At first glance, Across the Line is a common film that exposes a type of impressionable racial discrimination filmmakers have acknowledged before. This time, the devastation hits close to home (Nova Scotia) and allows a breakout director to handle the heavy material in a different way that doesn’t dance around the aftermath.
God’s Not Dead had an interesting concept, but a boring execution. It made me feel bad for the teenage extras who had to sit through pages of long-winded dialogue as a devout student went toe-to-toe with his atheist professor.
In case you don’t have the chance to catch Seve the Movie, here’s a rundown: characters interact with golfer Seve Ballesteros over both banal and important matters. Seve responds by expressing how much he loves golf, intercut with archive footage from pro golf tours he’ll later play in.
The arrival of Dead Rush’s world premiere at this year’s Canadian Film Fest came at a coincidental time. On April 8, Ilya Naishuller’s Hardcore Henry hits theatres. Both films are very good genre flicks that position the viewer in the lead character’s perspective. As far as which film has a cleaner landing though, Dead Rush has the edge.
Jackie Boy leaves a controversial footprint at this year’s Canadian Film Festival. It’s bound to shake up the room and ignite all those who watch it. In other words, filmmaker Cody Campanale reminds us of how films can be greatly provocative and start intelligent discussions.
There is no bigger proponent of Canadian cinema than myself. If a film really captures me, I’ll go out of my way to champion it. Low budget, undetectable indies sometimes need that extra push. However, no matter if the film is big or small, if the end result is wildly inconsistent, I have to throw in the towel. Case in point: Navin Ramaswaran’s shockingly inept Chasing Valentine.
Borealis is a film I’ve been waiting for: Canadian cinema that’s tragic, but neither melodramatic or gratuitous.
Producer/director Brian Stockton pulls a reverse Ghost World with The Sabbatical, a low-key comedy where the older eccentric follows a current generation through a younger artist.
The producers of the surprising Heaven Is for Real offer audiences a similar slice with the pleasant yet generic Miracles from Heaven.
