I really don’t like remakes. Like many film fans, I believe that they should be avoided at all costs, particularly when they are Hollywood remakes of excellent foreign films. However, Hollywood being what it is, remakes are inevitable. So when I heard that there were plans to remake the excellent Swedish film Let The Right […]
The films of Alejandro González Iñárritu ( Amores Perros , Babel ) have never quite sat right with me. Although he has the ability to weave together multiple storylines and characters in seamless and intimate ways, his need to create the absolute worst possible scenario at almost every turn leaves me incredibly frustrated. Perhaps this […]
There have been a number of films made in recent years that are use the concept of average people becoming costumed vigilantes. From last year’s ambitious Watchmen adaptation, to the Canadian indie flick Defendor, and more recently the big screen version of Mark Millar’s ultraviolent Kick-Ass , normal people putting on tights and bashing criminals […]
Windfall is filmmaker Laura Israel’s look at how a small Upstate New York town is nearly torn apart over a proposed wind farm development. The film is not an exposé on the wind power industry, but rather an examination of the effects wind farms can have on small, desperate communities The community of Meredith, NY […]
The causes of the current global economic crisis are incredibly confusing to anyone without advanced degrees in economics or intimate knowledge of business and finance (and even to those with expertise.) It is little surprise, then, that the crisis continues to persist as so few have the expertise to question those responsible for it — […]
In the immediate Post-Franco era, Spanish film set out to explore and perhaps heal the trauma of the near-half century of fascist rule. In the 1990s, though, a new crop of filmmakers began to move away from social realism and explore the contemporary Spanish character, in particular through the fantastic genres (horror, sci-fi and fantasy.) […]
Since the 30 films already picked by Will and Shelagh only represent about 10% of what’s shaping up to be another great program at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival , it wasn’t hard for me to find 10 more that I think are worth checking out. The lineups have been crazy and of course […]
A lot of the films Will picked , I picked as well, so here’s a selection of the others that I am quite excited about . These lists should provide a good starting point, but be sure to read the full TIFF 2010 schedule . Strange Case of Angelica Manoel de Oliveira, Portugal/Spain/France/Brazil A photographer […]
With the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival just under a week away, I figured that now would be as good time as any to write up a list of films that I think are worth checking out this year. The 2010 edition of the fest has some truly wonderful offerings from around the world. You […]
Midnight Madness has always been a favourite refuge for dorks at the Toronto International Film Festival . Free from the stuffy attitude that plagues the rest of the festival, Midnight Madness is just about the movies. Awesome, weird and insane movies. The programme is a showcase for the best in sci-fi, fantasy, action, horror, animation […]
The films of the incomparable Claire Denis are subtle lessons in semiotics. They are like moving photographs, or graphic novels with almost no words: the viewer must (and can) put together the story from the images, like they are a fly hovering with no knowledge of past context. The third of Denis’ African-centred films, White […]
I don’t think a title has ever been more accurate for defining a film. Nor has a film been as divisive in recent festival memory as to whether it is a work of genius or an exercise in audience torture. This is not necessarily a film to love or hate though. Rather, like his earlier […]
One of the few animated films to be shown at the Cannes film festival (not only this year but in the festival’s history), this strange little gem from Belgium starts at a cracking pace that it easily sustains for 75 minutes of roaring fun. It is also the first G-rated film to be shown in […]
Only a Canadian could make a campy pseudo-musical film about the Manson Family. While perhaps fading from the memory of those not alive at the time, Charles Manson is still one of the icons of crazed cult leaders and serial killers. Director Reginald Harkema ( A Girl is a Girl , Monkey Warfare ) creates […]
The past few years have seen Spanish horror burst onto screens around the world thanks to some fairly high-profile Spanish directors making films in Hollywood, and Spanish films being remade for US audiences. [REC] was remade into Quarantine , though there is no news on whether Quarantine 2 will be made (I haven’t seen it, […]
