Smart small-cast mystery makes ‘Laura’ (1944) a classic noir
Throwback Thursday (Movie review): Otto Preminger’s film pivots around the femme fatale and keeps us guessing about whodunit despite a small cast.
Author: John Hansen
Smart small-cast mystery makes ‘Laura’ (1944) a classic noir
‘Murder!’ (1930) is an overly talky early Hitchcock talkie
On a Hitchcock kick (Movie review): The eventual Master of Suspense hasn’t yet mastered talkie filmmaking at this point.
Legendary gumshoe takes first steps in ‘A Study in Scarlet’ (1887)
Sleuthing Sunday (Book review): Decades before Christie’s puzzles, Doyle popularized the procedural mystery via Sherlock Holmes.
‘Evil’ wraps 50-episode run as one of TV’s sneaky-best shows
TV review: Canceled before the Kings were ready to end the story, “Evil” never loses its laser-focus on the main trio and what they stand for.
Bone-dry comedy ‘Buffalo ’66’ (1998) an all-time weird romance
Throwback Thursday (Movie review): Vincent Gallo’s standout film is an odd mix of an unlikely situation with likeable characters.
Symphonic score makes ‘Easy Virtue’ (1928) easy to watch
On a Hitchcock kick (Movie review): The story is mildly engaging as it examines a time when the act of filing for divorce could apparently make you famous.
Three-pronged plot of ‘The Dain Curse’ (1929) is worth the effort
Sleuthing Sunday (Book review): The Continental Op does meat-and-potatoes work to solve Hammett’s most multi-layered mystery.
‘Blow Out’ (1981) blows it at the end, but is still great
Throwback Thursday (Movie review): A likeable Travolta and Allen guide this conspiracy noir through its beats, but De Palma doesn’t stick the landing.
Hitchcock makes sound transition to talkies in ‘Blackmail’ (1929)
On a Hitchcock kick (Movie review): The tech transition feels gimmicky, but three compelling characters and a modern theme keep matters suspenseful.
Continental Op makes rip-roaring leap to novels in ‘Red Harvest’ (1929)
Sleuthing Sunday (Book review): One of the earliest hardboiled detectives is not merely a prototype, but also still among the best.