One of my favourite surprises of last year was finding out how Jacob Vaughan’s creature feature Bad Milo played with a packed crowd. The scene was set at Toronto’s Scotiabank Theatre during one of Toronto After Dark’s pre-screenings to hype up the upcoming and highly popular genre showcase. The pre-screening audience award ended up going to Matt Johnson’s innovative indie The Dirties, but hanging in as a close runner up was Bad Milo. It proved…
By: Addison Wylie The realism in Stranger by the Lake (or, L’Inconnu du lac) is what initially draws audiences in. It’s paced deliberately slow to match life’s sunny tranquilities, and the cruising men who attend this private beach looking for a getaway and the occasional hook up come across as real people. Stranger by the Lake is uneventful for the most part, but its serenely baked atmosphere is musing. Once a dangerous dramatic turn comes into play, that…
By: Addison Wylie Palme d’Or winner Blue Is the Warmest Colour is an intellectual work about observing and defining sexuality. It’s a raw look allowing the viewer to be in clear view of everything, but by no means presents itself as indecent. In fact, those graphic scenes of sexual content that seem to be flooding the media surrounding Blue Is the Warmest Colour with controversy are represented this way because there is no other way…
By: Addison Wylie The Spectacular Now is the movie about high school I wish I had growing up. It’s easily identifiable and relatable to anyone who felt growing pains or knew someone having a wobbly time through secondary education. James Ponsoldt’s coming-of-age dramedy features two exceptional performances from up-and-comers Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley, who play unexpected friends who eventually become smitten with each other. Though, Teller’s motormouth Sutter Keely won’t directly admit it since…
By: Addison Wylie Former New York Times journalist Jayson Blair has misstepped in his career which has cost him lifelong liability. Blair was dragged through the coals when he was caught plagiarizing in 2003 with numerous works. His infamous write-up knocked the credibility of the otherwise well-regarded news outlet he worked for, and spun the world of journalism out of control with readers growing increasingly sceptical of print media. Blair’s tumultuous whirlwind is frustrating, but…
By: Addison Wylie Following in the same footsteps as other horror franchises, Paranormal Activity has its faithful fans and its hardcore haters. It’s also a franchise that decides it has to change its beat every third movie in hopes of convincing movie goers that they aren’t watching the same movie over and over again. It’s a business plan that works for me. Since Paranormal Activity 4 was ordinarily playing the same tune as its fantastic…
By: Addison Wylie Come on in, guys! I want to address the entire crew before you go out and try to win Battle of the Year. I know we’ve all been through rough patches during this rocky ride – including me. When I was first approached to witness the best B-Boys to compete in this renowned dance tournament, I didn’t think it’d be possible. But, filmmaker Benson Lee and choreographer Dave Scott, with the help…
By: Addison Wylie Much like After Earth, this review is going to be a bit of a confounding thing to endure since the substance behind it is puzzled itself. Will Smith seems like a levelheaded guy outside of movies. I’m sure there was concise logic behind his story to which he’s credited for in After Earth. If so, there’s been a severe case of “Broken Telephone” during the film’s production that eventually led to M….
By: Addison Wylie After Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy’s slow success, a sequel has been in high demand from its cult community. What that crowd – as well as the film’s cast and crew – didn’t realize is that capturing that same lightning in a bottle is easier said than done. Director/co-writer Adam McKay returns with the film’s original Channel 4 news team (Paul Rudd, David Koechner, Steve Carell, with Will Ferrell leading the…
The WordPress.com stats are in for 2013! Here’s an excerpt: The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 19,000 times in 2013. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 7 sold-out performances for that many people to see it. Click here to see the complete report. Thanks so much to my readers and vlog watchers for all the support. Here’s to…