Mumbai: What’s black and white and red all over? Are you a neo-noir thriller cinephile looking to dig deep into a binge-worthy weekend of hard-boiled crime films and noir traditions? Red Lorry Film Festival has got you covered. BookMyShow, India’s leading entertainment destination introduced Red Lorry Film Festival, a curated cinematic universe featuring the finest content from across the globe, all under one roof from April 5th to 7th, 2024 at state-of-the-art cinemas Maison INOX at Jio World Plaza and Maison PVR at Jio World Drive, Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), Mumbai.

Red Lorry Film Festival ambassador, Sriram Raghavan, director and screenwriter celebrated for his exceptional storytelling prowess and unique flair for crafting gripping thriller movies like ‘Merry Christmas’, ‘Andhadhun’ and ‘Badlapur’ that delve into the complications of suspense, crime and psychological drama, has carefully curated a select few titles from the international Film Festival, with his love for the neo-noir thriller genre evidently visible!

Sriram Raghavan, Director and Screenwriter said, “I’m thrilled for cinephiles to be able to get access to international masterpieces at BookMyShow’s Red Lorry Film Festival, as it celebrates the timeless allure of neo-noir thrillers, among many other genres. The titles and tribute films not only showcase the genre’s rich legacy but also highlight the growing interest and appreciation for it in India.”

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Here are 7 titles Sriram Raghavan doesn’t want you to miss at Red Lorry Film Festival:

1.   Dark Passage (1947): The American mystery thriller film directed by Delmer Daves and starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall was the third of four films real-life couple Bacall and Bogart made together. The first portion of the film subjectively depicts the male lead’s point of view, concealing the face of Vincent Parry (Bogart), until the character undergoes plastic surgery to change his appearance. The story follows Parry’s attempt to hide from the law and clear his name of murder.

Raghavan Recommends: Prison break, murder, blackmail, revenge and of course, sizzling chemistry. This stylish forgotten noir from the ‘40s, is based on a novel by David Good is and stars the iconic screen pair Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall.

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2.   The Lady From Shanghai (1947): A femme fatale named Elsa (Rita Hayworth) catches the eye of Irish sailor Michael O’Hara (Orson Welles) when he joins a bizarre yachting cruise with Elsa’s husband (Everett Sloane); but O’Hara soon finds himself implicated in a murder, despite his innocence.

Raghavan recommends: Orson Welles is a genius. He took this studio assignment to pay off a debt and it’s a film noir treat with a climax that has often been imitated.  

3.   Psycho (1960): The psychological thriller, an Alfred Hitchcock classic, features Marion (Janet Leigh), frustrated with her job and her lover, who decides to follow a sudden impulse to steal $40,000 and leave town. She stops for the night at the ramshackle Bates Motel and meets the proprietor Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), a young man with an interest in taxidermy and a difficult relationship with his mother. What follows will keep you at the edge of your seat.

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Raghavan recommends: The ‘mother’ of all slasher films. Watch Psycho on the big screen and try to imagine how it would have shocked the audiences in 1960. Hitchcock had stationed an ambulance outside every cinema hall playing Psycho.

4.   Blow Up (1966): A countercultural masterpiece, the first English-language production of Italian director Michelangelo Antonioni, Blow Up takes the form of a psychological mystery, starring David Hemmings as a fashion photographer who unknowingly captures a death on film after following two lovers in a park.

Raghavan Recommends: Fans of Kundan Shah’s ‘Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron’ will remember Antonioni Park, where the bumbling photographers accidentally click a picture of a murder in progress. That was Kundan’s tribute to this cerebral thriller with striking imagery.

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5.   Frenzy (1972): The British thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock is the penultimate feature film of his extensive career and the third and final film that Hitchcock made in Britain after he moved to Hollywood in 1939. Frenzy follows the misadventures of ex-Royal Air Force man Richard Blaney (Jon Finch), who is framed for a particularly nasty series of ‘necktie’ murders as he goes on the run, determined to prove his innocence.

Raghavan recommends: This is Hitchcock at 73, returning to his roots and filming a low budget thriller with unknown actors. The macabre humour is intact and so is the cinema. There’s much to learn from the Master’s use of the camera.

6.   The Last Night of Amore (2023): The Italian crime-thriller depicts the story of Franco Amore, played by the Italian superstar Pierfrancesco Favino, who is writing his farewell speech on the night of his retirement. Nobody knew, though, that night would turn out to be the longest and most difficult of his entire professional life.

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Raghavan Recommends: It’s a story set in one night. A cop on the verge of retirement is called for one last case, involving the death of his partner. Director Andrea Di Stefano’s film, shot in Milan boasts of action sequences, shot on a working highway. The Italian police drama is a genre in itself and I look forward to this film.

7.   The Sleeping Woman (2024): The Spanish horror-thriller follows Ana, a nursing assistant, begins to feel attracted to Agustín, the husband of a woman in a coma whom she cares for. She then begins to be harassed by strange phenomena who want to throw her out of the house and separate her from Agustín.

Raghavan recommends: The premise is intriguing. The horror thriller, directed by Laura Alvea stars Almudena Amor known for her horror flicks with supernatural overtones in the leading role in ‘The Sleeping Woman’. 

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