For those of you that prefer treats and tricks instead of ghosts and ghouls, these post-Halloween picks should fill your now empty candy bag quite nicely. There's no reason to quit Halloween cold turkey. Just dial it back heading into Film Noirvember.
ELAINE’S PICKS
House of Games (David Mamet, 1987)
Mamet is the master of the big con. Margaret (Lindsay Crouse), a successful psychiatrist, tries to help her patient get out from under gambling debts. Big mistake. Tricks and very few treats make this a delight to watch and rewatch. The ending supports the wicked twists and turns and doesn't disappoint in subsequent viewings. If you like this one, also seek out Mamet's The Spanish Prisoner (1997).
The Gift (Joel Edgerton, 2015)
Written and directed by Joel Edgerton, The Gift stars Jason Bateman in a non-comedic role. The twisty tale becomes creepier as the story progresses. Like Alfred Hitchcock's domestic thriller, Shadow of the Doubt (1943), Edgerton's film conveys a constant sense of underlying unease -- things are never quite what they seem to be.
Truly, Madly, Deeply (Anthony Minghella, 1990)
Alan Rickman is the benevolent ghost in Minghella's fantasy drama. When he returns to haunt his love, Nina (Juliet Stevenson) he becomes an obnoxious ghost (like bringing home strange spirit acquaintances) with an agenda. TMD features one of the all-time great crying scenes.
Phoenix (Christian Petzold, 2014)
Christian Petzold is one of Germany’s most acclaimed filmmakers. The Phoenix in question refers to the mythological bird that can be reborn. Nelly (Nina Hoss) is a Holocaust survivor who has her face reconstructed and returns to her home to face her husband who may or may not have surrendered her to the Nazis. The influence of VERTIGO, FRANKENSTEIN, film noir and pulp fiction enliven this unique tale of betrayal, memory— and revenge.
JAY’S PICKS
The Gazebo (George Marshall, 1959)
Glenn Ford stars in this clever black comedy as a TV mystery writer blackmailed over nude photos of his actress wife (Debbie Reynolds) from many years ago. To extricate himself, he shoots the blackmailer and buries him under their new gazebo. While fending off contractors and real estate agents who might uncover his deed, Ford learns the real blackmailer has been killed elsewhere. So, who's buried under the gazebo?
The Prestige (Christopher Nolan, 2006)
Nolan's critical and commercial acclaim covers films like Memento, Oppenheimer, and Batman, but this -- one of his devious best -- concerns friends turned feuding magicians (Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale). After one perfects a remarkable illusion, the other becomes obsessed with discovering its secret. Co-stars Scarlett Johanssen, Michael Caine, and David Bowie (as Nicola Tesla).
The Last of Sheila (Herbert Ross, 1973)
Everyone loves an Agatha Christie-inspired whodunnit with a stacked cast of beloved actors including James Mason, Richard Benjamin, Dyan Cannon, James Coburn, Ian McShane, and Raquel Welch. Rian Johnson's Knives Out films have proven the genre maintains a cross-generational appeal. This one-week pleasure cruise and scavenger hunt turns deadly as guests conceal and uncover secrets and some wind up dead. Even if you discover the film's trick, it's still a treat.
The Orphanage (Juan Antonio Bayona, 2007)
Even though J.A. Bayona’s film sits firmly within the horror genre, it doesn’t resort to jump scares and the typical horror cliches to spook its audience. It’s a thinking person’s thriller that burrows under your skin and lingers. In many ways, it’s an old fashioned, gothic haunted house story dripping with atmosphere and racing towards its shocking (and heart wrenching) conclusion.