Gonin (1995)

Bandai (Koichi Sato) is a disco club owner in Tokyo whose business in not doing very well after the economic bubble collapse. He owes a lot of money to the Yakuza and has to find a way to pay. He quickly puts together an eclectic gang of losers to help him steal the money from the gangsters themselves. The other members include a disgraced cop, a young pretty-boy club goer, an unstable unemployed businessman, and a drugged out pimp. Once the gangsters get wind of who pulled the job, they send out a couple of gay assassins who are totally ruthless in their methods of revenge.

Available: Netflix, Amazon

Alternate Titles: The Five

The Towering Inferno (1974)

This epic movie, from the Master of Disaster Irwin Allen, is based on two different novels, The Tower and The Glass Inferno. The story starts on the day of the big gala opening of the tallest building in the world. During a check of the systems, the electric wiring overloads and starts a fire in a storage room on the 81st floor. Architect Doug Roberts (Paul Newman) realizes something is faulty with the electrics (although he is unaware of the fire) and confronts Simmons (Richard Chamberlain) who was not only was contracted to the electrical work but is the son-in-law of the building's owner James Duncan (William Holden).

Since no one is aware of the impending danger, the Gala party goes on as planned with lots of dignitaries including the mayor and his wife and Senator Parker (Robert Vaughn). Soon though the building's security (O.J. Simpson) becomes aware of the fire and alerts the fire department. Chief O'Hallorhan (Steve McQueen) quickly takes control of the situation and orders the party guests down to the lobby. Reluctantly Duncan does as he is told, however by this time it is too late. The 300 party guests on the 135th floor are trapped above the fire with no means of escape from the world's tallest highrise.

Available: Netflix, Amazon

The Rock (1996)

Nicolas Cage stars as Stanley Goodspeed, an FBI chemical weapons expert who is called in to help in a domestic terrorist situation. It seems that Vietnam War hero Brigadier General Hummel (Ed Harris) has taken control of Alcatraz prison. Along with a team of crack military personnel, he plans to fire rockets filled with poisonous VX gas into the heart of San Fransisco. He demands $100 million in reparation for the soldiers under his command that have died with no honors or acknowledgement from the government. The FBI is forced to enlist the help of Federal prisoner John Mason (Sean Connery) who can get out of any prison he's been incarcerated in, including Alcatraz. Mason must lead a team of Navy SEALS into the bowels of the penitentiary before time time runs out.

Available: Netflix, Amazon

Shut Up And Shoot Me (2005)

British man Colin Frampton (Andy Nyman) wants to kill himself after his wife dies in a freak accident while they are vacationing in Prague. He pays his hired driver Mr. Zeman (Karel Roden) to do the deed for him. Unfortunately the method that Zeman utilizes does not do the job so Colin shows up at his house expecting him to get it right. When Zeman decides to exterminate Colin by angering a gangster that is sure to annihilate him, things get really hairy as the body counts mounts. Regretfully, Colin never seems to be one of the deceased.

Available: Netflix, Amazon

The Invention of Lying (2009)

This film written, directed and starring Ricky Gervais takes place in an alternate reality. It is a world where the human race has never learned to tell a lie. There is no fiction, no religion, everyone is up front with what they are thinking. Suddenly one day, chubby loser Mark Bellison (Gervias) tells an untruth and it changes his life forever. He uses his new power to not only improve his own life, but the lives of other unhappy people. Things get complicated though when he tells his dying mother about a life after death. Unexpectedly, Mark becomes a kind of Messiah. He also becomes very rich and famous. However, this celebrity does not bring him what he wants most, which is to marry Anna (Jennifer Garner). No matter what Anna feels for Mark, she does believe him to be her perfect genetic match. And as much as Mark wants to be with her, he cannot lie to her.

Available: Netflix, Amazon

Beach Blanket Bingo (1965)

This most famous of the beach movies is actually the fifth in the series. It again stars Annette Funicello as Dee Dee and Frankie Avalon as Frankie, a clean-cut couple of teenagers. Their surfing activities are slightly sidetracked this time by some skydiving adventures as they frequent the skydiving school run by Big Drop (Don Rickles). Big Drop also runs the local hang-out joint where new teen singing sensation Sugar Kane (Linda Evans) has been making nightly appearances. Her manager Bullets (Paul Lynde) is making sure that she is kept on the front page of the papers by staging various stunts that usually involve someone's life being saved. A stunt he doesn't expect though is for Sugar Kane to be kidnapped by the local hood Eric Von Zipper (Harvey Lembeck). Lucky for the kids, a mermaid named Lorelei (Marta Kristen) points them in right direction in time to save Sugar.

Available: Netflix, Amazon 

What's Good For The Goose (1969)

British comedian Norman Wisdom stars as Timothy Bartlett, a boring middle-class banker whose life is a predictable routine. After the sudden death of his boss, Timothy is next in line to go to the banking conference being held in Southport. On the way down south, he reluctantly picks up a couple of young hitchhikers, Nikki (Sally Geeson) and Meg (Sarah Atkinson). However he can't get Nikki out of his mind and goes to all the local hip spots hoping to find her. Fortunately, he does run into her and her mod friends and quickly becomes part of the scene. During this midlife crisis he not only has an affair with the young nymph, but dons the hippie clothes and attitudes of the youth of the day. Nevertheless, it all must come to an end when the week is up and Timothy must return to his real life.

Available: Netflix, Amazon

The Soul Brothers Of Kung Fu (1977)

A trio of young Chinese refugees (including Bruce Li) are rescued from a raft at the beginning of the film. They settle in Hong Kong and try to make a life for themselves. However, the forces of wrong work against their good natures and cause them to always be in battle in this plotless film.

Initially, the duo help out a young black man (Carl Scott) who is being beat up by some thugs who work for the boss. After that, the boss and his goons are constantly fighting our heroes every opportunity they get. The film tries to put some plot in by having Li compete in a martial arts competition. When he beats the competitor that the evil head honcho has entered into the contest, things gear up. A trio of killers are hired to finish off Li. Of course they don't succeed and the gangster must find way to annihilate Li that is a little closer to home.

Alternate Titles: Bei Po, Kung Fu Avengers, The Last Strike

Available: Netflix, Amazon

Possessed (1931)

Joan Crawford stars as Marian Martin, a small town girl that works in a paper box factory. She wants more out of life than to settle down and marry the hard-working local boy Al Manning (Wallace Ford). One night she strikes up a conversation with Wally Stuart (Richard "Skeets" Gallagher), a rich lush who is hanging out on the back of a train drinking champagne. He invites her to New York where she ends up meeting rich lawyer Mark Whitney (Clark Gable). Mark and Marian fall madly in love, but three years later they still are only having an affair, with Marian posing as the rich divorcee Mrs. Moreland to keep up appearances. When Mark is given the opportunity to run for Governor, he must make a decision between his ambition and his heart.

Available: Amazon

Lisa And The Devil (1974)

This is a surreal thriller by Italian director Mario Bava stars Elke Sommer as Lisa and Telly Savalas as The Devil. The story is set in Italy with Lisa as an American tourist who wanders away from her tour group as they study a fresco of the devil carrying away the dead. She enters a shop and encounters Savalas who has an uncanny resemblance to the demon in the painting. Lisa rushes out of the store but suddenly is very lost. Eventually she gets a ride with a rich couple and their chauffeur, but soon the car breaks down. Fortunately the are right in front of a large estate house and are invited in by the butler who just happens to be Savalas. The residents of the house are a young man who is quite taken by Lisa and his blind mother. Lots of bizarre situations occurs that include lots of dummies of the people, a man who appears only to Lisa and a past love triangle with a woman who looks uncannily like Lisa. What exactly is going on is not for rational analysis.

Available: Netflix, Amazon

Five Steps To Danger (1957)

Sterling Hayden stars as John Emmett in this cold war drama based on the book "The Steel Mirror" written by Donald Hamilton of Matt Helm fame. Emmett has the misfortune of having his car break down on the way to his month-long fishing vacation. Fortunately for him Mrs. Ann Nicholson (Ruth Roman) offers him a ride as far as Santa Fe, as long as he shares in the driving. She is in a rush to get to the city and meet up with a Dr. Reinhart Kissel. It seems that Ann is a native of Berlin and has the secret plans for an Intercontinental Missile that she must deliver to Kissel. However, some baddies have gotten word that she is carrying the plans and try to stop her. But luckily for the couple, the FBI are also in the know and try to prevent the Communists from getting to them and the blueprints.

Available: Netflix, iOffer

The Second Best Secret Agent In The Whole Wide World (1965)

This James Bond rip-off starts with a promising pre-credit sequence of an assassination in an British park involving a woman and some twin babies in a pram. Sammy Davis Jr. then sings the theme song before the excitement quickly comes to a halt.

The secret agent in question is Charles Vine (Tom Adams). He is brought in to protect a foreign scientist who has invented Re-Grav, a process that reverses gravity. The Russians want to get their hands on it and would do anything to get it, or so it seems. There are many attempts on the life of the scientist which Vine successfully foils. But who exactly is behind the killings: the Russians, the British or someone else?

Alternate Titles: Licensed To Kill, Secret Service

Available: Amazon

Killing Cabos (2004)

Very funny Mexican film that starts off quite surreal before settling into an entertaining adventure taking place over the course of one crazy night. Jaque (Tony Dalton) and Mudo (Kristoff) have the unclothed, unconscious body of their tyrannical boss Cabos (Pedro Armendariz, Jr) in the trunk of their car. After being rear-ended by a crazed, cross-eyed bus driver, they call their friend Ruben (Joaquin Cosio) to help them sort out the situation. Ruben was once know as "Mascarita", a masked Mexican wrestler, but don't ever call him that or he'll beat the crap out of you. Ruben shows up with his bodyguard Tony The Cannibal (Silverio Palacios) who helps him get out of some scrapes with a team of aggressive rugby players. And finally, there's vicious Botcha (Raul Mendez). He thinks that he has kidnapped Cabos. Not only has he got the wrong man, but he can't even get any response from the family when he contacts them threatening to kill him if he doesn't get retribution.

Alternate Titles: Matando Cabos

Available: Netflix, Amazon

Behind Locked Doors (1948)

This Poverty Row noir film is directed by Budd Boetticher and stars Richard Carlson as Ross Stewart, a dime-store detective who's just opened shop. Literally before the paint has dried on his office door, he gets his first case. Kathy Lawrence (Lucille Bremer), a pretty newspaper reporter, desires to hire Stewart to help her find a crooked judge who is wanted by the police. She has already done some investigating on her own and believes that he is hiding out in a private sanitarium. Stewart is to enter the mental hospital disguised as a patient and find out for sure if the judge has refuge there. Even though Stewart befriends a kindly orderly, he also gets abuse from the sadistic caretaker. Being a low-budget film there really aren't that many other patients to be seen with the exception of the dangerous inmate "Champ" (Tor Johnson) who blindly beats up whomever is in his path believing that he is in the wrestling ring.

Available: Netflix, Amazon

Uptown Saturday Night (1974)

Comedy starring Sidney Poitier and Bill Cosby as two working class friends. One night they decide to go uptown to Zenobia's, a posh gambling hall/nightclub. While having an advantageous winning streak at the crap table, the club is suddenly invaded by a gang of masked men who rob all the customers of their money and their valuables after making them strip down to their underwear.

The next day things look worse when Poitier finds out that a winning lottery ticket is in the wallet that was robbed from him the night before. Together the two friends are determined to find out who was behind the robbery and get the wallet back. They end up employing the services of a crooked detective (Richard Pryor), a poseur politician (Roscoe Lee Browne), and a Godfather-like mob boss (Harry Belafonte) before finally finding the culprit.

Available: Netflix, Amazon