Most documentaries about legendary people are unsurprisingly structured since the subject’s history and reputation steer the film through its motions. Take Every Wave: The Life of Laird Hamilton is no different, but I do admire how the film paces the impressive life of the surfer/entrepreneur/game changer.
Cold Hell (DIR. Stefan Ruzowitzky) Cold Hell is a dark and gritty crime thriller written by Martin Ambrosch and directed by Stefan Ruzowitzky. The film has been deservedly compared to other serial-killer thrillers like David Fincher’s Se7en; though it doesn’t revolutionize the genre, Cold Hell’s adrenaline-fuelled brutality prove that following the usual formula isn’t always a bad thing.
By: Jessica Goddard Frederick Wiseman’s Ex Libris: The New York Public Library is a slow and detailed documentary about the vast institution of the New York Public Library (not to be confused with its famous headquarters in Midtown Manhattan). The film focuses on the NYPL’s many branches and services and functions, offering long samples of footage of what goes on from day-to-day in different branches, ranging from the micro to the macro. Famous speakers and…
Two teenage girls come-of-age in a small town. They use “teen speak”, spend all their time on social media, and find themselves consumed by their various hobbies. What makes Tragedy Girls different from a plethora of similar films is that one of these girls’ hobbies is murder.
Dead Shack (DIR. Peter Ricq) Audiences that like their zombies with a healthy side of laughs shouldn’t miss Dead Shack, director Peter Ricq’s dark comedy about three teenagers whose week-long vacation at a cabin in the woods takes a nightmarish turn when they learn that their neighbour in the cabin next-door is feeding unsuspecting young locals to her undead family.
Filmmaker Reese Eveneshen seems to be his own worst enemy with his latest project Defective. On one hand, on a limited budget, he’s developed Toronto into a nameless city living in a convincing dystopia. The visuals are on par with the works of Neill Blomkamp (District 9, Elysium). However, Eveneshen’s overwritten screenplay becomes so convoluted, it reaches a point of no return.
Game of Death is a gory conundrum that is both impressive and bothersome.
Beyond Skyline (DIR. Liam O’Donnell) Liam O’Donnell’s Beyond Skyline is the sequel to 2010’s critically panned sci-fi action flick, Skyline. Movie fans have been eagerly anticipating Beyond Skyline after an impressive trailer dropped earlier this year. With performances by Frank Grillo (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War) and Iko Uwais (Star Wars: The Force Awakens), many were hopeful that the new film would be a vast improvement on the original.
The tagline for The Limehouse Golem boasts that its fictional Victorian London serial killer precedes the infamous Jack the Ripper. We have yet to see a compelling cinematic take on the Ripper murders (including the Hughes Brothers’ tragically underwhelming Johnny Depp vehicle From Hell). Though it merely draws inspiration from the Ripper, The Limehouse Golem suggests that we may have to wait a bit longer.
This critic sometimes finds it impossible to believe the sort of films that premiere at film festivals. As I have warned you before, the Toronto After Dark Film Festival is particularly guilty of this cinematic crime when it comes to their world premieres. I would love to be proven wrong, but the streak continues.