‘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.
Mystery
‘Murder!’ (1930) is an overly talky early Hitchcock talkie
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.
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.
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.
Ricci tries bizarre British whimsy in ‘Miranda’ (2002)
Throwback Thursday (Movie review): With mild success, a one-and-done screenwriter blends a con drama, an orphan tragedy and romantic flailing.
2024: A horror ‘Oddity’ – Irish film is year’s best so far
Movie review: Writer-director Damian Mc Carthy masterfully crafts a character-driven supernatural whodunit at a refurbished Irish manor.
Hammett’s ‘The Glass Key’ (1931) digs into city political games
Sleuthing Sunday (Book review): Though unavoidably a complex subject, Hammett and his most unethical detective make government corruption accessible.
‘Shining Girls’ (2022): Make it make sense
Throwback Thursday (TV review): A shaky portrayal of a newspaper and even shakier time-travel logistics undercut nice design and good acting.
‘The Parallax View’ (1974) a timelessly chilling conspiracy noir
The ‘paranoia trilogy’ (Movie review): Though very Seventies in its style, Alan J. Pakula’s gem resonates as a peek into shadowy string-pulling.