By: Addison Wylie As much as I would like to believe that 2014 has proven to be a great year for movies so far, I can only instantly recall the films that have underwhelmed or flunked altogether. There’s been a steady flow of mediocrity, which isn’t exactly something to celebrate. I suppose matters could be much worse, but those flatlining flicks have left me in a state of trapped befuddlement while I watched them. These…
By: Addison Wylie My admiration for Kevin Smith comes and goes. If there’s one trait of his that I’ll always appreciate, it’s his choice to help up-and-comers in the film industry. Smith helping out Matt Johnson with his incomparable indie The Dirties is an excellent example of his compassion towards a new generation of storytellers. Jay and Silent Bob’s Super Groovy Cartoon Movie is another one of these projects. Smith has stated that Jay and…
By: Addison Wylie When audiences aren’t following the documentary’s main court case involving 83-year-old jewel thief Doris Payne, Payne is telling us about her wild history. It’s during these stretches where The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne has all the snazziness of a grand scale heist movie bundled up within a teeny, tiny doc. We get great amusement watching Payne recollect about past “jobs” and how she got away with it. However, it looks…
By: Addison Wylie Ever since The Notebook’s crowd pleasing fame, there’s been a line of Nicholas Sparks adaptations brought to the big screen. Because these films have hit home runs at the box office, it wasn’t surprising to see other romantic book-to-film conversions follow suit. The trailer for The Fault in Our Stars gave off that cover of being “just another one of those romantic movies”. Movie goers who have read and fallen in love with…
By: Addison Wylie Stylistically, The Double is – so far – the best film I’ve seen all year. Richard Ayoade – an indie filmmaker who you may have recognized as “that random guy with the hair” on posters of 2012’s The Watch – brings a creation that does exactly what a film should do. The Double transports viewers to another world. Ayoade has built industrialized settings that emulate a rigid dream. The filmmaker also uses…
By: Addison Wylie A high school ditzy clique suffers fatal injuries. The clique are brought back from the dead using Wiccan rituals, leading the ragtag undead to seek revenge. Yes, that premise is rote. But, when it comes to telling a story that simple, I imagine it’d be hard to screw it up. Surprisingly, the minds behind All Cheerleaders Die unfathomably do so. How do you do it? How do you mess up a movie…
By: Addison Wylie I have a bit of history with Silent Retreat. I caught Tricia Lee’s thriller at last year’s Toronto After Dark Film Festival where it received its fair amount of warm reception. Though the filmmaker was clear about the film’s intentions in a post-Q&A, it was a pick at the festival that really rubbed me the wrong way. The flick’s primary problem was that it was dramatically overscored. It’s smothering music told the…
By: Addison Wylie Everyone, it’s safe to shake away your hesitations! Burt’s Buzz does not fall in a quirky vein akin to Duck Dynasty. Comparing the backwoods clan who struck rich with their duck calling instruments and Burt Shavitz’s unintentional success with his line of all-natural creams and lip balms is bound to occur – based on physical appearance alone. Jody Shapiro’s doc on Shavitz is as innocuous as a folksy reality show, but Burt’s…
By: Addison Wylie When a family favourite reaches for a sequel, the franchise has to be careful it doesn’t catch a case of contagious sequelitis. For the much anticipated second part of the How to Train Your Dragon series, I’m happy to report that this latest adventure only suffers from slight sniffles. Otherwise, this is the follow-up that the 2010 hit deserves. We’re reunited with Hiccup (voiced by Jay Barachel) and his colourfully named pals…
By: Addison Wylie Neighbors has more than a handful of really good laughs. It’s also consistently likeable and plays with its R-rating in a way that doesn’t feel too childish. Mac and Kelly (played by Seth Rogan and Rose Byrne) are concerned about losing touch with their more spontaneous sides after they move into a new neighbourhood. They don’t hate their adult life though. They get a kick out of their baby daughter – the…