By Robert Scucci
| Published 1 hour ago

When people say “they don’t make thrillers like they used to,” I have full reason to believe they have films like 1971’s Klute in mind when they’re airing their grievances. Sometimes, all you need to tell a compelling story is a missing persons case, a climbing body count, and some good old fashioned police work. Directed by Alan J. Pakula, Klute delivers all of the above in spades, and it’s no surprise that its critical and commercial success kicked off what’s affectionately, and informally, known as the “paranoia trilogy,” which also includes 1974’s The Parallax View and 1976’s All the President’s Men.

Anchored by a tight mystery that never fully reveals its true nature until it reaches a breaking point, Klute is a hard-boiled neo-noir thriller you can really sink your teeth into as you try to put the puzzle pieces together yourself.

Starts With A Missing Person And A Call Girl

When Pennsylvania-based chemical company executive Tom Gruneman (Robert Milli) vanishes without a trace, private investigator John Klute (Donald Sutherland) is summoned to trace his whereabouts. Before committing to the case, he’s briefed on intel provided by Gruneman’s employer and colleague, Peter Cable (Charles Cioffi), so he knows exactly what he’s getting into. The only lead John Klute has to work with involves a New York City call girl named Bree Daniels (Jane Fonda), who has received several obscene letters from Gruneman in the lead-up to his disappearance.

The investigation starts out simply enough, with John secretly renting a basement apartment in Bree’s building so he can surveil her and gather intel. Bree is a tough nut to crack because she genuinely enjoys the independence her career affords her as a high-class call girl between sparsely offered acting and modeling gigs. John knows he’s tailing the right woman, but Bree, given how many johns she’s encountered over the years, only vaguely remembers an encounter with Gruneman, who was said to have laid hands on her.

Bree is at first hesitant to work with John, but when their frequent run-ins result in a budding romance, their motives align and she becomes more willing to cooperate with the investigation. That cooperation leads John to Frank Ligouin (Roy Scheider), Bree’s former pimp. Upon learning about two other call girls, Jane Mckenna and Arlyn Page, who both had similarly troubling encounters with Gruneman, John comes as close as he ever will to locating him, only to realize that Gruneman’s disappearance is merely the tip of the iceberg. There are more parties involved, and they don’t want their dark secrets exposed.

A Straight-Faced Thriller With A Gutpunch Ending

More than 50 years after its initial release, Klute is still as effective as anything coming out today because it doesn’t bother overexplaining what’s truly at stake. Instead, it leaves a breadcrumb trail of clues and morally dubious figures in its wake. John Klute has a job to do, but he also finds himself uncovering a far-reaching conspiracy involving powerful people. There’s ample reason not to trust his client at face value, and Bree’s own paranoia and inability to trust anyone adds a palpable layer of tension as she lets her guard down and allows John to become more than just the private investigator living in her building.

Klute checks all the boxes for a rock-solid crime thriller, and it holds up because it’s a well-written mystery that trusts its audience to do the heavy lifting. It leans hard into neo-noir without relying on gimmicks, melodramatic dialogue, or intrusive narration. Its straight-faced delivery is what ultimately pulls you in as you zero in on the guilty parties involved. And if you like what you see here, there’s plenty more where that came from with its unofficial companions, The Parallax View and All the President’s Men.

As of this writing, Klute is streaming for free on Tubi.

TikToker Halley Kate McGookin says she can still feel her head injury nearly two years after she was allegedly punched by a man in the streets of New York City.

McGookin, 25, appeared at the Manhattan Supreme Court trial of Skiboky Stora on Tuesday, February 3, where she claimed that she was on her way to record a podcast in March 2024 when she was punched by a stranger, according to the New York Post. She further testified that she was so caught off guard by the alleged assault that she even apologized to her attacker.

“He was screaming at me, using a lot of profanity, saying it was my fault,” McGookin testified, according to the outlet.

McGookin claimed she can still feel pain at her hairline where she was allegedly struck.

“I couldn’t really touch anywhere near that spot,” she continued. “I couldn’t really brush my head because it was so painful, tender. “I can still feel in my hairline where I was hit.”

Related: Influencer Details Being Randomly Punched in the Head in NYC

Influencer Kindra Hall had a frightening encounter when out and about in New York City. “On Wednesday, May 14th, around 10:30am I was punched in the head by a passing stranger,” the author, 44, wrote via Instagram on Tuesday, May 22. “I wasn’t going to post this as a reel … but there are a […]

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Stora, 42, is charged with three counts of third-degree assault as a hate crime, one count of stalking as a hate crime and second-degree aggravated harassment connected to several alleged random attacks in NYC, including an incident where he allegedly attacked a Jewish couple and yelled, “Die, Jews! Die!”

“Skiboky Stora allegedly committed a series of hate-motivated incidents against several individuals based on their perceived gender, race and religion,” said District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr. in May 2024, according to ABC News. “Much of what defines our city is respect and acceptance of all people. Nobody should have to fear for their safety because of their identity. I thank our prosecutors for their unwavering commitment in seeking justice for these victims.”

Stora was arrested two days after the alleged attack on McGookin, following an investigation by the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force and the Manhattan DA’s office.

McGookin, who did not directly identify Stora as her attacker, posted a video to TikTok about the alleged assault shortly after she claimed it occurred.

“You guys, I was literally just walking, and a man came up and punched me in the face. Oh my God, it was so bad. I can’t even talk,” McGookin said in the video, which went viral and prompted several other TikTok users to come forward with accounts of similar alleged incidents.

Stora, a self-proclaimed rapper, appeared in court wearing a tie with his first name on it. He is representing himself in the trial and reportedly ignoring advice from a legal adviser, according to the NY Post.

Stora asked McGookin a series of unusual questions in court, including one about allegedly being the target of a federal probe and another about a “TikTok trend going around that people were saying they were punched, sucker-punched too.”

The questions were shut down by Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Josh Hanshaft.

Stora’s trial is set to resume on Wednesday, February 4.

Ahead of her appearance in court on Tuesday, McGookin, who has 1.6 million followers on TikTok at the time of publication, took to Instagram to share a video of herself walking down the sidewalk to “The Phantom of the Opera.”

“What plays in my head as I am walking up to the courthouse to testify against the man who hit me in the head two years ago,” she wrote over the clip.

McGookin added in the caption, “He hit the wrong girl lemme tell u that.”

By Chris Snellgrove
| Updated 1 hour ago

James Bond is a fictional character who needs no introduction: he is the super-sexy, martini-swilling secret agent who always manages to get the last laugh and the girl, usually in that order. Right now, the franchise is at a creative crossroads as we wait to learn who the next Bond will be and whether his adventures will stay confined to the big screen or spread out to the small screen. Fortunately, you can return to the franchise roots with the click of a button by playing Dr. No (1962 on Netflix today.

The premise of Dr. No is that British superspy James Bond is dispatched to investigate the sudden death of a fellow spy. Along the way, he meets up with a few expected enemies (like rival spies) and a few unexpected allies (like a friend at the CIA) before getting caught up in the titular villain’s plan to disrupt an upcoming space launch. Now, whether that launch will be successful or not and whether the good doctor’s evil organization ends up ruling the world may come down to Bond’s ability to save the day when every deck is stacked impossibly against him.

A Cast That Really Leans In

The cast of Dr. No includes Joseph Wiseman (best known outside of this movie for Buck Rogers in the 25th Century) as the titular supervillain and Ursula Andress (best known outside of this movie for Clash of the Titans) as the first Bond girl. Unsurprisingly, the best performance comes from Sean Connery, who gives his secret agent a roguish charm that helped to make the actor a household name. Make no mistake: James Bond would never have become such an international phenomenon if not for Connery’s legendary performance, one that holds up remarkably well after all these years.

Relative to its budget, Dr. No is one of the most successful films ever made, especially in the action genre. Against a budget of $1.1 million, the film earned $59.5 million, establishing Bond, James Bond, as one of the most marketable IPs in the entire world. The success of this movie ensured it would have many sequels, leading to a Bond franchise that consists (so far) of 25 official movies, with various actors (including Roger Moore, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig) filling the oversized shoes of Sean Connery once he finally left the franchise that had made him famous.

The Critics Couldn’t Say “No”

Dr. No took over the film world as surely as its titular villain wanted to take over the real world. On Rotten Tomatoes, the movie had a stunning score of 95 percent, with critics commending the film for its uniquely intoxicating blend of action and style. They further praised the movie for delivering such a fully formed cinematic hero in the form of James Bond, someone whose humor and sex appeal are just as much a part of his arsenal as the sexy cars and sleek guns.

If you’re a longtime fan of 007, you might find him largely unrecognizable in this first outing: he’s a meaner, colder secret agent, someone more akin to Daniel Craig or Timothy Dalton’s take on this famous super agent. That doesn’t mean you won’t see some of that trademark Bond charm and plenty of eye candy, thanks to the inaugural Bond girl, Honey Ryder. Plus, the plot is relatively scaled down, but this might very well appeal to someone who has gotten bored by the impossibly high stakes of later Bond outings that feel more like generic Marvel movies rather than grounded, realistic adventures in their own right.

The Most Driven Spy In Hollywood

Dr. No isn’t the best James Bond movie, but it’s arguably the most important because it introduced the world to an entirely new breed of action hero. 007’s influence in future films simply can’t be overstated, and he eventually became one of the most recognizable pop culture figures ever created. Understandably, there’s plenty of joy in returning to Bond’s first outing, which is a relentlessly satisfying romp in its own right that just happens to lay all the groundwork for the sexiest, most stylish franchise to ever grace the silver screen.

Will you agree that Dr. No is a sexy classic that changed Hollywood forever, or is this one spy movie you’d rather leave in the past? The only way to find out is to grab the remote (just watch out for that exploding pen!) and stream it for yourself on Netflix. When it comes to this first cinematic outing of the greatest secret agent the world has ever known, I’m confident you’ll be shaken and stirred.

Savannah Guthrie
We Need Proof of Life On Nancy

Published
February 4, 2026
6:00 PM PST

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Some movies don’t just lodge themselves in your memory — they sprawl out and build a little annex, like the oddball friend at a slumber party insisting everyone watch something weird he smuggled from the back shelf of the video store. The breakthrough 1953 film, House of Wax, starring legendary horror star Vincent Price, is one of those films. It sits right beside Tourist Trap, Phantom of the Wax Museum, and even a few stray Night Gallery segments that stuck to your ribs. Those were stories with some weight on them, a little tragedy in the corners, the kind that made you feel like you were stepping into someone else’s private obsession.

But where House of Wax plays like the ballroom version of the genre — velvet curtains, operatic dread, all that tragic grandeur — Waxwork from 1988 kicks the side door open, wearing mismatched shoes and quoting every horror movie it’s ever rented. It’s the punk nephew crashing the fancy family reunion, bringing the spirit of Creepshow, the playful chaos of The Monster Squad, and the anything-goes attitude that fueled late-night Tales from the Darkside reruns. Waxwork doesn’t just riff on its predecessors; it ransacks the attic of horror history and pulls out everything — Dracula, zombies, werewolves, sadistic aristocrats — with the gleeful confidence of a movie that knows exactly what kind of midnight audience it was born to entertain. It’s cinematic mischief, but mischief made with love.

A Museum Where the Exhibits Don’t Just Come to Life, They Swallow You Whole

Image via Vestron Pictures

If you’ve never seen Waxwork, the elevator pitch tells you exactly what kind of ride you’re in for: a group of college kids wanders into a mysterious wax museum that popped up in town like a weed after a rainstorm. The curator — David Warner, doing that sly, half-charmed, half-menacing thing he could do without breaking a sweat — sizes them up with a look that isn’t quite welcoming and definitely not safe. The whole place feels tilted, like someone staged it five minutes before they walked in.

Then the first student steps too close to an exhibit, and the floor drops out. Literally and figuratively. Waxwork’s big trick — and it’s such a good one you can’t even be mad at how bonkers it is — is that each display is a portal. Get too close to Dracula’s dinner table, and suddenly you’re at Dracula’s dinner table for real, with blood on the menu. Wander toward the zombie setup, and suddenly you’re knee-deep in this grimy, George Romero-tinged wasteland that looks like somebody kicked on a fog machine they found in a high-school auditorium closet. Werewolves, mummies, the Marquis de Sade — it’s all crammed in there. This isn’t a museum; it’s a rowdy horror sampler that grabs whoever’s closest.

It’s a concept that shouldn’t feel this fun, but director Anthony Hickox leans hard into the pulpy chaos. He doesn’t tidy the edges or even try to. Waxwork is more mixtape than movie — a heap of genre detours glued together with a wink, a scream, and a bucket of fake blood that probably never quite came out of the carpeting. And somehow, that chaos makes it feel more affectionate than parody.

Where House of Wax Mourns Beauty, Waxwork Throws a Party in Its Ruins

Vincent Price’s House of Wax aches with its own grandeur. It wants you to feel the tragedy behind every glossy sculpture, each one a monument to obsession and heartbreak. You can almost trace the fingerprints in the wax, the way Price plays his madness, like he’s tuning sorrow into a melody. Waxwork, on the other hand, doesn’t mourn anything. It celebrates the carnage. Where House of Wax is cinematic opera, Waxwork is a punk band rattling a garage door. Instead of tragedy, Hickox gives us pure invention — the thrill of letting every monster loose at once and telling the audience, “You’ll keep up, don’t worry.” It’s not elevating horror; it’s reveling in it.

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There isn’t much cinematic blood spilled in the Bloody Tower.

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And the cast knows exactly what kind of sandbox they’re in. David Warner plays the curator like a man who’s read every villain’s speech in existence and decided none of them were good enough. It’s camp as performance art. Then there’s Zach Galligan — earnest, a little wide-eyed, almost apologetically sincere — grounding the chaos. He ends up being the one steady presence in the room, the guy awkwardly holding the metaphorical flashlight while everything else whirls and snaps around him.

But Hickox’s real trick is threading that sincerity through all the genre mayhem. He’s not mocking the tropes, he’s creating a hodgepodge of them, similar to how a kid would dump all their toys into a huge pile to see what he could create from various combinations. Each world in the wax scenes reveals warmth, even the goofier ones. You never feel like the movie is punching down at horror. It’s clapping along with it.

A Love Letter Written in Blood, Rubber Masks, and VHS Static

Image via Vestron Pictures

For anyone who grew up watching late-night horror blocks or spent uncomfortable amounts of time in video stores clutching a tape with a monster on the cover — Waxwork hits like nostalgia with teeth. It carries the DNA of Creepshow, Fright Night, Monster Squad, and every scrappy anthology film that haunted the 2 a.m. schedule of stations too broke to buy better programming.

But it carves its own spot. It’s knowingly silly, but not a spoof. The film respects the styles it barrels through. You can feel the filmmakers winking, sure, but they’re also sweating. Waxwork is handmade horror — scrappy, clever, slightly lopsided, but full of actual pulse. That’s the thing with camp: it’s not laziness. It’s commitment… just with a smirk. And Waxwork commits. Even though it’s one of those films where you can see the seams on the monsters, you don’t mind. They’re unapologetic, and that adds to the charm because you can feel the love from the hand crafters who probably stayed up into the wee hours of the night to get them just right.

Why It Deserves a Spot Beside the Classics

Waxwork earns its cult status, not by being a flawless film, but because it’s not afraid to venture into the bizarre. It’s like that crazy uncle that makes the family cringe when he shows up at family gatherings with dad jokes and a cooler full of mystery sodas, but earns respect from the youngsters with a tattered copy of Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine under his arm. You don’t ask it to behave. You ask it to liven up the night.

If House of Wax is your thing — the sweep, the style, the controlled unraveling — save a night for its unruly relative. Dim the room, let the nostalgia buzz a little, and slip into something stranger, bloodier, and way less predictable than anything Vincent Price ever polished for the screen. Sometimes horror works better when it doesn’t try to comb its hair. Sometimes messy is the point. And Waxwork? It’s alive and well.

Waxwork is available to stream on Prime Video and Tubi in the U.S.

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Release Date

June 17, 1988

Runtime

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95 minutes

Director

Anthony Hickox

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As expected, celebrities were out and about at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. Among them was Meghan Markle, and while she had eyes on the movies, we had our eyes on her long navy peacoat. The four-digit price tag, however, led us to look for an inexpensive option — which is exactly what we found with this $53 Amazon find.

Markle was at Sundance for the premiere of Cookie Queens, which she executive-produced alongside her husband, Prince Harry. She posed on the red carpet in the Heidi Merrick Fog Coat, which retails for a cool $1,275. Thankfully, the Ebossy Double-Breasted Long Coat is a much more affordable alternative with a similar look, making it a worthy addition to your wardrobe for chilly days ahead.

Get the Ebossy Double-Breasted Long Coat for $53 at Amazon! Please note, prices are accurate as of the publishing date but are subject to change. 

In order to achieve Markle’s deep blue look, you’ll want to shop the layer in navy, but the same piece comes in black, brown, dark gray, dark red and army green. Like the designer version, the Ebossy coat includes a belt for easy closure, but it also features extra hardware, including silver buttons down the front.

Related: Copy Meghan Markle’s Winter Look With These Cardigan Coat Styles — From $9

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Ever since Meghan Markle wore a cardigan coat aka a ‘coatigan,’ everyone wants the look. Markle’s staples usually cost thousands apiece, but we found 20 cozy, expensive-looking outer layers that nail her aesthetic. They are all you’ll want to wear this winter, especially since prices start at just $9. Fusing the details you love about a […]

Many peacoats come in midi lengths, but the Ebossy option nearly hits the ankles. Not only does that make for an elegant look, but it also keeps wearers protected from the wind and other elements. Despite its price, this pick is surprisingly heavy, so it can withstand the frigid temperatures sweeping the country this time of year.

Amazon shoppers appreciate this long, sleek coat. Even though it’s affordable, it holds up well against serious winter weather.

“This coat is fabulous. All lined, warm and fashionable. Pretty sure I need one in every color now. You cannot beat the price,” one five-star reviewer shared.

“I loved this coat. Great quality for the price,” another happy shopper wrote. “It’s a good buy. Soft and warm. I’ve only worn it once so far, and I only wear it out to elegant occasions.”

A quality peacoat is an easy way to dress up whatever you’re wearing underneath, even if it’s a matching sweatsuit set. This Markle-inspired option will do just that, while also keeping you nice and warm.

Get the Ebossy Double-Breasted Long Coat for $53 at Amazon! Please note, prices are accurate as of the publishing date but are subject to change. 

Looking for something else? Explore more peacoats here and don’t forget to check out all of Amazon’s Daily Deals for more great finds!

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Nancy Guthrie Abduction
Investigators Visit Daughter Annie’s Home

Published
February 4, 2026
5:01 PM PST

When the right elements collide, a great show tends to stick around in the cultural conversation. Streaming platforms may allow series to live online indefinitely, but it’s far rarer for audiences to still be watching and talking about a show months after it premieres. In a binge-first era where entire seasons can be consumed in a weekend and quickly forgotten, a series has to leave a lasting impression to keep drawing in new viewers long after its initial release. Great writing gives actors room to dig deep. Strong performances elevate familiar genre beats. And when all of that clicks into place, you get a compelling show that people can’t stop recommending.

That’s exactly what’s happened with The Beast in Me, which continues to surge on Netflix’s Top 10 charts more than three months after its premiere. In an era when most shows burn hot and disappear just as quickly, The Beast in Me has proven to be a clear outlier. That staying power isn’t surprising, given the stellar lead performances from Matthew Rhys and Claire Danes, along with a group of rich characters and a mystery compelling enough to keep viewers hooked. With showrunner Howard Gordon recently noting that there is “always potential” for a second season, the show’s sustained chart presence proves it has real legs in an increasingly crowded streaming landscape.

Claire Danes and Matthew Rhys Anchor a Stellar Ensemble in Netflix’s ‘The Beast in Me’

Premiering in November 2025, The Beast in Me follows Aggie Wiggs (Danes), a mourning author living next door to her new neighbor, enigmatic and arguably menacing real estate mogul Nile Jarvis (Rhys) and his wife Nina (Brittany Snow). Nile was accused of killing his first wife and convinces Aggie to write a book about him. From there, their relationship grows into something deeply compelling and increasingly unsettling as she peels back the truth of who Nile really is.

Right from the start, these characters draw viewers in with their complexity. Aggie is dealing with the guilt of her young son’s death while trying to move on from her ex-wife Shelley (Natalie Morales). Nile lives in the shadow of his father Martin Jarvis (Jonathan Banks), a ruthless real estate mogul whose influence looms over everything. Rhys has always been reliable for delivering incredible performances, from The Americans to Perry Mason, and he does exceptional work as Nile, balancing charm with a chilling edge that keeps the audience constantly guessing whether he’s a killer or just deeply misunderstood.

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From eating a whole chicken to having a laugh to the Talking Heads track “Psycho Killer,” Danes and Rhys had fun making ‘The Beast in Me’ together.

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No one plays a woman in grief and turmoil quite like Claire Danes, who viewers have seen for years on Homeland, but here she plays opposite Rhys with palpable chemistry, echoing her Homeland dynamic, drawn to someone she can’t fully trust, unsure what to believe yet unable to pull away. Another standout performance comes from Brittany Snow, who is finally getting recognized for her dramatic range, building on her work in The Hunting Wives. Together, the ensemble turns the series into something far richer than a standard crime drama, but that doesn’t mean the plot isn’t worth watching for either.

Netflix Unleashes a Captivating Mystery With ‘The Beast in Me’

Beyond its incredible cast, The Beast in Me is anchored by a mystery that unfolds deliberately across its eight-episode season and remains compelling in its own right. Even when the central revelation — particularly the truth surrounding what happened to Niles’ first wife, Maddie — isn’t especially surprising, it’s the process of uncovering that truth that makes the series so gripping. By prioritizing slow-burn storytelling and complex character dynamics, the show transforms what could have been a conventional whodunit into an examination of grief, guilt, and obsession.

The series also isn’t afraid to keep viewers deeply unsettled, whether through the uneasy presence of Jarvis himself or the stormy nights and shadowed windows of Aggie’s Long Island home. Just as importantly, the show’s pacing is confident and controlled. Tension builds naturally over the course of the season without relying on filler, and even the flashback episode depicting Maddie’s fate feels purposeful, deepening both the mystery and the emotional stakes rather than stalling momentum.

More than twelve weeks after its premiere, it’s not surprising that The Beast in Me continues to draw an audience. Whether through new viewers discovering it via word of mouth or returning audiences revisiting the story with full knowledge of the truth, the series makes a compelling case for why great dramas endure. While Netflix has yet to announce a second season, the show’s sustained presence on the charts makes one thing clear: if the streamer does choose to continue the story, The Beast in Me has already built a dedicated audience ready to show up. Anchored by a carefully constructed mystery, strong writing, and standout performances, the series feels built to last, and its continued success feels earned.

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Release Date

2025 – 2025-00-00

Network

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Netflix

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