bernard herrmann

M. Night Shyamalan’s SIGNS Still Shines 20 Years On

Released 20 years ago in 2002, M.Night Shyamalan‘s Signs is a masterful Hitchcockian thriller about a low-key alien invasion. Alfred Hitchcock‘s The Birds was clearly an inspiration for the writer-director. Dripping with fear of the [...]

August 3, 2022

Notebook Reviews: PSYCHO

Gus Van Sant – 1998. It’s obviously nowhere near as good as Alfred Hitchcock‘s original, but Gus Van Sant‘s updating of Psycho isn’t too bad. This shot-for-shot remake could have been a total disaster, but it manages to [...]

October 30, 2021

Horror Movies To Watch This Halloween

October is when the nights get darker and more mysterious. It’s the month where people like to delve deep into the horror genre and watch a variety of scary movies as Halloween approaches.  Movies In Focus has put together a [...]

October 2, 2021

Uncovering Curiosities: Sidney Gilliat’s ENDLESS NIGHT

Sidney Gilliat’s 1972 adaptation of Agatha Christie’s 1967 mystery novel, Endless Night is an intriguing film in how it unveils itself, but it’s not wholly successful in what it attempts to achieve. Almost Hitchockian in tone – in part [...]

September 7, 2021

Notebook Reviews: JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS

Don Chaffey – 1963 Jason And The Argonauts is one of the great Ray Harryhausen‘s finest films. This Don Chaffey directed adventure is a timeless classic with superb special effects and wonderful action set pieces. The film’s [...]

April 5, 2021

Notebook Reviews: MYSTERIOUS ISLAND

Cy Endfield – 1961 Mysterious Island is a wonderful old-fashioned American Cvil War era adventure romp. This 1961 film’s stop motion effects are glorious – coming from the brilliant effects master, Ray Harryhausen.  All the [...]

April 4, 2021

25 Great Horror Movies To Watch This October

October is the month where people like to delve deep into the horror genre and watch a variety of scary movies in the lead-up to Halloween. Movies In Focus has put together a list of 25 great horror movies. Some of them are classics films and others [...]

October 4, 2020

Uncovering Curiosities: Brian De Palma’s SISTERS

Brian De Palma has been compared to Alfred Hitchcock throughout his career. However, he has never been more Hitchcockian than he was with Sisters. It plays like a greatest hits package of the Master of Suspense’s finest moments as De Palma takes [...]

September 13, 2020

Movies In Focus’ Top 20 Horror Films

It’s very difficult to distill something into a list of ‘bests’. However, sometimes it’s good to take stock of something and evaluate the quality, trying to understand what it should or shouldn’t be. I’ve been writing about films for a [...]

October 30, 2016