Find "The Lady Vanishes" on the Cineverse podcast!

For any fans of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock should be required viewing. Called the master of suspense for a good reason, his films demonstrate the exact science of what creates tension, anxiety, and edge-of-your seat suspense. While the apex of his career created classics like “Shadow of a Doubt,” “Rear Window,” “North by Northwest,” “Vertigo,” and “Psycho,” just to make a few, it’s interesting to take a look at some of his earlier work as well and see the development of the signature Hitchcock style. We did exactly that on a recent episode of the Cineverse podcast, discussing “The Lady Vanishes,” Hitchcock’s penultimate British film before producer David O. Selznick brought him to Hollywood. Check out our discussion right here.

"Sing Street" on the Cineverse Podcast

So far the film I enjoyed seeing the most in 2022 was this Irish comedy/teen love story “Sing Street” from 2016 we discussed on a recent episode of the Cineverse podcast. No superheroes, the Jedis, no CGI, no baby Yodas, no dinosaurs! You’ve already seen that 10,000 times! So just check out this funny, moving, underdogs-against-the-odds story about a group of geeky teenagers forming a band in 1980s Dublin. And with some great 80s music to boot!

Safety Last!

The silent comedy masterpiece with Harold Lloyd! I challenge anyone to watch this film and not laugh out loud or hang on the edge of their seat during the iconic building-climbing scene. And check out our discussion on the Cineverse podcast.

"A Royal Affair" on the Cineverse Podcast

This is a link to another recent episode of the Cineverse podcast I took part in, where we discussed the historical love story, “A Royal Affair.” Interesting seeing favorite Hollywood villain Mads Mikkelsen and “The Man from UNCLE” film’s Alicia Vikander in this Danish drama based on a real love triangle between the mentally ill king Christian VII, his wife Caroline and his doctor Johann Struensee. 

"Ammonite" on the Cineverse podcast

So here’s a recent Cineverse discussion update: Check out our discussion of an overlooked, haunting film, “Ammonite,” directed by Francis Lee and starring Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan whose characters spark and unexpected romance.

Left Coast Crime 2022

I still can't believe how time flies by when you're getting back to the real world after a literary conference. Last week I had the pleasure of taking part in the Left Coast Crime 2022 event in Albuquerque, New Mexico, not only listening to some of the top authors in crime fiction, but also fans, other debut authors in the genre, and the chance to discuss my work,  FATAL POSE, and the writing process. For fans, authors, and aspiring authors - as fandom and writing really overlap since everyone writing in a specific genre must also really be a fan of such literature - events like this I would highly recommend. It is a fantastic way to discover and interact with very active and exciting communities.

The Cineverse Podcasts: Breathless

For just over a month now, I had the pleasure of taking part in the weekly podcasts of the CineVerse film discussion group, run by Erik J. Martin who produces the superb Cineversary podcasts commemorating the anniversaries of major films that have had an impact on American and world cinema. I had been a guest on Erik's Cineversary podcasts before for the 50th anniversaries of "Easy Rider" and "The Last Picture Show." So I was definitely excited to join this group of film devotes to discuss an eclectic collection of films, both major blockbusters and small independent films, American films as well as films from around the world. I will be putting up a series of links to the various films we had analyzed recently.

In a bit of a backward order as I'm catching up on blogging, this is the link to our recent discussion of French filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard's seminal 1960 film "Breathless," starring Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg. The film is recognized as one of the major works giving rise to the French New Wave movement.

Check out the discussion and by all means watch "Breathless." The film is definitely a unique experience, and one I recommend to people and film students to see how they react. Truth be told, it's not a film I greatly enjoy viewing, yet one that needs to be understood and appreciated as an interesting artifact of a certain time and culture. Volumes had been written about "Breathless" and Godard, so suffice it to say here that the film is an odd, intellectual experience. It's very raison d'être is to break cinematic rules, to defy conventions. To that end, the film is full of jarring editing techniques, dialogue, and plot twists and turns that are designed to confuse and confound its viewers. There are moments where the story rushes along at a hyper-paced clip, using a series of off-putting jump cuts, and then there is a very, very long and slow, plodding scene of the two main characters are stuck in an apartment, reciting dialogue that is often confusing and meandering. Overall, the film is forcing its audience to engage with it, to think about what it wants to say about cinematic conventions, and how so many of the conventions we take for granted in films, especially Hollywood films, are artificial constructs.

Again, it's an odd and confounding film, but perhaps one that we can appreciate in an age when Hollywood cranks out little more than mindless superhero epics or preachy virtue-signaling award-bait films that leave little to the imagination and personal interpretation. 

So listen to the podcast and give "Breathless" a try.