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Murder and the Movies

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Murder and the Movies

By: David Thomson
Narrated by: Chris MacDonnell
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About this listen

How many acts of murder have each of us followed on a screen? What does that say about us? Do we remain law-abiding citizens who wouldn't hurt a fly?

Film historian David Thomson, known for wit and subversiveness, leads us into this very delicate subject. While unpacking classics such as Seven, Kind Hearts and Coronets, Strangers on a Train, The Conformist, The Godfather, and The Shining, he offers a disconcerting sense of how the form of movies makes us accomplices in this sinister narrative process.

By turns seductive and astringent, very serious and suddenly hilarious, Murder and the Movies admits us into what Thomson calls "a warped triangle": the creator working out a compelling death; the killer doing his and her best; and the entranced spectator trying to cling to life and a proper sense of decency.

©2020 David Thomson (P)2020 Tantor
Entertainment & Performing Arts Film & TV History & Criticism Murder Crime Witty Funny Heartfelt

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Poetic & thoughtful essay on our relationship with death on film, marred by dreadful narration akin to a sleepy robot.

For love of the movies

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