Movies in Toronto

Nov 11 SAIGON ELECTRIC (REEL ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL, Royal Cinema)

2011-12-11T22:27:00.000-08:00

From the director of OWL AND THE SPARROW, another Vietnamese hit at the festival comes SAIGON ELECTRIC, giving us a look into the Hip Hop scene of the famous Asian city. As far as dance movies goes it was not too bad, but with only a little of the actual dancing shown. AS just a movie it is also pretty good with good characters and nice flow to the story. The really interesting thing was that because their Hip Hop scene is about 25 years behind North America's the movie becomes nostalgic for Westerners and a little bit of an unintended comedy.

Nov 11th IMMORTALS (Scotiabank Theatre #1)

2011-12-11T22:25:00.000-08:00

I was really looking forward to seeing the IMMORTALS, especially since it was from the producers of 300. However, I was a little disappointed. Although the look of the movie is great, it is the story that falls a little behind. There is not enough action and not enough depth to the characters or the story. There were certainly a lot of good looking, fit people hired to be in the movie.

Nov 10th BOY WONDER (DVD)

2011-12-11T22:23:00.000-08:00

Not since Charles Bronson was there a really good vigilante movie. People nowadays just don't know how to give in to their hate and despair and no care about anything else. BOY WONDER is about a young man who is looking for the killer of his mother, along the way he also takes care of a few other criminals, but really needs to work on his preparedness. The saving grace of this poorly acted movie is in the story and the conclusion.

Nov 9th CARS 2 (DVD)

2011-12-11T22:20:00.000-08:00

CARS really impressed, especially the immensely detailed background, and in spite of Owen Wilson doing the voice of Lighting McQueen. CARS 2 on the other hand was not all that great considering it was a PIXAL movie. Before they did not do sequels which was a good thing, so maybe now they are owned by Disney, we may be seeing more of these second versions that are just not as good as the first. Would have liked to seen more detail not only in the look but also in the story and characters.

Nov 9th TRAILBLAZERS (REEL ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL, INNIS TOWN HALL)

2011-12-11T22:17:00.000-08:00

Five short movies about people who have made a difference in someway in the past in the area they live in.

TOTTE MITSU, LET'S GO TO RUSSIA: A young Western man, his host mother and her friend, make two very quirky movies while on a trip to view the changing colours of leaves in Japan.

BABAH NO ROCK (GRANNY'S ROCK): a doc about a local artist who is as bizzare as her artistic method's and her bar antics.

GRANDPA'S WET DREAM: A doc about a 70 year old Japanese man and his porn career he has hidden from his family all these years.

A DRUMMER'S PASSION: A doc about a famous South Korean drummer who now lives in Toronto. A drummer whose personality is larger then life and even bigger then the youtube video that made him famous in the West.

THE SUGAR BOWL: A documentary about a small island in the Philipines, that was one of the world's largest producers of sugar cane. Focuses too much on the descendents of the few families who got rich off this crop and shows almost nothing of the actual crop and how it is grown or harvested.

Nov 9th CROSSROADS (REEL ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL, NFB Building)

2011-12-11T22:15:00.000-08:00

Six shorts about young people reaching a crossroad in the lives and how they deal with it. Also followed by a PSA (public service announcement) animation made by students of a Lakeshore highschool, about making friends and including others in activities.

SEARCHING FOR WONDER: A 12 year old college student discovers the wonder of not knowing everything in life.

FARAWAY: A young Asian woman deals with her inability to communicate with her Chinese speaking Grandmother.

PAPER WINGS: A Grandfather imparts his love of flying to his young grandson.

SAENG-IL (BIRTHDAY): A young Korean man deal with his lack of friends and his all too busy commitment at the family's corner store.

SUNDAY MENU: A German Thai woman deals with her distant mother in the family resturant and her grandmother who dwells in the past through memories of food.

CANOPY CROSSING: A pseudo doc about a market in Thailand made on a train track that must move everything every time a train comes by.

NOV 8th PUSS IN BOOTS (Carlton Cinema)

2011-12-11T22:12:00.000-08:00

Usually when they take a character from a different movie and make their own, they really screw it up. PUSS IN BOOTS is an exception to this rule as our beloved cat in SHREK really shines in his own movie and brings us a very funny and entertaining escape. The other characters in the movie and the jokes, some of which are thankfully way over little kids heads, really keep the laughs going throughout.

NOv 6th BURNT OFFERINGS (DVD)

2011-12-11T22:10:00.000-08:00

Another one of the 80's horror films recommended by a co-worker. BURNT OFFERINGS is about a family who rents a mansion for the summer and deals with the old lady it comes with. Not a very scary movie but it does have its interesting parts. Was obviously made with a sequel in mind, cause it leaves more questions unanswered then answered.

Nov 5th FORKS OVER KNIVES (DVD)

2011-12-11T22:01:00.000-08:00

FORKS OVER KNIVES is a documentary about two American doctors who did research in the 60s and 70s about people being healthier while eating no meat. There are a few points that are interesting and well made but one big question comes to mind. If this is actually true, why are we just hearing about it now 60 years later?

Nov 5th THE WARRIOR'S WAY (DVD)

2011-12-11T21:59:00.000-08:00

Trying to make a Eastern martial arts movie set in the West is never a good idea. THE WARRIOR'S WAY starts out really well but then loses steam when the "Ninja" goes to the West and meets people living in a dessert town. Not as good as it could have been with a little more effort. To me this is like making an outer space alien movie and having too many humans in it.

Nov 4th PAGE ONE: INSIDE THE NEW YORK TIMES (DVD)

2011-12-11T21:57:00.000-08:00

PAGE ONE: INSIDE THE NEW YORK TIMES was supposed to tell the story of one of the world's most famous newspapers and about its struggles in this ever increasing digital and Internet based world. What it does is tells the story more of one or two modern reporters for the newspaper and does not go into any detail about how the newspaper is made at all. Still an interesting Doc but not as interesting as it should be.

Nov 4th OFFSPRING (DVD)

2011-12-11T21:54:00.000-08:00

After seeing the interesting Horror film THE WOMAN (Oct 27th) I decided to watch the movie that THE WOMAN was a loose sequel to, OFFSPRING. An interesting horror film about a wild clan of people who live in the woods of Maine. For some reason no one knows these people are here and only one person knows why they want to steal babies. Would have liked to seen more action, but for what the movie was it was pretty well made, even if a little too far fetched.

Nov 4th DEADLY FRIEND (DVD)

2011-12-11T21:52:00.000-08:00

Another one of the 80's horror films recommended by a co-worker. DEADLY FRIEND is about a new kid in the neighbourhood, who becomes popular because of his "pet" robot. Things very quickly turn into a Hitchcockian twist. Actually a pretty good early movie from Director Wes Craven and stars the adopted brother from Little House on the Prairie.

Nov 3rd R.A. ONE (AMC Yonge and Dundas 24, #3)

2011-12-11T21:50:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks before R.A. ONE enjoyed a premiere at the TIFF building with Shahrukh "King" Khan in attendance. He is a very famous singer/actor from India. One of the most popular today. The premiere was a big success, which lead to the movie being released to a wider audience at the AMC. Should note here that the AMC plays quite a few Indian movies, I refuse to call the industry Bollywood, cause it is more prolific then Hollywood could ever be and more original as well. The movie is my first Indian Sci-Fi movie and I really enjoyed it a lot. There were parts borrowed from Hollywood films but they have been doing that for years so I have no problem with it. Some of the ever present music numbers were very catchy and very entertaining. I may just have to watch more of King Khan's movies.

Nov 3rd BLOOD RAYNE: THE THIRD REICH (DVD)

2011-12-11T21:47:00.000-08:00

When watching a DVD, the previews shown before the main movie sometimes look so good you decide to rent a movie that you normally would not. BLOOD RAYNE: THE THIRD REICH was one of these movies. The other Blood Rayne movies lost my interest very quickly, but the mixture of Vampires and Nazis captured it again. Unfortunately, horrible acting and a very weak story could not hold my interest very long.

Nov 3rd DRAGON CRUSADERS (DVD)

2011-12-11T21:46:00.000-08:00

It took two tries to actually watch DRAGON CRUSADERS. The first time I was so bored I fell asleep. Tried again because of the dragons in the movie, which look really good, even though you don't see them often. The problem was the acting was so bad it took away from the story and definitely from the enjoyment.

Nov 2nd 36th PRECINCT "36 QUAI DES ORFEVRES "(DVD)

2011-12-11T21:38:00.000-08:00

36th PRECINCT "36 QUAI DES ORFEVRES " is a French Cop drama starring Great French Actor Gerrard Depideau, which turned out to be a not so good movie. Was too slow, with very little happening and very few characters to actually care about.

Oct 29th 50/50 (Carlton Cinemas)

2011-12-11T21:36:00.000-08:00

One would not think a comedy about cancer would be funny, thankfully 50/50 is more about relationships during troubled times then about the actual disease. I do not find Seth Rogen all that funny, in fact his constant babble, although realistic is quite annoying. The acting ability of Joseph Gordon-Levitt is not only good but seems to get better and better with every movie he is in.

Oct 28th IN TIME ( AMC Yonge and Dundas 24 )

2011-12-11T21:33:00.000-08:00

IN TIME is Justin Timberlake's second attempt at leading man. Have not seen FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS yet. He again does a good job and shows he can act, this time in an original Sci_fi version of Bonnie and Clyde, with a little Robin Hood mixed in.The thing I enjoyed the most is the care in the writing and the fact that the most important commodity of this future "time" is very evident in the speech of the day. Not a major block buster but still a very enjoyable movie.

Oct 28th 2 Short NFB Movies (NFB App Iphone)

2011-12-11T21:31:00.000-08:00

GASTON'S RECITAL (20 mins) A French Canadian movie about a young hockey star who also plays the fiddle and is trying to find the balance between doing the two things he loves and making his family happy. The dubbed English comes across a little weird, but the movie is fun and enjoyable.

TO BE (10 mins) An animated movie (What the NFB is famous for.) about a young woman and her encounter with a scientist, who has created what seems to be a teleportation device. With some funny situations, they bring up some very interesting questions.

Oct 28th 3 MUSKETEERS (DVD)

2011-10-27T22:40:00.000-07:00

This has got to be the worse rendition of the three musketeers story ever. Not only is it a pretty lame story but it also has some of the worse acting ever done and some pretty cheesy special effects. The fact that the steal the characters name and try to link 3 MUSKETEERS with something as great as The Three Musketeers, is just beyond pathetic and does not make any sense at all. I was in the mood for a really bad, maybe an F rated action movie and that is exactly what I got, but without the action.

Oct 27th THE WOMAN (After Dark Film Festival, Toronto Underground Cinema)

2011-10-27T22:30:00.000-07:00

The second of the two movies I saw at this years After Dark Film Festival, THE WOMAN, was a little more horrific then my friend was expecting. I have always maintained that the most brutal of the monsters possible were the Human kind.
A man finds a wild woman in the woods and he and his family keep her as a pet, and then as they say the fun begin. It is actually the two main stars that make this movie worth watching and entertaining. Most everything else is predictable.
Even predictable it is a good story, if not fully revealed. I would love to see a more in depth look at this man's character. As far as a night out seeing a movie and enjoying a festival. Very well done.
Again, one of the reasons for going to a film festival is because the directors and actors are usually there to answer questions and give insights in the making of these films. Sean Bridgers, who does a great job as the father in the film, made a rare festival appearance tonight.

Oct 25th THE DIVIDE (After Dark Film Festival, Toronto Underground Cinema)

2011-10-27T05:41:00.000-07:00

Before THE DIVIDE there was a short film from Canadian Director Mathew Nayman called BLINDSPOT. A very funny, simple well made film.Seeing movies like this is one of the reasons I go to film festivals.

THE DIVIDE is the first of two movies I am seeing in this year's After Dark Film Festival. A horror, sci fi, fantasy film festival, now back in October. The movie is a human break down story about people immediately after a apocalypse. You get to see such how far the human spirit can be stretched and what happens when it breaks. Kinda like a modern Lord of the Flies but no where near as good.
The movie is not bad but when it is released in theatres, around Jan or Feb, with 15 extra disturbing movies, it should be better.
The really cool thing about this screening and one of the reasons I go to film festivals is because not only was the director Xavier Gens (HITMAN) was there there was also Micheal Biehn (Aliens, Abyss), Micheal Eklund (Caprica, Fringe, Flashpoint) and Milo Ventimiglia (Heroes).

Oct 23rd THE WAR OF 1812 (DVD)

2011-10-25T02:43:00.000-07:00

THE WAR OF 1812 was more of a short miniseries then a movie per se. It was very well done and shows exactly what happened between the new formed American Colonies and the British controlled Canadian Colonies. Also shows the global connections and ramifications of this war. For a Canadian this was very informative and enlightening, although I knew most of what happened already. I am a history buff as well as a movie buff.There is still a slight American slant to the story here but at least they do try to tell the complete truth. Would love to see more like this on North American History.

Oct 21st BUSONG:PALAWAN FATE (Imaginative Film Festival, TIFF #2)

2011-10-25T02:40:00.000-07:00

This is the first year the ImagiNATIVE film festival has been held in the new TIFF building. (Toronto International Film Festival Building) Yes I still refuse to call this building by the stupid name it was given.This year I decided to only see one movie. BUSONG: PAWAN FATE, which was sponsored by the Reel Asian Film Festival and by Xtra, Toronto's Gay Newspaper. It was billed as a gay. Filipino movie. Haven't seen one of those in a long time so I decided to go. It was a Filipino movie, actually about the indigenous people there called Pala'wan. It is beautifully shot with amazing views of the natural beauty of the area. However, it was not a gay movie. The director's previous movie ANG PAGADADLAGA NI MAXIMO OLIVEROS (THE BLOSSOMING OF MAXIMO OLIVEROS), was about a young effeminate gay man in Manila. This movie was stories from his culture that his mother had past down to him. The movie seems to have been made for gay men though. Every guy in the movie was gorgeous with a great body and a lot of those bodies were shown off.This is why it is better to have no expectations when going to watch a movie, it changes the entire experience, because the movie itself wasn't all that bad. I just wish a lot more happened then it did. I also wish when foreign movies have white actors they are not portrayed as so stupid and cruel.