FAST FORWARDING INTO ‘21

“Life is infinitely stranger than anything which the mind of man could invent.” (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Complete Adventures of Sherlock Holmes) Does anybody want to hear me vent about 2020? Because, you know, I can do it, and I will . . . that is, if anyone wants to listen. To be honest, however, …

MAY I SUGGEST YOU READ A MURDER MYSTERY?

I have to admit I’ve been stressed for about . . . three and a half years. Bernie Sanders said recently that the current health crisis is “on the scale of major war,” but I’ve felt battle-scarred, mostly by tweet, for some time now. And now, thanks to COVID-19, I’m in exile: our schools have …

THE EYES HAVE IT: Christie and Hitchcock and the Point of View

So much has been written about my favorite filmmaker, Alfred Hitchcock – more than any other director, living or dead – that I would be hard-pressed to come up with any original thoughts about his life or work. That's because the French, including fellow auteur Francois Truffaut, elevated Hitchcock’s oeuvre from “mere” entertainment to art. …

SCRATCHING A NICHE: On Whodunits and Hitchcockian Hooey

Considering Sunday is a day of rest, this lazy cuss managed to get a lot done! I had a nice walk along the shore under a bright Indian Summer sky. I replaced all my decrepit plastic storage containers with spiffy new Pyrex bowls. I met the new lady Doctor. I like her, but her debut …

GENRE TRANSCENDANT: A Quartet of Great Films

Christmas is just around the corner (he said two days before Thanksgiving!), and that means movie studios are about to inundate the theatres with their “prestige” films, hoping these will receive consideration for the big awards (the Golden Globes, the Oscars, and the Independent Spirit). Every year, this period where good movies are released shrinks …

A IS FOR ALFRED

All through April, the Tuesday Night Bloggers are on an “Anything Goes” kick: the subject can be anything beginning with the letter “A.” So far this month, I’ve focused on Agatha – Christie, that is – so I thought that, for my final TNG post of the month, I would switch it up to another …

IT’S ALL RELATIVE: Hitchcock’s Shadow of a Doubt

Over at Past Offenses this month, Rich Westwood is hosting a celebration of the best mysteries of 1943. Anybody who wants to can select a book or film from that year and put something together. I’m grateful to Rich for providing a forum for folks to share their views and opinions, and I’m especially glad …

THE RIGHT DIRECTION: Hitchcock’s North by Northwest

When Rich at Past Offenses chooses a particularly challenging year for his monthly “Crimes of the Century” invitational – where bloggers from all over send in posts of great mysteries of the time – I am grateful that he includes films as well as books. This is particularly true when we’re dealing with the late …

THIRTEEN BY HITCHCOCK: A Fan Pays Homage to the Master

For the August 13 post of her fine blog, Confessions of a Mystery Novelist, Margot Kinberg did something that still makes me hang my head in shame: she remembered Alfred Hitchcock’s birthday! More than that, she honored him with a salutary post. one which you can – and should – read here. Although it accounted …

THIS TRAIN IS BOUND FOR GORY: Christie and Hitchcock Ride the Rails

I recently read an article about what a boon the self-driving car will be to all of us who like to multi-task as we travel. “Driving is the biggest waste of time,” the proposers of this dubious technology cry, “because the only thing you accomplish is getting from one point to another!” I only hope …