Wednesday 24 May 2000

2016 Centennials


I had a lot of fun in 2014 watching each of the 36 films that Charlie Chaplin made in 1914 (well, the 35 that still exist, at least). What made it most fun was watching them a hundred years to the day from their original release, so seeing them at the rate that the audiences of the time did.

A neat side effect was that I kept on task and so inherently had a book ready to proof and edit by the end of the year, so I conjured up a similar project. This one wouldn't involve the centennials of films but of people, working to the same sort of structure.


So, here's 2016 Centennials.

Each review here was posted on what would have been (or in some instances actually was) the one hundredth birthday of someone important to the film industry. The aim was to remember them with an interesting film from their career that, in the process, allows me to explore another aspect of history, whether to cinema, something wider or both.

Some of these people are famous, household names that we grew up watching. Some aren't. And some used to be, but a hundred years is a long time and things change. All, however, are important.

These carefully curated films vary by era, genre and nationality and, together, help to enrich my knowledge and maybe yours too. I collated these reviews into a book, A Hundred in 2016, which won the Alan Black Cirque du Livre Book of the Festival in 2017.

Rating System
1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

Latest Review (19 Dec 2016)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde 1971 5 5 Roy Ward Baker IMDb

All 2018 Centennial Reviews
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
10 Rillington Place 1971 7 6 Richard Fleischer IMDb
23 Paces to Baker Street 1956 5 5 Henry Hathaway IMDb
Angel Baby 1961 5 5 Paul Wendkos IMDb
Babies for Sale 1940 5 5 Charles Barton IMDb
The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend 1949 4 4 Preston Sturges IMDb
Behold a Pale Horse 1964 4 4 Fred Zinnemann IMDb
The Brute Man 1946 4 4 Jean Yarbrough IMDb
Bwana Devil 1952 3 3 Arch Oboler IMDb
Carry On... Up the Khyber 1968 6 5 Gerald Thomas IMDb
Curse of the Queerwolf 1988 5 4 Mark Pirro IMDb
The Curse of the Werewolf 1961 5 5 Terence Fisher IMDb
Dance of the Vampires 1967 5 4 Roman Polanski IMDb
The Dark Eyes of London 1939 5 5 Walter Summers IMDb
Death Car on the Freeway 1979 4 4 Hal Needham IMDb
Deathtrap 1982 6 6 Sidney Lumet IMDb
Doctor Syn 1937 5 5 Roy William Neill IMDb
Dr Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine 1965 4 4 Norman Taurog IMDb
Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde 1971 5 5 Roy Ward Baker IMDb
The Ghost Breakers 1940 5 5 George Marshall IMDb
Hellzapoppin' 1941 6 5 H. C. Potter IMDb
Horrors of the Black Museum 1959 5 5 Arthur Crabtree IMDb
The Inheritance 1962 6 6 Masaki Kobayashi IMDb
The Iroquois Trail 1950 4 4 Phil Karlson IMDb
Johnny O'Clock 1947 4 4 Robert Rossen IMDb
Lady in a Cage 1964 5 6 Walter Grauman IMDb
The Lost World 1960 3 3 Irwin Allen IMDb
The Night of the Grizzly 1966 5 4 Joseph Pevney IMDb
Postal Inspector 1936 4 4 Otto Brower IMDb
Psychout for Murder 1969 5 5 Edward Ross IMDb
The Shiralee 1957 5 5 Leslie Norman IMDb
Skidoo 1968 2 2 Otto Preminger IMDb
The Spiral Staircase 1945 6 6 Robert Siodmak IMDb
The Tattered Dress 1957 6 5 Jack Arnold IMDb
Terror in a Texas Town 1958 6 5 Joseph H. Lewis IMDb
The Villain 1979 3 4 Hal Needham IMDb

2017 Centennials


I had so much fun last year celebrating the centennials of important people to film, a project that led to my award-winning fifth book, A Hundred in 2016, that I knew I had to continue in 2017.


So, here's my Centennials 2017 project.

Each review here was posted on what would have been (or in some instances actually was) the one hundredth birthday of someone important to the film industry. The aim is to remember them with an interesting film from their career that, in the process, allows me to explore another aspect of history, whether to cinema, something wider or both.

Some of these people are famous, household names that we grew up watching. Some aren't. And some used to be, but a hundred years is a long time and things change. All, however, are important.

These carefully curated films vary by era, genre and nationality and, together, help to enrich my knowledge and maybe yours too. I'll collate these reviews into a new book, A Hundred in 2017, to be released at the beginning of 2018.

Rating System
1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

Latest Review (22 Dec 2017)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny & Girly 1970 5 5 Freddie Francis IMDb

All 2017 Centennial Reviews
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
5 Fingers 1952 6 5 Joseph L. Mankiewicz IMDb
The 5,000 Fingers of Dr T. 1953 5 6 Roy Rowland IMDb
Behind Locked Doors 1948 4 4 Budd Boetticher IMDb
Blanche Fury 1948 5 5 Marc Allégret IMDb
Blood on the Moon 1948 5 5 Robert Wise IMDb
The Blue Veil 1951 5 5 Curtis Bernhardt IMDb
Chicken Every Sunday 1949 5 5 George Seaton IMDb
Did You Hear the One About the Traveling Saleslady? 1968 2 2 Don Weis IMDb
Emperor of the North Pole 1973 5 5 Robert Aldrich IMDb
The Great St. Trinian's Train Robbery 1966 4 4 Frank Launder & Sidney Gilliat IMDb
Helter Skelter 1949 4 4 Ralph Thomas IMDb
Hotel Berlin 1945 6 6 Peter Godfrey IMDb
It Always Rains on Sunday 1947 6 6 Robert Hamer IMDb
The Leopard Man 1943 6 6 Jacques Tourneur IMDb
Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny & Girly 1970 5 5 Freddie Francis IMDb
The Naked Kiss 1964 6 6 Samuel Fuller IMDb
The Night Walker 1964 5 5 William Castle IMDb
O, My Darling Clementine 1943 4 4 Frank McDonald IMDb
Pool of London 1951 6 5 Basil Dearden IMDb
The Ringer 1952 5 5 Guy Hamilton IMDb
Santo vs. The Vampire Women 1962 5 5 Alfonso Corona Blake IMDb
Stay Hungry 1976 5 4 Bob Rafelson IMDb
That Obscure Object of Desire 1977 6 5 Luis Buñuel IMDb
The Time Travelers 1964 5 5 Ib Melchior IMDb

2018 Centennials


I enjoyed celebrating the centennials of important people to film, a project that led to my award-winning fifth book, A Hundred in 2016, so much that I knew I had to continue in 2017. Here I am for the 2018 edition, year three for me on this project.


So, here's 2018 Centennials.

Each review here was posted on what would have been (or in some instances actually was) the one hundredth birthday of someone important to the film industry. The aim is to remember them with an interesting film from their career that, in the process, allows me to explore another aspect of history, whether to cinema, something wider or both.

Some of these people are famous, household names that we grew up watching. Some aren't. And some used to be, but a hundred years is a long time and things change. All, however, are important.

These carefully curated films vary by era, genre and nationality and, together, help to enrich my knowledge and maybe yours too. I'll collate these reviews into a new book, A Hundred in 2018, to be released at the beginning of 2019.

Rating System
1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

Latest Review (17 Apr 2018)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
Golden Boy 1939 4 4 Rouben Mamoulian IMDb

All 2018 Centennial Reviews
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
All Through the Night 1942 5 5 Vincent Sherman IMDb
The Baby 1973 5 5 Ted Post IMDb
The Bigamist 1953 6 6 Ida Lupino IMDb
The Girl Hunters 1963 5 5 Roy Rowland IMDb
The Glass Web 1953 5 5 Jack Arnold IMDb
Golden Boy 1939 4 4 Rouben Mamoulian IMDb
Home of the Brave 1949 6 5 Mark Robson IMDb
The Last Page 1952 5 5 Terence Fisher IMDb
The Lineup 1958 6 6 Don Siegel IMDb
The Magnetic Monster 1953 5 5 Curt Siodmak IMDb

2019 Centennials


I enjoyed celebrating the centennials of important people to film, a project that led to my award-winning fifth book, A Hundred in 2016, so much that I knew I had to continue in 2017. I'm enjoying this series, so I'm back for the 2019 edition, year four for me.


So, here's 2019 Centennials.

Each review here was posted on what would have been (or in some instances actually was) the one hundredth birthday of someone important to the film industry. The aim is to remember them with an interesting film from their career that, in the process, allows me to explore another aspect of history, whether to cinema, something wider or both.

Some of these people are famous, household names that we grew up watching. Some aren't. And some used to be, but a hundred years is a long time and things change. All, however, are important.

These carefully curated films vary by era, genre and nationality and, together, help to enrich my knowledge and maybe yours too. I'll collate these reviews into a new book, A Hundred in 2019, to be released at the beginning of 2020.

Rating System
1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

Latest Review (18 Feb 2019)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
I Died a Thousand Times 1955 4 4 Stuart Heisler IMDb

All 2019 Centennial Reviews
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
The Abominable Snowman 1957 5 4 Val Guest IMDb
The Big Circus 1959 4 4 Joseph M. Newman IMDb
House of Bamboo 1955 5 5 Samuel Fuller IMDb
I Died a Thousand Times 1955 4 4 Stuart Heisler IMDb
I’ve Lived Before 1956 4 4 Richard Bartlett IMDb
Night Train to Mundo Fine 1966 1 1 Coleman Francis IMDb
Noose 1948 5 5 Edmond T. Gréville IMDb
Our Man in Havana 1959 6 6 Carol Reed IMDb

2020 Centennials


I enjoyed celebrating the centennials of important people to film, a project that led to my award-winning fifth book, A Hundred in 2016, so much that I knew I had to continue in 2017. I'm enjoying this series, so I'm back for the 2020 edition, year five for me. Let's see if I can write more than last year.

So, here's 2020 Centennials.

Each review here was posted on what would have been (or in some instances actually was) the one hundredth birthday of someone important to the film industry. The aim is to remember them with an interesting film from their career that, in the process, allows me to explore another aspect of history, whether to cinema, something wider or both.

Some of these people are famous, household names that we grew up watching. Some aren't. And some used to be, but a hundred years is a long time and things change. All, however, are important.

These carefully curated films vary by era, genre and nationality and, together, help to enrich my knowledge and maybe yours too. I'll collate these reviews into a new book, A Hundred in 2020, to be released at the beginning of 2021. Hopefully.

Rating System
1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

Latest Review (16 May 2020)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
Hell is Empty 1967 4 4 John Ainsworth IMDb

All 2020 Centennial Reviews
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
The Manchu Eagle Murder Caper Mystery 1975 4 3 Dean Hargrove IMDb
Vicki 1953 6 5 Harry Horner IMDb
Buck Rogers 1939 3 3 Ford Beebe & Saul A. Goodkind IMDb
Gunfight at Comanche Creek 1963 5 5 Frank McDonald IMDb
Nights of Cabiria 1957 7 7 Federico Fellini IMDb
Sorcerer 1977 6 6 William Friedkin IMDb
Hell is Empty 1967 4 4 John Ainsworth IMDb

2021 Centennials


So far, my centennials project has spawned one award-winning book, A Hundred in 2016, and four years where I didn't review anywhere near as much I planned because life got in the way. I'm still enjoying this series, so I'm back for year six, the 2021 edition. Fingers crossed that I can write more than last year.

So, here's 2021 Centennials.

Each review here was posted on what would have been (or in some instances actually was) the one hundredth birthday of someone important to the film industry. The aim is to remember them with an interesting film from their career that, in the process, allows me to explore another aspect of history, whether to cinema, something wider or both.

Some of these people are famous, household names that we grew up watching. Some aren't. And some used to be, but a hundred years is a long time and things change. All, however, are important.

These carefully curated films vary by era, genre and nationality and, together, help to enrich my knowledge and maybe yours too. I'll collate these reviews into a new book, A Hundred in 2021, to be released at the beginning of 2022. Hopefully.

Rating System
1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

Latest Review (19 Feb 2021)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
Klondike Kate 1943 4 4 William Castle IMDb

All 2021 Centennial Reviews
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
Clash by Night 1963 5 5 Montgomery Tully IMDb
Fort Massacre 1958 4 4 Joseph M. Newman IMDb
Gang War 1958 4 4 Gene Fowler Jr. IMDb
Happy Go Lovely 1951 5 5 H. Bruce Humberstone IMDb
Klondike Kate 1943 4 4 William Castle IMDb
The Mole People 1956 4 4 Virgil Vogel IMDb
Scandal Sheet 1952 5 5 Phillip Karlson IMDb

2022 Centennials

So far, my centennials project has spawned one award-winning book, A Hundred in 2016, and five years where I didn't review anywhere near as much I planned because life got in the way. I'm still enjoying this series, so I'm back for year seven, the 2022 edition. Fingers crossed that I can write more than last year.

So, here's 2022 Centennials.

Each review here was posted on what would have been (or in some instances actually was) the one hundredth birthday of someone important to the film industry. The aim is to remember them with an interesting film from their career that, in the process, allows me to explore another aspect of history, whether to cinema, something wider or both.

Some of these people are famous, household names that we grew up watching. Some aren't. And some used to be, but a hundred years is a long time and things change. All, however, are important.

These carefully curated films vary by era, genre and nationality and, together, help to enrich my knowledge and maybe yours too. I'll collate these reviews into a new book, A Hundred in 2022, to be released at the beginning of 2023. Hopefully.

Rating System

1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

Latest Review (21 Jan 2022)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
The Train 1964 6 5 John Frankenheimer IMDb

All 2022 Centennial Reviews
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
Lisa and the Devil 1973 6 5 Mario Bava IMDb
Reprisal! 1956 4 4 George Sherman IMDb
The Train 1964 6 5 John Frankenheimer IMDb

2023 Centennials

So far, my centennials project has spawned one award-winning book, A Hundred in 2016, and six years where I didn't review anywhere near as much I planned because life got in the way. I'm still enjoying this series, so I'm back for year eight, the 2023 edition, on a serious year to get the film side of Apocalypse Later in balance with the book and music reviews I'm doing well with.

So, here's 2023 Centennials.

Each review here was posted on what would have been (or in some instances actually was) the one hundredth birthday of someone important to the film industry. The aim is to remember them with an interesting film from their career that, in the process, allows me to explore another aspect of history, whether to cinema, something wider or both.

Some of these people are famous, household names that we grew up watching. Some aren't. And some used to be, but a hundred years is a long time and things change. All, however, are important.

These carefully curated films vary by era, genre and nationality and, together, help to enrich my knowledge and maybe yours too. I'll collate these reviews into a new book, A Hundred in 2023, to be released at the beginning of 2024. At least that's the plan.

Rating System

1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

Latest Review (28 Nov 2023)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
The Return of the Living Dead 1985 5 5 Dan O’Bannon IMDb

All 2023 Centennial Reviews
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
An Angel for Satan 1966 5 5 Camillo Mastrocinque IMDb
The Glass Wall 1953 6 6 Maxwell Shane IMDb
The Guilty 1947 5 5 John Reinhardt IMDb
The Man in the Glass Booth 1975 6 6 Arthur Hiller IMDb
Middle of the Night 1959 6 6 Delbert Mann IMDb
The Night We Got the Bird 1961 4 4 Darcy Conyers IMDb
The One-Armed Swordsman 1967 5 5 Cheh Chang IMDb
One Way Pendulum 1965 4 4 Peter Yates IMDb
The Return of the Living Dead 1985 5 5 Dan O’Bannon IMDb
Smokescreen 1964 5 - Jim O’Connolly IMDb
Storm Over Tibet 1952 5 5 Andrew Marton IMDb
What’s Buzzin’, Cousin? 1943 3 3 Charles Barton IMDb
When a Stranger Calls 1979 6 5 Fred Walton IMDb

2024 Centennials

So far, my centennials project has spawned one award-winning book, A Hundred in 2016, six years where I didn't review anywhere near as much I planned because life got in the way and a much more productive shot at it last year. This is year nine, for 2024, when I don't have any events to run so ought to finish up on time and publish.

So, here's 2024 Centennials.

Each review here was posted on what would have been (or in some instances actually was) the one hundredth birthday of someone important to the film industry. The aim is to remember them with an interesting film from their career that, in the process, allows me to explore another aspect of history, whether to cinema, something wider or both.

Some of these people are famous, household names that we grew up watching. Some aren't. And some used to be, but a hundred years is a long time and things change. All, however, are important.

These carefully curated films vary by era, genre and nationality and, together, help to enrich my knowledge and maybe yours too. I'll collate these reviews into a new book, A Hundred in 2024, to be released at the beginning of 2025. At least that's the plan.

Rating System

1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

Latest Review (19 Feb 2024)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
The Killers 1964 5 5 Donald Siegel IMDb

All 2023 Centennial Reviews
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
The Brute 1953 6 5 Luis Buñuel IMDb
The Killers 1964 5 5 Donald Siegel IMDb

Cinematic Hell

Not all movies are created equal. Welcome to Cinematic Hell.

During 2010 I'm working through the greatest movies of all time, two hundred and fifty of them. Each week of the year I'll be posting reviews of five movies from the IMDb Top 250 List, but that creates something of an imbalance on a blog where I review the good, the bad and the ugly.

If the IMDb Top 250 movies are the good and there's plenty on here already to count as the bad, that leaves the ugly. That's what this page is for.

Each week I'll also be writing a review of one of the worst movies of all time for the awesome folks at Cinema Head Cheese and then indexing them here too as premiere examples of Cinematic Hell. I'm grateful to Kevin, Jeff and David for the privilege. Please check out their site and the many, many other wonderful things they do. Go buy a copy of Blown for starters.

Here are my reviews, along with ratings from my wife and I and links to each film's page at IMDb. Read these reviews at your peril! You have been warned!

Rating System
1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

This Week's Review (Week 43: 3 Nov 2010)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
The Robot vs The Aztec Mummy 1958 2 2 Rafael Portillo IMDb

All Cinematic Hell Reviews
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
The Beast of Yucca Flats 1961 1 1 Coleman Francis IMDb
Blood Feast 1963 2 2 Herschell Gordon Lewis IMDb
Blood Freak 1972 1 1 Steve Hawkes & Brad Grinter IMDb
The Brainiac 1962 2 2 Chano Urueta IMDb
The Brain from Planet Arous 1957 3 3 Nathan Hertz IMDb
The Brain That Wouldn't Die 1962 3 3 Joseph Green IMDb
Chained for Life 1951 2 2 Harry L. Fraser IMDb
Child Bride 1938 2 2 Harry J. Revier IMDb
The Corpse Grinders 1971 3 2 Ted V. Mikels IMDb
The Creeping Terror 1964 1 1 A. J. Nelson IMDb
Criminally Insane 1975 2 2 Nick Philips IMDb
The Crippled Masters 1979 3 3 Kei Law IMDb
Devil Monster 1946 1 1 S. Edwin Graham IMDb
Double Agent 73 1974 1 1 Doris Wishman IMDb
Eegah 1962 1 1 Nicholas Meriwether IMDb
Fist of Fear, Touch of Death 1980 1 1 Matthew Mallinson IMDb
The Giant Gila Monster 1959 3 3 Ray Kellogg IMDb
Hercules Against the Moon Men 1964 2 2 Giacomo Gentilomo IMDb
The Horrors of Spider Island 1960 1 1 Jaime Nolan IMDb
Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter 1966 3 3 William Beaudine IMDb
King Kong vs Godzilla 1962 2 2 Inishiro Honda IMDb
Life Returns 1935 1 1 Eugen Frenke IMDb
Maniac 1934 2 1 Dwain Esper IMDb
Manos: The Hands of Fate 1966 1 1 Harold P. Warren IMDb
Mesa of Lost Women 1953 2 2 Herbert Tevos & Ron Ormond IMDb
The Monster of Camp Sunshine 1964 3 3 Ferenc Leroget IMDb
Monstrosity 1964 2 3 Joseph Mascelli IMDb
Plan 9 from Outer Space 1959 1 1 Edward D. Wood Jr. IMDb
Rat Pfink a Boo Boo 1966 1 1 Ray Dennis Steckler IMDb
Reefer Madness 1936 3 3 Louis J. Gasnier IMDb
Robot Monster 1953 2 2 Phil Tucker IMDb
The Robot vs The Aztec Mummy 1958 2 2 Rafael Portillo IMDb
Santa Claus 1959 1 1 René Cardona IMDb
Tentacles 1977 2 2 Oliver Hellman IMDb
The Terror of Tiny Town 1938 3 3 Sam Newfield IMDb
Test Tube Babies 1948 1 2 W. Merle Connell IMDb
They Saved Hitler's Brain 1976 1 1 David Bradley IMDb
Track of the Moon Beast 1976 2 3 Dick Ashe IMDb
White Pongo 1945 3 3 Sam Newfield IMDb
The Wild Women of Wongo 1958 2 2 James L. Wolcott IMDb
The Wild World of Batwoman 1966 1 1 Jerry Warren IMDb
Zaat 1975 1 1 Don Barton IMDb
Zontar: The Thing from Venus 1966 1 1 Larry Buchanan IMDb

Tuesday 23 May 2000

Dry Heat Obscurities


Everyone knows that they've been making westerns in Arizona since time began, but we've been shooting other genre flicks here for a long time too and many of those seem to have been unjustly forgotten.


So here's my Dry Heat Obscurities project, in which I take a look back at genre features which were shot entirely or, at least, predominantly in Arizona.

I'm covering the films themselves, of course, and the people who made them (who are surprisingly often people that you've heard of), but I'm also taking a good look at the locations they used. Hopefully, when I hit a particular point in the project, I'll be able to travel around the state to get some photos of what they look like today, decades on.

I'm going to review a new dry heat obscurity every other week, starting in 2017, to alternate with my Weird Wednesdays project.

Note: my reviews of Violent Saturday and Kingdom of the Spiders predate this project, so I'll revisit them at some point.

Rating System
1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic

Latest Review (17 Apr 2018)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
C. C. & Company 1970 4 4 Seymour Robbie IMDb

Latest Review (17 Apr 2018)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
Angel Unchained 1970 5 4 Lee Madden IMDb
Captain Newman, M.D. 1963 5 5 David Miller IMDb
C. C. & Company 1970 4 4 Seymour Robbie IMDb
Devil's Angels 1967 4 4 Daniel Haller IMDb
Edge of Eternity 1959 4 5 Donald Siegel IMDb
Kingdom of the Spiders 1977 5 5 John 'Bud' Cardos IMDb
Shotgun Wedding 1963 3 2 Boris Petroff IMDb
Violent Saturday 1955 5 5 Richard Fleischer IMDb

Sunday 21 May 2000

The First Thirty


Each third issue of the Apocalypse Later zine will be dedicated to film and many of those are part of a series called The First Thirty. The concept here is to look at how major actors started out their careers by reviewing each of their first thirty films, in order. I'll post the reviews here but they'll be available in print in a quarterly zine, each dedicated to a single actor.

So far, I've completed the First Thirty of Nicolas Cage and Pam Grier and I've just started on Vincent Price. The zines can be read at Apocalypse Later Press and bought in full colour print from Amazon.


Rating System
1 - Abysmal | 2 - Bad | 3 - Poor | 4 - OK | 5 - Good | 6 - Excellent | 7 - Classic


Latest Review (19 Jan 2024)
Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
The Song of Bernadette 1943 6 6 Henry King IMDb

Vincent Price

Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
Service de Luxe 1938 5 4 Rowland V. Lee IMDb
The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex 1939 4 4 Michael Curtiz IMDb
Tower of London 1939 5 5 Rowland V. Lee IMDb
The Invisible Man Returns 1940 5 5 Joe May IMDb
Green Hell 1940 4 4 James Whale IMDb
The House of the Seven Gables 1940 6 6 Joe May IMDb
Brigham Young 1940 3 3 Henry Hathaway IMDb
Hudson's Bay 1941 5 5 Irving Pichel IMDb
The Song of Bernadette 1943 6 6 Henry King IMDb

Pam Grier

Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
Beyond the Valley of the Dolls 1970 5 5 Russ Meyer IMDb
The Big Doll House 1971 4 4 Jack Hill IMDb
Women in Cages 1971 5 5 Gerry de Leon IMDb
The Twilight People 1972 4 - Eddie Romero IMDb
Cool Breeze 1972 4 4 Barry Pollack IMDb
The Big Bird Cage 1972 5 5 Jack Hill IMDb
Hit Man 1972 4 4 George Armitage IMDb
Black Mama White Mama 1973 5 5 Eddie Romero IMDb
Coffy 1973 6 5 Jack Hill IMDb
Scream Blacula Scream 1973 4 4 Bob Kelljan IMDb
The Arena 1974 5 5 Steve Carver IMDb
Foxy Brown 1974 5 5 Jack Hill IMDb
Sheba, Baby 1975 3 3 William Girdler IMDb
Bucktown 1975 5 5 Arthur Marks IMDb
Friday Foster 1975 5 5 Arthur Marks IMDb
Drum 1976 4 4 Steve Carver & Burt Kennedy IMDb
Twilight of Love 1977 3 - Luigi Scattini IMDb
Greased Lightning 1977 5 5 Michael Schultz IMDb
Fort Apache, the Bronx 1981 5 5 Daniel Petrie IMDb
Tough Enough 1983 5 5 Richard Fleischer IMDb
Something Wicked This Way Comes 1983 6 6 Jack Clayton IMDb
Stand Alone 1985 6 5 Alan Beattie IMDb
Badge of the Assassin 1985 4 4 Mel Damski IMDb
The Vindicator 1986 5 4 Jean-Claude Lord IMDb
On the Edge 1986 5 5 Rob Nilsson IMDb
The Allnighter 1987 4 4 Tamar Simon Hoffs IMDb
Above the Law 1988 5 5 Andrew Davis IMDb
The Package 1989 5 5 Andrew Davis IMDb
Class of 1999 1990 5 5 Mark L. Lester IMDb
Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey 1991 5 5 Peter Hewitt IMDb

Nicolas Cage

Title Year H D Director(s) IMDb
The Best of Times 1981 3 3 Don Mischer IMDb
Fast Times at Ridgemont High 1982 6 5 Amy Heckerling IMDb
Valley Girl 1983 5 5 Martha Coolidge IMDb
Rumble Fish 1983 5 5 Francis Coppola IMDb
Racing with the Moon 1984 5 5 Richard Benjamin IMDb
The Cotton Club 1984 6 6 Francis Coppola IMDb
Birdy 1984 5 5 Alan Parker IMDb
The Boy in Blue 1986 3 4 Charles Jarrott IMDb
Peggy Sue Got Married 1986 5 5 Francis Ford Coppola IMDb
Raising Arizona 1987 6 6 Joel Coen IMDb
Moonstruck 1987 6 6 Norman Jewison IMDb
Vampire’s Kiss 1988 5 5 Robert Bierman IMDb
Never on Tuesday 1988 4 4 Adam Rifkin IMDb
Time to Kill 1989 5 5 Giuliano Montaldo IMDb
Industrial Symphony No. 1: The Dream of the Brokenhearted 1990 4 4 David Lynch IMDb
Wild at Heart 1990 5 5 David Lynch IMDb
Fire Birds 1990 4 4 David Green IMDb
Zandalee 1991 2 3 Sam Pillsbury IMDb
Honeymoon in Vegas 1992 5 5 Andrew Bergman IMDb
Amos & Andrew 1993 4 4 E. Max Frye IMDb
Red Rock West 1993 6 5 John Dahl IMDb
Deadfall 1993 2 3 Christopher Coppola IMDb
Guarding Tess 1994 5 5 Hugh Wilson IMDb
It Could Happen to You 1994 6 6 Andrew Bergman IMDb
Trapped in Paradise 1994 5 5 George Gallo IMDb
Kiss of Death 1995 5 5 Barbet Schroeder IMDb
Leaving Las Vegas 1995 6 6 Mike Figgis IMDb
The Rock 1996 5 5 Michael Bay IMDb
Con Air 1997 5 6 Simon West IMDb
Face/Off 1997 6 6 John Woo IMDb