Tag Archives: Mystery

Murder on the Orient Express (1974) ☆☆☆(3/4): An Agatha Christie mystery film with enough charm and craft

Posted on December 26, 2024 by kaist455

Sidney Lumet’s 1974 film “Murder on the Orient Express” is all about style and mood. While this is not exactly one of the best film adaptations of Agatha Christie novels, it still works as an enjoyable genre piece packed with … Continue reading →

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Mother’s Kingdom (2024) ☆☆☆(3/4): Their kingdom to collapse

Posted on September 4, 2024 by kaist455

South Korean independent film “Mother’s Kingdom” is a somber but unnerving family drama about those tricky questions of belief and doubt. How much are you willing to go along with what is supposed to be a truth? And what are … Continue reading →

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Following (2024) ☆☆☆(3/4): And then she dies…

Posted on May 25, 2024 by kaist455

South Korean film “Following” is a darkly amusing thriller about one creepy dude suddenly finding himself framed for what he did not commit just like many Hitchcockian heroes. While it is rather hard to care about its deeply unlikable hero, … Continue reading →

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The Fall Guy (2024) ☆☆☆(3/4): The adventure of one stuntman

Posted on May 2, 2024 by kaist455

“The Fall Guy”, which is incidentally released as “The Stuntman” in South Korean theaters (I hope that local audiences will not mistake it for the remake of Richard Rush’s “The Stunt Man” (1979), by the way), has a lot of … Continue reading →

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Wicked Little Letters (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): A little problem in their town

Posted on April 30, 2024 by kaist455

“Wicked Little Letters” is a lightweight comedy film coupled with a bit of mystery. While it is not that difficult for us to guess the answer to the mystery inside the story even before its half point, the movie remains … Continue reading →

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Vengeance (2022) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): An offbeat comedy mystery drama set in Texas

Posted on April 12, 2024 by kaist455

“Vengeance” baffled me with some amusement and disappointment. Languidly driven by a little investigative reporting process on the mystery surrounding one seemingly plain incident, the movie attempts to make some barbed points on the current social/cultural gaps and divides in … Continue reading →

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Anatomy of a Fall (2023) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A rivetingly ambiguous courtroom drama

Posted on December 2, 2023 by kaist455

French film “Anatomy of a Fall”, which won the Palme d’Or award at the Cannes Film Festival early in this year, is a compelling courtroom drama film which keeps us guessing for good reasons. Mainly revolving around one seemingly simple … Continue reading →

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A Haunting in Venice (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): Poirot attends a séance

Posted on September 15, 2023 by kaist455

Kenneth Branagh’s new film “A Haunting in Venice” is another mystery tale associated with Hercules Poirot, a Belgian detective character in many of the works of Agatha Christie. His two previous Poirot films, “Murder on the Orient Express” (2017) and … Continue reading →

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Missing (2021) ☆☆☆(3/4): Gone Father

Posted on June 20, 2023 by kaist455

It is rather difficult to describe the plot of “Missing”, a dark and disturbing Japanese mystery thriller film which pulls some surprises for us as unexpectedly shifting from one narrative point to another. I will be discreet here as much … Continue reading →

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Eyes Wide Shut (1999) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A comedy of foreplay

Posted on June 13, 2023 by kaist455

Stanley Kubrick’s last film “Eyes Wide Shut” is one naughty comedy of foreplay. Along the story, its plain ordinary hero is tempted by a series of tantalizing possibilities of sexual pleasure and transgression popping up here and there around him, … Continue reading →

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