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Riccardo Freda is a Actor, Director, Scriptwriter, Producer, Assistant Director, Editor and Art Direction Italien born on 24 february 1909 at Alexandria (Egypte)
Riccardo Freda (born in Alexandria, Egypt, February 24, 1909 - died in Rome, Italy, December 20, 1999) to a Neopolitan family, he was an Italian film director. He left studies in Milan in 1933 and entered the Experimental Center for Cinematography and he soon began work as a screenwriter for directors like Goffredo Alessandrini and Raffaello Matarazzo. Best known for his horror and thriller movies, Freda had no great love for the horror films he was assigned, but rather favored the epic sword and sandal pictures being inspired by the literary classics of Hugo and Pushkin. Unlike other directors of the period like Mario Bava and Antonio Margheriti, Freda had worked with high budgets and obtained egregrious results. Freda's Sins of Rome (1953) was one of the first Italian peplums, predating Steve Reeves's "Hercules" by four years, and his classic Giants of Thessaly (1961) was theatrically released one year before Ray Harryhausen's famous Jason and the Argonauts. He directed Kirk Morris and Gordon Scott in two classic Maciste films in the sixties, in addition to directing several spy films, spaghetti westerns, historical dramas and World War II actioners.
He never finished either of the two horror films he was assigned in the Fifties ("I Vampiri" and "Caltiki"), but rather allowed his cinematographer Mario Bava to complete them. Bava's great effects work on Caltiki in particular launched him on a directing career of his own in 1960. Thus many fans regard Freda as Mario Bava's mentor in the film industry.
Freda's greatest horror films were his two 1960's titles, The Horrible Dr. Hichcock (1962) and The Ghost (1963), both of which starred Barbara Steele, but he really enjoyed doing the adventure films a lot more. He directed Anton Diffring and the legendary Klaus Kinski in giallos later in the decade, and then pretty much retired from filmmaking in 1972, inexplicably emerging from his retirement in 1981 (at age 72) to direct one last slasher film, Murder Obsession (aka Fear).
He died in 1999 in Rome of natural causes (at age 90).
(1994)
(Director)
(1946)
(Director)
Source : Wikidata
Riccardo Freda
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Nationality Italie
Birth 24 february 1909 at Alexandria (Egypte)
Death 20 december 1999 (at 90 years) at Rome (Italie)
Awards Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres
Birth 24 february 1909 at Alexandria (Egypte)
Death 20 december 1999 (at 90 years) at Rome (Italie)
Awards Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres
He never finished either of the two horror films he was assigned in the Fifties ("I Vampiri" and "Caltiki"), but rather allowed his cinematographer Mario Bava to complete them. Bava's great effects work on Caltiki in particular launched him on a directing career of his own in 1960. Thus many fans regard Freda as Mario Bava's mentor in the film industry.
Freda's greatest horror films were his two 1960's titles, The Horrible Dr. Hichcock (1962) and The Ghost (1963), both of which starred Barbara Steele, but he really enjoyed doing the adventure films a lot more. He directed Anton Diffring and the legendary Klaus Kinski in giallos later in the decade, and then pretty much retired from filmmaking in 1972, inexplicably emerging from his retirement in 1981 (at age 72) to direct one last slasher film, Murder Obsession (aka Fear).
He died in 1999 in Rome of natural causes (at age 90).
Best films
(1994)(Director)
(1946)(Director)
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Filmography of Riccardo Freda (50 films)
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Once Around the Park (1989)
, 1h20Origin France
Genres Drama, Crime, Romance
Actors Juliette Binoche, François Cluzet, Denis Lavant, Thierry Gimenez, Michel Aumont, Jean-Chrétien Sibertin-Blanc
Roles Ricardo, le réalisateur
Rating61%
Al (Francois Cluzet) and Elsa (Juliette Binoche) have been a couple for some time, but the chances that their relationship will be long-lived are few. For one thing, Al is appallingly dependent on Elsa for his every emotional need. For another, Elsa is an incredibly elusive person, extremely difficult to pin down about anything—especially whatever is bothering her. How they have managed to survive this long is a cause for wonder. When Al gets an opportunity to be cast in a movie role, complete with no-cost occupancy in the casting agent's ugly but fashionable apartment, he jumps at the chance to provide a little material satisfaction for his beloved Elsa. But what exactly does she want?
Lust of the Vampire (1957)
, 1h25Directed by Riccardo Freda, Mario Bava
Origin Italie
Genres Science fiction, Horror, Crime
Themes Films about magic and magicians, Vampires in film
Actors Gianna Maria Canale, Paul Müller, Wandisa Guida, Carlo D'Angelo, Antoine Balpêtré, Charles Fernley Fawcett
Roles Il dottore (uncredited)
Rating64%
In 1957 Paris, a series of mysterious killings are committed against young women of the same blood type who are found dead and drained of their blood. These killings are reported in the press as being performed by a murderer coined The Vampire. The journalist Pierre Lantin (Dario Michaelis) begins to investigate, and becomes more involved when his fiancee, the dancer Nora Duval is kidnapped. As Inspector Chantal (Carlo D'Angelo) examines the crime scene, Lantin arrives predicting that the crime was committed by The Vampire. Lantin investigates the school that the latest murder happened at to search for clues and finds that the woman was being followed by a tall man before the murder. Elsewhere, a man named Joseph (Paul Muller) begs for "his fix" in a dark room is told to go after a woman named Lorette (Wandisa Guida) and that he "know what to do" at Rue Saint Etienne. Joseph arrives at the location and is spotted by Lantin but manages to get away from him. Joseph arrives at the clinic of Professor Julian Du Grand (Antoine Balpêtré) and demands money to leave town or he will report what's happening to the police. He is strangled by Du Grand's assistant when a shadowed woman named Marguerite arrives and states that if the police track them down, it will be the end of Du Grands career. A newspaper headline later reveals that Professor Julian Du Grand has died unexpectedly.
Sundown (1941)
, 1h30Directed by Henry Hathaway
Origin USA
Genres Drama, War, Action, Adventure
Themes Films set in Africa, Political films
Actors Gene Tierney, Bruce Cabot, George Sanders, Harry Carey, Joseph Calleia, Reginald Gardiner
Roles Pilot (uncredited)
Rating56%
Près de Nairobi, durant la seconde guerre mondiale, une garnison commandée par Crawford, que vient renforcer Coombes, est aux prises avec des tribus armées par les Allemands. Crawford reçoit la visite d'une métisse, Zia, accompagnée d'un trafiquant d'armes. En voulant les rejoindre, Crawford est fait prisonnier. Il est libéré par Coombes qui sera tué. Crawford épousera Zia.
Director
D'Artagnan's Daughter (1994)
, 2h9Directed by Bertrand Tavernier, Riccardo Freda
Origin France
Genres Comedy, Swashbuckler, Action, Adventure
Themes Films about sexuality, Transgender in film, Histoire de France, LGBT-related film, Cross-dressing in film
Actors Sophie Marceau, Philippe Noiret, Claude Rich, Sami Frey, Jean-Luc Bideau, Gigi Proietti
Rating57%
In the autumn of 1654, an escaped slave seeks refuge at a convent in southern France. After the nuns take him in, his pursuers break into the convent and assault the nuns, searching for the slave. After wounding the mother superior (Pascale Roberts), they close in on their prey. One feisty novitiate, Eloise (Sophie Marceau)—the daughter of the renowned swordsman D'Artagnan (Philippe Noiret) of the famed Three Musketeers—stands up to the intruders, but is shoved aside as they ride off after the frightened slave, who escaped from the evil Duke Crassac de Merindol. Eloise finds a blood-stained piece of paper (a simple laundry list) that the slave used to stop a bleeding wound, and believes it holds some secret code. Later, Eloise is with the mother superior when she dies from her wound. Swearing a sacred oath to avenge her and dressed in men's clothes, Eloise sets out for Paris to elicit the help of her father in tracking down the murderers.
Murder Syndrome (1981)
Directed by Riccardo Freda
Genres Horror
Actors Stefano Patrizi, Martine Brochard, Henri Garcin, Laura Gemser, John Richardson, Anita Strindberg
Rating53%
Michael est un acteur à succès, mais il a un scandale dans son passé: à un âge tendre, il a poignardé son père à mort. Lui et sa petite amie Deborah se rendent chez sa mère pour le week-end, et sont rejoints par le réalisateur et d'autres personnes d'un récent projet de film, qui reçoivent un accueil plutôt cool de la gouvernante superstitieuse Oliver. Bientôt, des choses désagréables commencent à arriver à certains des invités, et Michael craint qu'une répétition de son passé cauchemardesque ne soit en cours.
Tragic Ceremony (1972)
Directed by Riccardo Freda
Genres Drama, Horror
Actors Camille Keaton, Luigi Pistilli, Luciana Paluzzi, José Calvo, Irina Demick, Giovanni Petrucci
Rating54%
Sur le chemin du retour, quatre hippies, partis en randonnée, tombent en panne d'essence. Ils tentent de trouver un abri dans une maison isolée....
, 1h32Directed by Riccardo Freda
Genres Drama, Thriller, Horror
Actors Luigi Pistilli, Dagmar Lassander, Anton Diffring, Dominique Boschero, Werner Pochath, Valentina Cortese
Rating54%
À Dublin, une jeune femme est retrouvée morte dans le coffre de la voiture de l'ambassadeur suisse Sobierski. Le cadavre est horriblement mutilé : le tueur a brûlé son visage avec de l'acide puis l'a égorgée. L'ancien inspecteur John Norton, viré de la police en raison de ses méthodes brutales, se charge lui-même de l'investigation. Il enquête dans l'entourage de Sobiesky, qui entretenait une relation sexuelle avec la victime, ce que ne facilite pas l'immunité diplomatique et le souci de discrétion du plénipotentiaire. Mais les meurtres s'enchaînent autour du notable et de ses proches. Alors que le tueur en série sévit, Norton rencontre la belle-fille de l'ambassadeur, Helen, avec qui il entame une liaison. Les deux amoureux se lient pour percer au grand jour les secrets de sa famille qui pourraient conduire à la découverte de l'identité du meurtrier.
, 1h34Directed by Riccardo Freda
Origin Italie
Genres Drama, Thriller, Horror
Themes Serial killer films
Actors Luigi Pistilli, Dagmar Lassander, Anton Diffring, Werner Pochath, Dominique Boschero, Valentina Cortese
Rating54%
À Dublin, une jeune femme est retrouvée morte dans le coffre de la voiture de l'ambassadeur suisse Sobierski. Le cadavre est horriblement mutilé : le tueur a brûlé son visage avec de l'acide puis l'a égorgée.
Double Face (1969)
, 1h20Directed by Riccardo Freda
Origin Italie
Genres Thriller, Horror, Crime
Themes Films about sexuality, Serial killer films, LGBT-related film, Lesbian-related films
Actors Klaus Kinski, Alfred Vohrer, Margaret Lee, Sydney Chaplin, Annabella Incontrera, Christiane Krüger
Rating58%
Unique actionnaire d’une très grosse firme industrielle, présidé par son père suite au décès de son épouse, Helen Alexander meurt dans l’explosion de sa voiture. Son mari John est d'autant plus vite soupçonné d'avoir tué sa femme, pour devenir son héritier et toucher sa fortune familiale, que le père de la défunte n'a rien touché de l'héritage. Peu de temps avant sa mort, elle a rédigé un testament par lequel elle lègue tout son argent à son mari. Pour oublier la mort d'Helen, John décide de voyager à Londres mais la police de Scotland Yard et Liverpool enquêtent à son sujet. De retour chez lui, une étrange femme, Christine, le drague et le conduit dans une fête hippie.Pour mieux l'attirer dans les lieux, elle lui a subtilisé ses clés de voiture. En fait, la jeune femme a voulu l'amener à voir un film érotique lesbien tourné quelques jours auparavant, dans lequel Christine fait l'amour à une mystérieuse femme masquée surnommée "la Comtesse". D'abord indifférent, John remarque que cette dernière possède une bague en forme de serpent identique à celle que portait Helen. Autre détail qu'il aperçoit : "la Comtesse" porte sur la nuque la même cicatrice que sa défunte femme. Stupéfait, il pense qu'Helen est toujours vivante et il se souvient de sa liaison avec une artiste Liz. Une complicité envahissante à un point tel que John fut très vite délaissé, voire méprisé par son épouse. Intrigué par la fameuse "comtesse", John part à sa recherche.
Death at Owell Rock (1967)
, 1h33Directed by Riccardo Freda
Genres Western
Actors Mark Damon, Luciano Pigozzi, Renato Chiantoni, Ignazio Spalla, Lidia Biondi, Mariella Palmich
Rating57%
Lawrence White returns to his hometown and reopens the investigation about the murder of his father. At the same time arrives Boyd, who frequently gets into fights. Doc Lester, who is the one behind the murder, hires Boyd and makes him the sheriff to stop White. However, it turns out that "Boyd" is the real Lawrence White, while ”White” is a friend of his.
Mexican Slayride (1967)
, 1h38Directed by Riccardo Freda, Yves Boisset
Origin France
Genres Action, Crime
Themes Spy films
Actors Lang Jeffries, José María Caffarel, Sabine Sun, Robert Party, Osvaldo Genazzani, Guy Marly
Rating49%
Francis Coplan part à la recherche de tableaux volés par les Allemands pendant la Seconde Guerre mondiale.
Trap for the Assassin (1966)
, 1h45Directed by Riccardo Freda
Origin France
Genres Drama, Thriller
Actors Georges Géret, Irène Papas, Bernard Lajarrige, Jean Topart, Jean-Pierre Marielle, Anne Vernon
Rating66%
En 1885, l'industriel Roger Laroque, directeur d'une usine à Ville d'Avray, a misé tous ses espoirs dans son invention, la première automobile à vapeur. Mais son commanditaire, Gerbier, lui réclame le remboursement immédiat d'un prêt de 80 000 francs. Le même soir, Gerbier est assassiné et volé par un sinistre personnage nommé Luversan. De sa fenêtre, Henriette, la femme de Laroque, en compagnie de sa fillette Suzanne, a cru reconnaître son mari dans la personne qui a pénétré dans la maison de Gerbier, voisine de leur domicile. Mais, au moment du crime, Roger rompait d'avec sa maîtresse Julia, la femme de son meilleur ami, l'avocat Lucien de Noirville.
The Two Orphans (1965)
Directed by Riccardo Freda
Origin France
Genres Drama
Themes Films about children, Political films, Films about capital punishment, Films based on plays, Histoire de France, French Revolution films
Actors Sophie Darès, Jacques Castelot, Valeria Ciangottini, Jean Desailly, Mike Marshall, Jean Carmet
Rating54%
Au XVIII siècle, peu avant la Révolution française, l’orpheline Henriette Gérard accompagne Louise, sa sœur adoptive aveugle, à Paris. Les deux jeunes filles espèrent bien trouver un médecin qui guérira Louise de sa cécité. Hélas, Henriette est enlevée par le marquis de Presles, un roué qui a décidé d'en faire son jouet. Louise n'a pas plus de chance que sa sœur : livrée à elle-même, elle tombe dans les mains de la Frochard, une mégère alcoolique qui ne cessera de l'humilier et de la tourmenter pour la forcer à mendier. Tout paraît s'arranger avec l'intervention du chevalier de Vaudrey et de la comtesse de Linières…
The Exterminators (1965)
Directed by Riccardo Freda
Genres Action, Crime
Themes Spy films
Actors Bernard Lajarrige, Jany Clair, Valeria Ciangottini, Maria-Rosa Rodriguez, Jacques Dacqmine, Robert Favart
Rating51%
Le monde est dans une phase critique, une guerre nucléaire peut éclater à n'importe quel instant. Francis Coplan, le meilleur espion français, enquête sur la disparition de deux philosophes allemands, réfugiés en France après la guerre.
Gold for the Caesars (1963)
, 1h26Directed by Riccardo Freda, André de Toth
Origin France
Genres Action, Adventure, Peplum
Actors Jeffrey Hunter, Mylène Demongeot, Massimo Girotti, Ron Randell, Giulio Bosetti, Ettore Manni
Rating53%
Un gouverneur romain met un esclave-architecte à la tête d’une expédition chargée de trouver, dans la vallée du Sil de la Galice, de l’or pour Rome. La mission va devoir constamment affronter les dangereuses attaques de guerriers celtiques…