The Caller

A kooky, ooky, little-seen thriller that's not worth much

Thriller
Rod Lott
* Ring ring! * "Hello?" "Hi, it's the 1987 film 'The Caller.' May I waste 97 minutes of your time?"

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

I Saw the Devil

Staggeringly good, alive with color, tension and dread.

Thriller
Rod Lott
If you don't mind subtitles and have a strong stomach, "I Saw the Devil" may be the best thriller you'll see all year.

Monday, May 2, 2011

Cop Hater

Book this ‘87th Precinct’ adaptation into your schedule

Thriller
Rod Lott
In 1992, Ice-T had "Cop Killer"; in 1957, MGM had "Cop Hater." My, how times have changed.

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Black Death

Works more often than not, despite glacial pacing

Thriller
Rod Lott
Pestilence, witches, necromancy — “Black Death” should be more fun than it is.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Street Kings 2: Motor City

A just-meh effort that runs on two flat tires

Thriller
Rod Lott
I watched a terrific cop movie this week.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt / While the City Sleeps

Enjoyable slices of old-school noir the way it should be

Thriller
Rod Lott
In 1956, three years after helming the film-noir classic “The Big Heat,” director Fritz Lang returned to the genre for a pair of films that prove to be his final for America: “Beyond a Reasonable Doubt” and “While the City Sleeps.”

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Black Heaven / Heartless

Two IFC imports test ideas of reality with good results

Thriller
Rod Lott
In films, the line between reality and fantasy is forever being drawn, erased, redrawn and blurred.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

The Squeeze

A surprising, harrowing thriller

Thriller
Rod Lott
I’ve now seen two films titled “The Squeeze.” One of them, a 1987 Michael Keaton vehicle, is perfectly awful.

Thursday, March 31, 2011

The Resident

1 bed, 1 bath, 2 bad

Thriller
Rod Lott
It’s a buyer’s market out there, Hilary Swank. There’s no reason you should rent a New York City apartment in which Jeffrey Dean Morgan watches you bathe from his hidey-hole within the walls.

Monday, March 28, 2011

Beneath the Dark

Mildly spellbinding, well-made indie thriller

Thriller
Rod Lott
“Beneath the Dark” bears an awful lot of similarity to “Vacancy,” the 2007 thriller in which Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale were tormented at a seedy, near-abandoned motel in the middle of nowhere.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

The Complete Sherlock Holmes Collection

Basil Rathbone in the best home-video resolution possible

Thriller
Rod Lott
Yes, it was about a year ago that I told you to buy MPI Home Video's "The Complete Sherlock Holmes Collection" on DVD.

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Psych:9

Some tightening would do a world of good

Thriller
Rod Lott
After a nifty credits sequence that cleverly employs Rorschach imagery, the oddly punctuated “Psych:9” establishes a promising premise, only to go overboard in terms of predictability and amount of plot elements.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Meskada

Bleak, but mildly diverting

Thriller
Rod Lott
“Meskada” isn’t a bad movie — just a very bad title.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Mother Lode

A limp, struggling adventure film

Thriller
Rod Lott
When “Mother Lode” hit theaters in 1982, I remember being inundated by TV ads promoting it. Then, as with the rest of the national consciousness, I completely forgot about it.

Monday, March 21, 2011

The Next Three Days

Flawed, yet worthy of a second chance

Thriller
Rod Lott
Writer/director Paul Haggis’ “The Next Three Days” often feels like it may take that long to conclude.

Friday, March 11, 2011