Has it been ten years since I’ve read a Lewis Shiner novel? Way too long. Dark Tangos (2011) takes us on a rare visit to South America for a striking political thriller set in Buenos Aires. Rob “Beto” Cavenaugh is an expatriot software programmer who relocates to his multionational employer’s Argentina office, in the wake [...]
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Now here’s a movie I was not looking forward to re-watching. I saw director Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution (2007) in the theater when it came out, and I found it profoundly disappointing. Not because it’s a horrible movie, but because it’s a lush, attractively shot, engagingly structured espionage film…with a soul-crushing ending that obliterates all [...]
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One of Alfred Hitchcock’s more peculiar efforts, Saboteur (1942) is an awkwardly plotted but energetic adventure full of offbeat characters and odd symbolism. Robert Cummings stars as Barry Kane, a factory worker who, in a case of mistaken identity, becomes the FBI’s prime suspect when the aircraft plant where he works goes up in flames. [...]
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Director Duncan Jones (Moon) builds on his reputation as a science fiction auteur with Source Code (2011), a flawed but compelling skiffy action film that repositions Groundhog Day as a post 9/11 thriller. (Pardon me, Film, your high concept is showing…) While resorting to wonky pseudo-science and an ending that feels ruthlessly screen-tested, it mostly [...]
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Alfred Hitchcock’s Torn Curtain (1966) doesn’t quite live up to the director’s previous masterpieces — it came out on the heels of Vertigo, North by Northwest, Psycho, and The Birds, tough acts to follow! — but it’s a colorful and engaging international thriller with some memorable moments. Dr. Michael Armstrong (Paul Newman) is a nuclear [...]
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The Lady Vanishes (1938) is one of nine Alfred Hitchcock films on the list — and based on some its weaker selections, there probably should have been more. Like most Hitchcock adventures, this one mixes healthy doses of humor in with the suspense, and for the most part it’s an enjoyable romp — structurally messy [...]
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Yesterday morning was cold and overcast (a true rarity in southern California!) so it felt like a good day for Drag Me to Hell (2009), the recent Sam Raimi chiller that looked like a “return to roots” project with an old-fashioned creepy feature vibe. The story follows a bank loan officer, Christine Brown (Alison Lohman), [...]
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