Although it suffers in comparison to Jules Dassin's masterful French crime/caper film RIFIFI (1955), Jean-Pierre Melville's 1970 film LE CERCLE ROUGE (THE RED CIRCLE) is nonetheless a first rate film. Slowly paced and with a running time of 140 minutes, Melville takes his time in setting up the story of three strangers Alain Delon, Gian Maria Volonte and Yves Montand, who come together to plan and execute a daring jewel heist. The men are doggedly pursued both by a tenacious police inspector and a murderous mob boss. Although it takes awhile to get where it's going, the trip is definitely worth it. Thumbs up.
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By 1971, Hammer Studios had already reached its' peak and was beginning a long, slow slide into mediocrity. The studio put increased emphasis on blood and breasts in their Gothic horror films and BLOOD FROM THE MUMMY'S TOMB is a perfect example of upping the sex and violence quotient to sell tickets. Hammer stalwart Andrew Keir stars as an archaeologist obsessed with the mummy of ancient Egyptian queen. His daughter, the incredibly hot Valerie Leon, bears a startling resemblance to the deceased monarch, whose body is kept in a family basement remade to resemble an ancient tomb, replete with sacrificial altar. Ancient relics are gathered one by one for a resurrection ritual with each person who possesses the relics meeting a gruesome end. You can no doubt see exactly where this is going. Keir is solid but he lacks the screen presence that a Christopher Lee or Peter Cushing could have brought to this production. Nevertheless, Valerie Leon is absolutely spectacularly gorgeous and it's a sincere pleasure to watch her for 94 minutes.
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