u/Diligent-Wave-4150

A movie by Robert Siodmak who was a protagonist in film noir. He later made the more famous movie "The Crimson Pirate" (1952) also with Lancaster.

The plot is based on the short story "The Killers" by Ernest Hemingway (1927). Since the story is not that long Siodmak had to stretch it with flashbacks. Not the best solution but if you want to go with the original source there is not much choice..

Burt Lancaster is one of my favorite actors. Maybe this is the reason I do not rank this movie that high (he is cast as "the swede" here because of his physical characterists). His best performances might be "Birdman of Alcatraz" (John Frankenheimer, 1962), "The Leopard" (Visconti, 1963), "Atlantic City" (Louis Malle, 1980). Interesting also "Vera Cruz" (1954) with Gary Cooper, a movie in which he was actor and producer - a movie that had a strong influence on later European "Italien westerns".

Easily one of the most disturbing movies I've ever seen. It starts slow but the screws are working.

I saw this on a movie channel in the middle of the night years ago and it always stayed in my mind. I've never heard of the director Kastle before.

The film is based on a real case. Creepy..

Leonard Shelby (Pearce) is in a bad situation. He can't remember what he has done the day before. A case of amnesia. In his hotel room he makes polaroid photos and tattoos to know what has happened. At least he knows something violent must have happened because of the injuries he has.

Christopher Nolan's reversely told movie is somehow unique. It was a big surprise when it was released and it somehow was clear he would make it to the big pictures. He reminds me of Ridley Scott who started with The Duellists and later made the masterpieces Alien and Blade Runner.

Unfortunately a poll is not possible here. So please post it in the comments. I'm going to count the mentions and post the result in three days. Note: It's not just studio albums.

The movie follows very close the novel by McCarthy. There is not much difference, I checked it. Coen brothers must have been surprised they got an Oscar because why? Cinematography obviously is great, and maybe this is it.

The story works in sequences. One sequence at the tank station, the next one in a hotel, next one in a police station, then another hotel, next one in a drug store. All of those sequences tell little stories, there's a beginning and an end in each of those stories.

If you ask what is the plot here? Moss (Brolin) finds a sack of money after randomly observing a drug deal that went wrong. He grabbed the sack and then had to leave the place because some crazy freak killer (Bardem) was behind him to get the money back. In the screenshot Moss is waiting for him in the hotel room with a full loaded rifle.

I wanted to buy a new copy of William Golding's "Lord of the Flies". The best one would have been (quality wise) the one by Folio Society. But it's expensive plus shipping costs. I also saw this one by Faber & Faber with a foreword by King. This gave me a reason to buy this cheaper edition.

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Later, a question occurred to me. Are there any statistics about the forewords King has written? How many could it be?

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Anyone?

One of the good scenes in the movie. Torrance (Jack Nicholson) enters the bathroom and follows a pretty woman. When she turns around she looks like this.

At first glance you wouldn't think this is a literary adaptation. But indeed it is based on the true crime book "Zodiac" by Robert Graysmith - and this is why it was controversial - not for the average movie goer but for amateur sleuths who disagree with the theory given by Graysmith about the identity of the serial killer. They think it was someone else. (The case is by the way not solved until today.)

The plot follows the cartoonist Graysmith on his stubborn search to identify and find the killer (he heard about the case when he worked for a newspaper in the early seventies). He gets help from the policeman Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) who at least listens to the cartoonist.

Fincher's movie has lots of noirish elements, unusual camera angles and intense sequences that could have been imagined by Hitchcock. A strong piece of cinema.

With Jake Gyllenhaal.

The movie by Sidney Lumet is based on the novel by Agatha Christie which was published in 1934. The story takes place on a train, Lumet follows his concept of putting as many actors on a small area as possible - like he did in "Twelve Angry Men" (1957) and "Dog Day Afternoon" (1975).

This might partly explain why he did adapt this novel since the novel is a) far from being Christie's best work and b) in my opinion unfilmable - if you take it one-to-one.

You must have a different approach. And this is to set it on the dark side. One piece is the casting of Shakespeare actor Albert Finney as Poirot. Christie fans did not like it. It was not funny. The later lighthearted movies with Peter Ustinov as Poirot seemed to be closer to the original and easier to consume.

I wouldn't say this movie is a normal piece of noir. But to claim it has nothing to do with it is wrong. I sometimes remember the scene when Poirot wakes up in his carriage in the middle of the night saying to himself: "This is the silence of murder.'

One of these noir pieces with the protagonist being a murderer. Mason (Bogart) is fixated on the sister of his wife. His solution is to kill his wife and make it look like an accident. He follows this plan consequently.

Bogart is really great in performing those "anti-social" characters. You just believe it.

Notes:

- Obvious supporting cast by Sidney Greenstreet

- The detail Mason "missed" was the flower in his wife's jacket.