Zeitgeist '24 for May: Whodunit? And Why Now?

A lecture-discussion hosted by film critic Robert Horton

Recently, the whodunit—especially the kind where the suspects gather in a drawing-room at the end and the sleuth reveals the culprit—has enjoyed an unexpected comeback. Directors Rian Johnson (the Knives Out movies) and Kenneth Branagh (who plays Agatha Christie's super-detective Hercule Poirot in Murder on the Orient Express et al.) have apparently devoted their careers to the subgenre, while Only Murders in the Building flourishes on TV. Why the comeback? We'll discuss these new films and old classics (let's get some cult appreciation for Clue and The Last of Sheila) as we ponder the whodunit's appeal. No spoilers, we swear, even if the butler did it!

NOTE: This presentation will be recorded.

The "Programmer-Historian in Residence" at Scarecrow Video, Robert Horton is a member of the National Society of Film Critics and host of the radio program "The Music and the Movies." His books include a critical study of Frankenstein. He has been a Fulbright Specialist, a Smithsonian Journeys speaker, and he is a member of the Humanities Washington Speakers Bureau for 2021-2025.

This talk is part of our Silver Screeners program and is funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.