John Hansen

Red Harvest Hammett

Continental Op makes rip-roaring leap to novels in ‘Red Harvest’ (1929)

Sleuthing Sunday (Book review): One of the earliest hardboiled detectives is not merely a prototype, but also still among the best.

Miranda

Ricci tries bizarre British whimsy in ‘Miranda’ (2002)

Throwback Thursday (Movie review): With mild success, a one-and-done screenwriter blends a con drama, an orphan tragedy and romantic flailing.

Rebecca novel

du Maurier’s ‘Rebecca’ (1938) a slower burn than the film

On a Hitchcock kick (Book review): Hitchcock’s faithfulness limits surprises for those tackling the novel afterward, but it has one key difference.

Last Bookshop in London

‘Last Bookshop in London’ (2021) blends love of books with WWII

Book club book report: In a young-adult style, Madeline Martin communicates the horrors of the Blitz to folks who’d rather curl up with a good novel.

Oddity

2024: A horror ‘Oddity’ – Irish film is year’s best so far

Movie review: Writer-director Damian Mc Carthy masterfully crafts a character-driven supernatural whodunit at a refurbished Irish manor.

Longlegs

Horror-thriller ‘Longlegs’ has loads of style, not enough story

Movie review: The latest nutso performance by Nicolas Cage is in service of a moody horror-thriller where the story pieces don’t fit.

Glass Key novel

Hammett’s ‘The Glass Key’ (1931) digs into city political games

Sleuthing Sunday (Book review): Though unavoidably a complex subject, Hammett and his most unethical detective make government corruption accessible.

Shining Girls

‘Shining Girls’ (2022): Make it make sense

Throwback Thursday (TV review): A shaky portrayal of a newspaper and even shakier time-travel logistics undercut nice design and good acting.

All the Presidents Men

‘All the President’s Men’ (1976) grandly caps Pakula’s ‘paranoia trilogy’

The ‘paranoia trilogy’ (Movie review): But it’s not paranoia if it really happened, and that’s the case in one of the all-time best non-fictional accounts of newspaper reporting.

Immaculate

‘Immaculate’ conceives shocking gore horror

Movie review: Amid the trappings of just another religious scare flick comes an unflinching anti-religion commentary on abortion.