“Profit Is the Only Principle”: How ‘Point Blank’ Presaged Our Current Moment
The author revisits John Boorman’s 1967 neo‑noir Point Blank, noting its central line “Profit is the only principle.” The film’s portrayal of a faceless crime syndicate mirrors today’s political debate over a $152 million Alcatraz rebuild and rising military spending that crowds out social programs. Walker’s revenge quest for $93,000 underscores how individual survival is squeezed by profit‑driven structures. The piece argues the movie serves as a stark lens on modern financial violence and corporate indifference.
What to Watch Now, International Edition: The Two Prosecutors (2025)
Ukrainian director Sergei Loznitsa’s latest film, *The Two Prosecutors*, dramatizes a 1930s Soviet prosecutor’s journey to expose prison torture. The 118‑minute drama relies on stark visuals, narrow corridors and almost no dialogue to convey the terror of the totalitarian bureaucracy....
Douglas Preston and Aletheia Preston on Inventing a New Character
Authors Douglas Preston and Aletheia Preston are promoting their new thriller *Paradox* with a guest post that offers an origin story for Detective Bart Romanski, the novel’s forensic chief. The vignette places Romanski at a Colorado crime scene, detailing his...
Dane Bahr on Craft and Why Crime Fiction Is the Punk Complement to Literary Fiction
Dane Bahr uses a punk‑rock metaphor to argue that crime, horror and western novels are the rebellious counterpart to literary fiction. He stresses that plot, not lofty prose, is the engine that keeps a manuscript alive, and shares how techniques...
Brittany Butler on Joining the CIA, Tradecraft, and Writing True-to-Life Spy Fiction
Brittany Butler, a former CIA officer turned novelist, reveals that a decade of intelligence work taught her espionage is driven by human vulnerability, not gadgets or cinematic flair. She explains how tradecraft exploits personal motivations—love, grief, revenge—to recruit and manipulate...
Ande Pliego on the Marvelous Libraries That Inspired Her New Novel
Ande Pliego reveals how iconic libraries across Europe and the United States shaped the setting of her thriller *The Library After Dark*. She draws on the Bodleian’s Art’s End, Vienna’s Hofbibliothek, Cambridge’s Wren Library, the George Peabody Library, and New York’s Morgan...
How David Mills Helped Bring ‘NYPD Blue’ to Its Artistic Apex
David Mills, the first Black writer on *NYPD Blue*, penned the landmark episode “The Backboard Jungle,” confronting police racism and elevating the series’ artistic depth. His hiring followed a public backlash against creator David Milch’s racist remarks, prompting a diversification...
Your Orient Express Reading List: From Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet’s new "Journey Orient Express" compiles a literary tour of the famed train, spotlighting classics from Graham Greene to Agatha Christie. The book highlights how authors from the 1920s‑1930s used the Express to explore decadence, intrigue, and pre‑war anxieties....
Documentaries to Watch Now: Cover-Up (2025)
"Cover‑Up" (2025), directed by Laura Poitras and Mark Obenhaus, profiles Pulitzer‑winning journalist Seymour Hersh and his landmark investigations of the My Lai massacre and Abu Ghraib abuses. The film blends the tension of 1970s political thrillers with rigorous reporting, offering a...
Luke Goebel on Weaponized Fatigue and the Necessity of Violence in His New Novel
Luke Goebel’s new novel *Kill Dick* confronts what he calls "shock fatigue," the desensitization caused by relentless media overload. The book uses graphic violence, sex, and scandal to force readers out of complacency, arguing that only heightened intensity can break the...
Nicholas George on Setting Mysteries in Dynamic Locations
Nicholas George highlights a niche within mystery fiction where the action moves beyond static villages to dynamic travel settings such as cruise ships, trains, planes, cars and buses. He cites classic and contemporary examples—from Agatha Christie’s “Death on the Nile”...
R.M. Caldwell on Writing a Regency-Era ‘Fast and the Furious’, Neurodivergence, and More
R.M. Caldwell’s debut novel *Fast and Fastidious* fuses Jane Austen‑style Regency romance with the high‑speed thrills of *The Fast and the Furious* through illicit night carriage races. The story follows neurodivergent heiress Lucy, whose mechanical mind drives her obsession with...
What’s New to Streaming This Weekend: April 10, 2026
This weekend’s streaming slate adds Hulu’s adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s novel “The Testaments,” continuing the Gilead storyline, and Tubi’s full three‑season run of the post‑apocalyptic series “Snowpiercer.” The Criterion Channel highlights a curated lineup of classic corporate thrillers, while Netflix...
The Husband and Wife Team Who Spent 10 Years Writing a Financial Thriller About Globalization
David Shinar, a former IMF economist and Wall Street strategist, and his wife, architect Margalit Shinar, released their debut novel *Merry‑Go‑Round Broke Down* on March 31. The financial thriller, structured as nine interlinked stories set in ten countries, explores the...
The Character Flaws That Drive the Most Compelling Domestic Thrillers
The article argues that the most compelling domestic thrillers hinge on characters whose unchecked emotions—especially envy, pride, and greed—drive the plot. By amplifying these classic vices, writers create morally grey protagonists that readers both recognize and fear. The piece illustrates...