Vicente Roca Movies
Cult director Jesus Franco's adaptation of John Willard's oft-filmed The Cat and the Canary is a fairly routine mystery about the residents of a Louisiana castle being murdered by a masked killer. Alberto Dalbes appears in a dual role as Maj. Brooks and the castle's doomed owner, Lord Marion, the first victim. When the family arrives for the reading of Marion's will, his wife is strapped to the face of a cliff and drowned by the tide. More murders follow, and as Inspector Bore (Vicente Roca) investigates, he discovers some dark secrets in the family's past, leading him to suspect that the motive may be revenge for a terrible transgression. Evelyn Scott, William Berger, and Lina Romay co-star in this muddled but passable thriller. Franco appears as Maj. Brooks' alcoholic assistant, and bit players Luis Barboo and Ramon Ardid also appear. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- 1973
At first glance, we were prepared to designate B Must Die as a hybrid TV feature, consisting of two episodes of either The Outsider or Night Stalker. That's because the star of this obscure entry is Darren McGavin, who also headlined the two aforementioned weekly series. Further research revealed, however, that McGavin's character name in B Must Die is "Pal", which doesn't jive with either Outsider or Kolchak. Then we discovered that the film was a tax-writeoff action drama, boasting a convoluted storyline about a political/industrial rebellion in an unnamed South American country. Patricia Neal and Burgess Meredith costar in B Must Die. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
This horror science-fiction thriller, a cult favorite, takes place in 1907. Professor Caxton (Christopher Lee), a fossil-hunter has discovered some sort of pre-human creature frozen in ancient Manchurian ice. He is traveling to London with his find on the Trans-Siberian Railway and is horrified to discover that his frozen man is missing, and corpses and zombies are appearing all over the train. It turns out that the frozen specimen is an alien with some unusual powers. The combined forces of Professor Caxton, his rival Dr. Wells (Peter Cushing), and a Cossack captain (Telly Savalas) are needed to save the world from this monstrous being. Skillfully told, with a good dose of humor, this film also features the train which appeared a year before in Nicholas and Alexandra . ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1969
- R
As Brazilian saboteurs attempt to take over a rich industrialist's ore mines, mercenary Ray Danton arms the miners to stop the saboteurs. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1968
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, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Franco Nero, Tony Musante, (more)
- 1967
A priceless cache of blue diamonds cause criminal chaos in this grim action drama that is set in the Mexican jungle. The excitement begins with the robbery of an armored car carrying the valuable gems. Something goes awry and all but one of the thieves die violently. The sole witness to the crime then kills the surviving crook and hides the diamonds in the jungle. Later a gangster captures him and tries to force him to disclose their location. The gangster's moll takes pity on the fellow and helps him escape. The two then make a desperate bid for the border with both the crooks and the Diamond Syndicate Police in hot pursuit. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ina Balin, Sancho Gracia, (more)
In this crazy, comic crime caper, someone has purloined $3,000 and now a space-case police chief, a brassy maid, a pill-happy headshrinker, and two scuzz-bag burglars are all out to get it. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
