Jack Lehman

This is the most bizarre book I've read in a long time, and not necessarily in an interesting way. It rambles insanely, with no (clear) link between characters, chapters, events, anything. I'm sorry, I just didn't get it. And I did try, several times.

Not a very useful review, I know: I can't even explain properly what's so wrong with the story (if it is a story?) - but there's definitely something not right. Perhaps an unedited first draft slipped through into publication or something?

Whatever the reason, Shadows of Unseen Things just doesn't work. For me. And for you, too, I'm guessing.… (meer)

Edited by Jack Lehman (who in his introduction describes "Lit Noir" as being about "...dreams, the unconscious, Jungian shadows") opens with "Lament # 3 with Rain" a slightly pointless poem by CX Dillhunt. Bob Wake overviews and counterpoints two films: "The Friends of Eddie Coyle" (1973) and "Pushover" (1954) in an article entitled "A Mitchum Classic and a MacMurray Misfire". This is a short and engaging piece, but I finished unsure about the point Wake was trying to make. "The 'It's a Wonderful Life' Murders" by Jack Lehman offers a strange twist on a classic film. "The Best Screenplays of All Time" provides an overview of films that were memorable not just for their imagery but for their writing as well. The Top 10 and the honourable mentions are a pretty subjective listing that is always going to be open to discussion and debate; that said it is difficult to disagree with much on David H. Schleicher's list. Under the heading of "Noir Masters" Francis M. Nevins provides a brief overview of the career of Cornell Woolrich. It is a short piece that works well as a quick and snappy introduction to Woolrich, his life and career. Next up is "Obsessed with Vertigo" by Jack Lehman, which I don't think I fully followed or understood. The magazine closes out with a poem (?) from by CX Dillhunt called “Dies Canicularis: The Dog Days of Summer” and with five shortish book reviews. There is some interesting stuff in “Lit Noir” 2, but on the whole it wasn’t a strong issue.… (meer)

Lit Noir is edited and published by Jack Lehman and is described as a pulp fiction journal for the digital age. This first issue contains an odd but enjoyable mix of fiction, reviews and essays. First up is an easy entitled "Mitchum & Stewart" by Bob Wake, which compares Robert Mitchum's "narcoleptic acting style" and authentic cool with the smooth performances and team-player ethos of James Stewart. An interesting enough piece that is well written, but I’m not sure it says anything particularly new. Next up is a cracking wee 67 word story called "Soul Noir" by Mike Kriesel. It is contrived, but beautifully so and I couldn't help but smile at the truism of the last four word sentence. David H. Schleicher, in an article entitled "The Third Man Revisited", provides a love note to Carol Reed's noir classic "The Third Man". This is a clever retrospective that ends with Schleicher's almost unimpeachable list of his top films of the 1940s. The Third Man theme is continued in Jack Lehman's story "Seeing Harry's Ghost". A section called "Movie Quotes" provides a few pages of classic bon mots, before the e-zine ends with "The Stolen Story" by Johnston McCulley, an initially intriguing story that collapses under the weight of its rather silly plot contrivance long before it reaches its stagey climax. McCulley, best known as the creator of Zorro, wrote hundreds of stories and film / television scripts in a long career. "The Stolen Story" was originally published in Detective Story magazine in 1919 and isn’t really amongst his best work. Overall the first issue of "Lit Noir" provided an interesting mix of material, not all of which worked. It was always interesting, however, making for a decent and robust first issue. I look forward to seeing how Jack Lehman develops the magazine.… (meer)

This is the most bizarre book I've read in a long time, and not necessarily in an interesting way. It rambles insanely, with no (clear) link between characters, chapters, events, anything. I'm sorry, I just didn't get it. And I did try, several times.

Not a very useful review, I know: I can't even explain properly what's so wrong with the story (if it is a story?) - but there's definitely something not right. Perhaps an unedited first draft slipped through into publication or something?

Whatever the reason, Shadows of Unseen Things just doesn't work. For me. And for you, too, I'm guessing.… (meer)