Most of my favorite stories, whether written or on the big screen, have one thing in common: it’s difficult to put them in a box. Shamelessly borrowing tropes from multiple genres and subverting expected plot structures serves to expand our understanding of how narrative works. As a result, suspense is even more suspenseful for being…
Join Brian Greene as he revisits the trio of horror movies that resulted from the collaboration of Val Lewton and Jacques Tourneur in the early 1940s at RKO Pictures. In 1942, film industry professional Val Lewton (1904-51) was hired by RKO Pictures to head up its new horror movie initiative. Lewton, who had recently worked…
In real life, they were named Albrecht Muth and Viola Drath, but the film calls them Ulrich Mott and Elsa Brecht, which maybe does him a small favor. According to the New York Times magazine, their marriage was “Georgetown’s Worst,” but that seems slightly unfair. They had things in common, like their German roots and…
In a way, he considered himself the fifth Beatle, but he wasn’t Billy Preston or Stuart Sutcliffe, so it was a problem. According to Charles Manson’s twisted mythology, the Beatles were the four angels who came to Earth to warn humanity of all their tawdry problems and he was the fifth angel who would fix…
Gangsters possess a certain allure that can be wildly infectious. Those with no desire to see innocent people or even criminals killed may still look upon infamous outlaws with admiration, envious of the way in which they comport themselves and answer to no one. Impressionable young people who read comic books and detective novels are…
Thematically, murder ballads would better fit the fatal kind of trouble the Connolly Sisters find themselves in, but the sea shanties that punctuate this film better suit their coastal Maine fishing village. Priscilla is the reserved, responsible sister, but she gets caught up in Mary Beth’s chaos, out of sibling loyalty and guilt in Bridget…
This is not your Hallmark Channel family reconciliation movie. It’s about mean drunks and their emotionally stunted sons—and a whole bunch of dastardly skullduggery. It would be telling to identify what kind precisely, but eventually plodding Norval Greenwood will start to understand the whole picture. In the meantime, he will try to get to know…
Since its inception, the Tribeca Film Festival has taken a leading role in efforts to revitalize post-9/11 Lower Manhattan. In that time, it has become the quintessential New York film festival. We dig our crime stories here in New York, so it stands to reason Tribeca has showcased many memorable mysteries, thrillers, and crime documentaries.…
There is a playfulness to the classic 1967 film Bonnie and Clyde, which boasts the tagline “They’re young…they’re in love…and they kill people.” The story of two of the most notorious gangsters in history navigates their dual identity as killers and pop culture icons by presenting their undeniable charm alongside their unapologetic actions. Warren Beatty…
One of the best ways to achieve terror is to put a character in a place where they should inherently feel safe and make it abundantly clear that they’re not. A lazy park ranger who trades her shift with a friend shouldn’t run into any trouble stapling flyers to trees on well-marked trails, but of…
