Silent Action (1975) – Sergio Martino.

A number of wealthy, powerful men from the higher echelons of society are found dead, apparently of suicide, dogged inspector Solmi (Luc Merenda) is unconvinced, very soon exposing a bloody conspiracy that threatens to topple the nation's king makers. A smart, powerfully acted, tremendously exiting thriller, action-packed, and politically astute, Silent Action's gripping plot drives relentlessly forward with a Giallic intensity! Italian genre maestro Sergio Martino's compelling, masterfully muscular poliziotesco remains one of the very finest, absolutely timeless, prodigiously entertaining cinema, Silent Action's explosive central premise is certainly no less pertinent today.

 Secrets of a door-to-door salesman (1973) - Wolf Rilla.

Following the sudden death of his father, former Lobster catcher David (Brendan Price) excitedly makes for the big smoke, exchanging barnacled lobster pots for the no less salty business of getting his leg over as a randy vacuum cleaner salesman. While dramatically inane, this sporadically saucy suburban romp is gaudily replete with tepid gags, delightfully dubious double entendres, beautiful, implausibly promiscuous young dolly birds, and much flesh-tinted farcing about. A fitfully amusing retro romp, Brendan Price isn't altogether vacuous, and director Rilla avidly exploits the increasingly lax censorship laws, exposing a plenitude of full-frontal female nudity. While the drab interiors exude a sitcom-y blandness, the bracingly wintry London exteriors are pretty fab, dishy David's vintage, open-topped jalopy is an appealingly whimsical conveyance, with his zaftig German girlfriend  Martina (Jean Harrington) being equally easy on the eyes!

 The Shaolin Plot (1977) – Huang Feng.

With dazzling content, The Shaolin Plot remains yet another exemplary, compellingly fight-packed Kung Fu blockbuster from revered director Huang 'Hapkido' Feng. Murderously covetous, Machiavellian martial arts genius Prince Daglen (Chen Hsing) seeks dominion over the martial arts world, and his malign machinations culminates in a brutally kinetic showdown with rebellious Shaolin monks. The majestic fight chorography is by acclaimed maestro Sammo Hung, who also plays Daglen's henchmen with dastardly aplomb, gruesomely decapitating all those masters unwilling to divulge their closely-guarded ancestral secrets. Rousingly dramatic, lavishly designed, excitingly edited, and jam-packed with explosive action, The Shaolin Plot is vintage Kung Fu heaven, and you couldn't ask for a more memorable introduction to martial arts wonder Casanova Wong! On a far more personal note, finally being able to experience many of these beloved 'Fu gems in their Bobby Dazzled Blu-ray editions has, in many instances, proven to be nothing short of revelatory, the dynamic camerawork, colourful costumes, exquisite interiors and blitzkrieg beat-downs absolutely pop in HD!

 The Skyhawk (1974) – Jeong Chang-hwa.

Not long after revered martial arts master Skyhawk (Kwan Tak-hing) visits a beloved old friend, his earnest, troublesomely hot-headed students Fatty (Sammo hung) and Leo (Carter Wong) unthinkingly fall foul of a local hood, and his exceedingly bellicose side-kicker (Hwang in-shik), culminating in a series of bloody confrontations! A highly regarded 70s martial arts masterclass, The Skyhawk remains a spectacular showcase for veteran HK icon Kwan Tak-hing, with steely Carter Wong delivering an impressively forceful performance in the film's exhilarating climax! While the formula plot is undeniably familiar, the striking, lushly exotic Thai locations, superbly charismatic performances and electrifying kung fu are absolutely world class! Not only is The Skyhawk tremendously entertaining to watch, it has prodigious charm, along with ballistic displays of superbly orchestrated combat. I must confess that I often find myself in complete sympathy with the Kung Fu cognoscenti who rate certain essential kung fu titles far higher than others, especially since The Skyhawk is wholly deserving of its many ecstatic reviews!

 The Driver's Seat aka Identikit. (1974) – Giuseppe Petroni Griffi.

This eerily oblique, melancholic, compellingly non-linear psychodrama follows the fascinatingly unbalanced Lise (Elizabeth Taylor) as she obsessively circumnavigates Rome, desperately searching for a man who might satisfy her singularly twisted desires. Having both the depth of an especially rich character drama, and the darker schematics of a psychological thriller, it would be impossible to imagine anyone else portraying Lise, Elizabeth Taylor's bravura, utterly scintillating performance is no small part of the film's brilliance. While it is not absolutely unprecedented for an experimental, intellectually robust European thriller to veer so dramatically away from stock tropes, it is certainly rare to experience one that does so with such conspicuous style, authenticity, and psychological intensity as Identikit. While mesmerized by Elizabeth Taylor's lurid couture, and almost Promethean acting rigour, it is the emotionally complex, no less inspired narrative that is guaranteed to provide additional grist upon a more than essential second viewing. 

 Warm Nights & Hot Pleasures (1964) – Joseph Sarno.

Three naïve, exquisitely nubile young women seek fame and fortune in New York city, grimly discovering that their hopeful ascent to stardom first descends them into a sordid mire of increasingly sleazy misogyny. The distractingly delicious cast deliver engaging performances, and a shrill midnight jazz score accents the girl's frequently feral nocturnal encounters. As is so often the case, Joe Sarno excitingly populates his tantalizing, low-budget sin-pics with exotic, talented, breathtakingly beautiful women, and Warm Nights and Hot Pleasures is demonstratively no exception! I'm more than positive that Warm Nights and Hot Pleasures would have provided 60s smut-seekers with ample thrill-spillage, and seen today, this compelling expose of the seedy machinations fulminating beneath the veneered glitz of show business remains thoroughly captivating adult entertainment.

 Sledgehammer (1984) – David A. Prior.

A boozy weekend in the country becomes a livid, death-drenched nightmare, once the noisome revellers ill-fated séance awakens the supernatural behemoth that homicidally haunts this desolated domicile. Sledgehammer's hugely revered status amongst the S.O.V cognoscenti is richly deserved, remaining a bodaciously brutal, enjoyably retrograde, wantonly cerebellum splattering terror treat! Bizarrely, the male protagonists conspicuous mood swings, gross insensitivity, and egregious displays of misogyny, Sledgehammer occasionally feels like a TV movie of the week special, luridly warning the nation's youth against the incumbent perils of Steroid abuse.

One might additionally call Prior's feverish 80s slasher Synthhammer, as the scintillatingly omnipresent, skull-splintering bass-loaded electronic score certainly proves no less impactful than the hulking maniac's exhilaratingly brutal modus operandi! I felt little sympathy for the victims, the men were boorish jocks, and their girlfriends frequently expressed a baffling tolerance their asinine behaviour, making the killer's bludgeoning, slow-motion rampage an altogether justifiable cull. Sledgehammer remains a product of its time, cynically created to capitalise upon the ascendant popularity of gory slasher tropes, but that perversely lends it so much goofily nostalgic appeal when enjoyed today!