Julio Pena Movies

In the lively comedy/adventure Travels with My Aunt, adapted from Graham Green's book, Henry (Alec McCowan), a timid, bookish accountant whose life seems to have died stillborn, discovers how to live with gusto thanks to the rough ministrations of his thoroughly eccentric aunt Augusta (Maggie Smith). Aunt Augusta bursts into Henry's life during the funeral for his mother, Augusta's sister. She whisks him to her apartment for a general cheering up, and he is thoroughly bemused by her bohemian ways and her much-younger black Caribbean boyfriend. In the next few hours, she manages to pry him from his dusty life and involve him in a series of incredible adventures involving old love affairs, espionage, kidnappings, and more money than he has ever dreamt of. Before the story ends, Henry has properly gotten into the spirit of his madcap aunt's adventuring. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

The fourth film in the series, this movie follows the escapades of Count Waldemar Daninsky (Paul Naschy), a classy werewolf, who is brought back to life by an over-curious doctor. Once free, he finds himself struggling to overcome the vampiric Countess Waldessa (Patty Shepard), who has taken his young female friend captive. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

Whatever happened to Satanik? Back in the 1970s, this Spanish-Italian horror harvest seemed to be on TV every other week. In case you need reminding, the plot concerns a youth potion that transforms an old crone into a ravishing beauty. Unfortunately, her new-found gorgeousness forces the heroine to form a pact with the Devil. Magda Konopka stars in this mish-mash of cliches and gruesome special effects. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Yul Brynner stars as the legendary Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa in this 1968 epic that was originally written by Sam Peckinpah, who hoped to direct it. But studio bosses instead hired Buzz Kulik and cut the script. Villa is commanded by General Huerta (Herbert Lom) and assisted by the sadistic Fierro (Charles Bronson). Captain Francisco Ramirez (Frank Wolff) is a counter-revolutionary leader for whom an American pilot, Lee Arnold (Robert Mitchum), is smuggling guns from Texas. While Arnold is in a small village waiting for his place to be fixed, he sees Ramirez's troops attack the village and get routed by Villa. The rebels arrest Arnold for gun-running and sentence him to face a firing squad. He works a deal to save his skin by agreeing to fly missions for the revolutionaries. While Villa's men attack a train, Arnold bombs government troops with grenades. Arnold's aerial support saves Villa when he is sent on a doomed mission by Huerta, who is vying with Villa for power. Arnold escapes to Texas and Villa is arrested for disobeying Huerta's orders. Villa eventually escapes, finds Arnold in Texas, and convinces him to fight again for the revolution, which is now targeting Huerta, who has assassinated the Mexican president and taken power. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide

The legendary Shakespearean character Sir John Falstaff, the notoriously drunken, obese, and yet charming companion of the young Henry V, steps up from supporting character in several plays to the central focus of Orson Welles' Chimes at Midnight, considered by many critics the best of the director's acclaimed Shakespeare films. The script borrows scenes from several plays, but draws most heavily on the two parts of Henry IV, focusing on the shifting relationship between Falstaff and Prince Hal. Beginning as the prince's companion in debauchery and idleness, the corpulent jokester finds himself falling out of favor as the prince comes to terms with the importance of his destiny as England's future leader. While Falstaff's ample wit is still much in evidence, the film places greater emphasis on the tragic character beneath all the joviality, with Welles perfectly embodying this mixture of spiritually youthful prankster and sad adult. While his towering performance naturally takes center stage, the other cast members are also superb. The film's visual elements are also strong, with Welles' attention to composition matching his sensitivity to character. There are technical imperfections due to the film's extremely limited budget, including an inconsistent soundtrack, but they are unable to overshadow the film's many achievements. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

Set in the wilds of South Africa, this Italian adventure chronicles the travails of three fugitive killers who search the jungle for a fabulous gold mine. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this mystery, a gang of drug smugglers kidnap the ex-girlfriend of a journalist. The journalist begins looking for her. When the woman is found dead, the journalist gets some help and eventually justice prevails. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

When the town sheriff backs down from outlaws, he is branded a coward. This melodramatic western follows his efforts to restore his good name, even though he himself was a former member of the gang. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The happy thieves in this international effort are Rex Harrision and Rita Hayworth, both specialists in swiping rare art objects. Their plan to pilfer a priceless Goya involves creating a public diversion at a nearby bullring. Oh, we forgot to tell you: the film was made on location in Madrid, the better for the stars to avoid stiff taxes. Though both seem too old for this sort of fluff, Harrison and Hayworth make the most of the comic opportunities afforded them by the script. Produced by Hayworth's then-husband James Hill, Happy Thieves was based on a novel by Richard Condon, who later turned out such efforts as The Manchurian Candidate and Prizzi's Honor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Romance, treachery, intrigue and spiritual awakenings abound in the Biblical film adaptation of Solomon and Sheba. Trouble begins between two brothers when poet Solomon (Yul Brynner) is chosen to be next in line to the throne by King David of Israel. His warrior brother Adonijah (George Sanders) is livid when Solomon becomes king. While Israel prospers under Solomon, Sheba (Gina Lollobrigida) conspires with the Egyptians to topple Israel. She is ambitious and seductive and finally gets Solomon to fall in love with her. When a pagan dance ritual turns into an orgy, the people turn against Solomon when the Temple of Jehovah is struck by lightning. After the righteous Solomon has fallen from the grace of God, Sheba renounces her pagan Gods and converts to Judaism. A cast of thousands depict the raging battle between the Israelites and the Egyptians. Directed by King Vidor at the cost of five million dollars, production was delayed when the original choice for the role of Solomon (Tyrone Power) died during the making of the film. Many scenes had to be redone with his replacement, Yul Brynner. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

The was the only film directed by Andre Malraux, the noted French author, critic, and political activist, and it was based on one of his novels, which was in turn inspired by his experiences fighting with the Loyalists against Franco during the Spanish Civil War. A Loyalist aerial squadron, whose enthusiasm and determination easily outstrip the weapons at their disposal, need to take control of a strategically crucial bridge. To achieve this goal, they must wipe out a Republican air field, but their reconnaissance teams have been unable to locate it. The Loyalist air aces meet a peasant who knows where the targeted airstrip can be found, but there's a catch: he's illiterate and can't use a map, so he has to be taken along on bombing raids to show the men their target. Espoir was actually filmed in Spain during the war, incorporating genuine combat footage. The completed takes were then smuggled to France, which was under Nazi occupation at the time. The completed picture was not shown publicly until after France was liberated, where it immediately received triumphant acclaim, earning the nation's highest cinematic honor, the Louis Delluc Award. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide