Revisiting the shades of fear in ‘The Leopard Man’

We’ve all been there. There’s a noise behind us. A rustling of bushes. Or a movement in a dark street corner. Is someone there? We casually walk a little faster while telling ourselves it’s just our imagination – or is it? Yes, we’ve all been there (admit it, guys) and t... Read full article

The Leopard Man (1943): A Work of Sound and Shadow

It’s fitting that a pair of castanets act as our entry point into the latest entry from Val Lewton’s RKO unit. Not only do they instantly grab our attention, but they foreshadow the auditory nature of the film and, in the cultural context, provide a little shorthand for where our setting... Read full article

The Leopard Man (1943)

Val Lewton was well-known for taking ludicrous titles and crafting a narrative from there. In the case of Cat People or I Walked With a Zombie, the acting and storyline mined those titles for psychological significance. But you can’t expect lightening to hit every time, and thus you get films ... Read full article

The Leopard Man features "one of the greatest horror sequences ever filmed"

The accolade in the title of this review comes from director William Friedkin, who knows a little about creating horror (The Exorcist) and suspense (the chase scene in The French Connection). Of course, I didn't need Mr. Friedkin to tell me what I already knew. I saw The Leopard Man as a kid and tha... Read full article

The Leopard Man (1943)

The Leopard Man Directed by Jacques Tourneur Written by Ardel Wray and Edward Dein from the novel Black Alibi by Cornell Woolrich 1943/USA RKO Radio Pictures First viewing/Netflix rental Val Lewton had to use the titles the studio gave him but he used them to make atmospheric gems about our primal f... Read full article