By: Danyal Somani In the semi-autobiographical comedy About My Father, co-writer/actor Sebastian Maniscalco portrays a fictionalized version of himself trying to win over his girlfriend’s family in hopes of proposing to her during a Fourth Of July trip. However, when his traditional father Salvo (Robert De Niro) tags along, challenges arise (including class clashes, more eccentric family members, and some interesting pets) making Sebastian’s mission more difficult.
Using his previous film, the embellished period thriller Operation Avalanche, as a stepping stone towards his latest feature, Canadian renegade Matt Johnson takes another crack at the biopic genre with BlackBerry. Director Johnson (co-writing with frequent collaborator/producer Matthew Miller) chronicles the rise and fall of the titular game-changing portable device that allowed users online access and exclusive text-based communication.
By: Danyal Somani Book Club: The Next Chapter follows the friends from its predecessor: Vivian (Jane Fonda), Carol (Mary Steenburgen), Diane (Diane Keaton), and Sharon (Candice Bergen). In this next instalment, they travel to Italy for Vivian’s bachelorette party. However, with the sudden inclusion of an old flame (Vincent Ricotta) and a persistent police chief (Giancarlo Giannini), the trip doesn’t go according to plan.
The End of Sex is the latest collaboration between director Sean Garrity (Borealis, I Propose We Never See Each Other Again After Tonight) and screenwriter/actor Jonas Chernick (Ashgrove).
The most amusing thing about Quasi is how the guys of Broken Lizard have finally owned up to being a bunch of dorks who are actually *really* into Monty Python, notably Life of Brian and Monty Python and the Holy Grail. That’s an oddly charming concept considering the comedy troupe are frat symbols known for making meatheaded comedies like Super Troopers and Beerfest. We all remember that jock who had to take an arts extra-curricular…
Mafia Mamma is a badly executed fish-out-of-water movie that features rushed filmmaking and a slipshod script, as well as lavish destination scenery and good-looking men and women practically straddling the leading lady. Not a good look for either director Catherine Hardwicke (Thirteen, Twilight, Miss Bala) or producer/star Toni Collette, who reunite since working together on 2015’s Miss You Already.
Does outrageous entertainment made by the LGBTQ community always have to be “campy”? That’s a question that I asked myself between laughs during Summoning Sylvia, a wacky horror-comedy that serves as a directorial debut for Broadway actors Wesley Taylor and Alex Wyse.
I Like Movies, a coming-of-age dramedy set in the early-2000s, alternates between the double life of 17-year-old Burlington native Lawrence Kweller (Isiah Lehtinen): an outspoken high school senior and an obsessive film buff at his local video store, Sequels Video, who is simply trying to fit in. Lawrence is an opinionated know-it-all under both roofs, but he feels more in his element at Sequels and is elated when they finally hire him on as an…
It’s been over a decade since being first exposed to Canadian cult hit Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter and Lee Demarbre’s wholesome filmmaking for mature audiences. Underneath its goofy and ambitious premise about our lord and saviour socking it to some blood-suckers was an infectious love for filmmaking and community. It’s main concern other than entertaining audiences was having fun with friends behind-the-scenes. And while that rallying doesn’t always work for all indies, it benefited Demarbre’s…
By: Jolie Featherstone Unplugging is a good-natured movie about a married couple trying to divorce themselves from their electronic devices during a country holiday getaway.