Category Archives: Suspense

2009, Car Chase, Occasional gore, Sci-Fi, Suspense, Unusual

District 9 (2009)

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From NetFlix:

When aliens land on Earth, global business conglomerate Multi-National United forces them into rigid containment zones where they are compelled to labor, even as MNU commandeers their otherworldly technology for profit. As tensions build between human and non-human races, a rogue agent leads a resistance movement against MNU’s ruthless consolidation of power. Neill Blomkamp directs this cinema verité-style sci-fi thriller.

As one of the more original sci-fi films I have ever seen, the best adjective for this film is FRANTIC. By using hand-held cameras the constant tension never lets up. Sharlto Copley (who is really from Johannesburg, South Africa) is the perfect choice for the honest, well-meaning pawn of the weapons manufacturers. He is jittery and always a giant bundle of nerves. At first I groaned because the “prawns” (aliens) just looked so stupid. But soon even they fit perfectly into this tale of military-industrial suppression.

Subtle this movie is NOT. In a way the film is one big action scene from beginning to end. In this respect it might remind you of a car chase B film. Therefore, to enjoy this adventure you must like science fiction, action films, bloodshed, violence, and noise. What more could you ask for ?

And tell me, what is going on in the last scene ? What exactly did happen ? In fact, if you want to read a detailed spoiler see wikipedia.

2009, Complicated, Explicit sexual discussion, Nudity, Occasional gore, Suspense, Violent

A Perfect Getaway (2009)

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From NetFlix:

Newlyweds Cliff (Steve Zahn) and Cydney (Milla Jovovich) are enjoying a perfect honeymoon in Hawaii — until they run into a pair of menacing hikers, Nick (Timothy Olyphant) and Gina (Kiele Sanchez). As it turns out, the two are dangerous killers who begin stalking the not-so-happy couple. David Twohy wrote and directed this action-packed thriller, which co-stars Marley Shelton, Katie Chonacas and Chris Hemsworth.

Give this film only a B. The acting was just fine. I have never seen Steve Zahn do a bad job or appear in a movie that I did not want to watch. HOWEVER … you have to suspend disbelief in certain parts. Although there is a wonderful plot twist, I had great difficulty understanding the details. Perhaps I was just too tired to grasp the details. Try watching the film without help. After that you can read wikipedia which explains everything. There are just a few body wounds, nothing more unsettling than that. The very last few seconds are a clever conclusion.

2008, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crime, Drama, Gangs, Love Story, Suspense, Violent

The Narrows (2008)

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From NetFlix:

Mike Manadoro (Kevin Zegers) is torn between two worlds — his numbers-runner father Vinny’s (Vincent D’Onofrio) Brooklyn way of life and the college lifestyle he discovers as a photography student — in this drama based on Tim McLoughlin’s novel Heart of the Old Country. While earning money for school as his father’s driver and by delivering packages for a local mobster, Mike yearns to fully embrace the urbane new world he’s entered.

Searching for films with Vincent DÓnofrio led to this dark tale of the Brooklyn underworld. An excellently detailed plot with many twists offers the young Kevin Zegers (who can also be seen in “Fifty Dead Men Walking”) a great acting opportunity. No-one disappoints. Be prepared for two especially ugly gang executions. Despite that violence, the story holds your attention at least because you are rooting for Mike Manadoro to save his soul. Vincent DÓnofrio (you either love him or hate him) offers the least quirky role of his career while still doing his usual perfect job. I have to mention Titus Welliver as the soulless gang leader Tony (why are they always named Tony, as in “Tony Soprano” ?) for his creepy unfeeling role. Welliver can be seen in the wonderful TV series “The Good Wife”.

1990, Drama, Explicit sex, Kidnapping, Not Feel Good, Nudity, Suspense, Violent

After Dark My Sweet (1990)

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From NetFlix:

When a couple of conniving lowlifes (Rachel Ward, Bruce Dern) hatch a plot to kidnap the scion of a wealthy local family, they pick the wrong man to carry out the job: Kid Collie (Jason Patric), a disturbed ex-boxer on the lam from a mental institution. Collie narrates this twisted tale of double crosses and deception directed by James Foley (At Close Range) and adapted from the Jim Thompson novel.

Years ago I saw Jason Patric in “Sleepers”, a difficult-to-watch film about child kidnap and sexual abuse. In looking for more Patric films I tried “Expired” (2007) and “Your Friends and Neighbors” (1998). In both films he played the part of a nasty somewhat despicable person. I refused to recommend either film. In “After Dark My Sweet” he does and excellent and consistent job in becoming the damaged Kid Collie. Good story with unpredictable plot twists. For the life of me I cannot figure out what the ta

2005, Drama, Horror, Suspense, Violent

The Amityville Horror (2005)

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From NetFlix:

Hapless home-buyers George (Ryan Reynolds) and Kathy (Melissa George) Lutz discover their dream home is possessed by evil spirits in this terrifying remake based on the popular book. The story begins when the Lutzes purchase a home with a bloody history: Ronald DeFeo killed his entire family in the same home just a year earlier. Soon after moving into the house, George, Kathy and their three children are terrorized by demonic forces.

In 1980 Jack Nicholson went stark raving mad in a giant hotel in the northeast in the film based on Stephen King’s “The Shining”. In 2005 Ryan Reynolds starts to go mad in a giant house in New York. I guess some things never change. Whereas “The Shining” is a classic (who will ever forget “Here’s Johhny” ?), “The Amityville Horror” is what I call a humanistic horror film. Why ever watch a horror film ? Well, just to have fun. It’s easier to cringe over unreal problems than to fester over real ones. I say “humanistic” because the acting is well-done. Stepfather George is a likeable husband trying really hard to connect with his step-children who miss their real but dead father. The special effects are the older, more subtle variety than the digital souped-up over-the-top effects of the 21st century. The plot builds well to a believable climax. If you are willing to watch a horror film, this is an acceptable choice. But you have seen “The Exorcist”, right ?

So far we have also seen Ryan Reynolds in the following:

2004, DO NOT MISS, Drama, Explicit sexual discussion, Gay theme, Nudity, Redemption, Revenge, Suspense

Walk on Water (2004)

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From NetFlix:

American-born Israeli director Eytan Fox lenses this contemporary road movie that takes its Israeli characters to Berlin as they attempt to understand the role that the past still plays in the lives of young Israeli and German people. Stars Lior Ashkenzai, Carola Ranier, Hans Tischler, Israeli Gideon Shemer and Yousuf Swaid. The soundtrack includes tunes by Esther Ofarim, Bruce Springsteen, Telepopmusic and Gigliola Cinquetti.

Thanks to my Spanish teacher Joaquín for lending me this film. If any theme is strongest, it is that of personal change and overcoming prejudices. The plot itself offers many surprising turns all the way to the end of the film. In fact for me this was one of those films in which the suspense of the plot line is so strong that I could not even pause the film for a second.

No film is perfect. The main actor, the Mossad assassin, was best when he was purposely emotionless. In one scene he is not terribly successful in portraying remorse. Was the ending a bit too good to be true ? And of course the Mossad agent is an expert martial artist.

This film is not for children not so much because of its gay subtheme but because there is very explicit discussion of gay sexual practices.

If I had not seen this movie, I would have missed a really worthwhile film.

2008, British Mystery Series, Detective, DO NOT MISS, Drama, Gritty, Made For TV, MHz Choice, Mystery Film, Occasional gore, Suspense

Wallander (2008)

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June 2020 Update:

Wallander has moved to MHz Choice. There are two Wallander series in MHz Choice.

————————– NEW REVIEW ————————————-

From Netflix:

By now (August 2016) you can stream from Netflix 3 seasons of the British Wallander with Kenneth Branagh.  Each episode lasts about an hour and a half.  Each of the 3 seasons offers 3 independent stories. However, you should start from the beginning and watch in sequence because running through the entire 9 stories is the theme of Wallander’s personal life: loneliness, struggles with his eccentric father, relation with his daughter, etc.

One advantage of streaming is that there are captions.

More than ever, I consider these somewhat “noir” stories a DO NOT MISS!

————— OLD REVIEW ———————————————

From NetFlix:

Kenneth Branagh delivers a bravura performance as Swedish sleuth Kurt Wallender in three stories drawn from Henning Mankell’s best-sellers. With violence on the rise in once-peaceful Ystad, the dour detective battles crime as well as personal demons. This trio of TV mysteries finds Wallander connecting a woman’s suicide with government corruption, pursuing a cabbie’s killer and coping with the murder of a colleague during a tough investigation.

There is already a review for “Before the Frost (2002)” which was an excellent Wallander story. The present review is for a two-disk series (two separate NetFlix disks) from 2008. Kenneth Branagh again does an outstanding job portraying a dedicated detective whose personal life is in shambles. As such, the three stories (the second disk contains two stories) are dark. Kenneth Branagh is shabby and haggard throughout.

One caveat: there are NO subtitles available for those of us who are hard of hearing.

Also remember that everything takes place in Sweden despite the actors being British.

2008, Detective, Drama, Explicit sex, Love Story, Nudity, Revenge, Suspense, Violent

Deception (2008)

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From NetFlix:

Unassuming accountant Jonathan McQuarry (Ewan McGregor) thinks he’s hit the big time when a lawyer friend (Hugh Jackman) introduces him to an exclusive sex club. But McQuarry’s life begins to unravel when he falls for a woman at the club and is later linked to her disappearance. Michelle Williams, Natasha Henstridge and Charlotte Rampling also star in this atmospheric thriller from director Marcel Langenegger (in his big-screen debut).

Hugh Jackman redeems himself despite his appearance in the adolescent film “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”. In this film Jackman makes a great villain. You might also want to see him in “Australia”. He and Ewan McGregor make perfect foils for each other’s character. I will not say a word about the really clever plot because plot is everything. Of course there is the sex club and lots of sex scenes, but do not avoid the film because you think the film is just about sex. The nice thing about the plot is that while tricky it is not too complicated.

Could be boring, Detective, Drama, Feel Good Not For Children, Kidnapping, Mystery Film, Scam Artists, Suspense, Unusual

The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency

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From NetFlix:

After her beloved father dies, the sassy Precious Ramotswe (Jill Scott) sells an inheritance of 180 cows to start a detective agency and becomes the first female sleuth in the history of Botswana. Co-starring Anika Noni Rose as Ramotswe’s assistant and secretary, Mma Makutsi, this quirky whodunit was adapted from Alexander McCall Smith’s hit mystery novels. The film also marks the last directing credit for Anthony Minghella (English Patient).

Season One contains 3 discs. Because of a theme of kidnapping children to sell their body parts (e.g. fingers) as magic amulets, this series might not be for children. More than that, an American audience might find the slow childlike speech patterns in the Botswana English a bit hard to take. I almost stopped watching even the first episode until the plot became somewhat sinister and my curiosity kept me watching. But after that first episode I returned the disc to NetFlix. The books are better than the TV adaptations, in my opinion.

2004, Drama, Mystery Film, Redemption, Religious Theme, Suspense, Unusual

The Reckoning (2004)

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From NetFlix:

A priest (Paul Bettany) on the run gets mixed up with a band of wandering thespians in this tale of salvation based on the book Morality Play by Barry Unsworth. In a tiny village, the group comes upon a woman who’s been charged with murder and sentenced to death. The actors put on a production based on the crime and soon realize that the townsfolk know the woman isn’t guilty.

Consistent, well-acted, unusual, original, suspenseful are all adjectives that describe this worthwhile fim. Essentially it is a mystery story plus a quest for justice. I can only assume that the 1300s in England were exactly this grubby. Among the actors Gina McKee was Irene in the PBS production of “The Forsyte Saga”. Willem Dafoe is of course a well-established actor.

If I can’t stop watching a film, that’s a good sign. Highly recommended!