By: Addison Wylie At TIFF ’12, a cold film named Krivina made its mark on the circuit. Directed by Igor Drljaca and produced by Albert Shin, Krivina was a film with a strong, silent lead. It tested my patience with meandering stretches, but halfheartedly won me back with a shocking twist I didn’t see coming. Smashcut to present day and the roles have switched with In Her Place – Shin is now the writer/director and…
By: Addison Wylie TIFF’s Canadian roots are more than prominent in the Short Cuts Canada programmes. Alexander Rogalski and Magali Simard – two of the festival’s programmers – have selected what they feel are the cream of the short form crop. They’ve included filmmakers with impassioned voices and integral visions, and they’ve even included some touched up classics. It’s expected that The National Film Board of Canada would be involved in this showcase somehow. Their…
By: Addison Wylie Filmmaker Naji Abu Nowar marks a departure from short films with Theeb, a gripping slow burn that confidently risks it all to challenge itself with different genres. The boldness often profits this tense flick. At first, it’s a character study ala Beasts of the Southern Wild, albeit told more conventionally. While its composure helps the film with its accessibility towards the audience, it doesn’t contain any stimulating eruptions through its presentation. However,…
By: Addison Wylie Ok, everyone. This way, please. This tour is running behind, and we need to catch up. This next work we’ll be observing is Frederick Wiseman’s National Gallery. This work has been known to carelessly eat up time for those who endure it. The entire canvas – for some reason – takes close to three hours to view. And, even though we’re given too much time to comprehend this lacklustre endeavour, on-lookers will…
By: Addison Wylie The Haunted House films have their haters. But, these comedies also have those happy-go-lucky appreciators who laugh like hyenas with each crass joke. The difference between those two audiences is that the haters will openly vent about how these movies stink, while the others are too embarrassed to admit they chuckled. A Haunted House was a guilty pleasure of mine. It was a minor comedy that found success during its theatrical run,…
By: Addison Wylie Guardians of the Galaxy plays as a gnarlier, more rugged version of The Avengers. But, only will that thought hit you after the credits have rolled. You won’t be put off by it though; Guardians of the Galaxy is a boatload of fun nonetheless. It’s only worth bringing up because when a generic formula is paired with this much originality, the combination can’t help but flare. Then again, I sort of expected this…
By: Addison Wylie Swearnet: The Movie follows three chowderheads trying to figure out where they fit in after their long time claim to fame. The three douchebags: Robb Wells, John Paul Tremblay, and Mike Smith. Those fucking tools that we’ve seen bumble around on television and star in this year’s jag-off road comedy Trailer Park Boys: Don’t Legalize It. They can’t be associated with anything that has to do with that fucking landmark in Canadian…
By: Anthony King GOING IN: Pierce Brosnan is back and he seems pissed off. I don’t know where he went, but I know I haven’t seen him in a while. So, initially I was excited to see him in a new trailer. I’m not a huge Bond guy, nor do I particularly like Pierce in the role for a few reasons. Firstly, his Bond movies get increasingly more stupid and unrealistic as they go on….
By: Addison Wylie Jennifer M. Kroot’s documentary To Be Takei is cheesy and cute. Then again, so is her subject: actor and activist George Takei. Takei, most notably known for his work on Star Trek as Lieutenant Sulu, is a busy man and yet we never hear him complain. When he’s not acting, he’s passionately speaking to crowds about homosexual orientation and the deserved right for same-sex marriage. After years of withholding his sexual preferences…
By: Addison Wylie God’s Not Dead – one of the many mainstream films to be released this year that central around religion – is a project that’s easy for select opinionated movie goers to pile on. With its earnest ambitions and its obvious preferences as to who the film is geared towards, some are ready to stamp Harold Cronk’s movie as manipulative pap just by viewing the trailer. Well, curiosity got the best of me…