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'
She Gods of Shark Reef (1958)
2.5/10
Director: Roger Corman
Starring: Don Durant, Bill Cord, Lisa Montell
This low-budget schlocker from Roger Corman is set in the South Pacific where two brothers on the run from the law are shipwrecked on an island popula... Read more
Tarzan the Fearless / Tarzan and the Trappers (1958)
Director: Charles Haas, Robert Hill
Starring: Larry 'Buster' Crabbe, Jacqueline Wells, Edward Woods, Gordon Scott
"Tarzan The Fearless" (1958)- This delightful, ancient-looking artifact was released as a twelve chapter serial and then as a feature edited from the... Read more
The Invisible Woman (1940)
Director: Edward Sutherland
Starring: Virginia Bruce, John Barrymore, John Howard
Eccentric Professor Gibbs, brilliant but impractical, invents an invisibility machine and advertises for a guinea pig. What he gets is Kitty Carroll,... 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
Shark (1968)
7.1/10
Director: Samuel Fuller
Starring: Burt Reynolds, Barry Sullivan, Arthur Kennedy, Silvia Pinal
Aka 'Man-eater'. Burt Reynolds plays a tough American smuggler in the Mediterranean hired by what he thinks a scientific expedition. The voyage turns... Read more
Hercules Against the Moon Men (1964)
2.6/10
Director: Giacomo Gentilomo
Starring: Alan Steel
In grand Herculean fashion, our hero (Alan Steel) comes to the aid of Good Samaritans and battles the interplanetary menace of the Moon Men (who look... Read more
The Giant of Marathon (1959)
5.1/10
Director: Jacques Tourneur
Starring: Mylene Demongeot, Steve Reeves, Daniela Rocca
Steve Reeves, cinema's most famous muscleman, stars as the real life hero of Greek history. In 'The Giant of Marathon', Reeves plays Philippides, an O... Read more
Hatari! ( Blu-ray ) (1961)
7.2/10
Director: Howard Hawks
Starring: Elsa Martinelli, Hardy Kruger, John Wayne, Red Buttons, Gerard Blain
It's adventure African style in this classic look at big game hunters. The great cast also includes Red Buttons, Elsa Martinelli and Hardy Kruger. Read more
The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (1964)
8.1/10
Director: Jean Sacha
Starring: Robert Hoffman, Robert Dalban
Shipwrecked on an uninhabited island, Robinson Crusoe fills his time in either building a shelter for himself, or by reminiscing about the years he sp... Read more
Samson (1961)
6.3/10
Director: Gianfranco Parolini
Starring: Brad Harris, Brigitte Corey, Alan Steel
Bodybuilder Brad Harris brings down the house as the strongman of Old Testament fame, splitting tree trunks with his bare hands, tackling whole legion... Read more