Archive for August, 2010

  • 31 Aug

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    Toronto After Dark: High School Review

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    Toronto After Dark

     

    The stoner comedy High School wanders in a haze between well-executed smart comedy and stupid humour. Sometimes awkward, sometimes hilarious and sometimes just a little bit slow on the uptake, the movie itself acts as stoned as the entirety of the student body (and most of the teachers) during the one particular day on which most of the movie is set.

    Henry is a star pupil all set to wrap up his high school phase and move on to what lies ahead at M.I.T. Aside from a last minute battle for the top G.P.A. score of the school, his life seems pretty much on track. So he decides to throw caution to the wind and try, for the first time, getting high with his old elementary school buddy. After several years of divergent paths, they reconnect one day and Henry accepts his stoner buddy Travis’ offer to take a few tokes. Unfortunately, he does this the day before militant school principal Gordon decides to test the entire school for drug use – with anyone showing positive signs getting expelled. Worried that he’s ruined his life, he begs Travis to help him. They come up with a bold plan: get the entire school high before the drug test and the results will have to be thrown out.

    » Read the rest of the entry..

  • 30 Aug

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    Dark Bridges Film Festival Lineup

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    I am pretty sure that I won’t have anyone involved with the Dark Bridges Film Festival complaining about my direct copying of their festival lineup announcement seeing as I was the one who wrote it. I’m really proud of the lineup and schedule we have been able to set up for our first festival and while there were a few movies that I wanted that we were unable to get I am really happy with the ones that took their place. We ended up with a terrific mix of comedy, horror, action and cult films that I feel rivals the bigger festivals, just on a smaller scale. I should note that I also feel that I believe the short film lineup is as strong if not stronger than the full feature film lineup.

    If you are looking for something to do this Sept. 24-26 definitely check out the Dark Bridges Film Festival.

    So without further ado here is the post from the official site website for the Dark Bridges.

    We are thrilled to be announcing our full festival schedule. The first annual Dark Bridges Film Festival is bringing you a collection of horror, action, western, sci-fi, comedy and cult feature and short films from around the world. The 12 feature films and over 20 short films will entertain film fanatics this September 24th to 26th at the Roxy Theatre in Saskatoon, SK. Each of the feature films will screen with one to two short films. If you haven’t already purchased your festival pass you really need to do so now. They are currently $60.00 and will go up to $70.00 for the month of September. Individual tickets for each movie are $8.00 at the door.

    Opening Gala Presentation

    We open the festival with the newest historical brutal action film CENTURION (Fri, Sept. 24, 7pm) from British director Neil Marshal (DOG SOLDIERS, THE DESCENT, DOOMSDAY). After the 9th Roman Legion is decimated by an attack from the Picts the few survivors have to band together as they are hunted down.

    Cannibals, Zombies and Werewolves welcome

    No genre festival would be complete without its share of creature features. This year we have have a wide selection of creatures to meet your tastes. WEREWOLF FEVER (Sat, Sept. 25, 1pm) opens up our creature day with a blast of comedy and gore as a werewolf attacks a local burger joint. Our second creature feature is the disturbing mockumentary about cannibalism LONG PIGS (Sat, Sept. 25, 3:30pm). Saturday night brings us to Zombie time with a double feature of the Spanish horror films [REC] (Sat, Sept. 25, 7pm) and [REC] 2 (Sat, Sept. 25, 9:30pm). Both of these first person shot zombie flicks will have you jumping out of your skin. Our final creature feature is the midnight madness screening of DEATH OF THE DEAD (Sat, Sept. 25, 12 midnight). All I need to say about this hilarious comedy horror is Zombie Ninjas!

    Midnight Madness

    In addition to our Saturday Midnight screening of DEATH OF THE DEAD we will also be screening EL MONSTRO DEL MAR! (Fri, Sept. 24, midnight) This Austrailian mash up of FASTER PUSSY CAT KILL KILL with a tentacle sea monster will definitely get a rise out of you.

    Terror in the Woods

    Not every horror movie that takes place in the woods involves teens being hunted down by an indestructible killer. In DAWNING (Fri, Sept. 24, 9:30pm) terror is delivered upon a family as an intruder breaks into their cabin claiming an unknown monster has killed his girlfriend. This dark scary horror will chill you to the bones.

    Canadian Historical Drama as part of Canada Culture Days

    We are extremely proud to be presenting the Manitoba created BLACK FIELD (Sun, Sept. 26, 1pm) Danishka Esterhazy has created a beautiful dark historical drama about two young sisters living alone on an isolated farm who become involved with a stranger who is interested in more than just spending a night in their barn while his horse rests. Admission for BLACK FIELD will be by donation for those who do not have a festival pass.

    Come out for some laughs

    The Irish black comedy A FILM WITH ME IN IT (Sun, Sept. 26, 3:30pm) is best seen without knowing anything about it. Trust us when we say it will have you laughing throughout as things go from bad to worse for all the characters. If you are thinking that things will be wrapping up early Sunday you are totally wrong. We have a terrific double bill to wrap up the festival. At 7pm you get the chance to see Adrien Brody as the drug dealing Psycho Ed in HIGH SCHOOL (Sun, Sept. 26, 7pm). This stoner comedy had everyone rolling on the floor at the Toronto After Dark and this is your one and chance to catch it in theatre.  This leads us to our closing night Gala…

    Closing Gala Presentation

    How do you describe a film like THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE WEIRD (Sun, Sept. 26, 9:30pm) in just a couple of sentences? This Korean Kimchi Western takes everything that you enjoy about blockbuster films and adds a terrific sense of humour, practical special effects and chase scene that rivals any of Hollywood’s best blockbuster films.

    Our complete festival schedule is available at http://www.darkbridges.com/festival-schedule/.

    You can also find more information about purchasing festival passes at several locations in Saskatoon through paypal at http://www.darkbridges.com/festival-passes-are-now-on-sale/

  • 30 Aug

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    Shorts Program (Extended Edition): Gene Deitch Animation

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    Los Angeles’ fabulous repertory company Cinefamily shows an animated series every month hosted by Cartoon Brew‘s Jerry Beck. It’s always a great program, but a recent program focusing on the work of animator Gene Deitch is easily the most impressive of all the ones I’ve been to, despite the fact that I was not familiar with Deitch’s work beforehand. Deitch started off as an animator with UPA in the 1950s, then moved to Fox’s Terrytunes, with stints doing Tom & Jerry, Popeye, and Krazy Kat as well, before finally taking an opportunity to head an animation studio in Prague (where he still lives and works). Quite a varied and unusual career, held together by his unique eye and constant quest for new visual styles and innovative ways to use the medium. Deitch himself was here for the program, talking with Jerry about his career and his films, which was pretty special as he’s rarely back in the United States anymore. And of all the filmmakers who I’ve seen at Cinefamily screenings, he was probably the most engaging, with the most fascinating stories to tell.

    But great stories are even better when the films they support are good, and I was quite simply blown away by the quality and creativity of these films, especially considering he was working with MGM and Fox, who are not as well known for pushing the envelope as UPA and Warner Bros. Deitch pushed it anyway, using a very angular, minimalist visual style as well as a highly abstract sense of story and narrative.

    Click through for several shorts either directed or supervised by Deitch.

    » Read the rest of the entry..

  • 30 Aug

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    VIFF reveals more Cannes selections, releases preview guide

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    VIFF 2010 Banner

    Count down in motion. VIFF has revealed more titles to their already beefy lineups (see previous announcements here and here). The most recent set of additions include a little something for everyone from family drama (Charlotte Gainsbourg in The Tree) to strange thrillers (Quentin Dupieux’s Rubber (review)).

    Along with the addition of more Cannes selected titles, VIFF has also released their preview guide which lists a over 200 additional titles including some of my most anticipated of the year. Among these are Tsumetai Nettaigyo’s Cold Fish (recently selected as one of TIFF’s most anticipated titles), Sophie Letourneur’s Chicks, Jo Sung-Hee’s apocalyptic road movie End of Animal, Gareth Edwards’ Monsters (review) and Brazil’s Stolen Dreams. This year’s lineup also includes a disproportionate amount of costume dramas (lucky me!) including Catherine Breillat’s Sleeping Beauty, Bertrand Tavernier’s The Princess of Montpensier, Dover Kosashvili’s Anton Chekhov’s The Duel and perhaps the title I’m most excited to see, Mysteries of Lisbon. So far, an excellent assortment of films to choose from with many more to come!

    List of additional Cannes selections tucked under the seats but be sure to check out the preview guide for even more titles!

    » Read the rest of the entry..

  • 30 Aug

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    Newly Released Teaser for “How Do You Write a Joe Schermann Song”

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    I think I can speak for all of us around here when I say that one of our truest loves is the art of independent cinema. When a good one comes along we sit up and take notice. A couple of years ago, writer/director Gary King wow’d us with his visually pleasing New York Lately. Since then he’s been a busy guy with a couple of other experiments in various genres until finally settling into the world of musicals with his latest project, How Do You Write a Joe Schermann Song.

    Not being much of a fan of musicals in general, I gotta say this one looks pretty sweet. And from the mouth of the director himself, “this ain’t your momma’s musical” as it gives off a really pretty All that Jazz feel. Not soap mouth, slow crap. This one looks like it really will electrify the screen with some fast pace tunage and King’s flair for visual awesome.

    Check out the teaser below and you can get more info on the movie; including Twitter and Facebook links as well as some behind-the-scenes production bloggy stuff over at the film’s official site.

     

     

  • 30 Aug

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    Film on TV: August 30 – September 5

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    Requiem for a Dream, playing on IFC on Sunday

    A good many repeats this week, but still some very good stuff worth pointing out. The entire Man With No Name trilogy is on TCM on Tuesday, though not in order for whatever reason, along with a bunch of other Clint Eastwood films, most of them westerns, most of which I haven’t seen. I didn’t list them all out separately, so if you’re needing an Eastwood fix, check out the full TCM schedule yourself or just stay tuned to it all day Tuesday. Steve McQueen takes over TCM on Friday, from early creature-feature The Blob through his 1960s and 1970s classics. MGM celebrates itself again with That’s Entertainment! II on TCM on Saturday, but they deserve it. Plus IFC has a late Truffaut (The Last Metro) and an early Aranofsky (Requiem for a Dream) on Sunday.

    Monday, August 30

    6:45am – Sundance – Ran
    Akira Kurosawa’s inspired transposition of King Lear into medieval Japan, mixing Shakespeare and Japanese Noh theatre tradition like nobody’s business.
    1985 Japan. Director: Akira Kurosawa. Starring: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu, Daisuke Ryu.
    Must See

    7:45am – IFC – Paranoid Park
    I go back and forth on whether I think Gus Van Sant is brilliant or a pretentious bore – maybe some of both. But I really quite liked the slow, oblique approach in this film about a wanna-be skateboarder kid who relishes hanging out with the bigger skateboarders at the titular skate park – but there’s a death not far from there, and it takes the rest of the movie to slowly reveal what exactly happened that one night near Paranoid Park. Gets by on mood and cinematography.
    2007 USA Director: Gus Van Sant. Starring: Gabe Nevins, Daniel Lu, Jake Miller, Taylor Momsen, Lauren McKinney.
    (repeats at 12:45pm, and 4:35am on the 31st)

    9:00am-11:00am – TCM – Charley Chase/Thelma Todd shorts
    The three great silent comedians everyone remembers are Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Harold Lloyd. Right behind them and unjustly forgotten was Charley Chase, who did a lot of very funny silent (and early sound) shorts, usually playing a wanna-be dapper, rather sarcastic young man. TCM is playing a few of these shorts as part of their Summer Under the Stars tribute to Thelma Todd, one of his frequent costars. There are several other Todd shorts the rest of the day, so if you’re a fan of silent and early sound comedy, check them out. But I can personally vouch for the Charley Chase ones.
    USA. Starring: Charley Chase, Thelma Todd.
    Newly Featured!

    9:15am – IFC – The Station Agent
    One of the most pleasant surprises (for me, anyway) of 2003. Peter Dinklage moves into a train depot to indulge his love for trains and stay away from people, only to find himself befriended by a loquacious Cuban hot-dog stand keeper and an emotionally delicate Patricia Clarkson. A quiet but richly rewarding film.
    2003 USA. Director: Thomas McCarthy. Starring: Peter Dinklage, Patricia Clarkson, Bobby Cannavale.
    (repeats at 2:15pm)

    5:25pm – IFC – Breakfast on Pluto
    Patrick is a young Irish boy who before very long becomes Patricia. His story is about more than just his attempts to get people to accept him as a her; his quest for identity and his lost family is played out against the backdrop of the early years of the Troubles, as his friends get more and more involved in IRA factions while he does his best to keep from getting involved in things that are too “serious.” There’s a tough-to-find sweet spot between hilarity and tragedy, and hilarity that masks tragedy, and director Neil Jordan and actor Cillian Murphy found it with this film.
    2005 Ireland. Director: Neil Jordan. Starring: Cillian Murphy, Eva Birthistle, Liam Neeson.

    9:30pm – TCM – Horse Feathers
    Most film comedians do a college-set film at some point, and this is the Marx Brothers entry into higher education. This is a relatively early film for them, and it’s not quite as great as the Duck Soup-A Night at the Opera-A Day at the Races trifecta, but it’s still really solid, one of my favorites of their pre-1933 films.
    1932 USA. Director: Norman Z. McLeod. Starring: The Marx Brothers, Thelma Todd, David Landau.

    10:00pm – Sundance – Curse of the Golden Flower
    One of the weaker entries in Zhang Yimou’s series of historical martial-arts-on-wires films, but it still has its moments – and the production design, as usual, is flawlessly beautiful. Definitely worth a watch if you’re a fan of the style.
    2006 China. Director: Zhang Yimou. Starring: Chow Yun-Fat, Gong Li, Jay Chou, Ye Liu.
    (repeats at 3:20am on the 31st)

    » Read the rest of the entry..

  • 29 Aug

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    Film Bloggers Share Their Most Anticipated Films of TIFF 2010

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    21 Bloggers, 21 Top 5 lists, drawn from a mix of tastes, some Midnight Madness, some World Cinema, some Mainstream. With a lineup of 300+ films it is kind of miracle to get any kind of consensus, and yet, surprisingly enough, patterns emerge. One such pattern: We are pretty sick (4 out of the top 5 films delve into the dark recesses of the mind, steeped in revenge, obsession, and murder). Thanks to all who contributed, hopefully this will become an annual tradition.

    1. Black Swan – Darren Aronofsky (8 Votes)

    Black Swan Aronofsky

    2. Cave of Forgotten Dreams – Werner Herzog (6 Votes)

    Herzog Cave of Forgotten Dreams

    » Read the rest of the entry..

  • 29 Aug

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    Trailer for Stylish War Documentary ARMADILLO

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    There are no English subtitles on the trailer for war documentary, Armadillo, but the selling point here is that the film is shot to be as cinematic as possible whilst still being right on the ground with the soldiers. Visually, it looks like the filmmakers have achieved their goal, the film even took top honors in the Cannes Film Festival Critics Week sidebar where it was the lone documentary screened amongst fictional feature films. There are some handsome images and stylish presentation here, not surprising as the film hails from Denmark which is one of the more consistently interesting regions of the world for quality cinema. The TIFF catalogue has this to say about the film:

    The film follows Danish soldiers fighting the Taliban in the Helmand province of southern Afghanistan. We’ve grown accustomed in the last decade to depictions of improvised explosive devices, missile strikes and other remote control warfare. But in Armadillo (named for the platoon’s base camp) we’re plunged into close combat that evokes wars of past eras, particularly Vietnam [...] Armadillo has already stirred political debate in Denmark over the rules of engagement and raised calls for a military investigation. The film raises discussion on many levels: how recruits are conditioned to become warriors; how the international force conducts itself in Afghanistan; how an insurgency defies technical superiority; and how soldiers grow addicted to the adrenaline of war.

    The trailer is tucked under the seat.

    » Read the rest of the entry..

  • 28 Aug

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    Mamo #175: Previewing TIFF 2010

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    The Toronto International Film Festival 2010 is just around the corner! Join Matt Brown and Matt Price, hosts of Mamo!, as we take a tour through Toronto’s date with the movies. What’s good? What’s bad? What’s up with the Lightbox? We’ll be your guides to TIFF 2010…

    Standard Podcast [ 35:20 | 20.25 MB ] Play Now | Play in Popup

    To download the podcast, use the following URL: http://rowthree.com/audio/mamo/mamo175.mp3

  • 27 Aug

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    Talk Amoungst Yourselves

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  • 26 Aug

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    On the Road with Andrew’s iPod Making Triumphant Return to the Cinecast. Probably.

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    I used to do a segment on the Cinecast entitled “on the road with Andrew’s iPod” in which I reviewed a different, usually shitty, movie each week that I had watched on my iPod while driving or bussing it to work. That segment was usually met with either a lot of head shaking or laughs or both. Since I’ve quit my job where I got the free digital copies, that segment has pretty much disappeared. But the good news is that segment might be coming back!

    If the rumors are true, I’ll be able to pick up an iPhone this January with my Verizon account and with that comes the new feature of streaming movies from Netflix on their instant watch function and the brand new Netflix app released by Apple. The new app was announced in June and went live today! There’s a quick video at the previous link showing a little bit of how it looks, but if you haven’t seen The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo yet, maybe it best to avoid!

    The new iTunes available app costs zero and will work for anyone with an iPod touch or an iPhone and a Netflix account with at least the $8.99 package or higher. I’m pretty stoked about this news. Not everyone is as excited about it as I am though…

     

  • 26 Aug

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    TIFF 2010: First trailer for Maria Bello & Michael Sheen drama “Beautiful Boy”

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    Beautiful Boy Movie Still

    For his first full length feature, writer/director Shawn Ku is tackling a pretty hefty subject. Further, he’s also managed to round up an impressive cast of talent including Maria Bello, Michael Sheen, Moon Bloodgood and even a little Alan Tudyk for good measure.

    Beautiful Boy follows the aftermath of a school shooting but it does so from an angle we haven’t seen yet: the parents of the killer. It’s a good thing Bello and Sheen are both exceptionally talented actors as these are likely to be roles requiring heavy emotional lifting and the trailer suggests that both are up to the challenge. I’m definitely curious to see how this pans out.

    Beautiful Boy will screen at TIFF and if all goes well, should see some sort of distribution (gunning for Oscar I’d think) before the end of the year.

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