Canadian Film Festival ’16: Borealis
Borealis is a film I’ve been waiting for: Canadian cinema that’s tragic, but neither melodramatic or gratuitous.
Canadian Film Festival
Canadian Film Festival ’16: The Sabbatical
Producer/director Brian Stockton pulls a reverse Ghost World with The Sabbatical, a low-key comedy where the older eccentric follows a current generation through a younger artist.
Canadian Film Festival ’15: Pretend We’re Kissing
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…
Canadian Film Festival ’15: Late Night Double Feature
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…
Canadian Film Festival ’15: Ben’s at Home
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…
Canadian Film Festival ’15: Barn Wedding
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…
Canadian Film Festival 2014: H&G is Lost
By: Addison Wylie Recently, we’ve seen Hansel and Gretel battle witches with steampunk weaponry in Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters and defeat a nefarious pot-peddling evildoer in Hansel & Gretel Get Baked. I’m still racking my brain as to why these Brothers Grimm siblings got the resurgence they did. Perhaps, the timing of it all makes H&G initially refreshing. It’s nice to see filmmaker Danishka Esterhazy take a low-key approach to this fairy tale and…
Canadian Film Festival 2014: The Birder Doesn’t Take Off
By: Addison Wylie I don’t blame you if The Birder’s premise doesn’t send you aflutter. Ted Bezaire’s comedy is about a polite bird enthusiast (a “birder”) seeking retribution because he didn’t win the ‘Head of Ornithology’ position at his cherished National Park. Did I also mention Tom Cavanagh plays the lead birder? I’ll give you a moment to catch your breathe. I’ve always seen Cavanagh as someone who’s still trying to figure out where he fits…