Robert Padilla Movies
A character player whose work spanned many decades, Robert Padilla specialized in portrayals of gritty, earthy, rough-cut types, maintaining his most frequent presence in westerns and action fare. Credits include such outings as the family-oriented Disney western Scandalous John (1971), director Paul Hunt's B-western 40 Graves for 40 Guns (1971), and Robert Aldrich's comedy western/buddy picture The Frisco Kid (1979). Padilla enjoyed a rare lead (as Mario Ochoa, "The Savage") and authored the story for the violent western The Great Gundown, playing the leader of a posse of mercenaries. In 2007, Padilla signed for a bit part as an ancestor in director Dan Gildark's occultic thriller Cthulhu, following a lengthy, 15-year absence from the screen. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
Inspired by the works of celebrated horror fiction author H.P. Lovecraft, this apocalyptic frightener tells the story of a Seattle history professor who becomes caught up in a frightful and rapidly accelerating series of strange events after returning to his estranged family on the Oregon coast and discovering that his father is involved with a bizarre New Age cult. Upon returning home to execute his late mother's will, the professor enters into a long-awaited affair with his beautiful best friend from childhood. Later, the professor uncovers evidence that the members of his father's cult are anticipating a large-scale event that will forever alter the way humankind views the universe. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Cottle, Cara Buono, (more)
- 1992
The direct-to-video Merlin brings the King Arthur legend up to date. The fun begins when a young Californian traces the ol' family tree directly back to Merlin the Magician. The twist: Merlin's descendant is a woman, played by Nadia Cameron. The good news is that the woman is endowed with special powers. The bad news is that the bad guys find out ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Phelps, Richard Lynch, (more)
- 1987
- R
A trip to Camp Paradise turns into a hellish nightmare for a group of teenage campers in this routine horror feature. The group returns to the camp two years after the brother of Laura (Rhonda Gray) died in a mysterious fire. The camp is the sight of an ancient Indian burial ground cursed by a medicine man because of the white man's desecration. The medicine man's grandson is the creepy caretaker of the cursed camp, and a hairy monster is unconvincingly thrown in as a mysterious stalker. The victims are subjected to gory deaths, standard fare for horror films. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rhonda Gray, Cleve Hall, (more)
Robert Aldrich returns to the western-spoof genre he'd previously explored in Four for Texas with The Frisco Kid. Gene Wilder plays Polish rabbi Avram Belinsky, who intends to set up a congregation in San Francisco. Eminently unsuited for life in the Old West, poor Avram is victimized by everyone with whom he comes in contact. Salvation arrives in the unlikely form of taciturn bank robber Tommy (Harrison Ford). Incredibly, Tommy takes a liking to the feckless Avram, and together the two men embark on a series of seriocomic adventures. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gene Wilder, Harrison Ford, (more)
- 1975
- PG
Also released under the titles El Salvejo, 40 Graves for 40 Guns, Savage Red, and Outlaw White, this western takes place in New Mexico when a group of outlaws are attacked by a force led by a man who is half Native American. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Padilla, Richard Rust, (more)
- 1971
The Old West is just not the same, what with so few cattle being run, and law-abiding folk running around like they own everything. In this family comedy drama, it's too much for John McCanless (Brian Keith). He is a cranky old rancher and former gunslinger who has no intention of selling his beloved acres to some fool who wants to build a dam and flood them all. Going "gently into that good night" is not in the cards at all, and this latter-day Quixote prepares to wage a lonely battle against the namby-pamby modern world. His ranch hand, Paco (Alfonso Arau), an illegal immigrant, and his bemused daughter, Amanda (Michele Carey) do what they can to help. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brian Keith
- 1971
Aka Machismo, 40 Graves for 40 Guns stars James Lemp, Gary Kent and Gary Graver as the leaders of notorious Harris Gang. Since nearly half the cast is identified as "member of the Harris gang," it's clear this isn't any two-bit operation. Conducting raids on Mexican border towns, the gang indulges in wanton killing, looting and raping. But when they steal a pure gold cross, they've gone too far. Operating on the theory that it takes a rat to catch a rat, the Federales spring a hardened convict (Robert Padilla) from jail and put him in charge of a posse comprised of fellow prisoners. If the posse catches the Harrises, they'll be pardoned. If not... This is sort of film where there are no good guys, just various degrees of bad. The ending is predictably bloody, and unpredictably ironic. Combining elements of The Magnificent Seven, The Dirty Dozen and The Wild Bunch, 40 Graves for 40 Guns deserves to be better known. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1970
- R
Fast paced and violent, this Mexico-set western chronicles the bloody struggle over a stolen gold cross. The murderous Harris gang started the trouble by stealing the icon from a Tecate church in a terrifying raid that left many townsfolk dead or brutalized. The head Federale assigned to bring the gang in realizes he is dealing with monsters and that to catch them he must fight fire with fire by enlisting the aid of the most notorious crook in prison with the promise of a pardon if the outlaw and his men are successful. When the two ruthless gangs finally clash, amidst considerable furor and treachery, unparalleled bloodshed and chaos ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1969
The "Commandante" in this Mission:Impossible episode is a man named Acero, played by Lawrence Dane. Joining forces with his longtime political foe Major Martillo (Sig Haig), Acero has imprision Father Paolo Dominguin (Arthur Batanides), the leader of a Latin American revolutionary movement. In order to rescue Father Dominguin, the IMF agents must play upon the bitter rivalry between the two villains--a plan that requires Paris to impersonate a Chinese colonel. Written by Laurence Heath, "Commandante" was originally telecast on November 2, 1969. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Graves, Leonard Nimoy, (more)
