Jack Lambert Movies

John Drew Barrymore, Joan Blondell, John Dehner, and Dan Duryea star in this made-for-television remake of the 1950 James Stewart Western about a two brothers who both covet the titular repeating rifle. As the dedicated officer and the crafty ex-con face off to determine who will walk away with rifle in hand, family bonds are violently shattered by the desire for cold steel and hot lead. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Christopher Lee dons the evil Count's cloak once again after an 8-year hiatus for this first "authentic" sequel to Hammer Studios' Horror of Dracula (the literal 1960 follow-up Brides of Dracula did not feature Lee). The story begins when two stuffy vacationing couples make an ill-fated stopover at Castle Karlsbad in the Carpathian mountains -- despite the warnings of the mysterious Fr. Sandor (Andrew Keir) and the near-destruction of their coach when the terrified driver runs for his life. After a slightly tedious stretch, one of the men (Charles Tingwell) is sacrificed in a bloody Satanic ritual, orchestrated by the Count's loyal manservant Klove (Philip Latham) to bring the legendary vampire back to life. The revived Count immediately sets his sights on the man's wife (Barbara Shelley), making her his undead bride; the surviving pair seek refuge in Fr. Sandor's abbey, with the undead bloodsuckers in hot pursuit. This stylish and chilling production is imbued with Gothic atmosphere by director Terence Fisher (one of his last films for the studio) and remains one of the classier entries from Hammer's heyday. Also known as Revenge of Dracula. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

Steed and Emma are put on the case when the body of an agent -- four inches taller than he was in life -- is discovered. Their investigation leads to Castle De'ath, a formidable (and, reportedly, haunted) Scottish castle. While Emma poses as a woman determined to transform the castle into a tourist attraction, Steed explores the dank and musty cellars of the fortress and stumbles upon a secret submarine base. Written by John Lucarotti, "Castle De'ath" was originally telecast in England on October 30, 1965; it was subsequently aired in the U.S. on May 2, 1966. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Locked up in the Mayberry jail, a pair of fugitive thieves warn Andy and Barney that their accomplices will soon show up to break them out. Thus it is that Barney arrests the first two strangers in town-who turn out to be police detectives from Raleigh. In the course of events, Barney and temporary deputy Gomer manage to allow the real crooks to escape no fewer than three times! Former "Dead End Kid" Billy Halop appears as Tiny. Written by Harvey Bullock, "The Big House" originally aired on May 6, 1963, as the final episode of The Andy Griffith Show's third season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Filmed in panoramic Cinerama, this star-studded, epic Western adventure is a true cinematic classic. Three legendary directors (Henry Hathaway, John Ford, and George Marshall) combine their skills to tell the story of three families and their travels from the Erie Canal to California between 1839 and 1889. Spencer Tracy narrates the film, which cost an estimated 15 million dollars to complete. In the first segment, "The Rivers," pioneer Zebulon Prescott (Karl Malden) sets out to settle in the West with his wife (Agnes Moorehead) and their four children. Along with other settlers and river pirates, they run into mountain man Linus Rawlings (James Stewart), who sells animal hides. The Prescotts try to raft down the Ohio River in a raft, but only daughters Lilith (Debbie Reynolds) and Eve (Carroll Baker) survive. Eve and Linus get married, while Lilith continues on. In the second segment, "The Plains," Lilith ends up singing in a saloon in St. Louis, but she really wants to head west in a wagon train led by Roger Morgan (Robert Preston). Along the way, she's accompanied by the roguish gambler Cleve Van Valen (Gregory Peck), who claims he can protect her. After he saves her life during an Indian attack, they get married and move to San Francisco. In the third segment, "The Civil War," Eve and Linus' son, Zeb (George Peppard), fights for the Union. After he's forced to kill his Confederate friend, he returns home and gives the family farm to his brother. In the fourth segment, "The Railroads," Zeb fights with his railroad boss (Richard Widmark), who wants to cut straight through Indian territory. Zeb's co-worker Jethro (Henry Fonda) refuses to cut through the land, so he quits and moves to the mountains. After the railway camp is destroyed, Zeb heads for the mountains to visit him. In the fifth segment, "The Outlaws," Lilith is an old widow traveling from California to Arizona to stay with her nephew Zeb on his ranch. However, he has to fight a gang of desperadoes first. How the West Was Won garnered three Oscars, for screenplay, film editing, and sound production. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

This is an interesting biography of the actor known for his gangster roles in films, and though Ray Danton plays the part of George Raft without looking like him in the least, he is still convincing in his mannerisms. Without getting into any in-depth plumbing of the actor's life, the story begins with the young Raft making his way in New York as a dancer and rubbing shoulders with underworld figures. Then he goes to Hollywood where he eventually finds fame in the film Scarface and gets typecast as a gangster. Tiring of this persona but unable to do very much about it, Raft's career starts to decline for quite a awhile before his success in Some Like It Hot. Along the way, his relationships with five different women are pictured in the briefest fashion. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Disney's Greyfriars Bobby is a remake of A Challenge to Lassie; both are based on the same novel by Eleanor Atkinson, and both feature Donald Crisp in a major role. A true story, set in Edinburgh around 1875, the Disney version stars Alex McKenzie as the shepherd Old Jock, the owner of a loyal Skye terrier named Bobby. When Jock dies of "old age, exposure, and starvation," and is buried in the Edinburgh cemetery known as Greyfriars Kirk, Bobby spends his days playing with street children, begging for scraps, and evading the police constables, but by night he sleeps on his late master's gravesite and refuses to leave, despite graveyard caretaker John Brown's (Crisp) efforts to chase Bobby away. Slowly but surely, the taciturn Brown comes to love the steadfast dog, which brings him into conflict with stiff-necked Constable MacLean (Donald MacRae), who intends to "arrest" Bobby if Brown doesn't pay the minimal license fee. Standing on principle, Brown refuses, but a group of local children raise the necessary funds, setting the stage for a heartwarmingly Disneyesque finale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This is a routine tale about the vice squad versus pornographer and blackmailer Augie Cortona (Terence Morgan). After the petty criminal gets out of prison, he discovers his old partners in crime are not interested in him anymore, and the prostitution ring he once bossed is controlled by someone else. His solution is to set up a fake photographer's and model's studio during the day that becomes a place where porno photo men can do their work at night, as call girls engage in their trade with unsuspecting customers. The photographs bring in extra lucre through a blackmail scheme -- Cortona makes the hookers' clients pay to keep their activities quiet. As he is building up this racket, a gangland boss is out to get him -- and so is the vice squad. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

For years, vicious gunslinger Doggie Kramer (Jack Lambert) has bullied the citizenry of a small town. Unfortunately for Kramer, his most recent shootout has left him gravely wounded. When it becomes obvious that the now-emboldened townsfolk, led by the brother of Kramer's latest victim, plan to enact a violent vengeance against their former tormentor, Kramer hires Paladin (Richard Boone) to escort him safely to Santa Fe. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

While driving through the desert, Professor John Piltkin (MacDonald Carey) stops his car to care for a seriously injured coyote. Not long afterward, the coyote vanishes -- whereupon Piltkin is confronted by a wild-eyed young girl named Julie (Collin Wilcox). Whether or not Julie and the coyote are one and the same turns out to be a moot point, as the story segues into a morality play involving treachery, theft, and sweet revenge. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Bridal Path is standard comedy fare about a young man, Ewan McEwan (Bill Travers) sent out from his island home to go bride-hunting. The introverted, taciturn Ewan is reaching marriageable age just when the island's elders come up with a new decree. They have decided that there is too much in-breeding on their fair shores and as a consequence, they forbid first cousins to marry. With his bridal selection almost curtailed at home, Ewan heads off to the mainland with a little book of commandments on what to look for and what to avoid in a potential lifetime mate. Aside from encounters with several charming, winsome young women, Ewan soon discovers that the police are after him -- and he does not know why. The chase is on, though all misunderstandings are eventually cleared up. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Set in an isolated, snow-covered town in the far West, this story has a renegade army officer named Jack Bruhn (Burl Ives) and his henchmen riding into the town threatening their worst to the men and women there. Blaise Starrett (Robert Ryan) decides to agree to Bruhn's demands for someone knowledgeable to lead them away from the law and the town, to safety. Mortally wounded himself, Bruhn opts to take Starrett up on his offer in one last act of generosity toward the townspeople, sparing them the mayhem threatened by his men. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide