
Acting
John Karlsen
Born — Died
1919-10-20 — 2017-04-05
Place of birth
Wellington, New Zealand
Known for
Acting
Credits
64 titles
Known for
6.8The life of the 13th-century Venetian explorer who sought to connect the civilizations of China and Europe through trade.
Marco Polo
1982
7.3Against the backdrop of world events that led to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Victor 'Pug' Henry is a career naval officer who, along with his family, learns to navigate the waters of his dangerous times in the late 1930s.
The Winds of War
1983
6.8Two rock-'n-rolling teens, on the verge of failing their class, set out on a quest to make the ultimate school history report after being presented with a time machine.
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
1989
8.1Guido Anselmi, a film director, finds himself creatively barren at the peak of his career. Urged by his doctors to rest, Anselmi heads for a luxurious resort, but a sorry group gathers—his producer, staff, actors, wife, mistress, and relatives—each one begging him to get on with the show. In retreat from their dependency, he fantasizes about past women and dreams of his childhood.
8½
1963
6.7Father Maurice, a priest living in a residential college for priests in Rome, is called out one day to "exorcise" the devil from someone. The devil turns out to be in the form of a fun-loving man called Giuditta. What Father Maurice doesn't know is that this type of devil will turn his life around.
The Little Devil
1988
7.1While traveling with his father, young Alec becomes fascinated by a mysterious Arabian stallion that is brought on board and stabled in the ship he is sailing on. When it tragically sinks both he and the horse survive only to be stranded on a deserted island. He befriends it, so when finally rescued both return to his home where they soon meet Henry Dailey, a once successful trainer. Together they begin training the horse to race against the fastest ones in the world.
The Black Stallion
1979
Film credits
1990s · 6 titles
5.9The ultimate weapon, claimed to be safe for mankind, produces global side-effects including time slides and disappearances. The scientist behind the project and his car are zapped from the year 2031 to 1817 in Switzerland where he meets Dr. Victor Frankenstein, Mary Shelley and others.
Frankenstein Unbound
1990
5.8Saverio and Filippo are two friends and religious leaders of a travel agency in Rome. However, Filippo has trouble with his wife, because she finds out that he cheated on her with a comely girl named Alice.
Tonight at Alice's
1990
4.0The owner of an Italian natural food company has a heart attack and asks his son, Bernardo, to find the man who saved his life in World War II and bring him to his deathbed. He does so and finds the man in a sanitarium and must deal with his hijinks all the way back to Milan.
Screw Loose
1999
5.3Alfredo is a crude Roman motorcycle repairman who is a friend of Count Max, a gentleman and ex-pleasure lover. The latter invites Alfredo to his residence in Campo dei Fiori and teaches him etiquette, French and how to play poker. The laughter will begin when Alfredo meets and chases the beautiful model Isabell Bellissima in Paris.
Il Conte Max
1991
4.4Daniel and Clara are on a vacation in Italy. In the form of the mysterious "Sandman" Coppola, a figure from Daniel's childhood, returns to haunt him, while he succumbs to an obsessive love with an enigmatic woman of strange beauty: Olympia, who might be far more than she first appears to be...
The Sandman
1993
6.0Two adoptive brothers -- one a mob hit man, the other a Department of Justice investigator -- who are unaware of each other's existence until they become involved with the same woman, end up in a deadly triangle in this thriller.
Killer Rules
1993
1980s · 8 titles
6.8Two rock-'n-rolling teens, on the verge of failing their class, set out on a quest to make the ultimate school history report after being presented with a time machine.
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
1989
6.7Father Maurice, a priest living in a residential college for priests in Rome, is called out one day to "exorcise" the devil from someone. The devil turns out to be in the form of a fun-loving man called Giuditta. What Father Maurice doesn't know is that this type of devil will turn his life around.
The Little Devil
1988
6.0In a Gothic cathedral built on the mass grave of a Teutonic purge, an ancient discovery by the new librarian will release an unholy maelstrom of madness, violence, and demonic vengeance.
The Church
1989
4.2King's Dagobert I intestinal and sexual problems loom large as he survives an attack on his royal caravan then barely makes it to Rome to personally give thanks to the Pope. After he arrives at the Vatican, he becomes involved in the battle between two contenders for the papacy and has to face the machinations of a ruthless Byzantine princess.
Good King Dagobert
1984
5.4During a high-stakes investigation into corporate and banking elites tied to organized crime, a police chief and his team are murdered for refusing a bribe. Meanwhile, another officer finds his bank account credited with a large sum and receives anonymous instructions on how to handle the subsequent inquiry.
The Warning
1980
4.0The young noble Don Monza is caught and thrown out by the nun Virginia de Leva when she catches him flirting with one of her nun sisters across the stone wall between their gardens. He hears the rumor that she'd have an affair with her trustee - so he kills him in a set-up duel and aims to take his place. Against her initial resistance, Monza manages to win her heart - and to get into her bed. This doesn't stay a secret for long, but Monza, now in love, does everything to keep it going.
The Devils of Monza
1987
5.8Photographer Mario Cotone is hired to cover a big N.Y. actor. When his pretty daughter Nicole Yeats (N.Y.) and Mario fall in love, this angers her father and hurts Mario's work which further infuriates his boss. Will love prevail?
I Love N.Y.
1987
3.4When Francesco returns home with the assumption that his father's wealth will be there to keep him content, he discovers that his father has lost everything to a German countess while gambling.
The Gamble
1988
1970s · 13 titles
7.1While traveling with his father, young Alec becomes fascinated by a mysterious Arabian stallion that is brought on board and stabled in the ship he is sailing on. When it tragically sinks both he and the horse survive only to be stranded on a deserted island. He befriends it, so when finally rescued both return to his home where they soon meet Henry Dailey, a once successful trainer. Together they begin training the horse to race against the fastest ones in the world.
The Black Stallion
1979
5.4A young American woman traveling through Italy finds herself in a strange Mediterranean villa where nothing seems quite right.
What?
1972
6.3Alice, a young translator, finds the real world slowly merging with her recurring nightmares as she tries to solve the puzzle of her recent memory loss. A postcard leads her to the island of Garma where the locals seems to know her. Is she who she thinks she is? And what significance does her dream of an astronaut abandoned on the moon have?
Footprints on the Moon
1975
6.9Imprisoned for practicing black magic, writer and adventurer Giacomo Casanova escapes and wanders Europe, using his fluid sexuality to find his place in life amid a variety of eccentric and strange characters.
Fellini's Casanova
1976
4.8A masked killer stalks an institution for mentally disturbed rich women.
Slaughter Hotel
1971
6.6The lives of two local professional dancers change suddenly as American soldiers stop in their town hoping to be entertained in accordance with the Broadway style. Effectively, they perform up to their expectations. However, as the army men have to march northward, their moment of glory finishes heartlessly.
Stardust
1973
6.4Engineer Quiller has become rich by selling his completely indestructible shop-window glass to jeweleries around the world. But this got him lots of enemies too: the insurance agencies, who've lost hundreds of customers, and the burglarers. When he temporarily looses his memory and voice in an accident, of all people, a family of thieves finds and cares for him - believing he's a pocket-picker. Things get complicated when he falls in love with his host Tilli.
Velvet Hands
1979
5.9Architect Giambattista Manteghin, actor Romolo Moretti, Prince Pantegani and inventor Leonardo Rossi meet while trying to bribe a tax official out of paying exorbitant taxes. The four get together and conspire to rob the taxation office building, which happens to have been designed by Manteghin.
Stanza 17-17 palazzo delle tasse, ufficio imposte
1971
6.6Rossellini takes numerous liberties with the original source material, rearranging and omitting events at will, presenting everything in a highly undramatic fashion. The film begins in the time of the Old Testament, allowing Rossellini to present the story of Jesus in its ancient, historic context.
The Messiah
1975
7.0"Priest - a miracle please" - The young Italian priest Don Alberto is sent to New York where he is alone and suffers the typical indifference of the metropolis. He is involved with a group of young hippies, the "angels of death" who announced their collective suicide to protest against the society that is deprived of love and victim of the system that kills everything.
Prete, fai un miracolo
1975
5.1The year is 2037 A.D. Depletion of natural fuels has eliminated electrical power throughout the world. No light… no heat… no T.V., until a team of award-winning scientists succeeds in harnessing energy from the world’s oldest source of reciprocating motion.
The Sex Machine
1975
3.5Countess Elena marries the charming Guido Rambaldi, only for him to be seduced by dancer Nara during their Venice honeymoon.
The Kiss
1974
6.9A revolution in Iran halts a heroin shipment, but an alliance of crime families is set on getting it to the US. They decide to run the drug through an unsuspecting network of good-natured, local smugglers in Naples, while an international anti-narcotics agent rushes to shut their operation down. Betrayals and divided loyalties lead to a final, bloody confrontation in America.
The New Godfathers
1979
1960s · 31 titles
8.1Guido Anselmi, a film director, finds himself creatively barren at the peak of his career. Urged by his doctors to rest, Anselmi heads for a luxurious resort, but a sorry group gathers—his producer, staff, actors, wife, mistress, and relatives—each one begging him to get on with the show. In retreat from their dependency, he fantasizes about past women and dreams of his childhood.
8½
1963
5.3Modesty Blaise, a secret agent whose hair color, hair style, and mod clothing change at a snap of her fingers is being used by the British government as a decoy in an effort to thwart a diamond heist. She is being set up by the feds but is wise to the plot and calls in sidekick Willie Garvin and a few other friends to outsmart them. Meanwhile, at his island hideaway, Gabriel, the diamond thief has his own plans for Blaise and Garvin.
Modesty Blaise
1966
6.2Anthology film from three European directors based on stories by Edgar Allan Poe: a cruel countess haunted by a ghostly horse, a sadistic young man haunted by his double, and an alcoholic actor haunted by the Devil.
Spirits of the Dead
1968
4.9Count Karnstein sends for a doctor to help his sick daughter Laura. Her nurse believes she is possessed by the spirit of a dead ancestor, Carmilla. A young woman becomes intrigued by the mysterious deaths surrounding Laura after a carriage accident outside the castle forces her to stay. They become close friends until Laura becomes convinced the spirit of Carmilla is forcing her to kill.
Crypt of the Vampire
1964
5.8Dr. Steven Sorenson plans to tap the geothermal energy of the Earth's interior by means of a thermonuclear device detonated deep within the Earth. This experiment causes a crack to form and grow within the Earth's crust, which threatens to split the earth in two if it is not stopped in time.
Crack in the World
1965
6.7Beautiful PR woman, Maria finds herself trapped in the home of the sinister and troubled Dr. Sayer, where she is subjected to a series of increasingly bizarre, terrifying, and degrading sex games. Sayer admits that he has murdered several women after the same ordeal, always killing them at the point of orgasm. But all is not what it seems, and through a series of twists and turns, the whole situation is slowly turned on its head.
The Laughing Woman
1969
7.0History Professor Brad Fletcher heads west for his health, but falls in with Solomon Bennett's outlaw gang. Fascinated by their way of life, Fletcher finally takes over the gang, leading with a new 'efficient' ruthlessness.
Face to Face
1967
5.3This semi-amusing sex (romance) comedy has four separate stories: "The Telephone Call", written by Rodolfo Sonego, directed by Dino Risi. "A Treatise on Eugenics", written by Tullio Pinelli from a story by Luciano Salce and Steno, directed by Luigi Comencini. "The Soup", written by Rodolfo Sonego and Luigi Magni, directed by Franco Rossi. "Monsignor Cupid", written by Leo Benvenuti and Piero de Bernardi from a story by Boccaccio, directed by Mauro Bolognini.
The Dolls
1965
4.5We follow the Journal reporter Paulo whose close friend mysteriously been taken out of the way and it's now up to Paulo to figure out who the culprits are. The film is set in a drug-scented and "swinging" Los Angeles, where orgies and violence seem to be commonplace, and it soon appears that Paulo is on someone's hit list.
Carnal Circuit
1969
6.2Sandro is a well-known journalist and he is conducting a survey on human selfishness. Every man and every woman he meets turns into a theme for his inquiry. Even his own wife, Titta.
Me, Me, Me... and the Others
1966
5.0A young woman is driving alongside a lake. She has an accident and the car plunges into the water. Her body is then possessed by the spirit of an 18th-century witch who was killed by local villagers, and is bent on avenging herself on them.
The She Beast
1966
6.7The events that culminated with the Passion of Christ seen from the perspective of Pontius Pilate, the Procurator of Judea who unwillingly condemned Christ to death. Based on the biblical Gospel of John.
Pontius Pilate
1962
5.6Nefarious villain Goldginger is thwarted by bumbling secret agents Franco and Ciccio in his scheme to spark an international war by zombifying all government employees in this Italian spoof of the James Bond movies.
The Amazing Doctor G
1965
4.7Maciste travels to Hell to find a witch and make her undo a curse she put on the surface world.
The Witch's Curse
1962
4.6A stray planet on a collision course with Earth instead takes orbit around our blue marble. What seems like a dead planet suddenly launches a fleet of flying saucers which attack our space fleets.
Battle of the Worlds
1961
7.4A veteran US Secret Service agent must thwart the covert conspiracy of an enemy spy network that threatens the world's safety.
Requiem for a Secret Agent
1966
6.9Sweet-sour comedy on Italy's 1950s rage to get rich as fast as possible! The businessman wants to satisfy his wife's craving for luxury and a "respectable life" so he becomes heavily indebted. In desperation he agrees to sell a precious part of his body for a large sum of money. But just before the crucial operation he panics...
The Boom
1963
4.4A team of astronauts is sent to the moon to rescue an alien who is seeking help to save her dying race. They are attacked by a force of bandit robots and discover that enemy spies are out to kill the alien.
Mission Stardust
1967
4.8A masked superhero searches for a magical golden relic while trying to prevent the plundering of an Egyptian tomb.
Fenomenal and the Treasure of Tutankamen
1968
6.2Seven sketches including the title sketch "I See Naked" in which a fashion editor begins to see naked women everywhere he goes.
I See Naked
1969
7.0The USA pass an exceptional top secret contract with a country in the Middle East: they are selling arms in exchange for exclusive rights on the countries rich oil resources. The USSR sent a team of their best secret agents to rob the document, so that later they can apprehend the ship which must pass through one of the Russian ports... After special training in a secret island in the Black Sea, Alex, Sadov and Sonia are sent in to get the documents. All goes according to plan, and Sadov gives the handbag to the mastermind, General Fiodorenko. On opening it though, the handbag explodes. Who is the infiltrated agent in the most secret of the Soviets secret ring?
Our Men in Bagdad
1966
5.9In a little Sicilian village two hairdressers who are in love with the same girl manage to sabotage the bacteriological weapons the Nazis are preparing to use against the allied armies invasion.
The Sicily Barbers
1967
9.5When Gordon Smash tries to get away with the loot from a successful diamond heist, his fellow conspirators shoot him in the back. Smash manages to get a clue to newspaper reporter Robert Foster, who sets of to retrieve the diamonds. Despite becoming a target for the rest of the gang, Foster prefers to rely on fashion model Arabella and news paper photographer 'Flash' instead of the more seasoned Inspector Chandler.
Your Turn to Die
1967
5.0The new science teacher Dr. Julian Olcott with a mysterious past arrives in an institutional boarding school for troublemaker girls. Along the night, the intern Mary Smith, who is blackmailing another teacher - Sir Alfred Whiteman - with some love letters, is slaughtered by a werewolf. The detective in charge of the investigation attributes the crime to a wolf, while her mate Priscilla believes she was killed by Sir Alfred. On the next days, other deaths happen in the school, reducing the list of suspects.
Werewolf in a Girls' Dormitory
1961
6.5Antonio goes to West Berlin and meets Giuseppe. But Antonio looks like Canarinis, a wanted war criminal, So the daughter of the criminal pays Antonio to impersonate him.
Totò e Peppino divisi a Berlino
1962
3.0Sam Whipple, an attorney in once-upon-a-time-land, is startled to receive a visit from Santa Claus shortly before Christmas. It seems that when he was a child, Sam wrote a letter thanking Santa for the presents he'd received, and offering to return the favor someday. That day is now - a mean old soul named Phineas Prune, who holds the deed to the North Pole, is demanding back rent. Otherwise, he's going to evict Santa, Mrs. Claus and the elves and take all the Christmas toys. It's up to Sam and Santa to find a way to pay off Prune and prevent Christmas from being canceled.
The Christmas That Almost Wasn't
1966
6.2Greek painter Domenikos Theotokopoulos (Mel Ferrer) woos a beauty (Rosanna Schiaffino) and faces the Inquisition in 16th-century Spain.
El Greco
1966
7.0The boss has come up with something: Ed, outwardly a brave London citizen, attacks with a well-trained accomplice a van of the British Central Bank. The gangsters capture a million pounds sterling and can escape unrecognized. Scotland Yard is the target of the mockery, it comes to a government crisis. Only the hint of a child, who happened to witness the coup, brings the genre law enforcers on the right track.
L'oro di Londra
1968
7.3The island paradise of San Felipe has undergone a revolution! The charismatic General Siqueiros has assumed control! Those assisting him though have an agenda far beyond a simple dictatorship of a inconsequential banana republic! They’re scheming to put the entire world at their mercy through the mad scientist Karlesten’s efforts to develop a deadly missile-carried gas! And only one man can stop him! Walter Ross, Agent 3S3! And he not only has a license to kill, but also a license to spank!
Agent 3S3, Massacre in the Sun
1966
6.2A 1966 biopic of Francis of Assisi presents him as a troubled rebel and champion of radical brotherhood, reflecting the spirit of 1968 student protests. Praised and condemned, the film sparked controversy for its bold, dissenting portrayal of faith.
Francis of Assisi
1966
4.2Sade adaptation set in the late 1960s.
Juliette de Sade
1969
Series credits
6.8The life of the 13th-century Venetian explorer who sought to connect the civilizations of China and Europe through trade.
Marco Polo
1982
7.3Against the backdrop of world events that led to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Victor 'Pug' Henry is a career naval officer who, along with his family, learns to navigate the waters of his dangerous times in the late 1930s.
The Winds of War
1983
5.0The stories revolve around the investigations of Valentina Rosselli, and the intrigues in which she gets involved because of her curiosity and her wonderful physical appearance. In the Shareholders She is often assisted by the antiquarian Philip Rembrandt, with whom she shares an ambiguous relationship.
Valentina
1989
7.0A globe-trotting adventurer takes on cases to track down shady individuals who want to stay hidden, earning a million dollars per assignment.
Cool Million
1972


