By: Trevor Jeffery At Toronto’s Fan Expo (an annual gathering for sci-fi super fans, comic book buffs, anime addicts, gaming geeks, horror… fans), badge-wearing nerds flock from all around, many garbed as pop culture icons, to enjoy a convention of collective interests. It’s a place where people can gather in community, compliment each other’s costumes, bathe in their favourite entertainment cultures and, of course, enjoy the celebrity guests.
By: Addison Wylie Cooties hits theatres and VOD at a fantastic time. Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion’s skittish dark comedy/horror works as great escapism for a post-secondary crowd already dreading more responsibilities, and it’s an entertaining essential for future Halloweens. Scream Queens co-writer Ian Brennan and SAW co-creator Leigh Whannell have teamed up to make a subversive, gory lil’ number featuring self-centred teachers seeking safety after a virus unleashes itself onto children through batches of skunked…
By: Addison Wylie At this year’s Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, Monty Python: The Meaning of Life captured the British comedians rehearsing for their final hurrah as they recounted cherished memories. Katja von Garnier’s concert doc Forever and a Day about German rock band Scorpions treads similar ground, but also made me feel the exact way the Pythons did – indifferent but not enough for me to completely disregard it. Forever and a Day is…
By: Addison Wylie Tig is refreshingly sensible. Then again, I guess that’s what happens when skilled documentarians Kristina Goolsby and Ashley York chronicle the ups and downs of a naturally funny and practical comedian. Tig Notaro worked very hard to earn stand-up credibility. Once her career found momentum, her dry wit opened the door for more opportunities. On the set of Lake Bell’s indie sleeper In A World…, Notaro found herself in weak health. Little did…
By: Shannon Page While on a spa retreat in the countryside with her best friend (Karin Viard), Violette (Julie Delpy, who also directs) meets geeky computer engineer Jean-René (Danny Boon). Their romance gets rocky when Violette brings Jean-René into her sophisticated life in Paris and introduces him to her nineteen year old son, Lolo (Vincent Lacoste). An unhappy Lolo attempts to sabotage his mother’s new relationship. The script – which was co-written by Delpy and Eugénie…
By: Addison Wylie It takes patience to mull thorough Mark Lewis’ Invention. However, even the calmest movie goers may find themselves jiggling their leg and looking at their watch. Invention features visual artist Lewis and a wandering, hovering camera (driven by cinematographers Bobby Shore and Martin Testar) visiting Toronto, Paris, and Sao Paulo. His feature film debut asks audiences to find fascination in minor details. The camera floats, locks in on open, negative space and waits for…
By: Shannon Page Probably best known for her stand-up comedy and satirical roles, Sarah Silverman isn’t the first name that comes to mind when one thinks of serious dramatic actresses – but maybe she should be. Directed by Adam Salky (Dare), I Smile Back stars Silverman as Laney Brooks, a suburban housewife and mother of two. In between packing lunches and driving the kids to school, Laney’s self-destructive behavior and out-of-control drug use begin to…
By: Trevor Jeffery In 1978, John (Elliot James Langridge) is a lonely English youth with a penchant for vandalism. He goes from creepily shy to dance machine after meeting cool guy Matt (Josh Whitehouse) and being introduced to the sounds of American soul music. And speed. Lots and lots of speed. The two bond quickly over records and dancing. John ditches his good boy life, rudely telling his parents and teacher to go elsewhere, and…
By: Trevor Jeffery College senior Thomas (TIFF rising star Aliocha Schneider) witnesses a young mother’s suicide after she hands him her baby and dives in front of a truck. Guy Édoin’s Ville-Marie takes two paths from this first scene tragedy: one, following Thomas as he reunites with his estranged actress mother shooting on location in Montreal, Sophie (Monica Bellucci), and the second following the hospital staff – a paramedic who shows up to the scene,…
Trapped in a hair salon while chaos ensues outside, the characters of Arab and Tarzan Nasser’s tensely-written Dégradé are confronted by the worsening socio-economic conditions of Palestine: frequent brownouts, lack of security, armed conflict, and ideological extremism. The Nasser twins use their diverse range of female characters – all differing in terms of devoutness, personality, and in some cases cultural background – to weave together a flowing, stimulating dialogue on the political and social climate…