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The Case of the Stuttering Bishop (1937)
This new Perry mason mystery drama will add popularity to this series of exciting adventure stories! Crime points to many! Who is guilty?
Filmmaker(s): William Clemens

A Bishop from Australia comes to Perry to ask him to take a case of a woman wrongly accused of manslaughter 22 years before. The case would involve the wealthy Mr. Brownley and the fact that his alleged granddaughter may be an imposter. With that, the Bishop leaves and is clubbed in his hotel room. Soon after, he leaves on a boat and Perry meets the woman - Ida Gilbert. Perry goes to see Mr. Brownley, but gets nowhere. Later that night, Brownley is to meet Ida, but he is shot by a woman who drops Ida's gun. Ida is arrested for the murder of Mr. Brownley and Perry gets involved.

Daughters, Lovers We had two great evolutionary paths in the 30s. One was an amazing diversity of invention to settle some basic narrative devices that have since served us well as the basic vocabulary of cinema. The other, parallel path was the pulp detective novel, a...


Published February 5, 2024
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Edge of Tomorrow (2014)
Live. Die. Repeat.
Filmmaker(s): Doug Liman

Major Bill Cage is an officer who has never seen a day of combat when he is unceremoniously demoted and dropped into combat. Cage is killed within minutes, managing to take an alpha alien down with him. He awakens back at the beginning of the same day and is forced to fight and die again... and again - as physical contact with the alien has thrown him into a time loop.

Combat with Explicit Watchers Superficially, this has what it needs to be a financial success: novel aliens, lots of combat, competence all around and the smile. But it also has advanced interesting, structure. This structure did not originate in the movie community, it should be noted. The...


Published February 5, 2024
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Catfish (2010)
Don't let anyone tell you what it is.

Nev, a 24-year-old New York-based photographer, has no idea what he's in for when Abby, an eight-year-old girl from rural Michigan, contacts him on Facebook, seeking permission to paint one of his photographs. When he receives her remarkable painting, Nev begins a friendship and correspondence with Abby's family. But things really get interesting when he develops a cyber-romance with Abby's attractive older sister, Megan, a musician and model. Prompted by some startling revelations about Megan, Nev and his buddies embark on a road trip in search of the truth.

Dual Deceptions Taken at face value, this is a documentary about how a young photographer was deceived by a lonely housewife...


Published February 5, 2024
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The House of the Yellow Carpet (1983)
Filmmaker(s): Carlo Lizzani

Franca and her husband Antonio decide to sell a yellow rug which was a gift of Franca's stepfather. One day, while Antonio is out, a strange man rings saying he wishes to buy the rug. But the man's visit begins a twisted a nightmare.

Encounters with Others in One Body For the first 4/5s, this is a cheaply done version of a few similar films, where a husband concocts a drama to fool his wife. In this case, it is validate a perceived infatuation with another (albeit deceased) man. But as...


Published February 5, 2024
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I, Frankenstein (2014)
In the battle between good and evil, an immortal holds the key
Filmmaker(s): Stuart Beattie

200 years after his shocking creation, Dr. Frankenstein's creature, Adam, still walks the earth. But when he finds himself in the middle of a war over the fate of humanity, Adam discovers he holds the key that could destroy humankind.

Evil Residents We are awash in kiddie films that have the battle between good and evil made explicit in armies on each side. We will have to endure this for a while because such embodiment means we can have cinematic combat and reduction of good and...


Published February 5, 2024
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Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
Revenge is sweeter than candy.
Filmmaker(s): Tommy Wirkola

After getting a taste for blood as children, Hansel and Gretel have become the ultimate vigilantes, hell-bent on retribution. Now, unbeknownst to them, Hansel and Gretel have become the hunted, and must face an evil far greater than witches... their past.

Children's Dreams It has been some time since I was exposed to how these things work. A clever writer can start with anything and extend it toward a known formula so that it animates that formula with a new disguise. In this world, the writers are...


Published February 5, 2024
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The Mysterious Affair at Styles (2022)

The Big Reveal This almost made it to my list of fours, just based on its ambition. But I am returning to comments after an absence, and don’t want to be rash. It seems unlikely that you will see this, so I will uncharacteristically describe it. The...


Published February 4, 2024
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Murder by Decree (1979)
The Jack the Ripper Murders. Sherlock Holmes lifts the veil of secrecy, corruption and terror at the heart of the throne of England itself. Clue by clue... Murder by murder...
Filmmaker(s): Bob Clark

Sherlock Holmes is drawn into the case of Jack the Ripper who is killing prostitutes in London's East End. Assisted by Dr. Watson, and using information provided by a renowned psychic, Robert Lees, Holmes finds that the murders may have its roots in a Royal indiscretion and that a cover-up is being managed by politicians at the highest level, all of whom happen to be Masons.

Environmental Agency The detective film is an essential component in how movies work. I‘m trying to abstract the components that work, what doesn‘t and why. And that is taking me through many detective films, and every Holmes film is a must. Putting Holmes in perspective: he...


Published February 4, 2024
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The Color Out of Space (2010)
No one, no one forgets it...
Filmmaker(s): Huan Vu

Arkham, 1975: Jonathan Davis' father has disappeared. His tracks lead to Germany, to the Swabian-Franconian Forest where he was stationed after the Second World War. Jonathan sets out to find him and bring him home, but deep in the woods he discovers a dark mystery from the past. Based on H.P. Lovecraft's short novel "The Colour Out of Space".

Boys and Brown Leaves Very spooky, slow. Based on a Lovecraft story. The trigger event has a meteorite landing and exhibiting inscrutable properties, diffusing into the air. It is the remnants of a craft. German scientists from the 30s — one of our most enduring stereotypes —...


Published February 4, 2024
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Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
All heroes start somewhere.
Filmmaker(s): James Gunn

Light years from Earth, 26 years after being abducted, Peter Quill finds himself the prime target of a manhunt after discovering an orb wanted by Ronan the Accuser.

Buckaroo Steals from Marvel I don’t know where this came from, whether it incubated in this form in comics for years. Or whether someone at the Studio hired someone else smart. What I do know is that Marvel is playing with fire with this. They know...


Published February 4, 2024
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