The Academy Awards have been criticized for not being ambitious or diverse enough, which is true. But, I’ve seen plenty of risks taken in the Best Foreign Language Film category; mostly from movies I admire more than I actually enjoy. This time last year, Lebanon’s Capernaum received a public theatrical run shortly after being nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. I remember walking away from the film with a heavy heart. It was…
When I hear the names “Michael Beach Nichols and Christopher K. Walker” attached to a project, I drop everything I’m doing. These two filmmakers are showcasing outstanding work in the documentary genre. Their doc Welcome to Leith, about white supremacists targeting and flipping a small town into their own personal basecamp, was a terrifying look at the escalation of evil. At first glance, their latest film Wrinkles the Clown looks to be as scary. Their…
After wowing audiences with his feature-length debut The Witch, writer/director Robert Eggers takes a big swing with The Lighthouse – a film with more specifications and fewer actors. His latest film connected with many (our own Shahbaz Khayambashi loved it at TIFF), but it didn’t work for me. I can appreciate the dedication of Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe (which translates into their memorable performances), but the actors are wasted on a movie that’s too muddled…
Meet London Logo (Julia Faye West), an arrogant heiress who has somehow found fame for being present. At one time, her elegance was popular. But now, she clings on to any shred of attention by releasing music, an autobiography, and rebooting an on-air partnership with partygoer Rochelle Ritzy (Shelli Boone). The pressure for relevance stems from her fear of being pushed out by trendy, big-bootied celebrity, Kristy Kim (Candace Kita). As journalist Diana Smelt-Marlin (Kate…
With Cunningham, director Alla Kovgan has made a biographical documentary about deceased choreographer Merce Cunningham that, I believe, he would’ve been happy with. The tribute has been tailor-made to emulate his unique style of dance and movement; from the individual dance reenactments directed with precision by Jennifer Goggans to Kovgan’s tour of Cunningham’s career through curated interviews from performers he worked with in his dance company.
Airplane Mode made me feel old. Not because I didn’t recognize most of the YouTubers that fill out the cast, but because I was constantly startled and taken aback by the film’s hyper and annoying immaturity.
The Mercenary is phoney-baloney action-packed junk. That’s harsh, but how else do you explain something that’s so violent and transparent?
