Peace By Chocolate
It may be clichéd pun to call Peace By Chocolate sweet but, no matter how hard I try, I find my way back to that simplistic-yet-all-encompassing word – sweet.
Canadian
All My Puny Sorrows
All My Puny Sorrows, directed by One Week’s Michael McGowan, is cut from similar cloth as last year’s outstanding, sad drama Our Friend. Carried by a small yet mighty cast who are all approaching sensitive material under the guidance of a cautious filmmaker, All My Puny Sorrows tracks how deep mental illness can run within a family’s dynamic, and how it affects its members.
Marlene
By: Trevor Chartrand Marlene dramatizes the notorious true story of the wrongfully-convicted Canadian Steven Truscott, who was sentenced to death for the rape and murder of classmate Lynne Harper in 1959. Appropriately, the movie pays special attention to his wife, the titular Marlene, who spent years tirelessly researching his case and eventually clearing his name. The justice system is put under close scrutiny during this understandably melodramatic, romanticized, version of true events and director Wendy…
Run Woman Run
Run Woman Run is a sweet and charming dramatic comedy about family, community, healing, and grief. Written and directed by Zoe Leigh Hopkins (Kayak to Klemtu), Run Woman Run stars Dakota Ray Hebert (In Her City) as Beck, a single mom who is forced to re-examine her lifestyle after she is diagnosed with diabetes. While her father (Lorne Cardinal of Corner Gas) and sister (The Exchange’s Jayli Wolf) beg Beck to start eating right and exercising,…
Learn to Swim
By: Trevor Chartrand In this feature directorial debut of Thyrone Tommy, Learn to Swim focuses on the failing relationship between a stubborn jazz saxophone player Dezi (Thomas Antony Olajide) and an up-and-coming singer, Selma (Emma Ferreira). The film plays with time and takes place both before and after the relationship has failed. I hesitate to compare the film to 2009’s 500 Days of Summer, simply because Learn to Swim takes a much more sophisticated, and…
Donkeyhead
By: Trevor Chartrand Donkeyhead is the first feature film from writer/director Agam Darshi, who has extensive credits both in front of and behind the camera. Her film focuses on Mona (played by Darshi herself), the least-successful sibling among the four brothers and sisters in her family. As a failed writer, she is the only one among them who still lives at home, aimless in her pursuits with no job and no prospects. Instead of pursuing…
Scarborough
In the same observant spirit as Beasts of the Southern Wild, Room, and The Florida Project, Scarborough provides several perspectives of people trying to survive, whether they know it or not. It’s better than Beasts of the Southern Wild and Room, but it’s not as accomplished as The Florida Project. But then again, Scarborough is its own special film.
Black Conflux
Written and directed by Nicole Dorsey, Black Conflux gets many things right. Aesthetically, it is a compelling film that makes use of visual motifs to link the lives of two very different characters.
Felix and the Treasure of Morgäa
For the first 20 minutes or so, I was really enjoying Nicola Lemay’s Canadian family film Felix and the Treasure of Morgäa. The animation popped off the screen, the writing and visual gags were amusing, and the story was nesting in a promising adventure-fantasy element. Even the obligatory cute animals were making me laugh. I was excited to finally have an animated children’s movie ready to recommend to families.
I Propose We Never See Each Other Again After Tonight
I Propose We Never See Each Other Again After Tonight has an ungainly title but, luckily, the film’s memorable efforts are more than distracting.