While catching the latest movie may have been a low priority in 2020, the compromised release schedule still offered a particularly unique experience for viewers. Films relied, more than ever, on word-of-mouth which allowed smaller films to ride the same wave as at-home blockbusters; continuing the unpredictable boom of the streaming market.
By: Trevor Chartrand Informative and eye-opening, The Dissident is a haunting documentary that’s shockingly timely and relevant, especially considering last week’s siege in Washington. Among other things, this film demonstrates the dangerous potential of social media when used in the wrong way.
By: Jolie Featherstone Brayden DeMorest-Purdy’s feature film debut, Beyond the Woods, is a mind-bending, slow-burning crime drama where lost and troubled individuals burn like smoking flames flickering against the bitter-cold, snow-capped landscape that threatens to consume them.
By: Jessica Goddard Our own Addison Wylie mentioned I probably shouldn’t watch the trailer for Lawrence Michael Levine’s Black Bear, since it would be better to go in cold.…and boy was he right. When I tracked down the trailer after seeing the film, I was shocked by how much it gives away. So in that spirit, I’ll warn that this review contains what are, effectively, spoilers (though that’s not the perfect word).
By: Jolie Featherstone Imbued with dry wit and heaps of quirk, Keith Bearden’s high school-outsider dramedy Antarctica leans into absurdist humour to highlight the pressures and barriers teenage girls are facing today.
By: Trevor Chartrand Based on a short film of the same name, The Climb was written and performed by Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin. Covino also directed the film, which chronicles the life and times of a dysfunctional friendship over the course of many years. In the film, Kyle (Marvin) and Mike (Covino) are long-time best friends who slowly drift apart – and then back together again – after Mike admits to sleeping with…
By: Trevor Chartrand Defying All Odds is an inspirational documentary that takes a hopeful, optimistic look the possibilities of contemporary medical studies and research. In the climate of the pandemic we’re currently faced with, a positive outlook is a much needed breath of fresh air.
By: Trevor Chartrand Director Nathan Grossman takes an observational, fly-on-the wall approach with I Am Greta, a documentary that follows climate-change obsessed Swedish teen Greta Thunberg on her quest to raise awareness for the climate justice cause. However, much like the politicians who aren’t listening to Greta, the hands-off, reserved filmmaking style fails to become involved enough in the issues to inspire a call to action of any kind.
By: Jolie Featherstone To Your Last Death is a high-tension trip in the line of recent genre-blending thrillers where a young woman cuts a swath through an army of those who would do her harm in a journey of survival and vindication. Think Ready or Not meets the Preacher graphic novel series, To Your Last Death throws a pacifistic activist into an ultimate death match where she must resort to a kill-or-be-killed mindset to survive.
By: Jolie Featherstone We Are Many offers an inspiring – dare I say celebratory – look at the organization and outcomes of the largest protest in human history. Indeed, an estimated 30 million people (many of whom had never attended a protest before) in over 800 cities across the entire globe collectively protested the US’ war in Iraq on February 15, 2003.