A Book Lover's Devilish Journey

In The Club Dumas (1993) by Arturo Perez-Reverte, rare book "finder" Lucas Corso is hired to authenticate a lost chapter of the Alexandre Dumas classic, The Three Musketeers. This eventually leads him on a journey to find two copies of a rare book called “The Nine Doors to the Kingdom of Shadows.” This book can supposedly be used to contact the devil himself. Corso becomes embroiled in a chase for this unearthly tome, as various allies and enemies try to either aid him or hinder his progress. It's a search that may just bring Corso more than he bargained for in the beginning.

Perez-Reverte’s novel features many in-jokes for bibliophiles and lovers of classic literature. Chapter sub-headings include quotes from famous fictional characters, including Poe’s famous detective, Arsene Lupin. As Corso tracks down the book, many pages features drawings, quotes and clues that aid Corso in his search.  We find out information as Corso does, along the way. Much of the trivia and in jokes revolves around The Three Musketeers, as characters and situations reflect those in the famous adventure story. The novel has elegant settings and interesting characters, including obsessive book dealers, forgers, devil worshippers and a mysterious girl whose origins (and true motives for helping Corso) are unclear.

The most well drawn character is Corso. He is a lover of books, but he's been corrupted by the nature of his work. We get inside his head, and understand how he thinks. He’s been an unscrupulous man, and, as the search goes on, he starts to doubt if he’s taken the right path in life. The plot keeps you intrigued as the search for the book goes on, with trips to Spain and Portugal along the way, colorfully rendered by the author. The novel is a treat for mystery fans that like working out all the angles of a puzzling story. Portions of the novel were turned into the movie The Ninth Gate (1999), starring Johnny Depp, but significant changes were made to the story for that screen adaptation. The Club Dumas is an intriguing book, and fans of literary mysteries will enjoy Perez-Reverte’s thinking man’s thriller. Perez-Reverte is the author of several other historical and literary themed thrillers, including 1990's The Flanders Panel, but The Club Dumas is one of his best.

An Eerie, Haunting "Carnival of Souls"

Candace Hilligoss and friend in Carnival of Souls

Carnival of Souls (1962) is one of those films that truly fits the definition of the term “cult movie.” Made on a small budget, it retains its reputation as an offbeat exercise in horror. The story concerns Mary Henry, who survives a terrible car accident after a drag race. She then heads to Utah to begin working as a church organist. But as she settles into her new surroundings, a ghostly man keeps appearing to her and haunting her. She also has moments where she feels disconnected from reality, and it seems like no one can see or hear her. Why is she being drawn to an abandoned carnival outside town? Is she being pursued by an otherworldly presence? Or is there an even more terrifying reason why these strange events are centered on Mary?

The ultimate twist in the movie will seem less shocking to today’s audiences, who have seen a host of similar reveals on TV shows like The Twilight Zone, and in modern films like The Sixth Sense. The "surprise" ending works very well in the context of the story. It’s a tribute to the cast & crew that they get so much out of so little in this eerie thriller. There are some truly spooky sequences that really stay with you after seeing the movie. Producer-director Herk Harvey, who had previously worked on educational and industrial films, shot the movie on location in Utah. He employed mostly local actors, except for lead Candace Hilligoss. Amazingly, Hilligoss (who’s excellent in the role of Mary) only made one other film. She also did a handful of television appearances and some stage work. However, it's this film for which genre fans most fondly remember her.

While it was not a success on its original release, Carnival of Souls gained fans from countless late night TV showings and occasional festival screenings over the years. The movie has influenced many filmmakers, including George Romero and David Lynch. I remember seeing it on late night television as a kid. It was unsettling, and it left you feeling uneasy, like you'd just seen something very different from the usual horror fare. This is a strange, offbeat film that plays more like a meditation on life and death than a straight ahead terror tale. The movie had fallen into the public domain for many years, and inferior video copies were available in bargain bins at video stores and discount outlets. In 2000, the outstanding specialty label The Criterion Collection released an excellent two-disc edition of the film that includes two versions of the movie, a retrospective documentary and other extras. Criterion also released an updated version of their disc on Blu-ray in 2016. The movie is also available for digital download and viewing on various sites. Here's a link to the trailer for Carnival of Souls: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqMEbW7Pe2I.

The Dark Truth Behind "The Locket"

As a dedicated film fan, I’ll often seek out the movies that have slipped through the cracks, the ones that I’ve missed viewing over the years. I recently caught up with the 1946 film The Locket, starring Laraine Day, Robert Mitchum and Brian Aherne. It’s an intriguing, noir-flavored story of a woman named Nancy, and her relationships with three very different men. As the story begins, Nancy (played by Day) is going to marry her fiancé John. But a man bursts into the house, and demands to speak to the groom. The man is Dr. Harry Blair (Brian Aherne) and he wants to warn the groom about the woman he’s about to marry. In fact, Blair says that HE was married to her, and it led to his ruin. He begs John to listen to his story. And what a story it is!

Robert Mitchum and Laraine Day

Thus begins the puzzle-box flashback structure of the film, as Blair relates the details of his relationship with Nancy. But it isn’t just his story. As his tale unfolds in flashback, we move into another flashback showing the story of the man Nancy was with when she met Blair, an artist played by Mitchum. During that story, we flashback even further, to a pivotal moment in Nancy’s childhood, which involves the locket of the title. So it’s a flashback within a flashback, within a flashback. Confused yet? It all works marvelously well in this moody tale of love, lies, deception and murder. Nancy appears to be the woman of these men’s dreams. But she’s a far more complex character than she seems on the surface.

Director John Brahm (who also helmed 1944’s The Lodger) does an excellent job of creating an atmosphere filled with dread and impending doom. He’s aided by master cinematographer Nicholas Musaraca, who also displayed his masterful talents on such classics as Cat People (1942) and Out of the Past (1947). The cast is perfect; Mitchum (who’s on the cusp of stardom here) is good in an atypical role as the artist who falls in love with his idealized image of Nancy, but realizes too late that his image of her is not the real person. Aherne is marvelous as Blair, who doesn’t heed the Mitchum character’s warnings about Nancy’s true nature, and comes to regret it. Laraine Day is excellent as Nancy, whose almost coquettish persona hides the darker shadings of her real self.

The offbeat structure actually works in the film's favor, as each flashback reveals a little more of the truth about Nancy, leading to a twist I won’t reveal here. Suffice it to say that you’ll be asking yourself at the conclusion of the film if her experiences are caused by fate or coincidence. The Locket is something of a “psychological noir,” a trend that was in vogue around the time of its release, along with films like Alfred Hitchcock’s Spellbound (1945) and the later Robert Taylor vehicle High Wall (1947), featuring psychoanalysis as a pivotal plot point. If you’re in the mood for an old-fashioned thriller, featuring a solid cast and an impressive visual style, seek out The Locket. It’s available on DVD from Warner Archive, and has also aired on Turner Classic Movies, most recently as part of host Eddie Muller’s Noir Alley series.

The Ten Best Albums From Elton John

Here's another recent piece I did for CultureSonar, the arts & entertainment website. This time out it's a look at the top ten albums from Elton John. See if you agree with my choices. Follow the link below the picture to access the article, and thanks for reading! You can find my other articles using the search function. Also, please check out the other fine writing from my colleagues on the site!

http://www.culturesonar.com/top-10-albums-of-elton-john/