One Was Enough

 

 (imdb)

PIRANHACONDA-2012-2 gigantic snake things terrorize a Hawaiian island where a low budget horror film is being made. Some gang also holds some of the cast & crew hostage. Everybody runs around, surviving or getting eaten. Michael Madsen is a snake hunter who has an egg. The special effects are terrible. It premiered on The Syfi channel.

Director Jim Wynorski did a re-make of THE GIANT GILA MONSTER after this mess.

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The Drummer To The Rescue

 

 (wikipedia)

COMMAND PERFORMANCE-2009-Joe (director/co-writer Dolph Lundgren), an older pot smoking drummer in a Russian heavy metal band is doing a spliff in the bathroom when terrorists attack the special performance concert given for the Russian president and his daughters. They are all held hostage, along with a stuck-up US Britney Spears clone, by some loony revenge seeking guy. It's up to big Dolph to rescue the hostages. 

Typically violent derivative bs with no likable characters to care about. Bad acting too. Clement Von Franckenstein is an ambassador and Lundgren's real-life daughter has a role.

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A Movie As Old As me!

 

 (imdb)

SHADOW ON THE WINDOW-1957-3 young thugs Jess (John Drew Barrymore), Gil (Corey Allen) and the psychotic Joey (Gerald Sarracini) hold a woman (Betty Garrett) hostage after killing an old man for his money. Her young son (Jerry Mathers; he started his gig as The Beaver on TV's “Leave it To Beaver” the same year) sees the whole thing but goes into shock and can't tell the police anything. Her ex-husband Tony Atlas (Phillip Carey) is a police Sargent who leads an investigation to find his ex. 

Several character actors appear briefly including Joe Turkel,Mel Welles,Billy Nelson,Norman Leavitt,Henry Corden,George Cisar and Paul Bryar. Director William Asher, already working in TV, would go on to direct several AIP “beach” movies in the early '60's but would continue in TV including directing over 130 episodes of “Bewitched”.

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Not Another One!

 

ANOTHER SON OF SAM-1977-Opens with the names of infamous serial killers. A serial killer named Harvey escapes from a mental hospital. He goes on a killing spree in a small town and a police lieutenant who's psychiatrist girlfriend was assaulted by Harvey goes after him even though his captain has brought in a SWAT team when they trap the killer in a building. Harvey is usually shown in POV shots and very tight close-ups. The police and the SWAT team don't seem to know what they are doing as Harvey outwits them several times. They really botch things up. Even killing a hostage and thinking they got the killer, who then kills the captain's son in law cop when he goes to investigate. Later they get Harvey's mom, who abused him as a child, to talk him out and despite her assurances he won't be harmed he's shot and killed to a bloody mess. The lieutenant's girlfriend dies though. 

A guy named Johnny Charro sings a terrible song terribly. Filmed in Atlanta, Ga., it features a lot of slo-mo and freeze frames and the editing, acting, direction, everything sucks. 

Originally called “Hostages” and filmed in 1975, the director/writer Dave Adams (his only movie) changed the title to cash in on you know who.

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Rambo

NIGHTMARE HONEYMOON-1974-A newlywed couple David (Dack Rambo) and Jill (Rebecca Dianna Smith) participate in a weird hick ritual where they have to run away from their wedding while a group led by Jill's father (Pat Hingle) tries to catch them, The couple elude the party but while skinny dipping at a secluded motel they witness two thugs Sandy (Roy Jenson) and the psychotic Lee (John Beck) kill an embezzler (David Huddleson). They discover the couple, knock David out and rape Jill. The redneck asshole sheriff (Richard O'Brien) is no help. David plots revenge. He roughs up smug local boss Ruskin (Jay Robinson) and fights it out with Lee fight in the climax with Jill's life at stake. Dennis Patrick, Jim Boles and Bob Steele have small roles. 

This pretty dismal MGM production was filmed in and around New Orleans by director Eliot Silverstein (CAT BALLOU, A MAN CALLED HORSE) who's next film would be THE CAR in 1977.

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Corman's Swamp

 

SWAMP DIAMONDS-1956-In New Orleans during Mardi Gras, a female police Lt. Lee Hampton (Carole Mathews) poses as a hardened criminal to infiltrate The Nardo gang or at least the women serving life sentences for a jewelry robbery their men were executed for. Their leader is Josie Nardo (Marie Windsor) plus the flirty Billie (Jill Jarym) and the trigger happy high strung Vera (Beverly Garland). Hampton plans their escape and they head for a Bayou swamp to get their stash. When their boat springs a leak they confiscate a boat carrying oil speculator Bob (Mike Connors) and his dumb girlfriend Marie (Susan Cummings). Their guide is killed and the gang for some reason take the pair hostage. The women argue, fight, lust after Bob and verbally abuse Marie who tries to sell out Bob and winds up alligator bait when she tries to escape. They find the diamonds and get happy but Vera steals the diamonds (and Bob). When the remaining members go after her she tries to ambush them but is killed. Hampton over powers the remaining two and rescues Bob (who has no idea she's undercover) just as the police arrive. Ed Nelson (as a police officer) and Jonathan Haze (as a pickpocket) have small roles at the beginning of the film. 

Also known as SWAMP WOMEN, this kind of crazy in color women out of prison movie was made by Roger Corman a year after his first science fiction film (and third movie) THE DAY THE WORLD ENDED (also with Connors). The same year he also made IT CONQUERED THE WORLD and two westerns GUNSLINGER (also with Garland) and OKLAHOMA WOMAN. Parts of it are fairly improbable but it's still fun with Beverly Garland giving a good performance as the ruthless Vera.

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Thunder

 

THUNDER ISLAND-1963-In Puerto Rico, an American hit man Billy Poole (Gene Nelson) is hired by Anita Chavez (Miriam Colon) to kill Antonio Perez (Jose' de San Anton) the former dictator of her South American country. He plots to have another American Vincent (Brian Kelly) take him to an island where his would be victim lives. It also involves Vincent's wife Helen (Fay Spain) and their daughter being used as hostages. 

This forgettable little drama was written by Dean Devlin and Jack Nicholson and lead to executive producer Robert L. Lippert hiring Nicholson to write and direct FLIGHT TO FURY in '64. Director Jack Leewood directed only one other movie but produced a lot more including THE ALLIGATOR PEOPLE and LOST CONTINENT. 

Lead actor Gene Nelson began a second career as a director soon after this but continued to act, mostly on TV.

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Atomic Drama

SPLIT SECOND-1953-Escaped killer Sam Hurly (Stephen McNally) holds a bunch of people hostage in a ghost town where the next day there is going to be an A-bomb test. Hostages include a reporter (Keith Andes), a dancer (Jan Sterling), a married woman (Alexis Smith) in Reno for a divorce and her boyfriend (Robert Paige). Hurly keeps them in line with the help of his mean, silent henchman Dummy (Frank DeKova). Somehow he blackmails the divorce woman's doctor/husband (Richard Egan) to come and tend his wounded partner (Paul Kelly). An old prospector (Arthur Hunnicutt) shows up midway through too. There's a lot of talk, soul searching and a fist fight during an operation. It ends with a mushroom cloud (but the good guys survive). 

Slightly far-fetched, SPLIT SECOND was the first directorial effort from actor Dick Powell who three years later would make the notoriously bad THE CONQUEROR which had some atomic bomb issues itself they say...

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Happy Sunday!

CAVITE-2005-This Philippines based film was filmed on a low budget using mostly hand held shots. It’s been touted as little masterpiece by some but I thought it was very over rated, drawn out and lacking a reasonable resolution.

Adam (Ian Gamazon also the co-director, co-writer, producer and editor) is a Philippine born security guard living in the US. He returns to his homeland because of a family crisis. It turns out to be a hell of a crisis he didn’t expect. His mother and sister are being held hostage by Muslim terrorists who threaten to kill them if Adam doesn’t follow their precise directions. It’s rather suspenseful and mysterious for a while but then it peters out. The ending seems to justify the terrorists’ action.

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What A Town!

THE TOWN-2010-It's hard for me to believe this preposterous, clichéd talkfest was actually on a lot of critics top ten list.

Apparently a suburb of Boston called Charlestown has produced loads of armed bank robbers. This is a story about some of them (it's based on a novel "Prince of Thieves"). Co-scripter/director/star Ben Affleck is Doug MacRay, a career thief who with his dirt bag buddies rob a bank. They take the female bank manager (Rebecca Hall) hostage. Later after letting her go they discover she lives right near them and could cause problems later so Doug is dispatched to so something about it. He winds up falling in love with her and blah, blah, blah. Pete Postlethwaite is good as the florist who backs all the robberies and Chris Cooper has one scene as MacRay's father. Also with Jon Hamm, Blake Lively and Titus Welliver. This also has to have one of the nuttiest disclaimers I've ever seen:

"Charlestown's reputation as a breeding ground for armed robbers
is authentic. However, this film all but ignores the great majority
of the residents of Charlestown, past and present, who are the
same good and true people found most anywhere. This film is dedicated to them."

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Hong Kong

REPLACEMENT SUSPECT-2002-Violent Hong Kong crime drama involving small time crooks who get entangled in the police’s pursuit of a wanted criminal. They wind up holding some customers in a bar hostage unaware that the wanted criminal is one of the hostages. Director Chi-Sin Mak directed several other films but has done more work as an editor (TWIN DRAGONS, LEGEND OF ZU, VAMPIRE HUNTERS).

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