Tag Archives: psychological thriller

extreme forms of the struggle of the classes (film: La cérémonie – Claude Chabrol, 1995)

Claude Chabrol‘s ‘La cérémonie‘, adapted from a novel by Ruth Rendell, ends about where Stanley Kubrick’s and Anthony Burgess’ ‘A Clockwork Orange’ begins. The ceremony in the title is a shocking act of violence, and I won’t say more to … Continue reading

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the indiscrete wickedness of the bourgeoisie (film: La rupture – Claude Chabrol, 1970)

Some of the most scathing cinematic critiques of the bourgeoisie and the social order it dominated were created in the years after the student uprisings of 1968. They did not always take the form of explicitly political films, and one … Continue reading

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chasing evil (film: M – Fritz Lang, 1931)

It’s hard to believe that Fritz Lang‘s ‘M‘ was made in 1931. This film is so bold, unconventional, inventive, stylish, dark and scary that even today, if it were projected or released with minor changes and modernizations, it would stir … Continue reading

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an obsessive thriller with Isabelle Adjani at her best (film: Mortelle rendonnée – Claude Miller, 1983)

Alfred Hitchcock died in 1980, but not completely. In fact, his influence is so strong that to this day, 45 years after his departure, not only are his films watched and re-watched, analyzed and enjoyed, but they also represent benchmarks … Continue reading

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the spy who hated liars (film: Black Bag – Steven Soderbergh, 2025)

In a few of the moments while watching ‘Black Bag‘ – the second film this year 2025 directed by Steven Soderbergh – I had the feeling that John Le Carré is still alive and writing novels that are brought to … Continue reading

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the cloud that kills (film: Cloud / Kuraudo – Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 2024)

Japanese director Kiyoshi Kurosawa‘s filmography already includes several films where the horror and techno-thriller genres meet, reflecting a world where technology overwhelms its heroes and terrifies the audience. ‘Cloud‘ (‘Kuraudo‘ in the original – 2024) can be included in this … Continue reading

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an anti-heroine to remember (film: Emily the Criminal – John Patton Ford, 2022)

‘Emily the Criminal‘ (2022) is one of the most exciting feature films directorial debuts that I’ve seen in the recent years. As John Patton Ford also wrote the screenplay, my guess is that we’re dealing with a talented filmmaker who … Continue reading

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Poirot haunted (film: A Haunting in Venice – Kenneth Branagh, 2023)

Kenneth Branagh continues his series of adaptations of Agatha Christie’s novels and seems to feel quite comfortable in the skin of Hercule Poirot and in the position of director of the films that bring him to the big screen. The … Continue reading

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love and crime in a small French town (film: La chambre bleue – Mathieu Amalric, 2014)

Mathieu Amalric is one of my favorite actors and his presence on the credits of a movie is reason enough to want to see him. From time to time he is also behind the camera as a film director. This … Continue reading

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the daemon of motherhood (film: Huesera – Michelle Garza Cervera, 2022)

‘Huesera‘ (2022) is the debut feature film of Mexican director Michelle Garza Cervera. And what a debut! The director, who is also a co-writer, has imagined a story that combines psychological thriller with elements of horror, tackles feminist themes and … Continue reading

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