Cat People (Tourneur, 1942) is a forerunner in the early B movie trend towards “suggestive horror” and a departure from the Monster-driven horrors of the day. This essay will explore how Tourneur creates suggestive horror through juxtaposition and contrast, in particular through the use of sound and mise-en-scene. The essay will also illustrate how Tourneur tapped into the […]
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The Commuter (2018)
Imagine you’re on the same commuter train you’ve ridden to and from work day after day, year upon year when something very suspicious happens. A woman who looks really similar to the love interest from Scorcese’s The Departed offers you a large sum of money in exchange for finding a passenger who “doesn’t belong”. Suddenly the commute […]
Noah (2014)
In the beginning, God created Heaven and Earth. It’s unclear from the original text as to when he created giant rock monsters but fast forward to 2014 and Darren Aronofski released the film, Noah. While God took 7 days to create the World, Aronofski’s reboot of God’s epic took 14 years (screenplay to release) and cost […]
Brawl in Cell Block 99 (2017)
As every schoolboy knows, Jaws is not a film about a shark. While we’re on the subject of films not being about what you might think they’re about, Midnight Express is not a film about a train, (it’s a “prison word for escape”). Brawl in Cell Block 99 is not a film about a prison. It’s also not […]
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