The Black Cat (1934)

 

Detour (1945)

Chance events trap a hitch-hiker Al Roberts into a tightening net of trouble.

Wonderful Film Noir classic that creates a hopeless fate almost too extreme to believe, but that's just as well part of its message.

On rewatching: Highly entertaining low-budget Noir drama with an over-the-top (and extremely unlikely) doom-laden plot - and a particularly vicious femme fatale.

Halliwell*: "A minor cult movie with as much doomladen dialogue and film noir angles as could be shovelled into a Poverty Row 'B' at the time. On the whole, less than meets the eye."

Maltin***: "Now-legendary B movie, filmed in less than a week, is the qintessence of film noir...(Savage, in an unforgettable performance), Ulmer makes best of his meagre budget."

So Young, So Bad (1950)

A psychiatrist and nurse overthrow the abusive heads of a girls' reform school in order to teach the "unfortunate" young women that they have a chance at healthy lives.

Well-meant, above-average girls' penitentiary drama is low-budget and exploitative, but with a liberal streak for reform.

Maltin**1/2: "Effective study of female juvenile delinquency."

The Man from Planet X (1951)

On the set: Pat Goldin

The Black Cat (1934)

The Man from Planet X (1951)

Detour (1945)

The Man from Planet X (1951)

As a mysterious planet hurls itself toward earth, an enigmatic extraterrestrial scout arrives on a remote Scottish island with unknown intentions.

Very low-budget sci-fi drama has some nice settings and is nicely shot with its foggy Scottish moors, but the alien is quite laughable and the story not suspenseful.

Haliwell (no star): "Early, minor, moderately pleasing fragment in the Close Encounters cycle."

Maltin**1/2: "Extremely cheap, but amtospheric; script is stilted but story is strong and somewhat unusual."

The Man from Planet X (1951)

(Belgian poster)

The Black Cat (1934)

The Man From Planet X (1951)

Beyond the Time Barrier (1960)

In 1960, a military test pilot is caught in a time warp that propels him to year 2024 where he finds a plague has sterilized the world's population.

Detour (1945)

Chance events trap a hitch-hiker Al Roberts into a tightening net of trouble.

Wonderful Film Noir classic that creates a hopeless fate almost too extreme to believe, but that's just as well part of its message.

Halliwell*: "A minor cult movie with as much doomladen dialogue and film noir angles as could be shovelled into a Poverty Row 'B' at the time. On the whole, less than meets the eye."

Maltin***: "Now-legendary B movie, filmed in less than a week, is the qintessence of film noir...(Savage, in an unforgettable performance), Ulmer makes best of his meagre budget."

New acquisition: Detour (1945)

A true Film Noir classic - looking forward to watching it again!

The Man from Planet X (1951)

As a mysterious planet hurls itself toward earth, an enigmatic extraterrestrial scout arrives on a remote Scottish island with unknown intentions.

The Black Cat (1934)