Police Dog Story (1961)

A decent crime drama though as usual with these kinds of films homo sapiens is out acted by canis familiaris.

Rookie police man Edwards (James Brown) is selected for a new police dog handing department, unfortunately for him his dog is a rather boisterous Alsatian called Wolf. Despite early troubles Edwards and Wolf bond when man saves dog when he falls down a cliff. Edwards and Wolf become a formidable crime fighting duo. 

However, when Edwards gets mixed up with a crooked business owner and his old partner Bert (Barry Kelley), who is on the take, both Edwards' career and Wolf's life are in peril...

Apart from the addition of the dog, this is a fairly basic crime drama which is narrated by reporter Terry (Merry Anders), who is writing a feature on the new dog handling team and falls in love with Edwards. A decent if unexceptional film with rather dry dialogue and functional acting. Wolf is a good dog though for sure.

The Poseidon Adventure (1972)

The 1970s saw many disaster movies and this is one of the best of them.

The Poseidon is an elderly ocean liner on it's last trip across the Mediterranean when it is hit by a massive tidal wave. The ship is literally turned upside down. Preacher man Scott (Gene Hackman) takes charge of a group of survivors trapped in the ball room. He says that the only way out of the ship will be via the bowels of the ship, which are now above them!

With a motley collection of survivors including arrogant policeman Rogo (Ernest Borgnine), elderly couple Belle (Shelley Winters) and Manny (Jack Albertson) and teenager Susan (Pamela Sue Martin) and her annoying little brother Robin (Eric Shea), Scott leads his team through many dangers, not all of them surviving...

A well paced drama with just the right amount of human conflict to add to the series of dangers our heroes face. The set designs of the upside down ship are superb. An excellent film, any 1970s corniness cannot compete with the sheer adventure.

Fear (1946)

A reasonable but ultimately frustrating crime drama based on Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment.

Larry (Peter Cookson) is a university student down on his luck, he hasn't got any money, he can't even pay his landlady never mind next year's course fees. He pawns a watch to Professor Stanley (Francis Pierlot) though only gets a pittance. Larry begins to consider a way out of his predicament. No one likes Stanley, maybe he could take the money from him...

Larry kills Stanley but panics and flees before he can take any money. Then he receives an unexpected windfall, but Police Captain Burke (Warren William) is on the case and is suspicious of Larry (who to be honest looks like the embodiment of guilt). To his girlfriend Eileen (Anne Gwynne) he confesses and decides to come clean to the police, but there is a last final twist to come...

Not a bad film though the ending does ruin things somewhat (and we won't spoil that). Larry starts off entitled but soon collapses into jelly. For a low budget crime film its fine, except the ending.

The Bloody Brood (1959)

Just how annoying were the Beatniks frequently in film?! The annoyance factor is high in this one.

Drug dealer Nico (Peter Falk) and his band of Beatniks are bored daddy-o, they want some action. Nico decides that that action is murder. He arranges the horrific death of a young telegram messenger just for the kicks. The kid's brother Cliff (Jack Betts) begins to investigate what happened. He infiltrates the Beatnik scene, but soon finds himself in peril...

This film is short but is a bit of a drag. If you can get past the annoying Beatniks (not the easiest task to be honest) then this is a reasonable enough crime drama. It also is interesting to see Peter Falk in an early role.

The Last of the Clintons (1935)

Not the most exciting Western in the world though with an interesting twist.

Trigger Carson (Harry Carey) is enlisted by the sheriff (Slim Whitaker) to infiltrate the cattle rustling gang of Luke Todd (Tom London). He is helped by gold prospector Jed Clinton (Victor Potel) and manages to join the gang. However, Trigger is given the task to kidnap the sheriff's daughter Edith (Betty Mack) who is romantically involved with Todd's younger brother Marty (Del Gordon), who ends up in the jail. Jed meanwhile has captured a rattlesnake, which he threatens to turn into a stew but really it becomes the film's most notable plot device...

A decent if not unspectacular Western, the leads pull off a reasonable job. Aside from the initial gunfight there isn't a lot of action though there is some humour. Interestingly this was the first ever film shown on British TV by the BBC in 1937. The next day it also became the first ever film to be shown on British TV twice!