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Festival Coverage

Festival Coverage

Hot Docs 2015: ‘Lowdown Tracks’ and ‘Orion: The Man Who Would Be King’

April 17, 2015Addison Wylie5 Comments

Lowdown Tracks (DIR. Shelly Saywell) By: Gregory Breen If you have ever stopped to smell the roses and listen to a busker, chances are Lowdown Tracks will bring a tear to your eye.  In this heartfelt and engrossing film, activist and musician Lorraine Segato seeks to meet Toronto’s street musicians and record some of the wonderful tunes they play. Segato meets Woody Cormier, Anthony Van Zant, Maryann Epp, Bruce Bathgate and Katt Burr – five very special,…

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Festival Coverage

Hot Docs 2015: ‘Committed’ and ‘Hadwin’s Judgement’

April 16, 2015Addison Wylie5 Comments

Committed (DIR. Howie Mandel, Reed Grinsell, Steve Sunshine) By: Addison Wylie Vic Cohen was a faithful writer on The Howie Mandel Show, but had the presence of someone who was weak.  Mandel (who is naturally attracted to peculiar, desperate people) wanted to learn more about him, and decided to keep a camera rolling on the pair;  documenting their collaborations as well as Cohen’s growth as a confident performer. By capturing twelve years of footage, Committed…

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Festival Coverage

Hot Docs 2015: ‘Shoulder the Lion’ and ‘The Wolfpack’

April 13, 2015Addison Wylie9 Comments

Shoulder the Lion (DIR. Erinnisse Rebisz, Patryk Rebisz) By: Trevor Jeffery If the subject matter about artists isn’t clear enough the art-house-meets-documentary style Shoulder The Lion boasts should certainly make the viewer aware that the filmmakers really, really like art.  A lot. In front of the camera are three inspiring figures: Graham Sharpe, a musician living with a constant ringing in his ear, reminding him that his tinnitus will eventually take his hearing, and with it, the…

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Festival Coverage

Canadian Film Festival ’15: Pretend We’re Kissing

April 1, 2015Addison Wylie2 Comments

By: Addison Wylie Dov Tiefenbach is the Sasquatch of cinema.  He materializes in random movies, showing his unmistakable mug just long enough for movie goers to do a double take.  As soon as we realize who he is, Tiefenbach vanishes.  Because of this, I used to think YTV’s Squawk Box was a figment of my imagination.  But, I digress. Tiefenbach has come out of hiding to star in Pretend We’re Kissing, an odd romance directed…

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Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ Hot Docs 2015

April 1, 2015Addison Wylie9 Comments

By: Gesilayefa Azorbo Each year, the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival seems to be getting bigger and better.  Considering the press conference at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema on March 18 announcing the 2015 edition, the festival shows no signs of slowing down. Hot Docs ’15 offers 210 films in total (the largest offering of films in the festival’s history to date) and 102 world premieres.  Not to mention projected attendance figures of 200,000 – the…

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Festival Coverage

Canadian Film Festival ’15: Late Night Double Feature

March 25, 2015Addison Wylie2 Comments

By: Addison Wylie An after hours horror show goes mad in the uneven Late Night Double Feature.  Before the mayhem ensues on the set of Dr, Nasty’s Cavalcade of Horror, the audience is treated to a couple of spooky shorts intercut by commercials and previews. For the most part, the film is authentically structured like a craggy cable access show, which provides plenty of chuckles.  An ill-placed ad cashing in on the night’s horror theme…

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Festival Coverage

Canadian Film Festival ’15: Ben’s at Home

March 23, 2015Addison Wylie1 Comment

By: Addison Wylie Earlier this year, I gave I Put a Hit on You an unfavourable review.  This led me to believe that making a compelling comedy about snippety people bumming around their house was impossible. Mars Horodyski proves me wrong with Ben’s at Home.  This film is funny and fully realized, successfully capturing an introvert’s post-breakup buffer period. Ben (played with wit by Dan Abramovici) chooses to stay housebound because he’s satisfied with personal…

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Festival Coverage

Canadian Film Festival ’15: Barn Wedding

March 21, 2015Addison Wylie1 Comment

By: Addison Wylie Barn Wedding seems like it was conceived by hopeful actors supporting a “let’s put on a show” credence.  Unfortunately, when things start to get interesting, Shaun Benson’s directorial debut is a day late and a dollar short when the stakes are raised. The performances in Barn Wedding are sensible portrayals of drifters who are faithful to their friends.  They unite for a wedding, but the group grows suspicious about the intentions behind…

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Festival Coverage

Canadian Film Festival ’15: The Cocksure Lads Movie

March 19, 2015Addison Wylie4 Comments

By: Addison Wylie Musicians Mike Ford and Murray Foster have a shared enthusiasm for toe-tapping britpop.  This appreciation motivated the compadres to develop The Cocksure Lads, an imitation homage to the lively tunes. Foster has taken the ruse further with The Cocksure Lads Movie.  While the comedy is lightheartedly harmless, I have a disagreement with how this nutty band has taken the leap to the big screen. The Cocksure Lads, a tame group of goodie-goodies,…

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Festival Coverage

Scholarly Shorts @ Toronto Short Film Festival ’15

March 15, 2015Addison Wylie0 Comments

By: Addison Wylie I tend to think I cover a lot of film festivals; especially those who screen short films.  However, the Toronto Short Film Festival (March 16 – March 20 at Toronto’s Carlton Cinema) is new to me. By grazing over TSFF’s mission statement, the festival blends into the collection of similar screenings in the GTA.  That said, I investigated more and was corrected.  The Toronto Short Film Festival has a wide roster of…

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