Cy Raker Endfield Movies

This film depicts the events prior to the devastating conflict that occurred in 1879 when British soldiers were held siege by thousands of Zulu warriors. Fifteen hundred soldiers were killed in the epic battle. This film portrays the tensions existing between the tribal factions and the British invaders. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

Keir Dullea dives into a bevy of babes with an open wine bottle as the notorious Marquis de Sade in this low-budget debauch from American International Pictures -- purveyors of fine entertainment morsels for the connoisseur. The film takes place as an extended flashback after de Sade has escaped from a madhouse and taken refuge in the dilapidated mansion where he was reared. In his flashback, de Sade recalls how the Abbe de Sade (John Huston) used to have a maid whip him until he began to like it. Of course, after that, the next step down the primrose path was flagellation and orgies. Finally sent to a French jail for lewd behavior, de Sade begins to write anti-government creeds to while away the hours. After his release, he is compelled to marry the repulsive Renee de Montreuil (Anna Massey). De Sade goes along with the marriage in order to get closer to her sister Anne (Senta Berger). In spite of that, de Sade continues to seek out various forms of softcore sex. But then the Black Plague hits. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Filmed on a grand scale, Zulu is a rousing recreation of the January 22, 1879, siege of Rorke's Drift in Natal, Africa. An army of 4,000 Zulu warriors have already decimated a huge British garrison; now they are on their way to the much smaller Rorke's Drift. A Royal Engineers officer (Stanley Baker) is determined to stand his ground, despite having only a skeleton garrison at his command. His steamroller tactics are constantly at odds with those of a by-the-book lieutenant (Michael Caine), who feels that a retreat is called for, but it becomes clear that if the garrison is to survive, they'd better pay heed. Jack Hawkins and Ulla Jacobsson are also on hand as an idealistic missionary and his somewhat more pragmatic daughter. Richard Burton provides the narration for Zulu, closing the film with the observation that 11 of the 1,344 Victoria Crosses awarded since 1856 were bestowed upon the survivors of Rorke's Drift. Zulu was followed in 1979 by a "prequel," Zulu Dawn. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Filmed at least nine times over the last nine decades, Jules Verne's Mysterious Island received its most popular picturization in the hands of producer Charles Schneer, director Cy Endfield and special-effects maestro Ray Harryhausen. During the Civil War, several P.O.W.s led by Gary Merrill escape from a southern stockade in a huge observation balloon. Buffeted about by a violent storm, the balloon lands on an unchartered island somewhere near New Zealand. The fugitives soon discover that this is no ordinary desert isle, especially after being attacked by a giant-sized crab. Joined by a pair of shipwrecked British gentlewomen (Joan Greenwood and Beth Rogan), the castaways find evidence that the island has been previously inhabited-and that they're all being watched. Sure enough, it turns out that the island is the domain of Captain Nemo (Herbert Lom), skipper of the futuristic underwater vessel Nautilus. Having failed to end all wars by blasting battleships out of the sea, Nemo is now experimenting with new means of ending starvation in the world: hence the outsized crabs and birds that the castaways have confronted. Before Nemo can spread his goodwill elsewhere, he is destroyed by the island's volcano, while the others manage to escape in the Nautilus. As in 1957's 7th Voyage of Sinbad, the combination of Ray Harryhausen and musical composer Bernard Herrmann is unbeatable; otherwise, Mysterious Island tends to slow to a halt in-between its spectacular special-effects highlights. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this airborne disaster movie, a has-been brilliant scientist plants a bomb on a transatlantic jet to exact revenge upon a passenger whom he blames for his daughter's death -- she died during a plane crash. When the booby-trap is discovered and the passengers learn the motive for the scientists' actions, one of the passengers attempts to kill the man the scientist blames. A fight erupts and a window is shattered. The helpful passenger is sucked right out of the plane. Only when the scientist spies a child resembling his own lost daughter does he regain his humanity and disarm the bomb. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this efficient British crime drama, Tom Yately (Stanley Baker) is an ex-con looking for honest work. He thinks he's found it when he takes a job as a truck driver, but he soon discovers that the trucking firm he's signed on with is not playing by the rules. Red (Patrick McGoohan), the company's best driver, and Cartley (William Hartnell), the manager, have created five fictional drivers who have been added to the payroll. The other staff drivers are given the shifts that the phony drivers are supposed to be working, while Red and Cartley divide their pay packets. When Tom attempts to expose the corruption at the trucking firm, he soon discovers that he's taken his life in his hands in the process. Keep an eye peeled for a supporting performance by a young Sean Connery (it was only his fifth screen role); the cast also includes Herbert Lom, Jill Ireland, Peggy Cummins, and David McCallum. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this crime drama, an American loses all his money and finds himself stranded in England. He finds hope when he meets a female smuggler who has brought jewels into the country inside a teddy bear. Just before he talks her into helping him, she is pushed off of a cliff. He becomes the prime suspect and mayhem ensues when he gets the jewels, but then loses them to a gang of thieves. Fortunately, by the story's end, he proves his innocence, and brings the gang to justice. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this thriller, a husband gets into all sorts of trouble when his wife takes a lengthy vacation without him. First he gets romantically involved with the chanteuse at a local nightclub. Next she tells him that her brother has gotten in trouble over some stolen diamonds. In truth, the woman desperately wants the stones for herself. She tricks the wayward husband into believing that he killed a man after he buys them two tickets out of the country. He then decides that it is better to face the music, and opts to stay and confess. The singer, too reconsiders, and decides to stay with him until his name is cleared. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Lex Barker plays the Lord of the Jungle in Tarzan's Savage Fury. Against his better judgment, Tarzan agrees to guide British government agents Edwards (Patric Knowles) and Rokov (Charles Korvin) into the land of the Wazuri Tribe, ostensibly to harvest uncut diamonds for national-defense purposes. In reality, Edwards and Rokov are a pair of criminals who intend to use the gems for their own nefarious purposes. Dorothy Hart co-stars as Jane, while Tommy Carlton plays a substitute for Tarzan's adopted son "Boy." The film's best scene takes place just after the opening credits, as Tarzan rescues Carlton from a deadly tribal ritual. Tarzan's Savage Fury was co-written by Cyril Hume, who'd contributed mightily to the "Tarzan" series back in its big-budget MGM days. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Written by murder-mystery specialist Craig Rice, The Underworld Story concerns a corrupt newspaperman (Dan Duryea), who is in the pocket of a gangster (Howard da Silva). When he's fired by a big-city paper, the newsman buys an interest in a small-town weekly. It is while thus occupying that man reforms, devoting himself to clearing a black woman falsely accused of murder. Gale Storm co-stars as Duryea's assistant, who helps him expose an intricate and insidious conspiracy of silence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Joe Palooka, comic strip artist Ham Fisher's golden-hearted pugilist, heads South of the Border in The Counterpunch. Actually, Joe (Joe Kirkwood Jr.) goes no further than Monogram's cramped "ocean liner" standing set, but the audience doesn't really mind. The plot concerns a gang of counterfeiters, one of whom is murdered en route to Latin America. Everyone is a suspect, including Joe and his manager Knobby Walsh (played by comedian Leon Errol, who certainly deserves his top billing). When the treasury agent in charge of the case has trouble determining the culprit's identity, Joe uses his pugilistic prowess to solve the mystery. Elyse Knox, the real-life wife of football player Tom Harmon, is cast as Joe's sweetheart Ann Howe. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Only faintly related to the old stage play The Argyle Case, The Argyle Secrets is based on a half-hour radio program originally heard on CBS' Suspense. In the immediate postwar years, several above-suspicion Americans attempt to hide their past collaborations with the Nazis. Reporter William Gargan refuses to let sleeping dogs lie, however, and tracks down some of these fifth columnists. The film's "Macguffin" is a set of incriminating papers, which are stolen early in the proceedings. The supporting cast of this Film Classics programmer includes future Danny Thomas Show co-star Marjorie Lord and former "Dick Tracy" portrayer Ralph Byrd. The Argyle Secrets was written and directed by one-time MGM film editor Cyril Endfield, later the man behind the megaphone on Zulu (1964). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

One of the many Bowery Boys movies, in this one Slip and Sach are mistaken for two private investigators and risk their lives trying to solve a missing persons mystery. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide