Tonight's marathon is essentially the beginning of a fall season consisting of both thriller and horror movies. One can consider it the door that unlocks the gate to a stream of thrilling and exciting suspense films that will consume the fall season of marathons. The buildup towards Halloween begins right here with the theme of a man searching for a killer spawning several different eras and generations. Iconic killers that mirror reality such as Jack The Ripper and Zodiac are present here, blending fiction with reality along with detective work that varies from generation to generation. This feels like a great way to open up what feels like to be a very promising season of pure terror and suspense. For this marathon, we have the following films on tonight's delicious menu:
Sleepy Hollow 1999, From Hell 2001, The Raven 2012, The Bone Collector 1999, Zodiac 2007, and Red Dragon 2002
The second movie of the marathon is based on true events and also stars Johnny Depp along with Heather Graham. From Hell centers around a clairvoyant detective in London who investigates a series of murders committed by a suspect at large named Jack The Ripper. Although less supernatural than Sleepy Hollow, From Hell maintains a dark and creepy atmosphere much like Sleepy Hollow while giving insight into a turn of the century case that never got solved. In a joking way, the combination of Sleepy Hollow and From Hell together fulfill the story arc of Johnny Depp searching for the mysterious killer.
The third movie of the marathon is The Raven starring John Cusack, Luke Evans, and Brendan Gleeson. The story centers around a young Baltimore detective played by John Cusack joining forces with the legendary poet named Edgar Allan Poe to stop a madman from committing a series of murders that turns Poe's stories into a reality. The Raven fits the type of murder mystery and suspense of the first two movies but never reached the same kind of critical acclaim. When a madman begins to committing horrific murders inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's works, a young Baltimore detective joins forces with Poe to stop him from making his stories a reality.
The fourth movie of the marathon is the 2007 critically acclaimed thriller directed by David Fincher titled Zodiac starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Robert Downey Jr, and Mark Ruffalo. Based on true events much like From Hell, the story centers around a cartoonist in San Francisco becoming an amateur detective to track down the famous Zodiac killer that went on a killing spree during the 1970's. What separates Zodiac from other thrillers that dealt with chasing after a killer is that this one is character driven and relies on dialogue to build tension and anxiety. The case is presented to the audience with great care taken to give the audience as much information as possible as well as presenting a theory on who the killer might've been. The mood of the 1970's is recreated flawlessly putting you right at the center of the events as they're being reenacted to perfection. Zodiac remains one of David Fincher's finest films to date and one of the best American thrillers of the 21st century. The lack of Oscar nominations and box office success for this film comes off as rather insulting to pure moviegoers.
The fifth movie of the marathon is the 1999 crime thriller titled The Bone Collector starring Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie. The setting takes place in modern day late 20th century with a quadriplegic forensics detective left bedridden after a tragic accident at the beginning of the film. When a killing spree begins involving a person abducting people in a taxi cab, a female partner is enlisted to help the quadriplegic ex cop track down the serial killer running rampant throughout New York City. The killer uses old turn of the century locations to stash away his victims while he allows the police a chance to save them each time. The Bone Collector is one of Denzel Washington's best movies and a slick entertaining suspense thriller.
The sixth and final movie of the marathon is the 2002 prequel to the 1991 classic Silence Of The Lambs titled Red Dragon. Starring Anthony Hopkins in the role that turned him into an iconic figure in modern day horror, Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a police detective who captured and put Hannibal away behind bars comes out of retirement to use his psychological gifts to track down a serial killer called "The Tooth Fairy", who strikes his victims upon every full moon. In order to help track down this myseterious killer, FBI agent Will Graham played by Edward Norton, must seek assistance from the imprisoned cannibal he helped put behind bars named Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lecter. Red Dragon never reaches the heights of Silence Of The Lambs but it holds its own as a very worthy prequel that opens the door to the legendary thriller. The film also utilizes the talents of Harvey Kietel, Emily Watson, Anthony Heald, and Ralph Fiennes. Red Dragon brings the marathon to a richly satisfying conclusion with not only the killer being caught and annihilated but the final scene setting everything up for it's successor.
So what are these movies trying to say when you put them all together as one giant story arc that deals with a man tracking a serial killer? The message is that sometimes, a man is going to have to separate himself from everyone else and take the task of bringing justice to those who deserve it, and to protect the people surrounding him. A case as demanding as that of tracking down the Zodiac killer or searching for Jack The Ripper can take a toll on your personal life but sometimes we must make great sacrifices for the cause of right. Sometimes we must seek the truth whether we want to embrace it or not.
Our Heroes and Villains for this evening:
Good list
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