Blacklist

Set in 1959, this ponderous mystery from Ludwig (Getting Garbo) traces the fates of David Weaver and Jana Vardian, children of the screen-writing team of Theodore “Teddy” Weaver and Leo Vardian, Brooklyn boys who made it big in Hollywood. In the early ’50s, Teddy refused to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee and went into exile abroad; Leo named names and continued to make films. David brings his father’s body back to L.A. for burial after 48-year-old Teddy dies of a heart attack in Rome. David reunites with Jana at the funeral. When red-baiting columnist Joe Shannon is murdered shortly after a confrontation with David, the LAPD is ready to pin the killing on him. Jana and David must figure out who’s framing him and why before it’s too late. Despite routine crime solving, Ludwig does a good job depicting the various blatant, subtle, and horrific ways the blacklist affected not only the whole movie industry but our entire social fabric. Agent: Al Zuckerman, Writers House. (June)