THE SWARM

THE SWARM-
Once again another hilarious disaster strikes! This time billions and billions of African bees come swarming toward the city of Houston Texas, killing everyone in their path.
There is not way to stop them! These buzzing bees battle the team of Henry Fonda, Richard Chamberland, Catherine Ross, Fred MacMurray, Olivia DeHaviland and even the tough Richard Widmark.
But it took the charm and wisdom of Michael Cain to figure out why there is no stop to the attacking deadly swarm. It's because the military is sending out a signal that is identical to the mating sounds of the killer African bees! There is nothing more dangerous than a swarm of h*rny bees!
Like all the other disaster films of the 70's you get to witness your favorite old Hollywood stars die one by one in some brutal and humorous way.
The movie leave you to the edge of your seat over a love triangle between Fred MacMurray, Olivia DeHaviland as they reunite on a train to Houston; but we'll never know what she'll decides because the train come to the path of the killer bees; the elderly lovers are wiped out in a flaming train wreck!
The most interesting part of the movie is that everyone refer to the killer bees as not killer bees or the swarm but they're called them as "The Africans".
Lines like "What can we do to stop the Africans?" "I do anything to kill off those damn Africans" some pretty subtle racists tones there.

Tread Softly Stranger

Tread Softly Stranger

This is a cool British film I stumbled across at a memorabilia show. Adapted from a stage play, the story rolls along at a nice pace, presents us with some interesting characters and a fascinating location in a "steel town" some place north of London, England. It's got top-notch performances by Diana Dors, George Baker, Terence Morgan and the rest of the cast. The photography has a very impressive "noir" quality to it.

We start our flick in the London apartment of Johnny (George Baker). Johnny informs his gal pal that due to some unfortunate luck at the race track, he's got to skip town real fast. He's headed "back home" to duck gambling debts.




Johnny returns home to scenic Rawborough (which everybody pronounces "Rawbruh")

Johnny takes a room in the same boarding house where his brother, Dave (Terence Morgan) lives. Before Dave gets home from work, Johnny finds that Dave has a rather interesting neighbor and gal pal named Calico (Diana Dors)













































Johnny finds that Dave is quite enthralled by Calico, buying her expensive gifts and such. Later the trio go out for a night at the club Calico works at

It is revealed that Dave has embezzeled from the foundry (where he works in the accounting department) to pay for his gifts to Calico.

Unfortunately, some big wigs are coming earlier than expected to check the books, so Dave's crime is sure to be uncovered. Johnny decides he will attempt to scrap up enough money to replace what Dave stole before it is found out.

Calico has a plan too -- if the foundry safe is robbed, no one will notice the money Dave embezzled, plus there would be enough money to make everyone's dreams come true...

... and off Dave is sent on his extracurricular activities

And from there, things get quite dicey as the plan runs into some rather shocking complications. I will not spoil how things turn out, but will say there are some tense moments and surprising twists.

A very satisfying movie experience, for sure!

THE KNACK AND HOW TO GET IT

THE KNACK AND HOW TO GET IT-
This movie is so silly that it can only be made in London in the 1960's. "The knack" is a sleazy guy that can charm the panties off any woman he meets. Michael (Phantom of the Opera) Crawford is the nerdy landlord who wants to learn the secret to getting a woman.
That is basically the entire movie, we follow the nerd as he take notes from the professional playboy. Then the interesting part comes when the plain jane character Nancy played by Rita Tushingham shows up asking for the YWCA. From then on we follow Nancy, Colin (Crawford) and a another nerd Tom (Donal Donnelly) go wheeling a giant bed frame across London looking for the YWCA.

TRUCKS

TRUCKS-
Considering writer Stephen King cranks out a new novel every few weeks or so, the idea of driverless semi-trucks going around killing folks is bound to pop up. After all he was so sucessful with "Christine" the killer car 20 years before this made-for-tv low budget film.
Basically a down and out man, his girlfriend and two teenage kids and a couple of rednecks and a gun loving ex military man are held hostage by these mysterious trucks at a truck stop.
The killer trucks threatens to run them over if the man doesn't feed them with gasoline. While the bunch try to figure how to escape and destroy these 18 wheeled monsters, they solve emotional issues and a family crisis.
The title should be called "What the Truck?!", another bizzare made-for-TV movie about killer truck is "Duel" with Dennis Weaver, I think it was one of Stephen Speilberg's earlier projects. And another made-for-TV truck movie turned TV series is "BJ and the Bear", featuring lots of "Hooters bar"-quality blondes as truck drivers.