Pepe Hern Movies

This time out, Jessica (Angela Lansbury) is vacationing on an idyllic Mediterranean island, which is also the retreat of famous artist Diego Santana (Cesar Romero). The placid mood is shattered when an attempt is made on Santana's life. A second murder attempt, occurring at Santana's birthday party, is unfortunately successful--but Jessica begins to wonder if the clues at hand are as "obvious" as they seem to be. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Officer Pete Malloy (Martin Milner) doesn't get much opportunity to enjoy his new car before another driver smashes into it. This happens just after Pete and his partner Jim Reed (Kent McCord) are forced to abandon the vehicle in order to chase down a purse snatcher. Elsewhere, the two mobile cops find themselves with two crises on their hands as they attempt to simulatenously investigate a holdup at a store and administer emergency first aid to the wounded proprietor. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Aranda (Rodolfo Acosta, the Mexican-born sheriff of Prince River, regularly betrays his own people by participating in a land grab perpetrated by ruthless miner Owen Driscoll (Warren Stevens). The Cartwrights become involved when Aranda frames Mexican farmer Ramon Cardenas (Jaime Sanchez) for murder, the first step in Driscoll's scheme to buy out the other farmers for ridiculously low prices. A shocker ending caps this Bonanza episode, which was written by Ken Pettus and Dick McDonough. "El Jefe" first aired on November 15, 1970. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

It's a seemingly peaceful spring morning in New York City -- graduation day at the Police Academy -- and Police Commissioner Anthony X. Russell (Henry Fonda) is looking forward to giving a speech to the new officers. But all isn't well: Russell's been given apparently incontrovertible evidence that his oldest friend, Chief Inspector Charles Kane (James Whitmore), is shaking down a bar owner, and a black minister (Raymond St. Jacques) is claiming that his son was brutalized when he was picked up for questioning in a rape/assault case. Then Russell gets a call informing him that two first-grade detectives, Daniel Madigan (Richard Widmark) and Rocco Bonaro (Harry Guardino), allowed small-time hood Barney Benesch (Steve Ihnat) to get the drop on them, steal their guns, and escape while they were trying to pick him up for questioning at the request of Brooklyn detectives -- and Benesch is now a suspect in that earlier murder in Brooklyn. Madigan has other problems, including the fact that the commissioner -- his ex-captain -- doesn't trust him, always believing him to be a loose cannon who has taken advantage of the badge in accepting favors and cutting corners where peoples' rights were concerned. Madigan also has a beautiful, upwardly mobile wife (Inger Stevens) who loves him but can't abide all the time his job takes him away from her or crimps her socializing; and he has never fully gotten over Jonesy (Sheree North), a saloon singer he knew before he was married. Madigan and Bonaro are given 72 hours to bring in Benesch and begin beating the bushes for leads. They get help from "Midget" Castiglione (Michael Dunn), a bookmaker and an old enemy of Benesch's, and a nervous, long-haired punk named Hughie (Don Stroud). While the clock ticks away on Madigan's and Bonaro's careers, the commissioner must decide how to deal with Kane, whose father -- also a police officer -- was like his own, and he must also fathom how a four-star chief could be involved with anything as tawdry as pressuring a tavern owner. Russell genuinely believes that there must be "one standard, one rule" for any member of the department, but in the course of this one weekend, he finds this notion shattered by what he discovers about Madigan, King, and himself. Meanwhile, Benesch is still on the loose, acting like a complete psycho and a threat to anyone who crosses his path. Russell's and Madigan's paths finally cross personally, as the detective proves -- and the commissioner discovers -- just how good a cop he is. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi

Using the alias "Joseph Walker", fugitive Richard Kimble (David Janssen) hires on as a fruitpicker in a farming community. His coworkers, many of whom are illegal immigrants, are highly suspicious of "Walker", ironically believing that he is a police officer. Ultimately, Kimble wins the other workers' trust by saving the lives of a pregnant woman and her unborn child, and helping to fight a forest fire--an act of selfless bravery which unfortunately may result in the fugitive's capture, thanks to roving reporter Johnny Peters (Peter Helm). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Tennessee Williams' Broadway play Summer and Smoke (expanded from his one-act piece Eccentricities of a Nightingale) was brought to the screen by adaptors James Poe and Meade Roberts and director Peter Glenville. Geraldine Page repeats her stage role as minister's daughter Alma Winemiller, who lives a spinsterish existence in her WWI-era Mississippi home town. Though her hateful mother (Una Merkel) has nothing but nasty things to say about men, Alma carries a torch for her handsome next-door neighbor and lifelong friend, Dr. John Buchanan (Laurence Harvey). The doctor prefers the companionship of Rosa (Rita Moreno), a "wrong side of the tracks" girl who is as open and freewheeling as Alma is shy and repressed. Desperate for Buchanan's attention, Alma begins behaving with uncharacteristic affection towards him. He misreads her signals and attempts to seduce her. Already on the edge, Alma goes ballistic, literally running out of Buchanan's life. When the doctor throws an engagement party for himself and Rosa, the neurotic Alma tells Buchanan's father (John McIntire) that a wantonly immoral get-together is taking place in the doctor's home--an act of vengeance that has long-range tragic consequences. By film's end, the previously strait-laced Alma, unhinged by previous events, has become as misguidedly passionate as her spiritual sister, A Streetcar Named Desire's Blanche DuBois. Summer and Smoke earned Academy Award nominations for both Geraldine Page and Una Merkel; while Merkel would never win an Oscar, Ms. Page finally collected her statuette for 1985's A Trip to Bountiful. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Though Mickey Rooney is listed as coproducer of Jaguar, the star of the proceedings is East Indian actor Sabu, here cast as a young South American. Though raised in a civilized atmosphere, Juano (Sabu) cannot quite shake the savage instincts of his jungle-bred forefathers. When he is falsely accused of three murders, Juano is willing to believe that he committed the crimes thanks to the influence of a powerful narcotic. It turns out that our hero has been set up as a fall guy, but he goes through hell and back before he can prove his innocence. Jaguar was scripted by John Fenton Murray, who later specialized in such TV sitcomery as McHale's Navy. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Based on a novel by Gwen Bristow, Jubilee Trail is a sprawling, all-star western from the Republic Studio mills. Despite is vaunted budget, the plot is strictly B-picture material. Ambitious California landowner Charles Hale (Ray Middleton) hopes to add to his riches by marrying off his brother Oliver (John Russell) to a wealthy Spanish family. But when Oliver weds a gal named Garnet (Joan Leslie) instead, Charles vows revenge against the new bride. Later, Oliver is killed, leaving Garnet to raise their baby alone. Charles intends to claim the baby for himself, but Garnet, who has subsequently fallen in love with John Ives (Forrest Tucker), isn't about to let that happen. Top-billed Vera Ralston plays saloon-hall chirp Florinda, a Woman With a Past who is peripherally involved in the plot proper, while Richard Webb, TV's "Captain Midnight", fills the obligatory "disgruntled suitor" role. The film is stolen hands down by Pat O'Brien as a drunken doctor who serves as last-minute problem-solver. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

American POWs struggle to escape from a North Korean camp. While this is basically a remake of Stalag 17, it does feature interesting scenes of a North Korean brainwashing. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

The Ring was directed by Kurt Neumann in a style best described as Hollywood neorealist. Based on a novel by Irving Shulman, the film focuses on a Mexican-American youth named Tommy (Lalo Rios). Unable to make any headway in a prejudicial, white-dominated society, Tommy turns to boxing, where he makes quite a name for himself. Just when he thinks he's gained the respect of the "Anglos," however, he discovers that they're only interested in his reputation, and still consider him an outsider because of his ancestry and skin color. Even the two white men who treat him decently -- his manager Pete (Gerald Mohr) and trainer Freddy (Robert Osterloh) -- have a vested interest. In danger of ending up a disillusioned, punch-drunk bum, Tommy is rescued by the unconditional love of his girl Lucy (Rita Moreno). Filmed entirely on location in greater Los Angeles, The Ring is for the most part an uncompromising glimpse at institutionalized bigotry. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Roy Rogers and Trigger, "The Smartest Horse in the Movies," enjoy above-the-title billing in Heart of the Rockies. This time, Rogers (playing himself) is pitted against Andrew Willard, a crooked but very powerful landowner, played with relish by Ralph Morgan. Opposing the construction of a new highway, Willard dispatches his toughest henchmen, headed by Devery (Fred Graham, one of Hollywood's top stunt men), to prevent the road workers from completing their job. When not duking it out with Devery and his pals, Rogers is kept busy trying to rehabilitate a gang of tough street kids. Penny Edwards plays the heroine, who happens to be the niece of the head villain. The musical portion of the program is provided by the golden-throated Mr. Rogers, together with Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Cary Grant's utter credibility in the role of a brilliant, world-famous brain surgeon Dr. Eugene Norland Ferguson is the single element that keeps Crisis afloat. While vacationing in a politically unstable Latin American country, Ferguson and his wife, Helen (Paula Raymond), find themselves the unwilling house guests of dictator Raoul Farrago (José Ferrer). Suffering from a brain tumor, Farrago insists that Ferguson operate at once. The "crisis" of the title arises when revolutionary leader Gonzales (Gilbert Roland) demands that Farrago be killed on the operating table -- and kidnaps Dr. Ferguson's wife to bind the bargain. Unaware of his wife's plight, Ferguson proceeds with the operation, setting into motion a series of events leading to a grimly ironic denouement. Director Richard Brooks adapted the screenplay of Crisis from a story by George Tabori. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Long before she became a TV cosmetic-commercial spokeswoman, Barbara Britton essayed the title role in Bandit Queen. Britton plays Lola, daughter of a American father and Spanish-aristocrat mother. When her parents are murdered, Lola forms an outlaw band, dedicated to reclaiming those portions of California illegally seized from her fellow Spaniards. She is aided in this endeavor by dashing bandit Joaquin Murietta (Philip Reed). The film really comes to life whenever Lola settles an argument by wielding her bull-whip! Bandit Queen was Lippert Studios' final release for 1950. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi