By: Trevor Chartrand With Molly’s Game, screenwriting veteran Aaron Sorkin ups his career ante, taking a new seat at the table for his directorial debut. Sorkin already has a massive advantage over most first-time directors, having worked closely with big players like David Fincher and Danny Boyle in the past. And to top it all off, his ace-in-the-hole is the fact that the first script he brings to the screen is one of his own….
By: Nick van Dinther Every news station covered what happened to Nancy Kerrigan leading up to the 1994 Olympics, and the supposed involvement of Tonya Harding. So, how do you take a story that everyone knows and create something new out of it? Director Craig Gillespie excellently answers that question with I, Tonya, a movie about so much more than just “the incident”.
By: Trevor Chartrand Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water is a masterfully crafted modern-day fairy tale. An incredible, romanticized take on the creature feature, director/co-writer del Toro seamlessly combines genre and visual style to bring us this beautifully bizarre morality tale.
By: Nick van Dinther There are certain directors that have a specific style audiences can always identify – Quentin Tarantino, Wes Anderson, Tim Burton to name a few. Guillermo del Toro (The Devil’s Backbone, Pan’s Labyrinth) is surely a part of that crew. When it comes to The Shape of Water, del Toro’s style is out in full-force to bring us an unforgettable visual spectacle.
By: Jessica Goddard Woody Allen’s Wonder Wheel is colourful, melodramatic, deliciously tacky cinematic theatre driven by an intriguing premise and infused with refreshing nostalgia. It’s visually delightful, and the quirky setting and quirkier characters sustain curiosity even if those characters don’t feel totally real.
By: Nick van Dinther There are so many wonderful and creative upstart filmmakers putting out fantastic work. Whether they’re film students or people with a true passion for the industry, they do their best to fund an idea, bring it to life, and share it with the world. When they decide to release the project for profit however, it needs to meet a certain standard. Brownwell Entertainment’s Friends Don’t Let Friends, a horror/thriller about covering…
By: Jessica Goddard When you first hear the plot of Wexford Plaza, you think you’ve probably seen this movie before or know exactly what its angle will be. But you haven’t, and you don’t. This 80-minute-long film has everything: humour, relatability, great pacing, precise and controlled energy, and a thoughtful commentary on the reality of our times.
By: Trevor Chartrand As a film that explores the creative process, Ryan M. Andrews’ Art of Obsession fails to bring much originality to the table. This slow-paced, predictable little story takes itself too seriously, grasping aimlessly at faux-philosophical musings all along the way. The film is an unfortunate mix of unconvincing plot, passionless performances, and a non-existent visual style. It’s the kind of film I can still enjoy, however with a more ironic appreciation than…
By: Trevor Chartrand You’re Soaking In It is a cautionary doc more thrilling and foreboding than any Black Mirror episode because, unlike the series set in the near future, the events of Scott Harper’s documentary are happening NOW.
By: Jessica Goddard Richard Linklater’s Last Flag Flying is a touching, exquisitely-performed road trip drama, full of insight and engaging questions for the modern era. This is a movie that never stops breaking your heart, while it keeps you guessing at all the right moments. It’s both patriotic and skeptical; somehow inspiring and disillusioning.