Franco Ressel Movies

In this Italian film, a private eye searches in Vienna for the clues to solve a case. ~ Iotis Erlewine, Rovi

The director of this film, Fernando Arrabal, himself an exile from Spain, tells a story which takes place during the time of the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). A woman nearly suffers rape by the nephew of the local nobleman but is rescued by the man's son. The boy is an artist whose works are too modern and rebellious, even blasphemous, for his conservative countrymen. After fighting for some time with the Republican cause, both of them are arrested by the Franco faction. The boy is tortured and disfigured by his captors, but his love for the woman restores him to full life. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In this classic of Italian erotic horror, a perverse Mother Superior and her nuns begin a long slide into mental illness and embrace lustful depravity at the time of the Inquisition, with terrifying consequences when the Inquisitors arrives to see what they've been doing. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Carroll Baker, the blond starlet best known for her role in Baby Doll, ended her career in a number of Italian giallo thrillers including A Quiet Place to Kill, Paranoia, The Fourth Victim, and this giallo-tinged crime film from director Osvaldo Civirani. Baker plays a dual role as translator Julie Harrison and her twin sister Mary. The serpentine plot begins as Julie tells her lawyer Dave Barton (Stephen Boyd from Ben-Hur) that Mary's life is being threatened in London while Julie herself is being stalked by a mysterious stranger in Amsterdam. Dave's racecar-driving friend Tony Shane (George Hilton) saves her from both an attempted kidnapping and an attempted murder before putting her up with an old blind woman to hide. The blind woman is murdered that same night, and Luciano Pigozzi turns up as an insurance investigator who finds out that Mary has stolen a precious diamond from an Indian Maharaja, double-crossing her husband to do so. To reveal any more of the plot would rob the viewer of the jaw-dropping developments, but the film features an unbelievable prank played by Julie's knife-wielding co-worker in a gorilla mask, a speeded-up car chase reminiscent of Rat Pfink a Boo Boo, and a very odd denouement in an abandoned windmill. The cast is loaded with genre veterans like Lucretia Love, Carla Mancini, Franco Ressel, and Ivano Staccioli, and the familiar-sounding score is by the ubiquitous Stelvio Cipriani, making this a solid addition to any giallo library. Various versions run 89 and 87 minutes. ~ Robert Firsching, Rovi

Inspired by the spaghetti westerns, Giuliano Carnimeo's Buon Funerale Amigos, Paga Sartana concerns a tough man who cleans out the bad guys in a town with the help of his trusty rifle. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Spaghetti Western fans used to the likes of Django and The Good, The Bad and the Ugly might be taken by surprise when watching Sabata. True, the film does star spaghetti Western star Lee Van Cleef as the tight-lipped hero of the title, but it has a very different feel from the genre's traditional, Sergio Leone-derived style. Director/co-writer Gianfranco Parolini (alias Frank Kramer) takes things in a direction that seems to fall halfway between The Wild Wild West TV series and a James Bond movie; the film is packed with colorful characters, exotic weapons, and the action scenes that mix wild stunts with pyrotechnics. Parolini appropriately gives the film a light touch, playing up the colorful and humorous aspects while delivering the action. The end result is a little too long for this sort of light material, causing it to drag a bit in the middle, but it is too good-natured and entertaining to dislike. In short, Sabata is likely to make fun viewing for Euro-cult fans and anyone interested in an offbeat Western. ~ Donald Guarisco, Rovi

This spaghetti western finds a despotic mine owner (Eduardo Fajardo) the target for revenge by the idealistic patriot Eufemio (Tony Musante). He hires Bill Douglas (Franco Nero) to incite a revolution that will oust the government and the greedy miner. Douglas agrees as long as his creature comforts are insured during the crossing of the unforgiving desert. Ricciolo (Jack Palance) is the mercenary working for the side of the mineowner. Ennio Morricone provides the music for this violent and humorous film. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

This WW II comedy centers upon a hapless German general (played by Buster Keaton in one of his last roles) who is stationed in Italy the night before the Allied invasion. Two Yankee POWs are planning to steal the plans for the Nazi offensive strategy. The Germans anticipate this and replace the real ones with phony plans. At least that's what they were supposed to do. Actually a mix-up results in the real plans being left out for the Americans to steal. During the offensive, the two soldiers are captured by the German general. The fellow is rather absent-minded and a tad confused so when the soldiers dress up as Hitler and an SS general, the poor man is totally fooled. Seeing that he isn't too bright, the Americans take pity upon him, disguise him as a scarecrow and help him escape with them. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

In this campy Italian sci-fi adventure wicked aliens from outer space abduct and miniaturize Earth's leaders to make it easier to destroy the planet until a courageous hero appears to fight against him and his legion of skintight leather-clad robot women. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

This classic Greek tale of a friendship that overcomes even death makes for an interesting sword-and-sandal saga, with Guy Williams in the role of Damon. An apt choice since Williams is himself an expert swordsman, as partially demonstrated in his role as Zorro on American television (1957-59). Pythias (Don Burnett) has been caught plotting the assassination of King Dionysis I of Syracuse (Arnoldo Foa). Before his execution, Dionysis grants Pythias leave to put his affairs in order because Damon volunteers to stand in his stead if Pythias does not come back to face the executioner. Damon's act is considered foolish. He was safe, why should Pythias come back? But the two are devotees of the Pythagorean mysteries, and their faith in brotherly love goes beyond self-interest. When Pythias does return in the allotted time, King Dionysis is impressed enough to have a change of heart. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

In 13th-Century China, the invading Mongol leader Garak (Leopoldo Severini) decides to kill a young prince before he can take the throne, staging a hunting accident to explain the death. The nomadic strongman Maciste (Gordon Scott) saves the prince from a tiger pit and brings him to a monastery, then attempts seven feats of strength which will repel the invaders according to prophecy. During one of Maciste's tests, he is captured and imprisoned beneath the Mongol palace. As rebellion swirls around Garach, Maciste summons all of his strength and breaks free, causing a spectacular earthquake which swallows the invading hordes. This standard sword-and-sandal adventure features some rousing battle scenes, but was so heavily edited for American release that only five of Maciste's seven tests remain. ~ Robert Firsching, Rovi