| LC control no. | sh 85037256 |
|---|---|
| Topical heading | Detective and mystery films |
| See also | Crime films Police films |
| Subject example tracing | Example under references from Gentleman detective stories, [films, etc.]; Murder mysteries; Mysteries (Stories, films, etc.); Mystery and detective stories, [films, etc.]; Mystery stories, [films, etc.]; P.I. stories, [films, etc.]; Private detective stories, [films, etc.]; Private investigator stories, [films, etc.]; Who-done-it stories, [films, etc.]; Who-done-its; Whodunit stories, [films, etc.]; Whodunits |
| Found in | Lopez, D. Films by genre, c1993 (Private detective film (Detective film, Investigative film, P.I. film) Yee, M.M. Moving image materials, 1988 (Detective films and programs; UF Murder mysteries, Who-done-it's) Cataloging Service bulletin: 49: p. 52 (Gentleman detective films and programs, USE Detective films and programs) Beaver, F.E. Dict. of film terms, 1994 (Whodunit; a colloquial term for a mystery or detective film whose plot is centered on efforts to solve a crime) Films by genre, 1993 (mystery film: about a mystery; usually a murder has been committed; it is imperative that the identity of the killer is not known from the start, or it is not a mystery proper but different kind of crime film altogether; not all mysteries have to do with murder; mystery film is also a label that has been extensively applied, especially on television, to any kind of crime movie that involves apprehending or trapping a criminal) Moving image genre-form guide online, January 28, 2008: (Mystery: fictional work in which a detective (sometimes merely an endangered individual forced to "detect" for his own self-protection) attempts to solve a crime, usually a murder or theft. The detective may be an amateur, a private investigator, or a plainclothes member of a police force, but whatever the identity, the mystery places the emphasis on the search for clues and rationative power of the detective, rather than the efforts of police or lawbreakers. In the mystery, suspense derives from the narrative's puzzle-like structure, with a group of suspects, whose testimony and motives must all be investigated until, in the surprising conclusion, the intelligent detective perceives the flawed alibi or other clue betraying the culprit's identity. RT: Caper, Crime, Film noir, Gangster, Police, and Thriller) |
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