Captain’s log: stardate 43421.9 The Vengeance Factor, a Riker (Jobathan Frakes) episode first aired on 20 November, 1989. The Enterprise is transporting Sovereign Marouk (Nancy Parsons) to a meeting with an offshoot tribe of her planet’s inhabitants, known as Gatherers. Picard (Patrick Stewart) is hosting peace talks between the troubled sides, and is hoping that…
Tag: thriller
Fear (2017) – Dirk Kurbjuweit
Hitting trade paperback on Canadian book shelves this week is this engrossing thriller penned by German author Dirk Kurbjuweit. A captivating tale the novel explores themes of love, family, perceptions of masculinity, and the rule of law. The novel opens with a murder. And a confession. For months Randolph Tiefenthaler and his wife, Rebecca and…
Toronto After Dark 2017: The Villainess – Byung-gil Jung
The hyper-kinetic assassin thriller The Villainess, has it’s Toronto premiere this evening at Toronto After Dark, screening exclusively at Scotiabank Theatre. This South Korean film is nothing short of a high-octane thriller that recalls Besson’s La Femme Nikita with overtones of Tarantino’s Kill Bill. Ok-bin Kim stars as Sook-hee, a violent woman with a violent…
Red Dawn (1984) – John Milius
The final recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of Dr. Strangelove is John Milius’ dark and violent film, Red Dawn. With an all-star cast including Patrick Swayze, Lea Thompson, C. Thomas Howell, Charlie Sheen, Jennifer Grey, Powers Boothe and Harry Dean Stanton, the film chronicles an invasion…
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold (1965) – Martin Ritt
Richard Burton turns in a solid, and believable performance in this adaptation of John le Carre’s classic thriller novel. The Spy Who Came in From the Cold is the next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of Dr. Strangelove. Burton is Alec Leamas, a spy in charge…
The Manchurian Candidate (1962) – John Frankenheimer
The next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of Dr. Strangelove is Frankenheimer’s incredible thriller that still has the power to chill to this very day. In fact, it seems even more relevant today than when it was released. It’s 1952, during the Korean War. An American…
Doctor Who (David Tennant) – Forest of the Dead, and Midnight
Picking up where last week’s episode left us, Forest of the Dead is a stunning conclusion to the story, especially if you’re revisiting the series and you know who River Song (Alex Kingston) really is. Written by Steven Moffat this episode debuted on 7 June, 2008. The Vashta Nerada, shadow beings, are still stalking the…
Point Blank (1967) – John Boorman
Lee Marvin and Angie Dickinson headline the next stop in the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book as we return to the Thriller & Crime genre. Marvin is Walker, a criminal left for dead when he is double-crossed by his partners, Reese (John Vernon) and his own wife, Lynne (Sharon Acker). He sets…
Quantum Leap (1992) – Running for Honor and Temptation Eyes
Sam (Scott Bakula) is a cadet at Prescott Naval College in Running for Honor. Written by Bobby Duncan, this episode had an airdate of 15 January, 1992. It’s 11 June, 1964, and Sam has leaped into Tommy York, and Al (Dean Stockwell) informs him he’s there to save a life. In the original history, a…
Strange Days (1995) – Kathryn Bigelow
My time with the films of James Cameron for the Sci-Fi Chronicles book comes to an end with this film that he penned the script for, and gave to the incredibly talented Kathryn Bigelow to direct. Ralph Fiennes stars as Lenny Nero, a former cop turned street hustler, with a charming side that can sell…
The Mind Reels 