Director Ron Howard pairs with Tom Hanks to bring Dan Brown’s incredibly popular novel, The Da Vinci Code to the screen. Hanks portrays symbologist Robert Langdon, who previously popped up in Brown’s novel Angels and Demons, but it was the subject matter, and the way it tied into art and some historical moments that really…
Tag: police
The Sniper (1952) – Edward Dmytryk
I do enjoy a good film noir, and The Sniper is one I had never heard of, and quite happily dug into, contained as it was in a Film Noir Collection I had been gifted one holiday season. Despite some very sexist trappings, it was the 50s after all, there’s a really fascinating story here….
Mission: Impossible (1970) – The Crane, and Death Squad
The IMF swings back into action again this week, with yet another mission to save an Eastern Bloc country from itself, and restore it to its prior democratic state but working to turn the current leaders against one another, and reinstate a pro-democracy guerilla leader who is sentenced to be executed. Written by Ken Pettus,…
The Dead Don’t Die (2019) – Jim Jarmusch
Jim Jarmusch writes and directs this zombie film that is more in line with the Romero created monster than the running creatures that have been made so popular of late. In fact, the entire film plays out at an enjoyably relaxing pace, letting the story brew, the characters breathe, and the oddities, eccentricities, and the…
In the Heat of the Night (1967) – Norman Jewison
In the Heat of the Night shouldn’t be as timely and relevant as it still is. You’d think we could have moved beyond such levels of racism and prejudice, and yet, sections of society seem worse than ever before, and it seems to be both hidden and overt. Featuring powerhouse performances by Sidney Poitier and…
The Hardy Boys: The Missing Chums (1928/1962) – Franklin W. Dixon
Frank and Joe Hardy are back in their fourth adventure, The Missing Chums. This quick-paced, fast read book sees the brothers asked by the local Bayport P.D. to help investigate a local shantytown, while their father, Fenton, the renowned detective is called in to investigate a series of national bank robberies… and then there’s one…
The Hardy Boys: The Secret of the Old Mill (1927/1962) – Franklin W. Dixon
Frank and Joe Hardy are back in their third adventure, The Secret of the Old Mill, and their friends Chet and Tony are along for the ride! It’s summer break, Chet is trying to get a job to flame the passions of his new hobby, science, and he wants to work at Elekton, a new…
TIFF 2021: The Guilty dir. Antoine Fuqua
Jake Gyllenhaal leaves it all on the screen when he steps into the role of Joe for Antoine Fuqua’s North American remake of the Danish thriller. On screen for almost all of the film’s hour and a half runtime, we are trapped with Joe as he serves as a 911 operator while his performance in…
TIFF 2021: Hold Your Fire dir. Stefan Forbes
New York. 1973. While it looks like a different time on film, not everything has changed, and consequently, Forbes documentary, which looks at a hostage situation that featured around the clock coverage at the time is just as relevant today as it was then. There’s errors on both sides, accusations, instituionalised racism, redemption for some,…
The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet’s Nest (2009) – Daniel Alfredon
The third installment in the Millennium Trilogy, based on the novels by Stieg Larsson delivers a white knuckle ending to the film series that is just as engaging and character driven as the books on which they are based. Noomi Rapace returns as Lisbeth Salander, who is in the hospital, and then arrested following the…
