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Long Time Running

September 25, 2017Addison Wylie0 Comments

A documentary about The Tragically Hip’s Man Machine Poem Tour needed to be made.  After all, it was a pivotal imprint in modern Canadian culture as the entire nation collectively considered the band’s timeless legacy and paid respects to terminally ill musician Gord Downie.  Finding filmmakers to handle such sensitive subject matter would be an intimidating order, yet Jennifer Baichwal (Watermark) and Nicholas de Pencier (cinematographer on The Ghosts in Our Machine) rise to the occasion and exceed…

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Reviews

The Neighborhood

September 19, 2017Addison Wylie1 Comment

At the moment, there isn’t a more indulgent director than Frank D’Angelo.  The Canadian entrapreneur/musician has made a film career out of mob movies featuring (and recycling) loaded casts, essentially, playing cops n’ robbers.  The material is more than criminals and anti-heroes pointing guns and using twelve-letter words to berate each other, but some have argued otherwise.  The Neighborhood, unfortunately, gives the haters ammunition.

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Reviews

Hunting Pignut

September 13, 2017Shannon Page0 Comments

Written, directed, and produced by Martine Blue, Hunting Pignut is the story of Bernice, played by Taylor Hickson (Aftermath, Deadpool), a teenager in a rural Newfoundland community.  She is a typical teenage misfit: lonely, bullied at school for no obvious reason, and picked last at sports.  When Bernice’s estranged father dies of a drug overdose, his wake is crashed by a gang of gutter punks claiming to have been his closest friends – one of…

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Festival Coverage

TIFF 2017: ‘Meditation Park’

September 12, 2017Wylie Writes Staff0 Comments

By: Jessica Goddard Mina Shum’s Meditation Park is an engaging, quirky, and empowering film about the overdue self-actualization of a Vancouver woman (Cheng Pei-pei) in light of the discovery of her husband’s affair.  This thoroughly modern film also expertly highlights the immigrant experience in multicultural Canada, while making clear that the narrative is culturally universal.  There is an exquisite balance of humour and poignancy in the writing, strengthened by an excellent cast.

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Festival Coverage

TIFF 2017: ‘Porcupine Lake’

September 10, 2017Addison Wylie0 Comments

It’s not healthy to compare movies, but I have a feeling I would’ve had greater appreciation for Ingrid Veninger’s Porcupine Lake if I hadn’t already seen Andrew Cividino’s Sleeping Giant.  Both are of Canadian origin, they take place over the course of a Summer away from home, and they follow a coming-of-age narrative with kids.

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Festival Coverage

Wylie Writes @ TIFF ’17 – Canadian Slate

August 14, 2017Shahbaz Khayambashi0 Comments

Despite all the less-than-stellar changes made to TIFF this year, the festival continues to excel in giving a voice to Canadian filmmakers and video artists.  Representatives of TIFF, once again, gathered in the Fairmont Royal York hotel to announce Canadian films which will play at the festival this year and then – presumably – disappear into Canadian cinemas, where a few of them will compete with the latest Oscar bait and Hollywood slop.

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Reviews

Crackerhead

August 7, 2017Addison Wylie0 Comments

I like Crackerhead, but this latest experimental experience from filmmaker Mike Klassen is making me sweat – it’s a tough movie to review if you can’t crack through Klassen’s poker face.  The film’s flippant facade has anarchy written all over it, but the drive behind Klassen’s directorial decisions and stylistic storytelling suggests a deeper, poignant project.

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Reviews

Blood Hunters

July 9, 2017Addison Wylie0 Comments

The horror independent film scene may be the most supportive community of movie goers and filmmakers.  Take Blood Hunters, for instance.  Despite the movie’s routine qualities, I can imagine horror fanatics who scroll through weekly VOD titles every Tuesday will appreciate it for what it is – an honest effort with some admirably gruesome moments.  Blood Hunters isn’t just for this niche audience though.  It’s a harmless escape for those with a strong enough stomach…

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