I'd like to get some good mystery movie recommendations from the 80s on.
It's OK if they veer toward the thriller, like
Michael Clayton, ridiculous like
Ford Fairlaine, noirish like
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, or are a more standard outing with a strong, interesting, well developed detective lead like
Zero Effect. Drawing room mysteries totally A-OK too. Super bonus points if I can stream them now on Hulu plus or Netflix.
posted by jsturgill
on May 16, 2013 -
25 answers
It's actually a series. The protagonist is a female detective, who seems to be in love with her ex-husband, and at some point has to live with him and his new wife because she is injured. I think she has lived with her elderly mother, too. Sorry, not much to go on!
posted by cherrybounce
on May 8, 2013 -
4 answers
How do police departments use/search partial license plate information in their investigations? Or incomplete information about cars generally?
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posted by Admiral Haddock
on Apr 18, 2013 -
5 answers
I'm a late-twenties adult finishing my BA a little late. I'm still a little unsure as to what I'd like to do, but I've always had an interest in solving crimes. What are my options for doing this as a career, preferably NOT for a local police department, at least in the long term?
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posted by ancient star
on Apr 1, 2013 -
20 answers
I'm looking for examples of detective stories, or stories set among the Colonial police force, in Africa during roughly the period 1918-1955. Short stories, novels, even films.
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posted by unSane
on Feb 4, 2013 -
10 answers
Does anyone have any examples of some cartoons that reference Film Noir or are drawn in a noir-esque fashion/explore noir themes?
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posted by cloeburner
on Dec 13, 2012 -
17 answers
BookFilter: Noir and postmodern fiction in sci-fi clothing. Find me
The Big Sleep of science fiction.
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posted by Nomyte
on Jul 8, 2012 -
39 answers
What small details on a person or surroundings would indicate a person's personality / job / background?
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posted by SRMorris
on Feb 28, 2012 -
18 answers
I am wanting to write a novel involving detective work and criminal profiling. (Yes, it may turn out horrid.) I am looking for some reference books that might help me be a little bit more informed. So far, I have gotten
Criminal Profiling by Brent Turvey, and
Body Trauma by David Page. Anybody have some recommendations?
posted by snap_dragon
on Nov 12, 2011 -
11 answers
Looking for recommendations for private investigator / detective in Washington DC and northern Virginia area. If you know of anyone good, please suggest. Thanks.
posted by miomiomio
on Sep 7, 2011 -
1 answer
What bug is
this? We have a bunch of them, and they seem to like fabric (and they like to hang on for dear life). Are they going to eat our clothes?
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posted by sdis
on Aug 6, 2011 -
4 answers
How can I use a name, a birth date, a town, a social security number and an approximate date of death (month/year) to find next of kin?
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posted by jeanmari
on May 5, 2011 -
9 answers
Are there ever any reliable inferences to be drawn about a person's work or lifestyle from physical characteristics?
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posted by yesster
on Apr 3, 2011 -
63 answers
Help! We know who broke into our house and stole our computers (we intercepted a laptop), but the detective is either totally incompetent or totally disinterested in helping us. What do we do?
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posted by bradly
on Jan 12, 2011 -
16 answers
I am interested in any recommendations on Sherlock Holmes pastiches. I finished a few Jack the Ripper-related stories (_The Last Sherlock Holmes Story_, and _The Whitechapel Horrors_) and would like your suggestions. I am not a big fan of Laurie King, though. The game is afoot!
posted by snap_dragon
on Oct 4, 2010 -
22 answers
According to
this PDF (
previously on the Blue), in 1934, Martin Gardner said in an interview that (prior to himself) the only puzzle collector he'd ever heard of was fictitious, a detective character "in a series of short stories that ran many years ago in one of the popular mystery magazines." Who was the character (and author)?
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posted by Zed
on May 6, 2010 -
8 answers
Looking for books where a person or people are searching for a long lost person.
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posted by reenum
on Dec 18, 2009 -
23 answers
Say that Citizen Kane really wanted to find Rosebud - who would he call? Is there a kind of specific person who tracks down these personal lost things?
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posted by rileyray3000
on Oct 14, 2009 -
3 answers
Super vague and obscure comicy question: Help me remember this steampunk/gothic/noir graphic-novel type story from the 1980's.
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posted by washburn
on Oct 4, 2009 -
6 answers
It's summertime and that means detective stories. I've read ALL of Simenon, Agatha Christie (Miss Marple, Hercule Poirot), Dorothy Sayers, John Sandford, Denise Hamilton, Lee Child, Edward Wright, Henning Mankell. Tried but didn't like Tony Hillerman.
Any suggestions for another engaging series?
Thanks.
posted by holdenjordahl
on Jun 8, 2009 -
63 answers
I am trying to find the title of this film I remember scantily from my childhood. I do remember belly-laughing at this film when I was a kid, but can't remember for the life of me more than just a few details. Here's what I know (or think I remember)...
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posted by jspierre
on Mar 22, 2008 -
5 answers
I need to read something in Spanish. I want excellent writing, with involving plots, and it must be in print. Good detective fiction perhaps?
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posted by andrew cooke
on Aug 6, 2007 -
22 answers
Lots of programs allow you to create system wide hotkeys, or identify hotkeys in shortcuts, but what about a utility that reports what's already taken and what program owns it?
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posted by lasitter
on Jul 4, 2007 -
1 answer
Does anyone have a recommendation for a private investigator/detective in the Boston area? Any tips for finding the best one, or helpful experiences working with one to share?
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posted by anonymous
on Jan 14, 2007 -
3 answers
I was reading Tintin and I remembered an illustrated How To guide about being a detective in a similar ligne claire style that I loved as a kid.
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posted by andrewzipp
on Jan 10, 2007 -
8 answers
Can someone point me to an online copy of the taxonomy of detective story plots done by either the Oulipo or the Oulipopo? My Google-fu is failing me.
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posted by juv3nal
on Oct 31, 2006 -
3 answers
In this month's GQ, there's a longer update to the
Milford High drug bust story, in which a 23-year-old private detective went undercover at a high school, leading to the eventual arrest of seventeen high school students. (The story inspired a decidedly banal
MeFi thread.) My question--not covered in the previous thread, the news coverage, or the GQ article--is simple: how in the world is it legal for a private detective to buy drugs? And for the reported purchase of drugs to lead to an arrest?
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posted by Ian A.T.
on May 29, 2006 -
12 answers
If you wanted to track down someone you knew from an online community, given only a username, how would you go about it?
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posted by jojopizza
on Mar 26, 2006 -
16 answers
Do hotels still have house detectives? You always hear about them in old movies and radio shows; do they still exist? If they do, what are their responsibilities?
posted by Dr. Wu
on Dec 12, 2005 -
11 answers
A friend from junior high tracked me down by phone a few years ago (we'd been out of touch for about 15 years), which jump-started our friendship. We’ve never met up again in person (I left our home town years ago), but we stayed in touch via phone calls and email. For various reasons, however, I’ve begun to suspect that I’m being hoaxed in some way. I don't mean that I think this a stranger impersonating my friend, or that I’ve been swindled out of any money or anything. I've just started to get the funny feeling (due to inconsistencies, odd details, explanations that don’t always add up, etc.) that the story I've been given about where they're living, their career (supposedly a high-powered, adventurous one), etc. is just that -- a story that was made up, for some reason, to fool me after all these years.
My amateur detective skills pretty much begin and end with google, however, which has turned up nothing useful. I thought of checking military records (this person claims to have served after college) as a starting point, but I'm a civilian and so can’t access them. Of course I'm wary of the "find out the truth about anyone -- just $39.95!" online ads. Are there any (legitimate) resources I’m overlooking? Any other suggestions with how to deal with what has become an uncomfortable situation?
posted by anonymous
on Feb 2, 2005 -
18 answers
If, theoretically, a family member of yours was murdered, which TV or movie cops would you want investigating. I'd choose either
Andy Sipowicz or Jack Cates from
48 Hours to do the legwork because of sheer badassery and
Frank Pembleton from
Homicide to handle interrogations. Who would you choose and why?
posted by jonmc
on Sep 18, 2004 -
45 answers
