Ryck Rydon Movies
An enterprising undertaker forms an unholy alliance with the owner of a diner in this low-budget exploitation horror film. Macabre humor and terror is combined as the victims of a small town down South are served human flesh at the diner. One of the deceased was named Susie Lamb, and soon the menu advertises leg of lamb as the culinary special of the day. The undertaker takes advantage of the bereaved and charges exorbitant prices for his services before processing their loved ones into lunch meat. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Lowery, Ray Dannis, (more)
Elvis Presley plays singer/actor Johnny Tyronne in this formulated quickie directed by Gene Nelson. While on a promotional tour of Pakistan, Johnny is drugged, kidnapped, and whisked away to a mythical Middle East country. Jay Novello plays the scheming Zacha who vows (for a price) to help Johnny in a world that is 2,000 years behind the times and sealed off from the outside world. With the help of Baba (Billy Barty), they hope to get Johnny back to the comforts of the modern world. Elvis shows off some neat karate moves, but he looks bored and resigned to the fact no one in Hollywood (or Colonel Tom Parker) will give him a serious screen role. Filmed on sets that were originally used for Kismet (1944) and Cecile B. DeMille's silent classic The Ten Commandments. As for the songs, only Mirage and Hey Little Girl are memorable. The generous Presley, perhaps feeling nostalgic, donated $50,000 to the motion picture relief fund after completing the film. On hand at the celebrity press conference were such luminaries as Frank Sinatra, Bud Abbott, and silent-screen veteran Chester Conklin. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elvis Presley, Mary Ann Mobley, (more)
- 1962
Conrad Phillips stars as a British secret agent not named James Bond in Dead Man's Evidence. The story is set in motion by the discovery of a dead frogman, washed up on the coast of Ireland. The body is identified as that of a double agent who has sold out to the Russians. In fact, the dead man is innocent. The real culprit is still alive-and murderously protective of his identity. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
The child is played by Tommy Martin; the killer by Robert Arden. A US army officer on the lam after committing murder, Arden bursts into the home of widowed Patricia Driscoll. At gunpoint, he orders Driscoll's son Martin to lead him through the backwaters of rural England to safety. The two form a tentative friendship, but Arden shows his true collars before the day is done. Child and the Killer has elements in common with the much-later Kevin Costner vehicle A Perfect World. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1957
In this comedy, a pair of newlywed workers at an ad agency find themselves unable to honeymoon when she is suddenly assigned to work in the US. While she is gone, her husband begins falling for his sexy secretary, but then realizes he is making a terrible mistake and decides to stay true to his wife. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1957
A rugged, isolated island off the coast of Nova Scotia provides the setting for this drama. Much of the island is owned by one person, the other inhabitants, primarily lobster fishermen, rent from him. One of the lobster men begins romancing the wealthy owner's daughter and marries her. After the wedding, the bride is disturbed to learn that her hubby is a compulsive gambler who quickly squanders their small savings. The impoverished couple has no choice but to leave the island and live on the mainland. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Sylvester, Michael Craig, (more)
- 1957
The Weapon is a loose grouping of elements first seen in the 1951 British melodrama The Yellow Balloon. Jon Whitely plays a young London boy who finds a loaded gun in a blitzed-out building. He fires, accidentally shooting a playmate. Believing he's killed his friend, the boy runs away--leading to a relentlessly suspenseful climax. Though filmed in England, The Weapon was geared from the start for primarily American audiences; its producer was Hollywood's own Hal E. Chester, and its adult stars included Steve Cochran and Lizabeth Scott. The script was written by Fred Freiberger, best known to sci-fi followers as the producer of the original Star Trek's third and final season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Cochran, Lizabeth Scott, (more)
- 1956
The topicality of Satellite in the Sky enabled the British-based Danzinger Bros. to release the film through Warner Bros., rather than their usual United Artists distribution channels. The story concerns the first manned space satellite, launched from England with commander Michael Hayden (Kieron Moore) at the controls. It is the mission of Hayden and his crew to test out the deadly "tritonium" bomb in outer space. Once he's left the atmosphere, Hayden discovers that he's been harboring a stowaway: reporter and anti-weapons activist Kim Hamilton (Lois Maxwell). Everyone's life is placed in peril when the bomb affixes itself to the side of the satellite. As tension mounts, the crew -- and Kim -- race against time to either remove or defuse the tick-tick-ticking weapon. Satellite in the Sky represented documentary filmmaker Paul Dickson's first fictional effort; like most other directors, Dickson was unable to curb the overacting of the venerable Donald Wolfit, here cast as the near-maniacal creator of the tritonium bomb. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kieron Moore, Lois Maxwell, (more)
- 1956
In this crime drama, a policeman sacrifices his career keep his daughter from being implicated in a bank job. Her actions caused his carefully constructed case against a crime boss to crumble. Still, even as a civilian, he continues to chase after the crook. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1954
Robert Ayres plays a moody author with a suicide complex. Ayres' melancholia plays right into the hands of a gang of thieves. For a lofty fee, they convince the author to confess to their crimes and then kill himself. Yes, you're way ahead of us: Ayres has a change of heart and decides that he loves life. Delayed Action was produced by Robert Baker and Monty Berman, the men behind the popular 1960s TV adventure series The Saint. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1954
A lady photographer clicks a few revealing pix at the home of a wealthy woman. When the home's occupant commits suicide, the photographer is accused of prompting this tragedy. Inspector John Bentley suspects there's more to the case than is readily apparent. It turns out that the dead woman was actually murdered by a local bookie, who rearranged the evidence to suggest suicide. Filmed in London, Double Exposure was produced by Robert Baker and Monty Berman, the same team later responsible for the TV series The Saint. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
