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Hot Docs 2016: ‘Credit for Murder’ and ‘Tickled’

April 21, 2016Wylie Writes Staff1 Comment

Credit for Murder (DIR. Vladi Antonevicz) By: Shahbaz Khayambashi A video appears on YouTube which depicts the ritualistic slaughter of two men by masked individuals: one man is beheaded and the other is shot.  The video appears to come from Russia.  The Russian authorities say it is fake, until one man is identified after his father comes forward.  This is the beginning of an unusual and captivating story about Russian neo-Nazis, recounted by a Jewish filmmaker…

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Festival Coverage

Hot Docs 2016: ‘Fear Itself’ and ‘Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World’

April 20, 2016Wylie Writes Staff1 Comment

Fear Itself (DIR. Charlie Lyne) By: Shahbaz Khayambashi What is the source of fear and why does it excite us when we are seated in a dark room, watching awful things happen to photogenic strangers? This is not the question that documentarian Charlie Lyne attempts to answer in his latest work Fear Itself, a deeply personal study of the horror genre told through the same metatextual and introspective methodology that previously manifested itself in directorial efforts like Beyond…

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One-on-Ones

Fearless on ‘Fameless’: A One-On-One with Vic Cohen

September 27, 2015Addison Wylie0 Comments

Actor/comedian Vic Cohen is a great interviewee.  He’s not only candid, but he also has an impressive ability to give straightforward answers whilst sticking to his brand of comedy.  When I heard he was starring in David Spade’s new prank TV show Fameless (now airing on TruTV), Wylie Writes was willing to bend film-faithful guidelines to talk shop with Vic. You may have seen Cohen on various hidden camera television shows (Howie Do It, Mobbed).  If you’re…

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Festival Coverage

Hot Docs 2015: ‘Help Us Find Sunil Tripathi’ and ‘Raiders!’

May 6, 2015Addison Wylie1 Comment

Help Us Find Sunil Tripathi (DIR. Neil Broffman) By: Shannon Page If you own a computer, have a Facebook account, frequent Twitter, or read the news – basically, if you interact with information and technology at all – you should watch Help Us Find Sunil Tripathi.  The emotional and thoughtful film, directed by Neil Broffman, tells the story of a Brown University student who went missing one month prior to the Boston Marathon bombings and…

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Reviews

Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck

May 3, 2015Addison Wylie3 Comments

By: Addison Wylie Many associate angst with Kurt Cobain.  The feeling is riddled throughout his musical work and how he presented Nirvana to the world.  With Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, documentarian Brett Morgen (The Kid Stays in the Picture) has peeled back the musician’s enigmatic career to find the origin behind his hurt and disassociation. Cobain is respectfully represented as someone who was robbed out of an upbringing he wished he had growing up…

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Festival Coverage

Hot Docs 2015: ’Live From New York!’ and ‘The Queen of Silence’

May 2, 2015Addison Wylie1 Comment

Live From New York! (DIR. Bao Nguyen) By: Trevor Jeffery How do you describe a forty-year “New York institution” in 90 minutes?  Live From New York! explores both the mythos and the cultural significance of the longest running sketch comedy series, Saturday Night Live (SNL). The documentary covers a lot of ground: the rise (and fall and rise);  behind the scenes;  cultural impact;  and the ongoing issues with race and gender dynamics.  While each topic…

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Festival Coverage

Hot Docs 2015: ‘Monty Python: The Meaning of Life’

April 26, 2015Addison Wylie1 Comment

Monty Python: The Meaning of Life (DIR. Roger Graef, James Rogan) By: Addison Wylie If Monty Python Live (Mostly) was the comedy troupe’s last hurrah, Monty Python: The Meaning of Life is their congratulatory curtain call and encore. It goes without saying that Roger Graef and James Rogan’s film is essential viewing for any Monty Python fan, or anyone who caught their live show.  This documentary provides audiences with alternate angles, exclusive behind-the-scenes tomfoolery, and…

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Reviews

Hot Docs 2015: Being Canadian

April 25, 2015Addison Wylie2 Comments

Being Canadian (DIR. Robert Cohen) By: Addison Wylie Comedy writer Robert Cohen hits the road to Vancouver with a documentary crew in Being Canadian, a humorous look at Canadiana.  Cohen’s goal is to reclaim Canada’s identity and deconstruct the stereotypes that have long followed Canucks;  including igloo assumptions, shabby television programming, adamant politeness, and the country’s overflowing supply of comedy legends. Cohen’s dry wit and bewildered fascination drives this labour of love (no pun intended) in…

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Festival Coverage

Hot Docs 2015: A One-On-One With Committed’s Vic Cohen

April 24, 2015Addison Wylie4 Comments

By: Addison Wylie Where there’s a Howie Mandel production, Vic Cohen is most likely close by.  It’s quite obvious the two comedians are close supportive friends, however audiences are seeing that connection run deeper in the documentary Committed. For twelve years, Mandel has recorded Cohen with a video camera and chronicled his budding career as a comic and as an outrageous, fearless performer.  The documentary has been also been shaped by co-directors Reed Grinsell and Steve…

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