroy it. Time is running short, and the four youths gear up to face whatever may happen. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Horst Frank, Judy Winter, (more)
- 1979
Friedrich, a cultured, aristocratic young officer in the German army forms a romantic relationship with Elzbieta, a Polish countess during the German occupation of Poland in World War II. His occupying unit has been stationed on her estate, and the relationship exists largely due to his persistence. Their relationship grows increasingly complex as, for instance, he attempts to save a local Jewish librarian from transportation to the death camps. He tries to find common ground with the Elzbieta based on their both being members of the aristocracy. For her part, the relationship enables her to benefit the anti-Nazi partisans. Neither one of them is entirely deceived, but they try to sustain the illusion that theirs is a pure romance for as long as possible. In an epilogue, Friedrich's daughter is interviewed, and her ignorance of the past is revealed as being both complete and self-sought. This film was made by Polish director Zanussi for German television along with his earlier (related) film, Haus der Frauen. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mathieu Carrière, Maja Komorowska, (more)
- 1978
- R
South Africa provides the setting for this dark tale of racial unrest and turmoil. The story centers upon a policeman out to exact revenge for the man who killed and raped his fiancee. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1976
An albino terrorist stalks Africa in this violent action film from the director of the similar Slavers. Terrick (James Faulkner), a former cop, tries to bring the albino to justice, but not before he scalps and rapes pretty Sally (Sybil Danning), the daughter of an evil plantation owner (Trevor Howard). Christopher Lee co-stars in this British-German-Rhodesian-South African co-production with Horst Frank and Sascha Hehn. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christopher Lee, James Faulkner, (more)
- 1974
- R
When a ruthless crook kidnaps two young victims, he is out for more than he bargained. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- 1973
- R
Il Grande Duello is the original title of this Italian/French/West German production. The titular duel pits hard-bitten gunslinger Clayton (Lee Van Cleef) against the equally gritty Saxon (Horst Frank). Before this takes place, however, Clayton champions the cause of Newland (Peter O'Brien) a young punk who'd been framed on a murder charge. One of the beauties of the spaghetti western genre is that there were seldom any clearly defined Good or Bad Guys. This helped to keep the audience guessing as to the ultimate outcome of the film, thereby increasing the entertainment value tenfold. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
- R
A joint venture between Italian and German production companies, this meandering horror mess stars Alex Cord and Samantha Eggar as a pair of archeologists delving into a series of ancient Etruscan tombs who eventually discover a supernatural connection between a series of grisly murders and the wrath of the vengeful god "Tuchulka." Their ruminations are eventually interrupted by Tuchulka's hordes of the walking dead -- or a handful of them, anyway -- who hunger for the flesh of the living. Cord and Eggar turn in workmanlike performances en route to their paychecks, but the rest of the proceedings are woefully amateurish; some scenes seem like trial runs for Amando de Ossorio's Blind Dead series. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- 1972
- PG
Shakespeare is combined with the spaghetti western in this interesting offering. Though the language is modernized, the plot is basically the same as Hamlet. In this version, the hero does not die--instead he rides off into the sunset. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1971
Good performances are said to have lifted the German crime drama Heisse Spur St. Pauli beyond the limits of its fairly conventional story. Two brothers, who are a different as night and day, are fated for a reunion. One of them is a decent enough fellow; he drives a taxi and is trying to save money to start his own business. The other has just escaped prison, and is after his brother's money. The convict's wife is separated from him, and the taxi-driving brother has been courting her. That's reason enough for the convict to hold her hostage in order to get his brother's money. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1971
This German language suspense film is based on a quite long best-selling novel of the same name by Johannes Mario Simmel and condenses the novel's complex story using flashbacks and rapid movement between locations. When a young man (Alain Noury) goes to Vienna to try to solve the mystery of his industrialist father's assassination, his investigation leads to events that took place in Vienna in 1939. It also infringes on secrets important to all the Allied Force secret services (French, Russian, American and British), so much so that they forget their natural antagonism and join forces to try and stop the young man in his quest for answers. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
In this flawed mystery-thriller from flamboyant horror director Dario Argento, Karl Malden portrays a blind man who joins forces with a reporter (James Franciscus) to catch a killer with an extra chromosome. Much of the action occurs at a research hospital, where the killer seeks to conceal the original crime with still more murders. Easily the least interesting of Argento's early thrillers (which include the superior L'Uccello dalle Piume di Cristallo and Quattro Mosche di Velluto Grigio), this film seems almost a parody of the genre at times, with preposterous coincidences and bogus Freudian analysis substituting for genuine mystery. Those familiar with the director's work may find it difficult to believe that Argento was responsible, but some undeniable stylistic touches -- such as one victim's wallpaper resembling a blood-splattered wall -- reveal that even a genius can make bad films. Ennio Morricone's soundtrack and a cast including Catherine Spaak and Pier Paolo Capponi offer little relief. The American version is missing approximately twenty minutes. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- 1969
Catherine (Olga-George Picot) uses her feminine wiles to survive when enemy hordes attack Paris and kill her lover. The new chief desires her for his own, but she spurns his advances long enough to consort with rebels to plan her escape. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Olga Georges-Picot, Roger Van Hool, (more)
- 1969
- R
An international cast headlines this espionage comedy that centers on a world-wide hunt for stolen American defense papers. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Lawford, Ira VonFurstenberg, (more)
- 1969
- R
Before making the string of cannibal adventures which made him notorious, Umberto Lenzi directed three kinky giallo thrillers starring Carroll Baker (Baby Doll). This one is a bisexual round-robin, in which chemist Jean (Jean-Louis Trintignant) is married to Danielle (Erika Blanc), a lesbian who may be sleeping with Baker, who may in turn be sleeping with Trintignant. Baker is being stalked by a mysterious killer, Helga Line might be sleeping with any of them, and then there's Horst Frank, who may or may not be the killer. Everyone wants to kill everyone else, as in Trintignant's previous La Morte Ha Fatto l'Uovo (1967), and although it may not be quite as all-out bizarre as that film, its' still a lot of fun for genre fans. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carroll Baker, Jean-Louis Trintignant, (more)
- 1968
Fu Manchu (Christopher Lee) is the internationally known criminal mastermind back for another round of evil deeds. The objects of his malevolence are the police chiefs of the world, in particular the head of Scotland Yard. With the help of his equally evil daughter Lin Tang (Tsai Chin), Fu Manchu deals with shadowy figures of the underworld to reach his objectives. The felonious Fu assumes the leadership of all the world's crime syndicates to exact his revenge, striking fear into the hearts of every law-abiding crime fighter. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Carsten, Tony Ferrer, (more)
- 1967
Stewart Granger and Rosanna Schiaffano play CIA agents in this multnational espionager. Assigned to the Hong Kong beat, Hero and Heroine seek out a smuggling operation. The booty consists of electrical components for a new superweapon. The revelation of the head man behind the smugglers will be a surprise only if you've never seen a movie before. Code Name Alpha was also released as Red-Dragon, A-009 Mission Hong Kong, and Das Gehemins der Drei Dschunken. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
The Nazis pull out all the stops during their scheme to kill all the Allied leaders with one strike when it seems that the Allies are winning World War II. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1967
In this espionage drama, two FBI agents are on the trail of smugglers who have been selling electrical equipment to the enemy. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stewart Granger, Horst Frank, (more)
