Cinemablographer

It's All About the Lens Flare!

2013-05-21T12:40:00.002-04:00

Star Trek Into Darkness (USA, 132 min.) Dir. J.J. Abrams, Writ. Robert Orci & Alex Kurtzman & Damon Lindelof Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Bruce Greenwood, Peter Weller, Anton Yelchin, Karl Urban, Alice Eve. “Lens flare!” cried J.J. Abrams on the set of Star Trek Into Darkness. “I need more lens flare!” “It won’t hold,

Shannon Chills as 'Iceman'

2013-05-20T22:13:00.000-04:00

The Iceman (USA, 103 min.) Dir. Ariel Vromen, Writ. Morgan Land, Ariel Vromen Starring: Michael Shannon, Winona Ryder, Chris Evans, Ray Liotta, David Schwimmer, James Franco Chris Evans and Michael Shannon in The IcemanPhoto courtesy of eOne Films No actor plays crazy as well as Michael Shannon plays crazy. It’s interesting to see/review The Iceman the day after seeing/reviewing Jeff

That Muddy River

2013-05-19T21:37:00.000-04:00

Mud (USA, 130 min.) Written and directed by Jeff Nicholas Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Tye Sheridan, Jacob Lofland, Reese Witherspoon, Sam Shepard, Michael Shannon, Sarah Paulson, Ray McKinnon. Matthew McConaughey stars in Mud. Photo courtesy eOne Films The river. If there was ever a place for boys to go out and explore, it’s the muddy waters. Trolling the Mississippi River in a

'Company' Keeps on Running

2013-05-16T10:25:00.000-04:00

The Company You Keep (USA, 121 min.) Dir. Robert Redford, Writ. Lem Dobbs Starring: Robert Redford, Shia LaBeouf, Julie Christie, Terrence Howard, Susan Sarandon, Nick Nolte, Chris Cooper, Stanley Tucci, Richard Jenkins, Anna Kendrick, Jackie Evancho. Robert Redford stars in The Company You Keep. Courtesy eOne Films. Living in hiding must tucker a man out. Thirty years in the shadows,

'Blackbird' Haunts

2013-05-12T21:39:00.000-04:00

Blackbird (Canada, 103 min.) Written and directed by Jason Buxton Starring: Connor Jessup, Alexia Fast, Michael Buie, Alex Ozorov. Blackbird won top honours for writer/director Jason Buxton as the breakthrough Canadian filmmaker of 2012. The film shared the award for Best Canadian First Feature when it had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival last fall (it tied

'Colony' a Cold Gorefest

2013-05-11T10:48:00.001-04:00

The Colony (Canada, 95 min.) Dir. Jeff Renfroe, Writ. Pascal Trottier, Patrick Tarr, Jeff Renfroe, Svet Rouskov Starring: Kevin Zegers, Laurence Fishburne, Bill Paxton, Charlotte Sullivan. Kevin Zegers and Laurence Fishburne in The Colony. An eOne Films release The Colony is the Paris Hilton of Canadian cinema. It has an attractive shell, but it’s dead on the inside. The $16 000 000

'August: Osage County' Trailer

2013-05-10T09:05:00.000-04:00

Is Meryl Streep heading to the Oscars once again? Some people murmured back in 2011 that a win for The Iron Lady wouldn't happen because Streep had signed on for the powerhouse lead role in the adaptation of Tracey Letts's stage play August: Osage County. However, the new trailer gives some juicy hints that Meryl could be looking at Oscar number 4. (She's probably looking at nomination #18,

Turn the Volume Down, Old Sport!

2013-05-09T11:29:00.000-04:00

The Great Gatsby (USA/Australia, 143 min.) Dir. Baz Luhrmann, Writ. Baz Luhrmann and Craig Pearce Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton, Elizabeth Debicki, Isla Fisher, Jason Clarke, Amitabh Bachchan. Is Baz Luhrmann a film director or a disc jockey? He seems to have adapted The Great Gatsby with an excellent ear for creating a playlist of

When Memory Fails

2013-05-08T13:36:00.003-04:00

Still Mine (Canada, 102 min.) Written and directed by Michael McGowan Starring: James Cromwell, Geneviève Bujold. Irene (Geneviève Bujold) and Craig (James Cromwell). Photo by Ken Woroner. What happens when a filmmaker delivers one of strongest films ever to emerge from this country? It’s almost inevitable that any film that falls in the same vein will feel as if it’s not up to snuff.

Hot Docs Wrap-up: Oscar Talk and 'Best of the Fest'

2013-05-06T14:26:00.000-04:00

Muscle Shoals wins the Hot Docs Audience Award Another festival is over. How quickly time flies when you’re having fun. I had another great Hot Docs experience this year. I saw a total of 48 films and just over a dozen shorts at the festival this year (including press screenings and screeners) and almost all of them were good. (I would have seen fifty, but I had some job interviews during the

Hot Docs Reviews: 'Blood Brother', 'Which Way is the Front Line from Here?', 'The Unbelievers'

2013-05-05T23:57:00.001-04:00

Blood Brother (USA, 93 min.) Dir. Steve Hoover Programme: Special Presentations (Canadian Premiere) Rocky and Surya. Photo Credit: John Pope Blood Brother won the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award for US Documentary at Sundance this year, and admiration for the film continued to grow at Hot Docs. I didn’t catch the film until its third screening, yet the theatre was still packed

Hot Docs Reviews: 'The Punk Singer', 'Finding the Funk', 'Mistaken for Strangers'

2013-05-05T19:13:00.000-04:00

Saw a trio of rockumentaries on the last weekend of the festival, so it makes sense to post their reviews together. The Punk Singer (USA, 80 min.) Dir. Sini Anderson Programme: Next (International Premiere) Photo courtesy Pat Smear It's hard not to discuss The Punk Singer mentioning this year's other grrrl punk movie Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer. The latter film certainly entered the

Hot Docs Review: 'Last Woman Standing'

2013-05-04T11:36:00.000-04:00

Last Woman Standing (Canada, 88 min.) Dir. Lorraine Price, Juliet Lammers Programme: Canadian Spectrum (World Premiere) What is with Canadian filmmakers and boxing documentaries? Doc boxing is so frequent that it is almost becoming a sub-genre in our national cinema. Last year, for example, Hot Docs introduced a quartet of good Canadian docs—okay, three boxing docs and one doc about Kung

Hot Docs Review: 'Alcan Highway', 'Last Black Sea Pirates', 'Brave New River'

2013-05-03T11:00:00.000-04:00

Alcan Highway (Finland, 86 min.) Dir. Aleksi Salmenperä Programme: World Showcase (International Premiere) I knew I’d see at least one good old-fashioned road movie at Hot Docs this year. Alcan Highway is a cool and quirky tale for all the wanderers at the festival this year. It’s the odd tale of a Finnish man named Hese who finds himself living the American Dream in Alaska. Without a

Hot Docs Reviews: 'As Time Goes By in Shanghai', 'The Crash Reel'

2013-05-03T09:58:00.001-04:00

As Time Goes By In Shanghai (Germany/Netherlands, 90 min.) Dir. Uli Gaulke Programme: Next (Canadian Premiere) I won’t emphasize “You must remember this…” as a caveat for anyone planning their doc screenings in the coming months, but As Time Goes By in Shanghai is sure to please fans of sweet nostalgic music. This German-Dutch co-pro tells of Shanghai’s legendary Peace Old Jazz Band,

Hot Docs Review: 'Alphée of the Stars'

2013-05-02T10:13:00.003-04:00

Alphée of the Stars (Alphée des étoiles) (Canada, 82 min.) Written and directed by Hugo Latulippe Programme: Canadian Spectrum Photo: Esperasmos Films. Alphée of the Stars (aka Alphée des étoiles in its original French) is a touching and affectionately intimate tale. Candid and poignant, insightful and sweet, it’s easy to see why this endearing doc was a box office smash in Québec and

Hot Docs Review: 'Blackfish'

2013-05-01T10:56:00.001-04:00

Blackfish (USA, 83 min.) Dir. Gabriela Cowperthwaite Programme: World Showcase (Canadian premiere) Tilikum at Seaworld Orlando taking a bow. Photo: Our Turn Productions / Manny O Productions How many of you saw Rust & Bone? I’ll feel like I’ve failed as a film reviewer if you haven’t, but even if you missed one of last year’s best films, you are probably familiar with its premise that a

Hot Docs Reviews: 'The Last Station', 'Fall and Winter'

2013-04-30T23:56:00.001-04:00

The Last Station (Chile/Germany, 90 min.) Dir. Catalina Vergara, Cristian Soto Programme: International Spectrum Well, I was bound to hit a grumpy patch after reviewing thirty films… If I gave a star for each time I yawned during a film, then The Last Station would be a shining constellation. Star ratings work the opposite way, though, so this Chilean co-pro gets one star and a whole

Hot Docs Reviews: 'Terms and Conditions May Apply', 'American Commune', 'Let the Fire Burn'

2013-04-30T12:51:00.001-04:00

Terms and Conditions May Apply (USA, 79 min.) Dir. Cullen Hoback Programme: Rule Breakers and Innovators (International Premiere) Think before you post. That selfie of chugging 26-er of vodka might not be as good a profile pic as you think it is. Ditto that tweet about needing to pee. Some information doesn't need 140 characters. The perils of social media have been trounced across the

Hot Docs Review: 'The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne'

2013-04-30T10:23:00.000-04:00

The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne (USA, 73 min.) Dir. Matthew Pond, Kirk Marcolina Programme: World Showcase (World Premiere) "I don't take life too seriously. I'm not going to get out of it alive anyway." -Doris Payne Are documentary subjects eligible for acting awards? I hope so, for Doris Payne gives a tour-de-force performance in The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne that is

Hot Docs Review: 'Muscle Shoals'

2013-04-30T08:51:00.001-04:00

Muscle Shoals (USA, 108 min.) Dir. Greg ‘Freddy’ Camalier Programme: Special Presentations (International Premiere) Muscle Shoals makes beautiful music. Like last year’s Marley or Searching for Sugarman, Muscle Shoals pairs a great story with a cool soundtrack, and the harmonious voices of the film tell the larger story behind the music. This honey-tuned rock-doc by Greg Camalier is a

Hot Docs Review: 'Our Nixon'

2013-04-29T17:37:00.000-04:00

Our Nixon (USA, 85 min.) Dir. Penny Lane Programme: Special Presentations (Canadian Premiere) A great documentary finds a kind of truth in the filmmaking process itself. Our Nixon, the new film from director Penny Lane, should knock the socks off documentary fans thanks to its phenomenal editing job that brings a story to life unlike few I’ve seen at Hot Docs this year. Lane and

Hot Docs Review: 'The Auctioneer'

2013-04-29T11:30:00.000-04:00

The Auctioneer (Canada, 57 min.) Dir. Hans Olson, Writ. Clark Banack Programme: Canadian Spectrum (World Premiere) Dale Menzak and Dale's Auction Serivce employee Pete ConwayPhoto courtesy of The NFB A humble countryman, Dale Menzak is a man of few words. The Auctioneer, appropriately enough, is a quiet film itself. This NFB film directed by Hans Olson and written by Clark Banack,

Hot Docs Review: 'Sick Birds Die Easy'

2013-04-29T10:37:00.000-04:00

Sick Birds Die Easy (USA, 92 min.) Dir. Nicholas Fakler Programme: Nightvision (World Premiere) Oh, the midnight crowd at Hot Docs is going to love this one! Sick Birds Die Easy might be in the running for the gonzo prize of the festival. This fucked-up documentary by Nicholas Fakler, whose previous film is the geriatric love story Lovely, Still, is a feverish acid trip through the

Hot Docs Review: 'The Kill Team'

2013-04-29T10:07:00.000-04:00

The Kill Team (USA, 77 min.) Dir. Daniel Krauss Programme: World Showcase (International Premiere) Photo by Dan Krauss. Fans of provocative exposés should add The Kill Team to their Hot Docs schedules. It’s a gut-wrenching account of the horrors of war and the atrocities that come after. The parents of Specialist Adam Winfield describe their son as the kind of kid of which the Army