Konga (1961)

Unintentionally hilarious British rip off of King Kong.

Dr Decker (Michael Gough) goes missing in Africa for a year, when he finally returns to London he claims he will change the world with the new discoveries he has found. In his own lab he has rather suspicious looking plants which, when a serum is made from them, can greatly increase growth of animals. Naturally he starts injecting his pet chimp, who soon is a huge ape and who will do Dr Decker's bidding... i.e. kill.

Dr Decker is a fascinating character, dark and single minded. Killing means nothing to him, whether it is his cat which he shoots without a second thought or directing Konga to kill his rivals. His long suffering assistant Margaret (Margo Johns) has a bit more moral ambiguity. But only a bit more, she is happy to let Dr Decker continue on his way as long as he loves her. Unfortunately he has his eye on one of his buxom young students...

The film is remarkable cheese, with a man in an ape suit running rampant. The final act however oddly runs out of steam, as does Konga who just stands there while the army expend most of their Cold War stockpile to finally bring him down. Of course one major plot flaw is that when the chimpanzee is given growth serum it turns into a gorilla...

The Love Nest (1923)

A fun Buster Keaton short. Buster seeks to forget his lost love by sailing off on his boat. He ends up having to be rescued by a whaling ship (which for some reason is called the Love Nest) captained by a tough and mean old sea dog (Joe Roberts) who throws his crew overboard for the slightest reason...

Well that's the flimsy story, that isn't the point of a comedy short like this. The plot is just a framework to hang on a lot of sight gags. Some are funny though the film doesn't always hit the mark.

One notable gag is Buster "fishing". He walks down a rope ladder into the water with a gun until he is completely submerged. There is a puff of smoke from below the surface and then he returns up the ladder holding a fish!

Secret Agent (1936)

In this Alfred Hitchcock film Edgar (John Gielgud) is plucked from the front lines in World War 1 to be recruited by the secret service and is reluctantly sent off to Switzerland with only the vaguest of instructions.

He isn't alone though as he has his "wife" Elsa (Madeleine Carroll) and his sidekick The General (Peter Lorre) who plays a rather bizarre crazy foreign type role. Edgar is tasked to find and kill a German agent, unfortunately the identity of the agent is unknown so Edgar and company begin their tricky search.

If we are to be honest this is quite an odd little film though very watchable, at times quite dark. When the first agent suspect is killed by The General we don't see the act but the unfortunate's little dog howls and shrieks. Some of the plot makes little, why for example is Edgar in Switzerland, doesn't a spy need a cover story?

Five Golden Dragons (1967)

Late 60s crime cheese, greatly enlivened by the setting of Hong Kong. The film would have been much less watchable if it had been set in say Hull or Southend-on-Sea.

Bob (Robert Cummings) is an ageing American playboy who gets dragged into the world of international crime and a mysterious gang the Five Golden Dragons who evilly control gold smuggling across the world...

Assisted by comely sisters Maria Rohm and Maria Perschy he finds himself in various perils across the territory. Police Rupert Davies and Roy Chiao are also trying to find out what exactly is going on, the viewer will also be frequently bemused.

The dragons themselves, which include Christopher Lee, unfortunately only appear fleeting.

It is fluffy and at times a bit of a mess but a lot of fun. It shouldn't be taken very seriously just enjoyed for what is it, a gorgeous looking film in a gorgeous looking location.

Texas Terror (1935)

John Wayne stars as Sheriff John Higgins who returns his badge after he (thinks) he has killed his best friend after a robbery.

John ends up helping his best friends' daughter Bess (Lucile Browne) run the ranch she has inherited. He fears though that she will find out who he really is and what he did to her father (although in reality he was innocent of that of course not that he knows)...

A decent little Western though in a more modern setting with motorcars and telephones. The film is fairly run of the mill, though when there is action it is well done. Its interesting to see a young and raw John Wayne.