Moro Witch Doctor | |
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Directed by | Eddie Romero |
Screenplay by | Eddie Romero |
Produced by |
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Starring |
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Cinematography | Felipe Sacdalan |
Edited by | Joven Calub |
Music by | Ariston Avelino |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release date |
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Running time |
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Countries | |
Languages | |
Budget | less than US$65,000.00 [1] |
Moro Witch Doctor (Filipino : Amok) is a 1964 Filipino adventure film written and directed by Eddie Romero, and co-produced by Romero, Kane W. Lynn and Irwin Pizor (doing business as "Hemisphere Pictures"). The film stars Jock Mahoney, Margia Dean, Pancho Magalona, Reed Hadley, Paraluman, Vic Diaz and Michael Parsons. The film was shot back to back with The Walls of Hell . [1]
The film originally ran 90 minutes. It was sold to Robert L. Lippert who arranged for it to be released in November 1964, by 20th Century Fox in a 61-minute version. [1] [2] [3]
CIA agent Jefferson Stark is ordered to the Philippines to investigate the double homicide of two American plantation owners, Cameron and Kruger. Authorities believe the two were killed as a result of local gun smuggling and drug dealing. Cameron's sister Paula helps Stark in his investigation, and learns her brother is still alive and has gone into hiding from the syndicate. Stark discovers the plantation is all just a cover for the crime ring's smuggling operations. A fanatical cult leader named Datu Sumlang tries to buy the property, but when Paula refuses to sell, her brother's ex-friends start getting murdered. Stark uses Paula as a lure by telling her to meet him in Manila with a suitcase full of money. She gets attacked by the supposedly dead Kruger, and Stark comes to Paula's aid and kills him. With Kruger's death, the crime ring dissolves and her brother Cameron is exonerated.
Margia Dean later recalled "It was a dangerous film to do. That was really roughing it. We had machine-gunned guards all along ... Jock Mahoney was not very pleasant to work with ... He was a pompous ass." [4]
The Reverend Doctor Christopher Syn is the smuggler hero of a series of novels by Russell Thorndike. The first book, Doctor Syn: A Tale of the Romney Marsh was published in 1915. The story idea came from legendary coastal smuggling in the 18th century around well-known Romney Marsh, where brandy and tobacco were brought in at night by boat from France to avoid the tax. Minor battles were fought, sometimes at night, between gangs of smugglers, such as the Hawkhurst Gang, and His Majesty's Customs and Excise / Revenue, supported by the British Army, Royal Navy and local militias in the counties of the South Kent and Sussex.
Rodolfo Vera Quizon Sr., known professionally as Dolphy, was a Filipino comedian and actor. He is widely regarded as the country's "King of Comedy" for his comedic talent embodied by his long roster of works on stage, radio, television and movies.
Francis Michael Durango Magalona, also known as Francis M, was a Filipino rapper, songwriter, and actor. He was regarded as an influential figure in Pinoy hip hop.
Ibong Adarna, also known as The Adarna Bird, is an early 19th century Filipino epic poem that centers around a magical bird of the same name. During the Spanish era, the longer form of the story's title was Korrido at Buhay na Pinagdaanan ng Tatlong Prinsipeng Magkakapatid na anak ni Haring Fernando at ni Reyna Valeriana sa Kahariang Berbanya'. Some researchers suggest that the tale may have been influenced by similar European stories.
Victor Sunico Diaz, popularly known as Vic Diaz, was a Filipino character actor who mostly portrayed villains. He was also the father of Teddy Diaz, the founding guitarist of the Filipino Rock band The Dawn.
Sampaguita Pictures was a Philippine film production company. It was named for the Philippine national flower, sampaguita. Though no longer functioning, the company's Sampaguita Compound remains in Quezon City.
John Ashley was an American actor, producer and singer. He was best known for his work as an actor in films for American International Pictures, producing and acting in horror films shot in the Philippines, and for producing various television series, including The A-Team.
Jacques Joseph O'Mahoney, known professionally as Jock Mahoney, was an American actor and stuntman. He starred in two Action/Adventure television series, The Range Rider and Yancy Derringer. He played Tarzan in two feature films and was associated in various capacities with several other Tarzan productions. He was credited variously as Jacques O'Mahoney,Jock O'Mahoney, Jack Mahoney, and finally Jock Mahoney.
Edgar Sinco Romero,, commonly known as Eddie Romero, was a Filipino film director, film producer and screenwriter.
Robert Lenard Lippert was an American film producer and cinema chain owner. He was president and chief operating officer of Lippert Theatres, Affiliated Theatres and Transcontinental Theatres, all based in San Francisco, and at his height, he owned a chain of 139 movie theaters.
Enrique Gayoso Magalona Jr., popularly known as Pancho Magalona, was a Filipino actor from the 1940s to the 1970s.
The Family Rosary Crusade is a multi-media based ministry in the Philippines. In the 1950s, Reverend Father Fr. Patrick Peyton, CSC came to the Philippines upon the invitation of the Dominican Fathers, or Order of Preachers, to conduct and speak on his worldwide efforts to promote the praying of the Family Rosary all over the world. Father Peyton was warmly welcomed in the Philippines and from thereon, his mission has grown and expanded all over the country. Father Peyton died in 1992, but his mission in the Philippines continues to date with programs airing in various radio and television networks.
The Eastwood City Walk of Fame or the Walk of Fame Philippines is a walk of fame patterned after the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and is located in Eastwood City, Quezon City. It was founded on December 1, 2005. As German Moreno's home network, GMA Network is the official media partner of Walk of Fame since 2005 that were supported by GMA Network's bosses Atty. Felipe L. Gozon and Mr. Duavit Jimenez Jr.
Marguerite Louise Skliris-Alvarez, known by her stage name Margia Dean was an American beauty queen and stage and screen actress of royal Greek descent, who had a career in Hollywood films from the 1940s until the early 1960s, appearing in 30 starring roles and 20 bit parts.
During the Japanese occupation of the islands in World War II, there was an extensive Philippine resistance movement, which opposed the Japanese and their collaborators with active underground and guerrilla activity that increased over the years. Fighting the guerrillas – apart from the Japanese regular forces – were a Japanese-formed Bureau of Constabulary, the Kenpeitai, and the Makapili. Postwar studies estimate that around 260,000 people were organized under guerrilla groups and that members of anti-Japanese underground organizations were more numerous. Such was their effectiveness that by the end of World War II, Japan controlled only twelve of the forty-eight provinces.
Hemisphere Pictures was a film production and distribution company that specialised in movies from the Philippines. More information is available at Kane W. Lynn.
Lolita Rodriguez was a Filipino actress whose career spanned four decades. Regarded as the "Queen of Philippine Drama", she was noted for her restrained, subtle acting style and was famous for her performances in a range of film genres, from drama, comedy and action. She is a recipient of two FAMAS Awards for her portrayal in Gilda (1956) and Weighed But Found Wanting (1974).
Kane W. Lynn (1919–1975) was an American film producer who made a number of movies in the Philippines with producer Irwin Pizor and Filipino director Eddie Romero as Hemisphere Pictures, or the House of Horror as they often referred to themselves. Later Pizor quit the company after an argument, and when Romero left to form a production company with actor John Ashley, Lynn tired of making movies and his Hemisphere Pictures became just a movie distributor, mainly handling adult films and low budget B-movies. It was his guidance that kept Hemisphere Pictures solvent and constantly moving forward, releasing a diverse product line of low-budget independent movies from the early 1960s through the mid-1970s.
The Walls of Hell, also known as Intramuros is a 1964 Philippine-American film directed by Eddie Romero and Gerardo de Leon and starring Jock Mahoney. The film was made back-to-back with Moro Witch Doctor (1964). It was produced by Hemisphere Pictures.