By: Trevor Jeffery Using the words “unabashed” and “propaganda” together seems redundant, but there isn’t a better way to describe James McTeigue’s Survivor. Kate Abbott (Mila Jovovich) is an officer with the US embassy in London. While on duty, Kate asks a few too many questions to a man she suspects to be (and actually is) a bio-terrorist, before letting him through customs. This sets him and his associates into freak-out mode, and they hire an…
By: Addison Wylie Early on in Results, two workout trainers are telling the other not to provoke them. These two trainers are Trevor and Kat, played by Guy Pearce and Cobie Smulders. Over the course of Andrew Bujalski’s film, the audience finds out that these two characters need to be provoked in order for them to be challenged, which in turn makes Results interesting. The person who does most of the poking and prodding is…
By: Addison Wylie Vampires and the mockumentary genre have both been exhausted thanks to current fads, and spoofing these horrific bloodsuckers has also been done before. Yet, What We Do in the Shadow is one of the funniest films of the year. How so? Filmmaker Taika Waititi and comedic actor Jemaine Clement use inventive intelligence to ingeniously breathe life into these seemingly overplayed areas. There are various forms of comedy, but it’s always helpful when…
By: Trevor Jeffery Kristen Wiig should keep doing her thing, because it’s definitely working for her, and Welcome to Me shows it. Shira Piven’s Welcome to Me introduces itself masterfully: five minutes in and you know Alice Klieg (Wiig), her recently-unmedicated illness, and you have a good idea of how her life up to now has been. And, how someone like her winning $86 million can have negative consequences. Alice throws money around like most…
By: Addison Wylie Legendary animator and filmmaker Bill Plympton explores the human condition to hurt what we love in his latest poignant piece, Cheatin’. It’s full of emotional fervour and sensitivity while coming equipped with the filmmaker’s signature brand of off-beat humour. It all starts at a carnival during an amusing, scary bumper car ride – of course, it does. Ella is gawked at by the fair’s male population, and is seen as an obvious…
By: Addison Wylie Fashion icon Iris Apfel has such wonderment, such humbling intellect, and such bewildered enthusiasm. She’s firm, but looks at her fame as dazed and unfazed. Her presence is infectious, and in Albert Maysles’ documentary Iris, she helps raise the film to another level. Without her, the audience would be stuck with Maysles’ cut-and-dry traditional filmmaking. Movie goers are taken through Apfel’s influential history, and observe her optimism when others appreciate her opinion….
By: Addison Wylie Drafthouse Films’ track record is uneven, but you have to give them credit for being able to uncover bizarrely profound work. As for their current experiment, they’re giving Roar – an outrageously irresponsible survival film – a second chance. Knowing the production company, they see cult potential in Noel Marshall’s dangerous film. Roar was littered with problems during production including multiple injuries to the cast and crew, as well as natural disasters…
By: Addison Wylie Grace Helbig, Mamrie Hart, and Hannah Hart are three charismatic personalities who have found impressive fame through YouTube. Each actress has found their calling (whether its through video blogging, cooking, or both) and have deservedly garnered lots of attention for it, which has then followed with more victories (Hannah now has a cook book, Helbig hosts her own show on E!, and Mamrie is a writer who earns steady work). What’s important…
By: Addison Wylie 88 is proof a film can go feral. It’s a version of Memento that’s been influenced by exploitation schlock and left out in the sun for too long. It’s fun for a bit, but the film runs out of steam. The rowdy trashy energy sends the film to a place of no return – fandom purgatory. April Mullen has appeared in front of the camera in various supporting roles, and has now…
By: Addison Wylie One half of Christian Petzold’s Phoenix is an arresting period drama about redefining oneself after a devastating tragedy. The other half is a mystery consisting of drawn-out contrivances. The viewer feels one heck of a tug-o-war as they vary between liking Phoenix and becoming fed up with it. Even when Phoenix derails itself with unconvincing misunderstandings, the film never loses the captivating performances. Petzold’s cast fits seamlessly within the post-WWII backdrop with…