Reviews
The feature film debut of Canadian director Jim Cliffe, Donovan’s Echo, is a supernaturally-tinged mystery featuring an incredible performance from the legendary Danny Glover. The film introduces us to Donovan Matheson (Danny Glover), whose wife and daughter were killed in a 1964 car accident. 30 years later,Donovan returns to his old home and begins experiencing moments of déjà vu which lead him to believe that a young neighbour and her mother will be killed on the anniversary of his family’s death....
Hayao Miyazaki brought the films of Studio Ghibli to the forefront and a partnership with Disney made them accessible in the West. Now he has given the director’s chair to one of his protégés. But The Secret World of Arrietty continues the tradition of beauty and fantasy of the previous films, ensuring Miyazaki’s legacy will not be lost....
The Rebound is a good rom-com contender for “Valentine’s Day date movie”. Catherine Zeta-Jones is Sandy, a recently-divorced 40ish single mom who relocates with her two cute kids to New York City to make a fresh start. Justin Bartha is Aram, the directionless but earnest 25-year-old who has recently been dumped by his French girlfriend and just doesn’t know what to do with himself. When Sandy moves in above the coffee shop where Aram works and ends up hiring him as her nanny, a friendship is immediately born, and soon blossoms into a relationship that might be more than just...
Each Valentine’s requires a new love story so there’s something appropriate for couples to watch on movie dates. This year’s favourite pick will likely be The Vow. It’s the tale of Paige (Rachel McAdams) and Leo (Channing Tatum), a couple torn apart by an accident that causes Paige to forget her blissful life with Leo. Refusing to give up on his wife, Leo tries to remind her why she fell in love with him in the first place....
I have long held the belief that there are a lot of companies raking in a ton of money on the back of breast cancer, simply because women make most of the buying decisions and, well, you have to have breasts to have breast cancer. So when I saw the listing for Pink Ribbons, Inc. in the TIFF program book this year I actually squealed with joy and the film did not disappoint me. Taking a funny and gently provocative look at the issue of cause marketing, it challenges the viewer to dissect their own buying decisions and, hopefully ask...
Ti West showed the world what he could do in his 2009 film The House of the Devil, but it’s his most recent film, The Innkeepers, that really shows off his remarkable tension-building style. With a great cast and a creative take on the haunted house genre, West delivers one of the best ghost stories we’ve seen in years....
When the resurrection of Hammer Films was announced in 2010, many rejoiced and many shuddered. When Hammer released films like The Resident and Wake Wood, it seemed as if the naysayers may have been right on the money. However, that rough start may be on the decline because with the release of The Woman In Black, Hammer has rekindled that old Gothic flame with which we were enthralled....
Moon Point, the first release from new kid on the block distributor IndieCan Entertainment, is waiting to be your new favourite movie. It’s a hip little film, with all the baggage that word may imply. Moon Point is self-aware, extremely cool, and comes complete with a catchy indie-stocked soundtrack; director Sean Cisterna has obviously studied indie cult classics and sleeper hits (think: Garden State, Juno, Little Miss Sunshine). Moon Point will remind you of those small and charming movies, and in the best possible way. After seeing it, you’ll be left with the feeling that you just spent an hour...
Dominic Allan’s new documentary, Calvet, chronicles the frightening and fantastic journey of artist Jean Marc Calvet. The film opens in his current world, where he’s happy and healthy, expressive, enthusiastic, secure in his relationships and in his art. His canvases, which sell for thousands of dollars apiece, are colourful, tightly packed visions that give the viewer a sense of frenetic energy and movement. As we soon find out, it turns out that his art literally saved his life....
It takes skill to keep an emotionally charged account of children affected by the death of their elementary school teacher from becoming a syrupy and saccharin tale. In the hands of a lesser-skilled writer-director the story of Monsieur Lazhar could have trickled into a film about how hugs make everything better and love transcends death. Mercifully, writer-director Philippe Falardeau expertly balances the intricate delicacies of this emotionally powerful story....
There is an art to telling a story through film that goes beyond the technical elements. The key is to engage the audience and make them care about the characters. Despite the number of films writer/director Angelina Jolie has starred in, she does not appear to have absorbed the details of that lesson....
Recent years have brought several films featuring tough, female protagonists that out match their male opponents in every contest, whether they faceoff physically or mentally. Stars of this action subgenre have included Angelina Jolie, Kate Beckinsale and Milla Jovovich. But the vicious fight scenes in Haywire show former MMA fighter Gina Carano could match, and maybe even take, the best of them (at least physically)....
