by Alice-Ginevra Micheli, Contributing Writer
We all have that feeling. You know the one: you finish watching a movie and something about it hits you in just the right spot. Whether it was the theme, the story, or even the characters, there was a quality about it that almost makes you want to turn around and go back a second, third, or even fourth time!
Bar the reality of living in the movie theater for the rest of your days, you turn to the rest of pop culture and start to look for other avenues where you can find that same feeling.
Well I’m here to make this plight easier for all. Each month, I will take a piece of pop culture that was prevalent in the social consciousness — whether it is a movie, tv show, or something else — and then recommend other forms of media for those who want to stay in that world a little bit longer.
Welcome to your One Stop Pop, internet!
This month saw the end of Mare of Easttown, a miniseries that has taken the world by storm. Starring Kate Winslet in one of her most interesting roles to date, the show follows the titular Mare as she investigates the murder of one of the town’s young girls. Along the way, and assisted by young ingenue Colin Zabel (Evan Peters), she uncovers more twists, turns, and secrets than could have ever been thought possible in her sleepy home.
A character-driven mystery, this show was magnetic, magnanimous and just magnificent. I know I found myself tuning in every single week wanting to see where the story would take me. Shocking and brilliant, if you’re feeling like I am, and have a thriller shaped hole in your heart now that it’s finished, I have a few suggestions to help get you through to the next HBO crime drama.
Movie: Gone Baby Gone
Directed by Ben Affleck and starring his brother Casey, the film follows two Boston detectives as they investigate a little girl’s kidnapping. The deeper into this case they go, the more they discover that sometimes solving a mystery will uncover parts of even yourself that you would have never wanted to deal with.
A film that explores not just the darkness in humanity, but the moral and ethical quandary of what is right, you’re sure to be in a state of crisis when the credits start to roll — and that’s a good thing. Rather than just telling a neat story, this is one that will continue to pervade your waking thoughts for at least a a couple days afterwards.
It’ll make you question whether you’re a good person, and even what a good person is, and if you watch it with someone else, I guarantee it will fuel some really interesting discussions about what it means to be human and the choices that you would make in the same scenario.
Thought-provoking is really the term here, and even putting all this aside, it’s just a really well-made film. Expertly acted, stunningly directed, and very well-written, I guarantee that is just as evocative as any episode of Mare was.
Streaming on HBO Max, watch it there and question everything you ever knew about yourself and the people you love.
Book: Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie
When it comes to mysteries, no one does it better than Ms. Christie. A master of her art, there’s a reason that her works have been adapted multiple times across movies, TV, podcasts, YouTube, and other works of literature.
So when it comes to diving into a real head scratcher with fully realized characters, outrageous circumstances, and a crime-solving savant at its center, then you should look no further than Christie’s many novels.
However, I’m going to recommend one in particular. My favourite, in fact — Death on the Nile. Part of the many adventures of the magnanimous detective Hercule Poirot, this story takes place on a cruise ship traveling down the Nile River. One morning, when a young heiress is found dead, it’s up to Poirot and his sidekick of the moment to solve this investigation before the ship docks and the murderer has a chance to escape.
Intricate, interesting and a real page-turner of a story, this will easily have you up until the early hours of the morning as you desperately try to put the puzzle pieces together and unveil the final solution.
Add to that the fact that it’s about to make it onto the big screen in 2022 and there’s no reason not to dig in!
For now, pick it up off the shelves of your favourite bookseller and enjoy the jigsaw within.
Game: Path of Sin: Greed (Artifex Mundi Games)
Now, if solving riddles and getting at the center of a mystery is your thing, but you want a more active role, then it’s time for you to find a good game to play that puts you right in the center of the story.
And this is exactly that.
Taking the form of a standard point and click game, the company that made this is famous for creating these type of hidden object puzzles that play into the story, and while they’re a bit campy and kitsch, they’re also always fun.
In this one, you play a rookie inspector, who teams up with with a more experienced partner to find the truth behind an unexpected death on a secluded island. Knowing that the murderer is likely one of the family members, you don’t have a lot of time to solve this, as you know that the killer is in the shadows just waiting to strike again.
With gameplay that involves finding hidden objects, solving puzzles, riddles, and putting your observation skills to the ultimate test, this is a really fun way to put your detective hat on during a cozy night in.
Fun to play alone or with friends, you’re sure to get hooked the deeper into the tangled web you go as you uncover the lies, secrets, and scandals being hidden within the island!
Can you solve the mystery in time? Find out by playing on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, or even on your phone and computer.
Podcast: Unfound
In a similar vein, if maybe you’re not quite ready to take the full reins of a mystery into your hands, but you do want to feel like you’re part of the action, then the podcast Unfound is for you.
Featuring interviews with friends and family members of people who have gone missing under mysterious circumstances, the hosts engage in real investigative journalism to develop new theories and leads in cold cases.
With every episode looking at a different individual, you’re sure to be thrilled, interested, and slowly obsessed with these truly intricate missing person cases. What’s more, some of these have been re-opened as a result of the episodes, which makes it all the more thrilling with every listen.
Be advised, however, that the creators consider this to be a news program — not an entertainment one — so be ready to go in deeper than you ever thought possible, and to really get your brain churning.
Hit it up on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and really give it a listen — could you solve a real cold case?
So for all you mystery buffs out there, I hope there’s something here to satiate your tastes until the next series comes along. No matter how passive, or how active, you want to be, there should be something here that hits that Mare sweet spot, now that the show is well and truly over.
Or at least, it should do so for a month. Otherwise, I’ll be back in July for a brand new series of recommendations based on what hits big this time around.
Until then, thank you for visiting Siftpop’s One Stop Pop, and we hope to see you again soon!
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