Charles Durning

Lane Smith

Larry Drake

Jocelyn Brando

In a small country town, developmentally-disabled Bubba Ritter has the mentality of a child and is the best friend of a young local girl. When the girl trespasses into the yard of a house and is attacked by a vicious dog, Bubba saves her but is wrongly accused of killing her by her mother. The postman, Otis P. Hazelrigg, who has a virulent hatred of Bubba, recruits three other vigilante friends of his and after tracking him to an empty cornfield (where he had been hiding in plain view disguised as a scarecrow) the four execute the unarmed Bubba. After learning that Bubba was in fact innocent of attacking the girl, Hazelrigg makes it look as though Bubba had intended to attack them. The four men are brought to trial, but are declared not guilty and are are immediately released. However, justice comes from beyond the grave, and after being mysteriously visited by the vision of a scarecrow, they are mysteriously killed one by one. leaving Hazelrigg (who is desperately trying to figure out who is behind the killings) to the very last.—Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Dark Night of the Scarecrow

Dark Night of the Scarecrow (1981)

Rod Taylor

Ann Doran

Eleanor Audley

Pursued by detectives, Johnny Walters leaves the city to visit his family in a small California town. Among the household: his dead brother's luscious widow Helen, who soon is attracted to him. Ominous events and conflicting evidence leave Helen suspicious, but uncertain about her brother-in-law as tension builds...—Rod Crawford

Step Down to Terror

Step Down to Terror (1958)

Robert Englund

Lee Majors

Marshall R. Teague

This is the story of Starflight One, the world's first "hypersonic" plane, which flies faster and higher than any other commercial jet. On the night of its maiden flight from Los Angeles to Sydney, a freak accident incolving an unauthorized rocket launch sends Starflight One out of the atmosphere and into a decaying orbit around the Earth. With no heat shielding and limited oxygen, it is up to the bravery of the crew and the ingenuity of N.A.S.A. and the plane's designers to save the passengers trapped on-board.

Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land

Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)

Chuck Roberson

Richard Boone

Leo Gordon

When John Stewart gives refuge to Wick Campbell's girl friend, Campbell turns against him. He rustles Stewart's cattle, murders his brother, and brings in hired guns. Then he and his men pin Stewart and a few others down in a house apparently killing them. But Stewart has escaped and returns alone to rid the town of Campbell and his men. —Maurice VanAuken

Ten Wanted Men

Ten Wanted Men (1955)

Faye Dunaway

Xander Berkeley

Steve Forrest

The relationship between Christina Crawford and her adoptive mother Joan Crawford is presented from Christina's view. Unable to bear children, Joan, in 1940, was denied children through regular adoption agencies due to her twice divorced status and being a single working person. Her lover at the time, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer lawyer Greg Savitt, was able to go through a brokerage to adopt a baby girl, who would be Christina, the first of Joan's four adoptive children. Joan believes that her own difficult upbringing has made her a stronger person, and decides that, while providing the comforts that a successful Hollywood actress can afford, she will not coddle Christina or her other children, she treating Christina more as a competitor than a daughter. Joan's treatment of Christina is often passive-aggressive, fueled both by the highs and lows of her career, the narcissism that goes along with being an actress, and alcohol abuse especially during the low times. However, Joan sees much of her actions toward Christina as Christina purposefully provoking her. Despite the physical and emotional abuse Joan hurls at Christina over the course of their relationship, Christina, who often wonders why Joan adopted her seeing as to the abuse, seemingly still wants her mother's love right until the very bitter end. —Huggo

Mommie Dearest

Mommie Dearest (1981)

Marlon Brando

Pat Hingle

Philip Ober

An intelligent, articulate scholar, Harrison MacWhite, survives a hostile Senate confirmation hearing at the hands of conservatives to become ambassador to Sarkan, a southeast Asian country where civil war threatens a tense peace. Despite his knowledge, once he's there, MacWhite sees only a dichotomy between the U.S. and Communism. He can't accept that anti-American sentiment might be a longing for self-determination and nationalism. So, he breaks from his friend Deong, a local opposition leader, ignores a foreman's advice about slowing the building of a road, and tries to muscle ahead. What price must the country and his friends pay for him to get some sense? —

The Ugly American

The Ugly American (1963)

Aldo Ray

Anne Bancroft

Brian Keith

There is money missing from a bank job, an attractive model, an insurance investigator, and two extremely dangerous thugs. James Vanning (Aldo Ray) portrays an innocent man on the run, being pursued by the criminals who stupidly misplaced their take from the crime and think he has it or knows where it is hidden. Add model Marie Gardner (Anne Bancroft) who crossed paths with nice guy Vanning, while he is on the run. This all adds up to a thriller wherein the viewer is drawn into the story and becomes part of the drama. When Marie says "things that really happen are difficult to explain" it captures the theme of this film. A nice girl helps a nice guy, who is innocent and is drawn into the drama. As tension mounts she says: "I am always meeting the wrong man, and it leads to doomed relationships." Marie inadvertently leads Vanning into the hands of the villains. However, she is a pseudo-femme fatale, innocently involved in the intrigue and, like the viewer, is gradually drawn into the ...

Nightfall

Nightfall (1956)

Carolyn Jones

Peter Whitney

Gloria Grahame

Dave Bannion is an upright cop on the trail of a vicious gang he suspects holds power over the police force. Bannion is tipped off after a colleague's suicide and his fellow officers' suspicious silence lead him to believe that they are on the gangsters' payroll. When a bomb meant for him kills his wife instead, Bannion becomes a furious force of vengeance and justice, aided along the way by the gangster's spurned girlfriend Debby. As Bannion and Debby fall further and further into the Gangland's insidious and brutal trap, they must use any means necessary (including murder) to get to the truth. —alfiehitchie

Gangsterikuningas

Gangsterikuningas (1953)

6.7 / 10

Horror

6 / 10

Crime
Drama

4.8 / 10

Action
Sci-Fi

6.1 / 10

Romance
Western

6.7 / 10

Biography
Drama

6.7 / 10

Action
Adventure

7.2 / 10

Crime
Drama

8 / 10

Action
Crime