Throughout my years of attending the Toronto After Dark Film Festival, I have come to learn a few truisms: 1) if a film is a world premiere, steer clear, 2) the international shorts program usually contains some of the best work at the festival, and 3) the Canadian shorts usually contain a handful of brilliant selections surrounded by others that are…less so. Being unable to speak to the first (as of now), I am glad…
By: Addison Wylie The Hallow is made up of great parts that build towards a fleeting good time. The adult audience gets as much satisfaction out of it as a toddler does with a mall’s mechanical horse. Within the film’s undistinguished Irish town, the community unanimously agrees that the woods are not necessarily a great place to idle. Their distain is brought out when a family of out-of-towners move to a secluded millhouse that happens…
By: Addison Wylie Let’s not beat around the bush: the most comparable film you can mention when talking about Kyle Rankin’s Night of the Living Deb is Edgar Wright’s Shaun of the Dead. Both Shaun and Deb are underdogs dealing with a zombie outbreak on the fly while trying to figure out their own issues with romance. The strongest thing you can say about Rankin’s horror/comedy is that while Night of the Living Deb is…
By: Addison Wylie Wyrmwood charges through our senses. It’s easily the scariest, most effective zombie flick audiences will have seen as of late. Kiah Roache-Turner uses a dangerous form of filmmaking that is rarely seen in modern cinema. Mostly due to the fact that it’s an insane style that could go belly-up if the audience isn’t ready for its shocking invasiveness. Roache-Turner throws movie goers in the centre of the intense life-or-death face-offs. He positions…
By: Addison Wylie A dangerous plague has wiped out most of humanity within wide proximity of Refuge’s main family. The secluded family has stowed themselves away in their crumbling abode as life around them breaks down and dawns a bleak future. Refuge isn’t a film where the infected are on the hunt for the living. Andrew Robertson’s slow burn is a study of survival as the human race turns on each other. Unkempt gangs roam…
By: Addison Wylie With recent horror anthologies, it seems as though the first instalment serves as an extreme experimental period. There’s a foreboding feeling of failure when making a project that draws in different visions from all over a filmmaking pallet, but horror nuts who are true to their craft will let their audacious attitudes plow through anything resembling an obstacle. This was a clear example for the V/H/S series – an easy comparison to…
By: Addison Wylie The manipulation of time can lend itself to enticing stories and conflicted characters. Time Lapse would’ve delivered on both of those, but filmmaker Bradley King’s melodramatic presentation robs the audience of anything intriguing. Time Lapse wisely keeps its narrative between three leads. Those roles are filled out by Matt O’Leary, Danielle Panabaker, and George Finn who all appear and act as if their characters should be a few years older. Those close-knit…
By: Addison Wylie It’s funny to see Entertainment One attached to Wolves. It almost acts as an apology to werewolf fanatics who may have been bothered by the studio’s Twilight series. Even though Wolves wipes our memories of Taylor Lautner and his chiseled abs sprinting through the woods, David Hayter’s toothy flick isn’t anything too special. It’s a serviceable film with pop-up gems. Cayden is at that usual stage a young man hits in his…
By: Addison Wylie Suburban Gothic is…weird. And, not that good kind of “weird” that Toronto After Dark joyfully uncovers through obscure titles. It’s a movie that makes you ask questions. Questions like: What is Suburban Gothic? Better yet, what genre is Suburban Gothic? Is it a comedy? Is it a horror? Better yet, is it a horror/comedy? If so, how can it be a comedy when it’s this stupefyingly unfunny? How can it be a…
By: Addison Wylie The Toronto International Film Festival may be in full swing, but Toronto After Dark shall not fall by the wayside. On September 4, the eclectic festival – known for hosting screenings that would please any sort of genre fan – released their first wave of films. The list has it all: toothy zombies, time traveling, werewolves, Elijah Wood, and two highly anticipated follow-ups to recent cult favourites. The ten revealed titles can be viewed here….