Sam Rockwell
See How They Run
Set in the theatre district of London’s West End in 1953, a production of Agatha Christie’s whodunit The Mousetrap seems to be cursed after the body of flagrant director Leo Kopernick (Adrien Brody) turns up dead after the show. The jaded Inspector Stoppard (Sam Rockwell) and rookie investigator Constable Stalker (Saoirse Ronan) are assigned to the case, and it seems as if everyone’s a suspect: the actors, the crew, the waiting staff and, to Stalker’s…
The Bad Guys
The Bad Guys is a big screen adaptation of a popular book series for kids, perhaps to tide over the Diary of a Wimpy Kid crowd. But even as someone who was completely unfamiliar with the series, I thought its feature-length debut was great. It’s one of the coolest and most exciting films of the year.
Trolls World Tour
It’s fitting that Trolls World Tour is about accepting outsiders for who they are because, here I am, I’m a critic watching a sequel to an original film I never saw. I heard 2016’s Trolls was a pleasant surprise, but I never got around to finding that out for myself. Luckily for me, I could hop into Trolls World Tour and quickly get the gist of the characters, the imagination, and the amazing animation that…
Jojo Rabbit
Jojo Rabbit, written and directed by Taika Waititi, is a risqué movie that reminded me of classic comedies made by the legendary Mel Brooks. The film risks being offensive to lampoon racism, including its different perspectives by persecuting followers, and to draw parallels to current arrogant behaviour thrusted upon minorities. Waititi solves the puzzle to make his satire work, but also doesn’t distill the severity of past hate crimes in this period piece.
Jojo Rabbit
World War II has been done! This is hardly a controversial claim when it comes to cinema; everyone and their mother has already made a film about World War II—whether about how bad the war was or how heroic—and seemingly every possible angle has already been covered. Filmmaker Taika Waititi, however, finds a way to stand out with Jojo Rabbit, a movie that refuses to be about the war at all, instead using his unique brand…
Blaze
By: Trevor Chartrand Director Ethan Hawke’s country music biopic Blaze leaves a lot to be desired – with a lot of atmosphere and not much narrative, this film is meandering and weak. To some, the film could perhaps be considered an abstract poem, akin to the music stylings of the late Blaze Foley, which I suppose should be commendable. However, given the more obscure nature of this film’s subject, the storytelling gaps will leave audiences…
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
By: Nick van Dinther The title Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri tells you exactly what the movie is about. If you peek behind that literal title, you’ll find one of the best films of the year.
Don Verdean
Director Jared Hess and his co-writer wife Jerusha Hess debuted in the spotlight with Napoleon Dynamite, and made audiences chuckle with their lower rung follow-up Nacho Libre. I speak as someone who missed their critically maimed third endeavour Gentlemen Broncos, but I really enjoy watching whatever these two make.