‘Hopscotch’ is Anchored in Walter Matthau’s Playful, Irascible Personality
With his novel, Hopscotch, Brian Garfield challenged himself to write a suspenseful spy tale in which nobody gets killed.
On Dvd
How It Slips Away: ‘The Breaking Point’ Crosses Hemingway With Noir
Whether we've seen or read the story before, we ache for these sympathetic, floundering people presented to us gravely and without cynicism, even when cynical themselves.
Gremlins and the Housewife in ‘Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark’
The house itself wants to pull the neurotic woman into its maw and absorb her whole as a literal housewife.
Yes, It’s ‘Déjà Vu‘ All Over Again
Here's a romantic reincarnation thriller whose plot twists and chronology perch it between The Reincarnation of Peter Proud and Dead Again.
‘Caltiki’: The Creeping Blob!
Even at its most creaky in between the hair-raising scenes of queasy ickiness, this movie appeals to style mavens, auteur watchers, and horror historians.
Spotlight on a Murderer: A Little-seen Mystery Thriller From Three Masters of the Form
Georges Franju and his co-writers create a nice balance of tones and a general air of puzzlement with some clever misdirection for an entertaining light mystery.
On Seeking the Works of Douglas Sirk and Finding Jerry Hopper’s ‘Never Say Goodbye’
Even though he removed himself from the project, Never Say Goodbye has Sirk's theme of the tyranny of children who dominate their parents.
Pilot X Puts a Crimp on the Business in ‘The Mysterious Airman’
Mystery writer Arthur B. Reeve's influence in this film doesn't follow convention -- it follows his invention.
Smudge and Jury: The Punk-Noir Pulp of ‘I, The Jury’
With all the roughneck charm of a '40s-era pulp novel and much style to spare, I, The Jury is a good, popcorn-filling yarn.
‘Two O’Clock Courage’ Is Only a Quarter to Noir
This is a solid minor crime lark that tips its fedora to basic noir tropes.
Ken Russell’s ‘The Boy Friend’ Razzle-Dazzles ’em
Russell loves the homely spit-and-bailing-wire reality as much as the polished eye-popping fantasy of theatre.
Stuck in the Middle: Relationship Tangles in ‘Somewhere in the Middle’
This, here, is 90 minutes spent with the kinds of people you take special care to avoid in your workplace, your neighbourhood, or just about anywhere in your everyday life.