Joseph Furst Movies

Dunera Boys is all the more incredible when one realizes that it is founded in truth. At the beginning of the second World War, the English government sanctioned the arrest of any German nationals suspected of being spies. Among these was a group of Jewish refugees, as well as several completely assimilated British subjects. Fishmonger Bob Hoskins, who despite his Germanic background is as British as they come, is rounded up along with the other "undesirables," herded aboard the HMT Dunera, and shipped off to a POW camp in Australia. This lumpy but involving film details Hoskins' futile efforts to make the best of his bizarre plight. The Dunera Boys was originally produced for Australian television; for its American release, it was given an R rating for violence and language. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Somewhat reminiscent of the 1965 film The Satan Bug, And Millions Will Die is a thriller based upon the premise of germ warfare. A lunatic plans to extort millions of dollars by threatening to unleash a deadly nerve gas upon the citizens of Hong Kong. He prepares to make good his threat--but then dies before he can reveal the underground location whence the gas will be released. Richard Basehart, the villain in Satan Bug, switches sides to play frenzied scientist who races against time to unearth the lethal gas in And Millions Will Die. Given its foolproof premise, the film is disappointedly bereft of suspense, though the Hong Kong scenery is lovely. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Two 20 year old twins have a bizarre incestuous relationship. Julian (Martin Potter) and his sister Jacki (Judy Geeson) carry on the affair and only reveal their secrets to a stuffed teddy bear named Agamemnon. While their father is absent, they murder the housekeeper and run wild at night. Drugged out parties with transvestites and homosexuals leads to blackmail, debauchery and murder. Julian soon finds himself unable to escape the dark and strange world and finds his fantasies have becomes his worst nightmares. Michael Redgrave appears briefly as a member of Parliament. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

This uneven spy saga finds secret agent Charles Hood (Vince Edwards) on the trail of the criminal master spy Hammerhead (Peter Vaughan). He tries to discover some NATO secrets in between his hobby of collecting antique erotica from around the world. Hood must stop the evil Hammerhead before he uses the secret information to spark an incident of international terrorism. In order to stop Hammerhead's sordid plan, he poses as a courier delivering erotica to the spy. Distaff interests are provided by Diana Dors and Judy Geeson in this feature that fails to take advantage of some beautiful scenes of Portugal. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

In the third episode of the four-part story "The Underwater Menace," the Doctor (Patrick Troughton) steps up his efforts to thwart the world-destruction schemes of Professor Zaroff (Joseph Furst). He is able to foment a below-the-sea rebellion against Zaroff, utilizing an army of fishlike ex-slaves -- but the results are far from satisfactory. Written by Geoffrey Orme, Doctor Who: The Underwater Menace, Episode 3 was first telecast on January 28, 1967. This is the only one of the four episodes known to exist in the BBC archives. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the first episode of the four-part story "The Underwater Menace," the TARDIS crew rediscovers the lost continent of Atlantis -- or do they? At least one thing is certain: The Doctor (Patrick Troughton) will have to spend the next three weeks thwarting the sinister machinations of one Professor Zaroff (Joseph Furst). Written by Geoffrey Orme, Doctor Who: the Underwater Menace began its original BBC run on January 14, 1967. Only episode three of the story is known to exist. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This story of love and espionage focuses on political turmoil as a small nation struggles to free itself from colonial rule, and one man tries to serve both justice and his own heart. In the late 1950s, the island of Cyprus is under the political control of Great Britain, but groups of Cypriot activists are fighting for the country's independence. Maj. McGuire (Dirk Bogarde) is an English military leader who is on the trail of Haghios (George Chakiris), a terrorist leader who guides the struggle for freedom in Cyprus. Juno Kozani (Susan Strasberg) is an American student of archeology who visits friends on the island, only to discover that they're helping to hide Haghios from the police and the British military. McGuire is convinced that Kozani knows Haghios' whereabouts, but while she has told McGuire nothing, Haghios is convinced that Kozani has turned him in and threatens to kill her. Desperate, Kozani seeks protection from McGuire, who allows her to hide out in his apartment. Put into close contact, McGuire and Kozani fall in love, but when his superiors find out that he's been keeping her in hiding, McGuire is transferred to Greece. Kozani follows him there, only to discover that a mysterious man has been following them. The High Bright Sun has also been released under the titles McGuire Go Home! and A Date with Death. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Samuel Bronston produced this extravagant blockbuster, shot in Super Technirama 70. Nominally directed by Nicholas Ray (who makes a brief appearance as the U.S. ambassador), Ray was taken off the film and replaced by the more pliable directorial touches of Andrew Marton. Charlton Heston stars as Maj. Matt Lewis, the leader of an army of multinational soldiers who head to Peking during the infamous Boxer Rebellion of 1900. As the film unfolds, the foreign embassies in Peking are being held in a grip of terror as the Boxers set about massacring Christians in an anti-Christian nationalistic fever. Inside the besieged compound, the finicky British ambassador (David Niven) gathers the beleaguered ambassadors into a defensive formation. Included in the group of high-level dignitaries is a sultry Russian Baroness (Ava Gardner) who takes a shine to Lewis upon his arrival at the embassy compound with his group of soldiers. As Lewis and the group conserve food and water and try to save some hungry children, they await the arrival of expected reinforcements, but the tricky Chinese Empress Tzu Hsi (Flora Robson) is, in the meantime, plotting with the Boxers to break the siege at the compound with the aid of Chinese recruits. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

On special assignment during WW1, German officer Wilhelm Reitlinger (played by horror-movie icon Christopher Lee) makes the acquaintance of an oddball farmer named Klaus Karnak (Martin Balsam). Claiming to have the power of teleportation, Karnak agrees to "will" Reitlinger's soul to his home town so that he can check up on his sweetheart. Upon his arrival, Reitlinger commits a murder--but of course, since he couldn't possibly be in two places at once, nobody believes his protestations of guilt. Ultimately, the conscience-stricken Reitlinger has no other option than to commit a second murder so he'll be punished for the first. This is one of several One Step Beyond episodes filmed in England. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Very Important Person is an amusing British comedy set in a German POW camp during World War II. Sir Ernest Pease (James Robertson Justice) is a self-important professor with a bloated ego and a lightning put-down. When he is flown over Germany disguised as a navy officer to check out the effectiveness of one of his radar inventions, his plane is shot down and he lands in the POW camp. All sorts of misunderstandings arise, since the other prisoners suspect him of being a spy. In the meantime, there are the expected clashes of wit between the British prisoners and their dour German captors and the inevitable camp-organized concert. In the midst of these activities, the professor is challenged to find a way to escape. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi