Known for years for his expertise in the fantasy-thriller genre, he helmed such films as the cult classic "The Evil Dead, " and "Darkman" with Liam Neeson.
Jacques Audiard, who directed the ingenious genrethriller "Read My Lips, " has opted for the risky strategy of starting off with Thom deeply embedded in his dubious pursuits, which are themselves barely penetrable.
Alexandra Hamlet, who won awards for her first novel, a Cold War thriller called The Right Guard, says terrorism has created a new fiction genre - and describes her own work as "intellectual suspense".