Therapy Dogs
After watching the insane adolescent behaviour featured in MSC: The Movie and Magnum Opus: The .MOVie and vying for something deeper than amateur stunts, Therapy Dogs does a decent job answering my wishes.
Mongrel Media
Simulant
Simulant is a good recommendation for those looking for a solid sci-fi action/thriller and in-the-moment entertainment. The film doesn’t have much resonance after the credits roll, but I thoroughly enjoyed being in this futuristic story that’s executed well enough by director April Mullen (88, Farhope Tower, Badsville) and adequately written by screenwriter Ryan Christopher Churchill.
I Like Movies
I Like Movies, a coming-of-age dramedy set in the early-2000s, alternates between the double life of 17-year-old Burlington native Lawrence Kweller (Isiah Lehtinen): an outspoken high school senior and an obsessive film buff at his local video store, Sequels Video, who is simply trying to fit in. Lawrence is an opinionated know-it-all under both roofs, but he feels more in his element at Sequels and is elated when they finally hire him on as an…
Return to Seoul
A coming-of-age story centring around an adult’s personal issues with their adoption would be really interesting and, quite frankly, a cathartic outlet for those viewers who share similar feelings. Davy Chou’s Return to Seoul is very close to pulling off this type of character study, but it doesn’t quite go as far as it can with this premise.
Living
Acclaimed character actor Bill Nighy has earned his first Oscar nomination for his lead performance in Oliver Hermanus’ Living, a retelling of Akira Kurosawa’s Ikiru set in 1950s London. Nighy more than deserves the nomination. This isn’t a case of his peers tipping their hats to his legacy of work. The role of Williams, an intimidating yet reclusive boss who learns about a critical health diagnosis giving him six months to live, is a change…
Decision to Leave
Park Chan-wook (Oldboy, The Handmaiden) aspires to give audiences a different type of police procedural with Decision to Leave, but I’m afraid he’s put too much of his focus on trying to deliver innovation rather than a story that’s either compelling or accessible.
House of Darkness
A night of flirting and drinking leads up to House of Darkness’ initial scene, featuring a coy couple exchanging smiles as Hap (Justin Long) anticipates more canoodling with Mina (Kate Bosworth) at her place. She invites him in and, immediately, he can’t believe her house which resembles a castle-style mansion. For some reason, he shrugs off the peculiar detail that it’s lit by several candlesticks and that Mina is dressed for a long-ago period, but…
TIFF 2022: ‘I Like Movies’
Set in the early-2000s, I Like Movies alternates between the double life of 17-year-old Burlington native Lawrence Kweller (Isiah Lehtinen) as an outspoken high school senior and an obsessive film buff at his local video store, Sequels Video. Lawrence is an opinionated know-it-all under both roofs, but he feels more in his element at Sequels and is elated when they finally hire him on as an employee.