Exhumed Films and the Lightbox Presents….
Margheriti-thon!
JUST ANNOUNCED! TICKETS FOR THE LAST 24-HOUR FEST WILL BE ON SALE FOR TICKETED ATTENDEES OF THE MARGHERITI-THON. BE THE FIRST TO SECURE YOUR TICKET ONLY AT THIS SHOW !
Saturday, June 1, 2019 — Doors at 11am, movies at 12 noon
$25 general admission / $20 Lightbox members
Celebrate the career of the legendary Italian director Antonio Margheriti with six explosive action films, projected from super-rare 35mm film prints! Join us for one of our last marathons at the I-House, and one of the craziest shows we’ve ever put together — one that only Exhumed Films would (or could) do! Fans of eX-Fest will not want to miss this event, which will feature murderous mobsters, Vietnam violence, and RAIDERS ripoffs!
DEATH RAGE
1976 / 35mm / Dir. Antonio Margheriti / 98 minutes
This tale of criminal vengeance stars Yul Brynner (in his final film role) as a retired hitman who returns to action in order to avenge his brother’s death. With the help of a small-time crook, Brynner is determined to hunt down the Sicilian mobsters responsible for the murder, while also remaining one step ahead of the police. Also starring the beautiful Barbara Bouchet (DON’T TORTURE A DUCKLING) as the hitman’s love interest and Martin Balsam as the chief of police determined to bring Brynner down.
THE SQUEEZE
1978 / 35mm / Dir. Antonio Margheriti / 99 minutes
Antonio Margheriti directs one of his favorite actors (and one of our favorite tough guys)–Lee Van Cleef–in this clever crime caper. Van Cleef plays Gretchko, an aging safecracker who agrees to attempt one last big score: the theft of a million dollars worth of diamonds. But when the heist goes awry and the criminals all turn on each other, Gretchko must use his skills and his wits to escape with the loot and his life!
THE LAST HUNTER
1980 / 35mm / Dir. Antonio Margheriti / 95 minutes
Italian horror favorites David Warbeck (THE BEYOND) and Tisa Farrow (ZOMBIE) star in this brutal, gory Vietnam War flick. Warbeck is Captain Henry Morris, who leads a team of soldiers on a dangerous mission to destroy an enemy radio tower. Before long, Morris, his men, and the embedded journalist (Farrow) tagging along on the mission must confront all of the death, destruction, and horrors that war brings. Taking obvious inspiration from both THE DEER HUNTER and APOCALYPSE NOW, THE LAST HUNTER puts a distinctly Italian exploitation spin on the traditional war movie. Also featuring Tony King (CANNIBAL APOCALYPSE), Bobby Rhodes (DEMONS) and Margheriti stalwart John Steiner (YOR, THE HUNTER FROM THE FUTURE).
TIGER JOE
1982 / 35mm / Dir. Antonio Margheritti / 96 minutes
THE LAST HUNTER marked the beginning of several collaborations between director Antonio Margheriti and leading man David Warbeck. That relationship continued with their follow-up film, another war story called TIGER JOE. TIGER JOE finds Warbeck as the title character, a mercenary and gun runner who is shot down while trying to deliver a cache of weapons to Cambodian rebels. With assistance from a ravishing rebel leader maned Kia (Annie Belle from HOUSE ON THE EDGE OF THE PARK), Joe must fight for survival in the deadly depths of a jungle hell!
HUNTERS OF THE GOLDEN COBRA
1982 / 35mm / Dir. Antonio Margheritti / 92 minutes
The success of Steven Spielberg’s action blockbuster RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK did not go unnoticed by exploitation filmmakers, who quickly began cranking out their own ripoffs of the Harrison Ford favorite. One of the first of the copycats is HUNTERS OF THE GOLDEN COBRA, which once again stars Margheriti’s favorite leading man, David Warbeck. Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: a WWII-era adventurer teams up with a beautiful woman and a knowledgeable ally in order to locate a magical relic before it can fall in the ends of enemy forces. Along the way, he must avoid angry natives, the Axis Powers (this time the Japanese instead of the Nazis), and even a pit full of snakes. Original it aint, but HUNTERS OF THE GOLDEN COBRA is definitely a rollicking good time. Also starring Almanta Suska (THE NEW YORK RIPPER) and the omnipresent John Steiner.
ARK OF THE SUN GOD
1984 / 35mm / Dir. Antonio Margheritti / 98 minutes
Not content to make just one RAIDERS knockoff, Antonio Margheriti’s next film was yet another Indy-inspired adventure! Returning from HUNTERS OF THE GOLDEN COBRA is the dynamic duo of David Warbeck and John Steiner, oddly playing different roles in a very similar movie. This time, Warbeck and Steiner appear as a safecracker and a British agent who team up to track down the Scepter of Gilgamesh, an ancient artifact that is being sought by an evil cult for nefarious purposes. Our heroes need to unearth the Temple of Gilgamesh and locate the scepter before it falls into the wrong hands and potentially destroys the world!
Exhumed Films presents at The Mahoning Drive-In theater: GODZILLA-PALOOZA!
The undisputed “King of the Monsters” turns 65 this year, but Godzilla is not ready to retire just yet! Join us on June 28 & 29 as we celebrate Big G’s birthday with a weekend’s worth of the most magnificent monster movies of all time! You will see Godzilla battle some of his fiercest foes in a colossal clash of the creatures. Let’s get ready to RUMBLE!
The Mahoning Drive-In Theater 635 Seneca Rd, Lehighton, Pennsylvania 18235
TICKETS and INFO
All movies presented in 35mm film.
Triple features with vintage, original movie trailers, games, prizes and more starting at sundown each night! Gates open at 6pm.
Tickets are ON SALE NOW and only $10 per person!
Overnight passes are available for an additional $10 a night at the gate.
Like this page, share it and spread the word, kaiju fans!
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Friday, June 28:
MONSTER ZERO (1965) – An alien race comes to our world asking to borrow Earth’s mightiest monsters, Godzilla and Rodan, in order to defeat the mysterious “Monster Zero” that is plaguing their own planet. But when it soon becomes evident that the villainous visitors are actually plotting to overthrow the Earth and have kidnapped the monsters to prevent interference,it’s up to intrepid astronauts Nick Adams (FRANKENSTEIN CONQUERS THE WORLD) and Akira Takarada (GOJIRA, KING KONG ESCAPES) to overthrow the aliens and release the captive Godzilla and Rodan, setting the stage for an epic battle with Monster Zero!
DESTROY ALL MONSTERS (1968) – Years before the Marvel movies popularized the concept of the “shared cinematic universe,” DESTROY ALL MONSTERS brought together nearly all of Toho’s kaiju creations from their various features. The result is perhaps the greatest Godzilla movie of all time! Once again, an army of alien invaders plots to seize control of the Earth. This time, they use our own monsters against us by mind-controlling an battalion of behemoths to attack the world’s largest cities! In addition to showcasing the fab four (Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan and Ghidorah), DESTROY ALL MONSTERS features “deep cut” creatures like Manda, Gorosaurus, Baragon and Varan. Also keep an eye out for Ultraman himself, Susumu “Hayata” Kurobe, as one of the evil aliens.
GODZILLA’S REVENGE (1969)- A lonely young boy who is being bullied by his classmates retreats into an imaginary realm: he dreams that he has travelled to Monster Island and befriended Godzilla’s son, Minya (aka Minilla), who is dealing with a monster bully of his own. Together, the two outcasts learn to face their fears and fight their foes; this becomes particularly helpful when, back in the real world, the boy is kidnapped by bungling bank robbers! With its fantasy setting and bizarre bankrobber subplot, GODZILLA’S REVENGE is definitely one of the oddest Godzilla movies ever, but it is also oddly endearing.
Saturday, June 29:
GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA (1974)- In this, the penultimate Godzilla film of the 1970’s, the King of the Monsters faces perhaps his most deadly enemy yet: himself! Mankind is flummoxed when a second Godzilla starts wreaking havoc and confronts the original Big G. Turns out the new monster is actually a robotic clone known as Mechagodzilla that is being controlled by–you guessed it–alien invaders! This time the aliens look like refugees from the “Planet of the Apes” series, but they aren’t monkeying around when it comes to world domination! GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA also features the first appearance of King Seesar, a kaiju based on a mythical lion-like creature from Japanese folklore–though he looks more like a big puppy dog to us.
GODZILLA VS. MEGALON (1973)- Due to its prevalence on television “creature feature” and “Monster Week” programming in the 1970’s and 1980’s–and its inclusion in an early episode of “Mystery Science Theatre 3000”–GODZILLA VS. MEGALON is one of the most well-known Godzilla films of all time. It is also one of the most enjoyable! The undersea kingdom of Seatopia is fed up with mankind polluting the world’s oceans, so they unleash the giant insect-like creature Megalon to destroy the surface dwellers for their hubris. Let’s all cross our talons and hope that Godzilla and his new pal, the giant robot Jet Jaguar, are able to stop Megalon and once again save the planet from annihilation!
BONUS SECRET MOVIE (19??)- What’s that you say? You haven’t quite had your fill of creature carnage? Then grab yourself one last big bucket of popcorn and settle in for one final bout of monsterrific mayhem! We’ve saved one of our favorite flicks for the finale, but it’s a special surprise only for those drive-in denizens in attendance brave enough to stick around to the exhilarating end — everyone else can forever wonder how the night ended!
