Book review: A Sherlock Holmes Double-Bill: THE TANGLED SKEIN vs. THE ITALIAN SECRETARY

© Wordsworth

Arthur Conan Doyle's creation of sleuth extraordinaire Sherlock Holmes revolutionized detective fiction and continues to do so to this day. I doubt there is a single writer of crime or detective fiction who hasn't read some or all of the work of Doyle and has been influenced by it, by the clinical attention to detail, the strong sense of atmosphere, the sharp dialogue, and above all, the sense of fun.

Although Doyle had retired Holmes a long while before the author's own death, writers continue to churn out pastiches; some are good, some are bad and some are brilliant. The Tangled Skein and The Italian Secretary fall somewhere between good and brilliant.

The Tangled Skein by David Stuart Davies focuses on Sherlock Holmes facing the lord of the undead himself, Dracula. And although the premise sounds ludicrous and could even be considered an insult to Doyle's work, the resulting book is neither. Author and Holmes expert David Stuart Davies captures Doyle's tone and style almost perfectly and weaves a tale full of action and mood. It is a well-told tale that stays true to the mythos and features dialogue that could have been written by the master himself. Where the book falters a bit is in the mystery aspect. In trying to combine the mythologies of both Doyle and Bram Stoker's work, Davies veers more towards the plotting style of Stoker, with more action than intrigue. Although that makes it a rousing thriller , full of atmosphere and foreboding, it also makes it a not very good mystery. But there is an added bonus here. Davies ingeniously adds the very neat twist of making this story a direct sequel to The Hound of the Baskervilles. Something that avid Holmes readers will find delightful. I did.

Film Review: SO LONG AT THE FAIR (1950) **** out of *****

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Reportedly admired by Hitchcock, who later adapted it twice for his TV show, Hitchcock Presents, So Long At The Fair (1950) is a highly effective period thriller.

The plot is a familiar one by now, variations of it appearing in many movies and TV shows, most famously in Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes (1938). A young woman, Vicky, and her brother Johnny, travel to late 19th century Paris to attend the Exposition Universelle. Shortly after arrival, Johnny feels ill and retires to his hotel room early. The next day, Vicky wakes up to discover that her brother is nowhere to be found, his room gone, and that no one in the hotel seems to remember him ever being there. Has she gone mad, or is there something more sinister at play?

Fans of Hitchcock, and classic mystery fiction for that matter, will probably guess the solution to the puzzle long before the credits roll. But directors Terence Fisher and Anthony Darnborough keep things moving at such a brisk pace and with such technical elegance, that even if the viewer knows the outcome, the film remains absorbing and suspenseful. Most of the weight lies on Jean Simmons' shoulder as Vicky, and she handles it with aplomb, even if aspects of her performance are a bit of their time. And Cathleen Nesbitt as Madame Hervé, the conniving hotel owner, is a terrific villain. A young Dirk Bogarde is unimpressive, not having yet blossomed into the British art-house icon he would become in the 1960s and 70s.

Co-director Anthony Darnborough mainly worked as a producer throughout his career, but Terence Fisher would later become the wizard behind some of the best British Horror films of all-time, with his groundbreaking work with the iconic Hammer Studios, and elements of his controlled, visually fluent style are present here.

Even if the ending doesn't have the impact it should after more than an hour of superbly crafted build-up, So Long At the Fair remains a terrific thriller, and with a running time of just over 80 minutes, is a fast-paced watch. Highly recommended.

Text © Ahmed Khalifa. 2021.

Ahmed Khalifa is a filmmaker and novelist. He is the writer/director of several short films and a feature, which was released on Netflix, and the author of a number of novels and short stories, including the YA horror novel, Beware The Stranger, available on Amazon. Find him on Twitter @AFKhalifa and on Facebook @Dark.Fantastic.AK·Writer

Introducing THE DARK FANTASTIC PODCAST

If you're a constant visitor to this website, then you know it's dedicated to all things movies, books, and TV, especially hidden gems in all genres.

We have now launched The Dark Fantastic Podcast, an expansion of what is featured on the site, with exclusive audio short stories, and interviews with writers, filmmakers, and creators in all fields.

This latest episode, features Ahmed Khalifa talking about why he thinks Dean Koontz is, in some ways, better than Stephen King; a brief history of pulp fiction's greatest character, The Shadow; and an exclusive interview with author Will Murray, whose latest book, Master of Mystery: The Rise of The Shadow, is out now. Enjoy!

Listen to "Episode 2: Dean Koontz Returns and The Shadow Rises, W\Author Will Murray" on Spreaker.

THE OVERVIEW: Malignant (2021) - The Noise by James Patterson and J.D. Barker - L.A. Times by Stuart Woods

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The Overview: A collection of shorter reviews of books and movies.

© WB Pictures.

Malignant (2021) *** out of *****: It can’t be stressed enough how weird a movie Malignant is, and not in a good way. Directed and co-written by James Wan, the man who basically re-invigorated the horror genre in 2010 with his stylish and brilliantly inventive Insidious, Malignant is a movie that could only have been made by someone like Wan. Wan, thanks to his numerous billions-grossing blockbusters like Furious 7, The Conjuring series, and Aquaman, has the cache to arm-twist studios into giving him a few million dollars to make whatever he wants. Malignant is the result. It’s a fun movie, but it’s also self-indulgent to the point of silliness, and the climax is nothing short of ludicrous. The fault lies with the messy script - there’s almost zero characterization - and Wan’s operatic approach, an homage to the Giallo genre, which is gratingly flamboyant. A spectacular misfire.

Book Review: RODERICK HUDSON (1875) By Henry James **** out of *****

© Harper Classics

I first discovered Henry James as a teenager. After watching a film adaptation of The Turn of The Screw and becoming fascinated with the story, I bought a cheap TOR paperback copy of the novella, and devoured its prose with ever-increasing joy and awe. It was my first introduction to James, and, in turn, to fine literature. Reading Henry James for the first time is, for people of a certain temperament, an epiphany. His stylistic choices, command of atmosphere, uncanny psychological insight into his characters, and, above all, his restraint, is a marvel to behold.

Roderick Hudson (1875), what Henry James considers to be his first novel (although he'd written a short novel, Watch and Ward four years prior), is a joy to read. It might not be the best introduction to his work (Washington Square, or a collection of his short stories would serve that purpose better), but it is fascinating nonetheless. Reading it, particularly the first version, not the revised one Henry James did for the New York Edition, is akin to watching an artist admirably struggle to hone his craft in front of one's eyes.

At first, Roderick Hudson looks like a simple, even frivolous, tale about the rise and fall of the eponymous young sculptor. But like most of James' work, his book's plot are deceptive, beginning as one thing, and slowly morphing into another. Here, James, like Hudson, keeps refining his sculpture, adding layers, definition, detail. By the end of the book, the characters are fleshed out, their nuances laid bare, and their fates wonderfully unraveled.

Roderick Hudson is somewhat unique in James' oeuvre in that, here, he quite clearly loses control of the novel's tone more than once, veering into melodramatics typical of the era. Even the tragic ending, as effectively shocking as it is, is somewhat abrupt, flawed. In the 1907 preface to the New York revised edition, James criticizes Roderick Hudson, saying it lacks "verisimilitude" and that the "time-scheme" is inadequate. But these blemishes don't take away from the overall effect of the book, which is of a fascinating journey through the minds and hearts of three compelling characters: Hudson; Mallet, Hudson's benefactor; and Christina Light, who would reappear in James work as the Princess Casamassima.

Next, James would go on to write The American (1877), a better, more assured novel, with a splendid third act, and which benefits greatly from the lessons he learned writing Roderick Hudson.

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Text © Ahmed Khalifa. 2021.

Ahmed Khalifa is a filmmaker and novelist. He is the writer/director of several short films and a feature, which was released on Netflix, and the author of a number of novels and short stories, including the YA horror novel, Beware The Stranger, available on Amazon. Find him on Twitter @AFKhalifa and on Facebook @Dark.Fantastic.AK·Writer