Among fans of British Gangster cinema, it's common consensus that GET CARTER (1971) and THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY (1980) are classics of the genre. But in the decade between the two, did the Brits produce any great gangster films? Are there any neglected gems out there? Over at Criminal Element, I talk about a movie that may not be quite as great as these two but that deserves more attention than it has gotten. It's the grimy 1977 flick THE SQUEEZE, starring Stacey Keach, David Hemmings, and Carol White.
Bloody murder in Scandinavia? Nothing unusual these days. Jorgen Brekke's WHERE MONSTERS DWELL is the newest Nordic crime bestseller to come over to the US in translation, and quite a murder fest it proves to be. A killing occurs in the city of Trondheim, Norway and one at the Edgar Allen Poe Museum in Richmond, Virginia. Both victims are found skinned from the waist up and both are beheaded. What's the connection? I wrote a review of this entertaining mystery over at Criminal Element, and you can check it out here: WHERE MONSTERS DWELL.
