An uncle's will dictates that Ludicrus Sextus must have a child named after him, doubts about being up to the job send Lurcio to the local sorceress, and Erotica has something to hide from her parents.

When Ludicrus loses his seat in the senate, he decides to move the family to Rome, but Lurcio worries about who might be his next master when he finds out that they cannot afford to take him with them.

There's talk of an uprising amongst the slaves, Lurcio's thrown into the dungeon after being caught holding incriminating pamphlets, and repeated rescue attempts make things a little cramped.

Lurcio becomes involved in attempts to prevent Pompeii from going to war with the Barbarians. One of his anti-war activities involves trying to persuade the women of Pompeii to deny conjugal rights if their husbands get involved in the war.

Ammonia orders Lurcio to get rid of Senator Lecherous, Nausius wants to help a girl that he picks up in the street, and Ludicrus Sextus receives news of a special visitor from Rome.

Ludicrus Sextus explains that plans for a new weapon have been stolen, an agent is killed before he can utter the name of the traitor, and Lurcio persuades Ammonia to make the most of her womanly wiles.

Lurcio is looking after the house while the family are away when he agrees to hide two escaped slaves. When various members of the family return home unexpectedly, things take a turn.

A travelling theatre company causes much excitement in the Senator's household, the behaviour of the leading actor creates an opening, and Lurcio has trouble choosing the right mask.

Talks of assassinating Caesar see Lurcio chosen as the one to commit the act, Ammonia overhears the plans and rushes to warn the Emperor, and a striking resemblance gives Ponderous an idea.

His family is horrified when Nausius brings home his prospective bride, a woman Ludicrus recognizes from his visits to Pompeii's strip clubs.

Ludicrus Sextus must choose Miss Vestal Virgin of BC72, Noxious plots to rig the contest because of the Senator's stance on bawdy houses, and Lurcio is told to find someone more suitable.

Lurcio can't help feeling that the household are trying to get rid of him, news of a pretty visitor leads to ideas of trickery, and a bit of something in the wine results in a lot of something in the air.

Murder at Glen Athol (1936) crime film. 1930's mystery movies full length. Crime thriller mystery movie meets an "old dark house" film. A detective gets invited to a party at his upscale neighbors house and in true murder mystery fashion he soon finds himself involved in crimes, murder and mystery! Just a good old black and white movie.

The wartime daily routine on a British bomber base in southeastern England is revealed through the eyes of newly arrived Flying Officer Peter Penrose.

Director: Anthony Asquith
Writer: Terence Rattigan
Starring: Michael Redgrave, John Mills, Rosamund John

Night Train to Munich is a 1940 British thriller film directed by Carol Reed and starring Margaret Lockwood and Rex Harrison. Written by Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder, based on the 1939 short story Report on a Fugitive by Gordon Wellesley, the film is about an inventor and his daughter who are kidnapped by the Gestapo after the Nazis march into Prague in the prelude to the Second World War. A British secret service agent follows them, disguised as a senior German army officer pretending to woo the daughter over to the Nazi cause.

SYNOPSIS
As German forces invade Czechoslovakia, scientist Axel Bomasch, renowned for his breakthroughs in armor-plating technology, becomes a target for both German and British intelligence agencies. Fleeing with his daughter Anna, their journey is fraught with danger as they navigate through enemy territory. Anna's capture by the Nazis and subsequent escape alongside Karl Marsen, who poses as a sympathetic fellow prisoner, adds to the tension.

Meanwhile, in Britain, Axel's arrival prompts a covert operation led by intelligence officer Dickie Randall. Anna's attempt to contact her father through a coded newspaper advertisement sets off a chain of events that brings her into contact with Randall, who poses as an entertainer to maintain cover. Their paths converge, leading to a daring rescue attempt orchestrated by Randall.

However, Marsen's infiltration of British intelligence complicates matters, leading to a tense confrontation during their escape to Switzerland. With the aid of British civilians Caldicott and Charters, Randall navigates through treacherous terrain, facing off against Marsen and his cohorts in a dramatic showdown that determines the fate of the Bomasches and their quest for freedom.

CAST & CREW
Margaret Lockwood as Anna Bomasch
Rex Harrison as Dickie Randall / Gus Bennett / Ulrich Herzog
Paul Henreid as Capt. Karl Marsen (credited as Paul von Hernried)
Basil Radford as Charters
Naunton Wayne as Caldicott
James Harcourt as Axel Bomasch
Felix Aylmer as Dr. John Fredericks
Wyndham Goldie as Charles Dryton
Roland Culver as Roberts
Eliot Makeham as Schwab
Raymond Huntley as Kampenfeldt
Austin Trevor as Capt. Prada
Kenneth Kent as Controller
C. V. France as Admiral Hassinger
Frederick Valk as Gestapo Officer (credited as Fritz Valk)
Morland Graham as Teleferic Attendant

Directed by: Carol Reed
Screenplay by: Sidney Gilliat, Frank Launder
Based on: "Report on a Fugitive" (1939 short story) by Gordon Wellesley
Produced by: Edward Black
Cinematography: Otto Kanturek
Edited by: R. E. Dearing
Music by: Louis Levy
Production company: 20th Century Productions
Distributed by: 20th Century Fox
Release dates: July 26, 1940 (UK), December 29, 1940 (USA)
Running time: 95 minutes
Country: United Kingdom
Language: English

Stars: Michael Whalen, Anne Nagel, William Bakewell
Director: Albert Herman

A Nazi spy ring is after a U.S. Army formula that increases the power of ordinary gasoline!

The Ghost Train (1941) is a British comedy/mystery movie. Arthur Askey plays irritating entertainer Tommy Gander who is stranded overnight in a Cornish train station with his fellow passengers. Local legend has it that a phantom train passes through the station with the ghosts of its passengers on board. Strange things start to happen as the mystery of the ghost train begins to untangle. This film was based on a stage play by Arnold Ridley (Private Godfrey in the BBC sitcom Dad's Army). The Ghost Train was directed by Walter Forde.

Stars: J. Farrell MacDonald, Polly Ann Young, Warren Hull
Director: William West
Production Company: Sherwill Productions, Inc.

A veteran firefighter is forced to retire at age 65 by the Fire Department. However, when one of his friends dies in a blaze set by a serial arsonist, the now-retired fireman teams up with his daughter and her fiancé, who is an investigator for an insurance company, to hunt down and capture the arsonist.

A female lawyer hears a knock on her door one night and discovers that it is an old boyfriend, whose current girlfriend has thrown him out, and he needs a place to stay the night.

She agrees to let him sleep on the sofa but he must leave the next morning. When he returns home he finds that his girlfriend has been murdered. His former lover agrees to defend him without telling the court that he spent the night with her. Complications ensue.

Black Angel is a 1946 American film noir directed by Roy William Neill and starring Dan Duryea, June Vincent and Peter Lorre.

Director: Roy William Neill
Screenplay: Roy Chanslor
Based on the novel The Black Angel by Cornell Woolrich
Produced by Tom McKnight, Roy William Neill
Starring: Dan Duryea, June Vincent, Peter Lorre
Cinematography: Paul Ivano
Edit: Saul A. Goodkind
Music: Frank Skinner
Production company: Universal Pictures
Distribution: Universal Pictures
Release date: 1946
Running time: 81 minutes
Country: United States
Language: English

This 1943 feature-length dramatisation follows the Royal Navy T-class submarine "Tyrant" on a routine North Sea patrol off the coast of Norway.
Like many British wartime movies, the cast of this feature film are the serving officers and crew.
It was also filmed aboard an operational submarine, offering a rare and detailed view of life in such complex, cramped quarters.

The Life...The Loves...The Crimes of Jack the Ripper!
A mysterious lodger in Victorian London becomes the prime suspect in a series of gruesome murders reminiscent of Jack the Ripper. As tension mounts, a young woman living in the same boarding house becomes increasingly suspicious of the man upstairs, leading to a suspenseful cat-and-mouse game to uncover the truth behind the chilling crimes.

Original title: Man in the Attic (1953)

Black & White version: https://youtu.be/LJ3CjiDHcDs

Director: Hugo Fregonese
Writers: Robert Presnell Jr.
Stars: Jack Palance, Constance Smith, Byron Palmer, Frances Bavier
Genres: Colorized classics, Mystery, Thriller
Budget: $500,000


0:00 A man named Mr. Slade visits a house to inquire about renting rooms.
09:43 A pathologist named Mr. Slade rents rooms in a house to study and conduct experiments, while the owners are in need of money due to business reverses and become nervous about the recent Jack the Ripper murders.
14:59 A group of people prepare for a theater show while the city is plagued by the Ripper murders.
25:09 Inspector Warwick from Scotland Yard questions Miss Bonner about a woman named Annie Rowley who is believed to be a victim of Jack the Ripper.
30:55 Mr. Slade discusses the Ripper case with Inspector Warwick and shares his theories on the killer's profile.
36:18 A man and a woman discuss their feelings and the woman suspects that a man they know is the Ripper.
45:06 A tour of the Black Museum at Scotland Yard and a discussion about murderers and their crimes.
47:21 A discussion about Jack the Ripper's crimes and the possibility of another murder.
59:09 The characters discuss their suspicions about Dr. Slade and his involvement in the recent crimes.
1:04:32 Inspector Harley investigates Mr. Slade's possible connection to the Ripper murders.
1:11:30 A doctor becomes convinced that an actress is the daughter of Jack the Ripper and tries to save her from her evil tendencies.


@CultCinemaClassics

The Way Ahead - World W*r II drama that follows a group of British draftees, starting with their rigorous basic training, and ending with their deployment in North Africa.

The Way Ahead (1944)
Director: Carol Reed
Writers: Eric Ambler(original story), Peter Ustinov(screen play)
Stars: David Niven, Stanley Holloway, James Donald
Genre: Drama, War
Country: United Kingdom
Language: English, French, German
Also Known As: The Immortal Battalion
Release Date: 6 June 1944 (UK)
Duration: 114 min
Filming Location: Pirbright Army Camp, Pirbright, Surrey, England, UK

Storyline:
A group of draftees are called up into the infantry during World War II. At first, they appear to be a hopeless bunch, but their Sergeant and Lieutenant have faith in them and mould them into a good team. When they go into action in North Africa, they realize what it's all about.

Reviews:
"This is a film about a seemingly run of the mill sort of group. After the Brits were involved in WWII and saw how bad the going would be, the government was forced to draft men who would traditionally have been exempt. Men who were a bit old or involved with careers that might be deemed 'useful' to the effort were suddenly being called to duty, as times were dire. The beginning of the film shows these men being selected for service.

Unfortunately, this is a rather motley group and they tended to complain quite a bit as well (mostly by Stanley Holloway's character). How they could become a productive unit seemed pretty doubtful and I doubt if such an unimpressive group of men would have been used as actors had this propaganda film been made a few years earlier--when things looked really bad for the British. However, now that the war was appearing win-able, I can understand the choices of actors.

There is nothing particularly magical about any of the film--their selection, their training or their combat experience in North Africa. However, all of it was very well handled and excelled because they tried to make it believable--normal, everyday men rising to the occasion. In many ways, it reminded me of a landlocked version of "In Which We Serve"--with fine acting and writing instead of jingoism and super-human exploits. Very well done.

There are a few interesting actors in the film. Peter Ustinov is in his first film and he plays a French-speaking man. While his French isn't 100% fluid, it was decent and a bit of a surprise. Apparently, he was in real life David Niven's assistant in the British Army and somehow ended up in the film.

Man In The Attic 1953