Classic Adventure
Remember those moments where the main character finds himself in a difficult or precarious dilemma, or confronted with a shocking revelation, those thrill-a-minute extravaganzas, those rip-roaring spectacles, swashbuckling and derring-do action, cliff-hanger endings .... that was what Saturday Matinees were made of.
Below is a compilation of the 'essence' of this wonderful genre. See also 'Cliff-Hanger Serials'
Treasure Island (1950)
7/10
Director: Byron Haskin
Starring: Bobby Driscoll, Robert Newton, Basil Sydney
Disney's first live action movie was this vivid take on Robert Louis Stevenson's classic, filmed in England (not the West Indies!) with Bobby Driscoll... Read more
Treasure Island (1972)
6/10
Director: John Hough
Starring: Orson Welles, Walter Slezak, Lionel Stander, Maria Rohm, Kim Burfield, Paul Mull...
Orson Welles is Long John Silver in this 1972 adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic pirate tale. Young Jim Hawkins comes into possession of... Read more
Ulysses (1954)
6.7/10
Director: Mario Camerini
Starring: Anthony Quinn, Kirk Douglas, Silvana Mangano
It's high adventure, Homer-style, with Kirk Douglas as the brave adventurer who battles the one-eyed Cyclops, encounters sorceress Circe (who turns hi... Read more
Valley of Fire (1951)
6/10
Director: John English
Starring: Gene Autry
As the new mayor of a lawless 1850s California mining town, Gene Autry attempts to clean up the town by bringing in a wagon train of eligible ladies t... Read more
Viking Women and the Sea Serpent (1958)
Director: Roger Corman
Starring: Susan Cabot, June Kenny, Abby Dalton, Brad Jackson
First, Roger Corman's "Viking Women and the Sea Serpent" has a group of heroic gals venturing out on a dangerous journey to find their missing men. Bu... Read more
Young Buffalo Bill (1940)
5.7/10
Director: Joseph Kane
Starring: Roy Rogers, George Gabby Hayes
A thoroughly enjoyable Western bio-flick that stretches the facts but is one of Roy Rogers' best nevertheless. The cavalry sounds a call for Buffalo B... Read more
Zorro Rides Again: Episodes 7 - 12 (1937)
6.8/10
Director: John English, William Witney
Starring: John Carroll, Helen Christian, Richard Alexander, Noah Beery, Reed Howes, Duncan...
The California-Yucatan Railroad, being built for the good of Mexico, is under siege by a gang of terrorists hoping to force its sale; no one can prove... Read more