Devil’s Knot Review
Atom Egoyan’s dramatized take on the events surrounding the West Memphis Three murder case and trial, Devil’s Knot, is a tad too redundant and tasteful for its own good.
Whitewash Review
Whitewash is an ambitious, if decidedly problematic debut Canadian feature that’s arriving in theatres at the perfect time.
Republique Episode 1 – Exordium Review
The first episode of Camouflaj's Republique successfully introduces stealth to the touchscreen.
A Girl on Girls: Episode 3.3 Recap
Girls consistently places its characters in dark and amusing situations that make us reflect on our own terrible choices and awkward experiences. At the end of the day, however, a lack of character growth and self-awareness will exhaust even the most loyal fan. To combat this, Dunham and co. have transformed several of the show's supporting characters into surrogates for the viewer who confront the main characters about their behaviour.
True Detective Episode 1.2 Recap
By the close of the second episode of HBO’s True Detective, it seems like the stinger to each installment will be to remind the audience that there’s an actual overarching case that needs to be solved and not just an almost painfully intimate portrait of two men that are slowly breaking down. Then again, “Seeing Things” tends to suggest that the very case and how it ultimately turns out will ultimately come down to the personalities of the people trying to solve it rather than the particulars.
Films in Brief: 1/18/14
We play a bit of catch up looking at the found footage horror Devil's Due, the animated animal heist flick The Nut Job, Ralph Fiennes look at Charles Dickens The Invisible Woman, a Stephen King retrospective at the TIFF Bell Lightbox, a screening of the Lebanese war drama Zaytoun, the continued popularity of the documentary Nicky's Family, and free return engagements from some films that played the European Union Film Festival last year.
A Girl on Girls: Episode 3.2 Recap
On the last episode of Girls, our resident British-American hippie Jessa got kicked out of rehab for selfishly helping her vest friend Laura come to terms with her sexual orientation. That means this week is road trip to rehab time, starring Hannah, Shoshanna, and Adam.
Community Episode 5.4 Recap
The six surviving Greendale Seven and Chang all agree to submit to what Abed describes as “the pie fight of cop movies,” and we all buckle down for 22 minutes (plus commercials) of what Community does best: A bottle episode.
Stranger by the Lake Review
A cerebral character study that looks into the incredibly screwed up and often contradictory nature of sexual desire, Alain Guiraudie’s Stranger by the Lake has a lot to say about how people can throw their own sense of personal preservation to the wind for a chance at love.
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit Review
It’s tough to tell if hardcore fans of Jack Ryan will be delighted or disgusted when it comes to Kenneth Branagh’s reboot of Tom Clancy’s beloved spy. Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit has some decent moments or action and a solid lead in Chris Pine, but it’s far too inconsistent and formulaic to be a good film.
This Week at The Bloor: 1/17/14
A positively stacked week at The Bloor brings the harrowing and rightfully Academy Award nominated look at the Egyptian revolution, The Square, the poignant look at "Eskimo culture," Arctic Defenders, and a slew of special screenings worth consideration, including classic documentary On the Bowery and the fun look at creativity From Nothing, Something. It's such a good week, we decided to run the column a day early for a change.
Ride Along Review
Forget that Ride Along is so cliched there are no surprises or that buddy cop movies are already too cliched to begin with. Despite the best efforts of Ice Cube and Kevin Hart, Tim Story's sanitized take on the genre is just too genial to be much fun.
Post-Graduate Studies: Community Season 5
Thanks to its self-reflexive nature, Community has managed to return to the status quo in three episodes while still respecting the event of graduation itself, essentially saying everything that happened mattered (even the gas leak last year), but nothing ever really matters (including the gas leak).
Tearaway Review
Media Molecule's Tearaway, a brilliant platformer with a unique papercraft landscape, hasn't been seen by enough people in part thanks to the PS Vita's lagging sales performance. Megan reminds everyone why it's worth playing in her review.
VEIL #1 Review
Greg Rucka and Tony Fejzula's VEIL offers a completely unique hero to root for in this Dark Horse series coming March 5th.
