‘Oxford Inheritance’ (2016) is cozy but too generic
Book club book report: Ann A. McDonald creates an invitingly mysterious campus, but does nothing remarkable with plot or characters.
Mystery
‘Oxford Inheritance’ (2016) is cozy but too generic
‘Alfred Hitchcock Presents’ Season 3 (1957-58) goes out like a lion
On a Hitchcock kick (TV review): The director teams with writer Roald Dahl for one of TV’s great instances of macabre humor, “Lamb to the Slaughter.”
‘Nightmare Town’ (1999) an essential cross-section of Hammett’s work
Sleuthing Sunday (Book review): This landmark collection gives us more of the Op, all three Spade shorts and fascinating one-offs.
‘Double Indemnity’ (1944) a deliberate classic of film noir
Wilder Wednesday (Movie review): Stiffer than Wilder’s later masterpieces, his adaptation of Cain’s novel helps stamp a genre into public consciousness.
‘Hunter and Other Stories’ (2013) cleans out Hammett’s files
Sleuthing Sunday (Book review): Unpublished and under-published tales are rounded up from the author’s archives, but this is for serious fans only.
‘Deep Red’ (1975) not deeply profound, but it gets Argento noticed
Frightening Friday (Movie review): One of the most famous “Psycho”-influenced films smooths off the edges of Argento’s earlier work.
‘Dain Curse’ (1978), Hammett’s most emotional novel, gets miniseries treatment
Sleuthing Sunday (TV review): Although he doesn’t resemble Hammett’s description, James Coburn makes an appealing screen version of the Continental Op.
‘Four Flies on Grey Velvet’ (1971) completes ‘animal trilogy’ with buzz
Frightening Friday (Movie review): Argento’s hand becomes steadier on the giallo tiller in his third directorial effort.
Wilder adds to sleuth’s lore in ‘Private Life of Sherlock Holmes’ (1970)
Wilder Wednesday (Movie review): The premise: This unusually personal mystery was kept from the public till 50 years after the sleuth’s passing.
‘Dial ‘M’ for Murder’ (1981) remains gripping in Plummer’s TV movie
On a Hitchcock kick (Movie review): The remake is inferior in most ways, but it serves to remind us how ingenious Frederick Knott’s story is.