Paradise Hills – When this movie started out I was fully on board, a story following a girl played by Emma Roberts who wakes up on an island where girls are being reformed in a boarding school that looks more like a futuristic spa. What are they being prepared for and what happens to them when they are deemed “ready”? The premise is so intriguing, looking like The Prisoner if it was directed by Sofia Coppola but by the time we get to the third act the whole thing falls apart horribly, all it’s potential squandered.
By The Grace Of God – I will start right off the bat by saying that it’s a good thing I watched this film in the form as a screener at home because I had a very visceral knee jerk reaction of anger at this film, a story about pedophilia in the Catholic church. The film follows three men who were close friends in Scouts as children, where the were preyed on by the priest who ran the camp. Slowly the movement grows as more come forward and the lies, manipulation and cover-ups begin to be revealed in a public light. I found myself yelling at my television, unable to hold my disgust with the reveals in this film, which is director Francois Ozon’s best since 2003’s Swimming Pool. The film is maybe a tad too long but it definitely plays like the French version of Spotlight.
Jojo Rabbit – I don’t think I’ll ever be able to understand how Taika Waititi is able to be such a deeply adorable man, even when he plays Adolf Hitler, but here we are. This is the story of a young boy growing up in Nazi Germany, enrolled in the Hitler Youth program, with designs on becoming the fuhrer’s best friend. All of young Jojo’s ego and courage comes from his imaginary friend, Adolf Hitler, played by the aforementioned Waititi in the most hilarious way possible. To truly enjoy this movie you really have to throw away any offended feelings you have because the film is the height of pure satire. That in mind, the performances from everyone are so top-notch, which includes Scarlett Johansson, Sam Rockwell and Leave No Trace standout Thomasin McKenzie.
Little Joe – This movie is unsettling from the get-go, as soon as it’s oddly scrolling credits appear a high pitched squeal takes over the score, intermittently returning to unnerve you more. To be very minimalist about the description, the film Emily Beecham stars as Alice, a single mother and a senior plant breeder at a corporation dedicated to developing new species. Against company policy, she takes her prized plant home as a gift for her teenage son, Joe, a flower that is bred not to procreate but one that is, according to the research, sentient. Director and writer Jessica Hausner plays the mystery of this film with such a great subtlety that you never really can get a grasp on the reality of everything up until it’s chilling ending and its brilliant. She is also so impeccable in her production design and costuming, commanding me to rewatch this film to unlock more that I missed.
NO TRAILER FOR THIS ONE.
Sometimes Always Never – This one is a simple film, a story of a father and son, estranged for years, reconnecting to possibly identify the body of Michael, another estranged son who stormed out after a game of Scrabble. Now seemingly obsessed with the game, Nighy’s character is constantly lost in the pieces but is using it to connect with his obtuse son but also the open mind of his grandson. This is basically just a film for Nighy to chew the scenery, which he does brilliantly thanks to the script from Tristam Shandy: A Cock And Bull Story writer Frank Cottrell Boyce against some gorgeous and vibrant backdrops. Richard Stoddard’s cinematography is definitely the second star of this movie.
Joker – After over a year of speculation of what this film would be, it’s connections to all the existing canon of DC Comics’ cinematic universe and really what the state of this Batman villain is going forward, this Todd Phillips directed film has arrived and Joaquin Phoenix is being praised for his performance in it, which doesn’t surprise me a bit. With zero connection to any pre-existing comic story or film, this is the story of how struggling comedian Arthur Fleck became the Joker, a criminal mastermind that terrorizes Gotham City. Looking at the film’s trailer, to me, it comes across as a gritty version of Martin Scorsese’s The King Of Comedy with a violent and clown-themed twist. It’s really hard not to have the bar raised high for this movie as this character is so revered but I think it’s going to astound audiences.
Blu-Ray:
Spider-Man: Far From Home – The first movie to follow after the massive changes that Avengers: Endgame brought to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this film is the story that brings closure to this phase, let’s us mourn Tony Stark and prepares us for what’s coming next. I want to keep this one really short as spoiler territory is a hard thing to avoid with this but the film is basically about the world trying to get back to normal after the dusting or what this film calls “the blip” when a new threat to the planet emerges with what may be a new hero in the form of Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio. The movie is the perfect blend of spectacle and laughs filtered into an awkward teenager rom-com, exactly what we needed after the dire consequences of Infinity War and Endgame. This film is a big movie experience in every way and demands to be seen.
Anna – French action director Luc Besson is back with another woman led ass-kicker movie. The film stars Sasha Luss, a relatively unknown actress who featured in Besson’s last movie Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets in a predominantly CGI role, but she looks totally badass in the trailer. She plays the title character, a beautiful and deadly assassin and really that’s all I know about it and with this great action director, well, that’s all you need to know. The rest of the cast is solid too with Helen Mirren, Luke Evans and Cillian Murphy. If you’re looking for some brainless stuff and need some serious Atomic Blonde stylized stuff, this is your ticket.
Wild Rose – This seems to be a really great time for music in movies as we’ve recently received biopics of two of the greatest rock n roll acts of all time, Queen and Elton John, and had the high profile remake of A Star Is Born and the phenomenal indie film Teen Spirit. In this new film that is getting top-notch reviews, Irish singer and actress Jessie Buckley plays a Glasgow singer who is pursuing her dream of moving from Glasgow to Nashville to become the next country star. The movie comes from director Tom Harper, who has directed a slew of great British television and the Woman In Black sequel, so I know this film with have a visual style to go along with its music. This may be one of those hidden gem films.
Anna And The Apocalypse – It’s like this movie was made to get me riping out it out of the DVD packaging for both a musical and a Christmas movie, two genres that don’t have a high success rate with me. How do they do this? A zombie Christmas movie. Absolutely brilliant. Basically, a group of friends living in a small town in England have to survive a zombie outbreak during the holiday season and I feel like instant classic ensues. You see more of this genre-bending could go a long way to grabbing yourself some new fans against their will but all in all, the songs are catchy, the gore is a lot of fun and the production level is there. Plus, there is a musical sequence with the main characters completely oblivious to the chaos around them that rivals Shaun Of The Dead.
Framing John DeLorean – We all known the DeLorean as Back To The Future made it such a huge part of our pop culture that you really need to live under a rock to not know about it but is the rise and fall of the DeLorean Motor Company as common of knowledge? This film is the only film to be made on the man who had a dream and screwed everyone in the process to keep it alive as four different films were optioned but never came to fruition, one produced by DeLorean himself. This documentary takes a fascinating approach of being a linear story told about the rise of an idea, the execution and then the scandalous fall through bad deals and a cocaine bust with re-enactments starring Alec Baldwin. The final result is ambitious and engrossing, such an interesting way of telling a real story.
Doom: Annihilation – Look, the original Doom movie with Karl Urban and The Rock gets a really bad rap and while it’s nowhere near a good movie it’s pretty damn entertaining and has a sweet POV sequence that has only been done again in Hardcore Henry. That said, I really don’t feel this sequel or reboot was necessary and it’s haphazardly bad and not even in a fun “so bad it’s good” way, it’s just plain bad. The characters are cardboard cutouts only made to die and the effects slowly slide from bad to worse, even if they do some practical makeup stuff that could have been cool. This is just another obvious direct to video production looking for some video game money.
Itsy Bitsy – Well, I guess you can’t win them all as Shout and Scream Factory helped distribute this mess of a creature feature that I should have known was bad just based on the name alone. The story follows a single mother of two who is deeply grieving for her youngest child who was killed in a car accident. Moving them out of New York to a secluded mansion in a small town where she is to be the caregiver for an elderly collector suffering from MS. One of his relics happens to contain a giant spider within that terrorizes everyone. This movie is an absolute mess will pretty much no redeeming features besides a couple of cool monster effects. Not even worth a moment of your time.
The Addams Family&Addams Family Values – Anyone who is a 90s kid like myself will have a deep love for both of these movies and now they are both in one Blu-ray package together. With an animated film coming next week to theaters, relive the perfect big-screen live-action representation of the iconic Addams family played beautifully by the legendary Raul Julia, Angelica Huston, a very young Christina Ricci and the kid who played Pugsley, Jimmy Workman, who is actually the older brother of Modern Family’s Ariel Winter. This movie proved that they didn’t Tim Burton to make this movie creepy, kooky, spooky and ooky because director Barry Sonnenfeld did that quite handily. Also never forget that the second movie featured the hit M.C. Hammer song “Too Legit To Quit” but I know you would never let that slip your mind being such big fans and all.
Gunsmoke: Season 15 Volume 1 & 2 – When I was a kid my dad had me watching all the shows he grew up on like Bonanza, The Rifleman and this show about U.S. marshal Matt Dillon (not the actor), a man employed to keep his town of Dodge City peaceful and calm, which you know never happens. With six hundred and thirty-five total episodes totalling twenty seasons by the time the show wrapped up, it’s hard to tell you exactly what these two volumes are exactly about but the great thing about Gunsmoke is that you can drop in just about anywhere.
Tell Me A Story: Season 1 – A band new series from the creators of The Vampire Diaries, I had never heard of this show until it was sent to me by the people at Paramount but now I’m pretty excited about it as the fan base has really latched onto this show. If you are a regular reader of my piece here each week then you will know that I love a good horror anthology and that is exactly what this is. Created by the man who wrote Scream, this show takes classic fables like interweaves The Three Little Pigs, Little Red Riding Hood and Hansel and Gretel and reimagines them in a modern setting with a cast of recurring characters played by The Vampire Diaries’ Paul Wesley, Zoo’s James Wolk and Aladdin’s Billy Magnussen.
Charmed (2019): Season 1 – Everything that was old is slowly but surely becoming new again as this show about three witch sister, originally played by Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs, Alyssa Milano then eventually Rose McGowan when Doherty was fired, gets brand new life again on the CW. Stepping into the roles now are Be Kind Rewind’s Melonie Diaz, Into The Badlands’ Madeleine Mantock and Shades Of Blue’s Sarah Jeffery who take the series in a darker direction which is maybe why some of the original fans of the series it was spawned from absolutely hate it. Progression is either forgotten or hated in these types of shows.
Avatar: The Last Airbender&The Legend Of Korra – The complete series of Avatar The Last Airbender was released on Blu-ray back in June but when I never received a copy of it, I was mighty upset. Now the show has been paired with its companion series in a new double set and I am so happy to have it in my hands. This is a massively popular anime series produced with the help of Nickelodeon that had both the fan support behind it from the beginning as well as some big critical acclaim. We just won’t speak of the M. Night Shyamalan garbage that was derived from it.
Steve’s Blu-Ray Geekout:
Clarence Clemons: Who Do I Think I Am? – In my opinion, the greatest saxophone player of all time gets his due in this documentary made eight years after his death. Clarence was known for his forefront role in the E Street Band, backing “The Boss” Bruce Springsteen, but this documentary digs deep into his life, showing the more intimate side of the musician, something no fan has ever gotten to see before. Full disclosure on my knowledge of Clemons, I was educated at a young age because he appeared in Bill And Ted’s Excellent Adventure as one of “The Three Most Important People In The World” and I had questions for my mom.
Who Saw Her Die? – Back to the giallo films from Arrow Video, a genre I have become increasingly fond of. This movie stars one time James Bond actor George Lazenby as a sculptor and the father of a young girl who is brutally murdered in a series of killings in France. Taking matters into his own hands, he and his wife start their own investigation into who may be the killer, putting themselves at risk as the body count rises. Being made in 1972, the movie is definitely cheesy due to the time period but still pretty entertaining and as wooden as Lazenby is, it kind of works in this one. This isn’t going to astound anyone but it’s pretty a pretty entertaining serial killer film.
Television:
Big Mouth: Season 3 (Netflix) – It’s time to get uncomfortable with our bodies all over again as this lewd, rude and massively crude animated comedy returns with all-new episodes. I adore anything that Nick Kroll and John Mulaney do and when you throw Maya Rudolph and Jason Mantzoukas into the mix than I am in love. For those who don’t know about this show, it is the awkward and sometimes brutal coming of age story of two best friends in the throes of puberty. Watch it at your own risk but keep it in mind that it is totally my kind of messed up.
Peaky Blinders: Season 5 (Netflix) – This massively popular BBC creation makes its anticipated return to the streaming site, featuring an incredible cast led by Cillian Murphy and Helen McCrory, Anya Taylor-Joy, Aiden Gillen and Finn Cole in great supporting roles. The series is a gangster family epic set in 1919 Birmingham, England, a ruthlessly brutal gang who sewed razor blades in the peaks of their caps to take care of their enemies, led by their fierce boss Tommy Shelby, Murphy’s character. The new season has Tommy as the now the newly elected Labour MP for Birmingham South but dealing with new problems in the wake of a massive Wall Street crash. People are going to be all over this one.
Raising Dion: Season 1 (Netflix) – This is a show that I really just found out about this week but it looks pretty interesting. The show is about a widowed young mother whose life is thrown into disarray when she discovers that her son has superpowers and tries to figure out how to raise him safely and responsibly. The cool thing about this series is that it’s a family-oriented show so the whole family can get in on it but there are no recognizable stars in the show at all so the acting is a little lesser in quality.
In The Tall Grass (Netflix) – It’s really funny because I’m in Vancouver this week to cover the Vancouver International Film Festival and this movie actually played the fest but I was being bored to death at the time by Terrence Malick so I completely missed it. Now everyone can see it, the new film from Cube director Vincenzo Natali, based on a novella written by father and son duo Stephen King and Joe Hill. The film is about a sister and brother who venture into a vast field of tall grass in Kansas after hearing a cry for help. Quickly they discover that the have entered an endless maze and there is something hunting them down. This is totally my kind of movie and I really hope it washes all my bad feelings away about It: Chapter 2. You owe me, Steve!
Goliath: Season 3 (Amazon Prime) – This show became the most streamed show on the Amazon Prime service well before anyone knew about it, at least in Canada, so I expect this Billy Bob Thornton led sleazy lawyer series is hotly anticipated coming into its third year. The show has Thorton as a disgraced lawyer who has fallen so far down the ladder that he is now essentially an ambulance chaser. This all changes when he gets the opportunity to stick it to his former firm and earn some redemption with a special case that lands in his lap. Featuring a recurring role from William Hurt and created by television magician David E. Kelley, it looks to have all the makings of a great show.
A Hidden Life – It’s been a long time since I loved a Terrence Malick film, the mid-nineties to be exact with his conscientious objector war film The Thin Red Line, and with his return to real narrative filmmaking with this film, I thought this would be the ticket back into his work and I’d be celebrating him as my friends do. Interestingly enough, this is another conscientious objector about Franz Jagerstatter, an Austrian farmer who refuses to fight for the Nazis. I feel like I was lied to about the narrative thing because this is still all flighty shots of water, fields and staring people with voiceovers. This guy is a serious junkie for repose and I’m bored with it.
Stieg Larsson: The Man Who Played With Fire – An insightful documentary, this is a deep look at an author who made it internationally famous seemingly, in the world’s eyes, overnight and then was dead soon after. The deep dig of this film reveals a news writer, much like the one in his novels, who was dedicated to bringing the rise of the far right, white nationalism and nazi extremism to the media spotlight in Sweden and being condemned and having his life threatened by those he investigated. This is an interesting story of how the real events that shaped the author of the Girl With The Dragon Tattoo series to write his best work that he would never get the chance to enjoy.
Motherless Brooklyn – Edward Norton is back behind the camera for the first time in almost twenty years with this new detective noir drama where he plays a private investigator’s helper who takes it upon himself to unravel a mystery that gets his boss killed. It should also be mentioned that Norton’s character suffers from Tourette’s Syndrome, which is sometimes played for laughs. The film is an engaging film with a great script but no one in the film is particularly amazing, no standouts that I could see. The film is a little rough around the edges and could be trimmed down a bit, plus there was a bit of additional dialogue that felt a little tacked on.
Escher: Journey Into Infinity – W.D. Escher is a fascinating person who’s art can’t twist and blow the mind just on its first impression. For this reason, I was really looking forward to checking out this documentary, which approaches the subject by acting like he made the film himself, talking to us through the well known and appreciated tones of Stephen Fry’s voice. For me, the film was informative and concise, giving us both a deep look at the art as well as the man who created it but when it comes to his influence on modern culture and it’s uses I felt it get a bit silly in a “Bill and Ted” what’s this wacky thing going on here sort of way. Left me a bit cold.
NO TRAILER FOR THIS ONE
Sorry We Missed You – Being a huge fan of Ken Loach’s since I saw The Wind That Shakes The Barley in my video store days, his films have come to be the ones I love forward to most at the festival and this one didn’t disappoint and refused to let me leave without shedding some tears. The film is about a lower-class family living in Newcastle and struggling to get back to a position of being able to buy a home. The father has just got a new job as a parcel delivery service, but one you have to buy into, causing them to sell his wife’s car that she uses for her job as a home care nurse. As the two parents struggle in their fourteen to sixteen-hour workdays, their kids suffer as their older son begins to lash out as a vandal. Loach always gets to the heart of the everyman’s plight against the system and it’s always heartbreaking.
Parasite – What a great way to start out my coverage of this year’s Vancouver International Film Festival, some great Korean cinema from one of the masters, Bong Joon-Ho. In his return to all Korean film, he tells the story of a family of con artists who grift their way into a rich families lives as a chauffeur, housekeeper, tutor and personal assistant respectively. They think they’ve hit the big time until the former housekeeper shows them a deep secret that she’s been hiding in their employer’s house that blows everyone’s situation up. Joon-Ho crafts another incredible masterpiece of a movie that’s filled with twists, incredible cinematography and the amazing ability to tell stories within a story. He never relents in showing that he is not only one of the greatest Korean storytellers today but one of the best in cinema today.
Burning Cane – A hard film to derive anything out of it except a desperate feeling sorrow, this is a brutal and deeply emotional first feature from writer and director Phillip Youmans, a filmmaker that seems to have the eye of a director like Terrance Malick but without the same repose. The film is built around three characters, a mother who has deeply religious convictions that she wants to impart on those closest to her to a futile degree, her son, a father who’s systemic alcoholism completely drowned any potential he has as a man and a reverend who spits fire at the podium but drowns his demons in the drink whenever he is away from the spotlight. This movie is tragic and viscerally real but kind of left me a bit in the third act.
The Lighthouse – Ever since I saw The Witch at a press screening in 2015 I have been waiting rabidly for the new Robert Eggers film and he did not disappoint. Shot in black and white and in a 1.19:1 aspect ratio (basically a square on the movie screen), this is the story of two lighthouse keepers who arrive to run the light on a New England island in 1890. In two incredible and award-worthy performances, Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe descend into isolated madness before your eyes and I’ve never seen anything like it. The description I’m trying to push to describe this film is it’s like if David Lynch wrote a sea shanty and put it on the big screen.
Just Mercy – Short Term 12 director Destin Daniel Cretin returns to form after The Glass Castle with this well-acted true story about civil rights lawyer Bryan Stevenson, a Harvard law school graduate who moved from Delaware to Alabama to give death row inmates proper legal representation, played in this film by Michael B. Jordan. Awards season will definitely contain talk of this movie when it sees release in December and not just for Jordan who turns in another great performance but it’s more likely that Jamie Foxx will get the nomination as a wrongly convicted small-town Alabama man that was made a target by a brutal sheriff in his county.
Babysplitters – The premise of this movie started good, two couples that feel the need to have kids but are too worried about losing their freedoms in their work, recreation and romantic lives. Then a deal is struck. Due to the infertility of one of the ladies, it is proposed that the one husband knock the other wife up and custody of the baby would be shared between the four of them. Wacky plot, right? Community’s Danny Pudi plays the lead in a film that feels just as silly as it’s premise and goes through tremendous logic stretches to keep going and falls apart in an “alls well that ends well” sort of ending. Disappointing.
Abominable – After Warner Bros. made some middling money for their animated yeti movie Smallfoot, Dreamworks now throws their snow caked hat into the ring with this new adorable looking film featuring Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Chloe Bennet. The story has her character Yi discovering a magic yeti that she needs to get to its home before a wealthy businessman with the voice of Eddie Izzard and his zoologist sidekick can get their way. It would seem that the push isn’t very big behind this movie, one of the few big studio releases of this month, the reviews seem to be really backing it up and giving me the impression that this might be a film with some great original ideas and something the whole family will enjoy. The director previously did Open Season for Sony so she’s a winner in my books as I love that movie.
Judy – Ever since Rene Zellweger returned to the spotlight for her third Bridget Jones movie, I have been waiting for her to nab a juicy role that would put her back into the position of being an award hopeful like when she won an Oscar for Cold Mountain. Yes, I root for Rene and now I think she has landed in a movie that I think will garner the awards talk as the season kicks off. She plays the legendary Judy Garland in this biopic about the troubled and tragic actress from True Story director Rupert Goold, focussing on her series of sold-out concerts in London during the winter of 1968. Although this movie and Rene were publicly denounced by Garland’s daughter Liza Minnelli, the word has been good and the film received a huge standing ovation at TIFF. I think this will be the one to look out for in the Best Actress conversation so make note of it now.
Blu-Ray:
Yesterday – Imagine a world where you were a musician that was the only person who could remember the existence of The Beatles and their music. That is the premise of this new Danny Boyle directed film starring Himesh Patel and the lovely Lily James and as a huge fan of the Fab Four myself I was really excited for it as it celebrates the music of one of the greatest bands to ever live but I wanted to keep my bar low to not be disappointed. I’m happy to report that the movie exceeded my expectations, a sweetheart of a story that’s just loony enough to be some ridiculous fun with a steadily beating heart underneath it. Patel’s performance is so earnest and kind of a star-maker so I hope to see more of him in the future.
Child’s Play – I really don’t know how to feel about this remake or reboot as I really enjoyed the direction that this Don Mancini created series was going with the comedy horror angle. Chucky, for me, is one of those iconic horror staples, especially with the voice of Brad Dourif but I’m willing to give this movie a shot, and not just because it was all shot in Vancouver. The “Buddi” doll in this new film is computer programmable, a gift that a mother (Aubrey Plaza) gives her son that gets possessed by an evil entity with the voice of Mark Hamill. That latter part is another reason I’m giving this movie a chance and, hell, the reviews were actually pretty good.
Shaft – In the attempt to reboot a franchise Shaft gets the whole grandfather, dad and son treatment with Richard Roundtree and Samuel L. Jackson reprising their roles as John Shaft I and John Shaft II respectively as they mentor John Shaft Jr., played by Independence Day: Resurgence star Jesse T. Usher. The twist is that Shaft Jr. isn’t a tough guy like his dad and grandpa but a cybersecurity genius and MIT graduate who must use his skills to solve the murder of a close family friend, prompting every cliched “what a pussy” moment to come flying out of Sam Jackson’s mouth. The film is directed by Barbershop and Fantastic Four director Tim Story and while this movie is more playing to his style of comedy, the real Shaft moments just come across as totally cringe-worthy to a degree that I wonder why Warner Bros. went ahead with this film based on its script alone. Also, the third act has a moment that reeks of a desperate attempt for the writers to scream “hey, we’ve got more!” I’m sure they do, just no one is interested.
The First King – It’s pretty rare for me to receive something from Well Go USA that isn’t an Asian film so it was surprising when I got this co-production between Italy and Belgium and, oh man, what a film it is. It is the story of Romulus and Remus, two brothers living in peace near the Tiber river. Remus believes that he is bigger than their God’s intentions for him and is meant to become king of a city he will create together with his brother. What ensues is a incredible journey that leads the two brothers to creating one of the greatest empires the world has ever seen, the Romans. This movie is bloody, visceral and horrifically violent but always entertaining with some incredible shots but beware this movie gets pretty gross.
In The Aftermath – More forgotten 80s stuff courtesy of Arrow Video, as this one features no one you know and is directed and written by a guy who has made nothing you’ve ever heard of and maybe because its one of those great Ozploitation films. This one is fascinating as it blends the end of the world with religious allegory as it follows the survivors in a post apocalyptic world who see a beacon of salvation when an angel descends from heaven. The story is a cool sounding one but there’s a twist to this film as it uses an animated element from the Japanese anime movie Angel’s Egg to help the film along, blending animation with the live action story in a move that feels absolutely crazy pills. This movie is so hidden in its history that there is pretty much no information on it to be found.
John Carpenter’s Vampires – Anyone who knows me knows that I have a deep love for the Master of Horror, John Carpenter, and when the collector’s edition for this movie was announced I was immediately stoked because I think this movie is one of his many underrated films. Starring James Woods in his most badass role ever, the film follows the leader of a group of vampire slayers after his entire team has been decimated by one of the most powerful vamps they’ve ever come up against, the deadly Jan Valek. In a last-ditch effort to save humanity, he must recover a Catholic relic that would spell doom for existence if the bloodsuckers got their hands on it. This movie was horribly panned when it was released but I think it is massively entertaining due to its western style approach and possibly the greatest James Woods performance ever. Trust me, this is a collector’s edition to get excited over.
The Major And The Minor – We’re heading back to the era of 1940s cinema with this new collector’s edition from Arrow Academy in a movie written and directed by the legendary Billy Wilder. Starring Ginger Rogers and Ray Milland, the story to this romance is very simple, a woman disguises herself as a child to save on a train fare and is taken in charge by an army man who doesn’t notice the truth, so, you know, your standard rom-com. This role was very close to Rogers as she used to pretend to be younger by rolling her stockings down and holding her old dolly to look like a young child in order to get a cheaper fare when she was part of her family’s vaudeville act. Honestly, the stories about this movie get crazier, that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
The Hills Have Eyes Part 2 – Back when Wes Craven was first scaring audiences for the first time with The Last House On The Left and The Hills Have Eyes, he wanted to make a sequel to the second movie, which he filmed the majority of before his star-maker A Nightmare On Elm Street was made and released. After that success, the producers wanted him to finish the movie, which wasn’t possible with what he had and with no more budget to rely on, he had to cut in pieces of the first movie to pad it up and hated the finished product and subsequently disowned it. Well, now that movie is a collector’s edition with Arrow Video and a perfect piece of any horror fan’s collection no matter what Wes thought of it. Plus it has the only flashback sequence from the point of view of a dog in cinema existence. How’s that for a selling feature?
Madam Secretary: Season 5 – A political drama which looks into the life of the Secretary of State as she tries to balance work with family. With a really great supporting cast that includes Tim Daly, Geoffrey Arend, Zeljko Ivanek and, a personal favorite, Keith Carradine, this show is a really solid political drama that plays off of some real-life happenings. Yes, this season picked some sides between the whole Trump versus Hillary debate, which was revealing when Hillary herself appeared on the show, but I really love that our art mediums are choosing to be transparent in this way with the writing. Between this and The Good Fight, we are really getting some fiery anti-Trump talk which is, in my opinion, completely warranted.
Billions: Season 4 – U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades goes after hedge fund king Bobby “Axe” Axelrod in a battle between two powerful New York figures. The battle of heavies played perfectly by Damien Lewis and Paul Giamatti, two of the best character actors working, continues in this new season, as the tables turn on some of our characters and new alliances are formed for financial survival. For the first time, and in an uneasy way between Axe, Chuck and his lawyer wife Wendy form an uneasy alliance against a Russian billionaire played by John Malkovich, the COO of a rival investment firm, Rhodes former right-hand guy and the attorney general of the United States. The stakes are definitely high in this season.
Holocaust – Paramount reaches deep into the vault for this television event that originally aired on NBC in the spring of 1978. Starring the now high profile actors James Woods, Meryl Streep and former Law & Order leading man Michael Moriarty, this is a harrowing miniseries which recounts the events leading to the Holocaust from the perspectives of a fictional German Jew family named Weiss and that of a rising member of the SS, who gradually becomes a merciless war criminal. This movie got lambasted by critics when it was released, NBC themselves being accused of being exploitative and trying to commercialize the story of the holocaust. This was even with a companion show that would follow, featuring a panel of historians who answered questions from people phoning in, which seems like a great way to get some real information across after a series that features some embellishment and fiction. It’s good that audiences have softened now. Haha, just kidding.
Stephen King’s The Stand – When this adaptation originally aired in 1994, I was deliriously excited because this is my favorite book of all time, the ultimate battle of good and evil on the battlegrounds of a plague-ridden world. The series played really well for me and, although some dodgy special effects and television grade acting hamper it quite a bit, the four-episode miniseries holds up. This new restored Blu-ray edition looks absolutely gorgeous and features audio commentary as well as a featurette on the making of the show. This is a good tide over as the new adaptation is currently in production with filmmaker Josh Boone at the helm.
Steve’s Blu-Ray Geek Out:
Ladyworld – This is one of those weird little films I’ve never heard of getting sent to me that is, out of nowhere, a pretty damn good watch. Featuring a cast of definite up and comers, this is the story of eight teenage girls who become trapped in an endless birthday party after a massive earthquake that triggers a time anomaly event and the girls’ sanity and psyches dissolve as they begin to run out of food and water. The young cast of this show is what grabbed me immediately, featuring Ariela Barer from Runaways and Atypical, Annalise Basso from Captain Fantastic, the always great Ryan Simpkins and the fast-rising star of Maya Hawke. Writer and director Amanda Kramer has such command over these actresses which shines through with the screenplay and this is only her second feature. I see big things in her future as well as all these gifted ladies.
Television:
Stumptown: Season 1 (ABC) – One of the best comics in the last ten years, Greg Rucka and Matthew Southworth’s limited series was modern-day detective noir following a bisexual female private investigator with a gambling problem. I was very intrigued by a series adaptation of this, although I was hoping for a cable or streaming company to do it given the creative freedom, but as soon as Burnaby’s own Cobie Smulders was cast in the lead role I had more confidence in the show even though ABC would be making it. The supporting cast is solid too, with Michael Ealy, The Practice’s Cameron Manheim, who I feel like I haven’t seen in forever and The New Girl’s Jake Johnson plus Greg Rucka is the showrunner too as well as the original creator.
Creepshow: Season 1 (Shudder) – With my love of anthology horror being large as well as my adoration of the first two Creepshow movies, you best believe I am more than excited for a brand new series of disturbing horror stories led by The Walking Dead showrunner and gore specialist Greg Nicotero. First off, the list of directors on this show is insane, including David Bruckner, one of the guys behind another anthology film Southbound, for four episodes, Tales From The Darkside: The Movie director John Harrison for two episodes, the incredible new talent of Roxanne Benjamin, Makeup master Tom Savini and more and then the cast, holy crap. There’s a mix of older stars and new as we get people like Adrienne Barbeau, Tobin Bell and Jeffrey Coms as well as rappers Big Boi and Kid Cudi and fan favorites like David Arquette and Dana Gould. Oh man, this is going to be fun.
Crank Yankers: Season 1 (Comedy) – Remember that show from years ago that had prank phone calls recreated by puppets? Well, that show has returned to Comedy Central because, you know, whatever was old is new again, right? The original series, which took it’s final call about twelve years ago, featured the voices of Fred Armisen, Jimmy Kimmel, Sarah Silverman and Dane Cook whereas this new season brings in the voices of Tracy Morgan, Adam Carolla and Aubrey Plaza or at least for the first episode. This show was a large part of my 2000s favorites alongside Wonder Showzen on MTV2 so I’m kind of hoping that the caliber of comedy is still there. Otherwise, why else even try this?
In The Shadow Of The Moon (Netflix) – A totally underrated filmmaker with great films on his resume like Cold In July and Stakeland, Jim Mickle returns with this off-kilter crime mystery with a sci-fi thread in it. Starring Boyd Holbrook, Michael C. Hall and The Last Man On Earth standout Cleopatra Coleman, this movie is about a Philadelphia police officer’s struggle with a lifelong obsession to track down a mysterious serial killer whose crimes defy any earthly explanation, causing him to look like the department quack. I love the atmosphere that Mickle has brought to all of his movies and the film features David Lanzenberg as the cinematographer who dropped my jaw with his work on the sci-fi film The Signal so I’m basically counting down to when this is on Netflix.
The Unicorn: Season 1 (CBS) – A brand new series with The Righteous Gemstones star Walton Goggins in the lead and its a sweetheart comedy? Oh hell yes, sign me up! This brand new show has him playing a widower who is eager to move on from the most difficult year of his life and try and meet someone new. He quickly realizes that he’s utterly unprepared to raise his two daughters on his own and at the same time equally unprepared for the dating world where he’s suddenly a very sought after guy. The show co-stars Rob Corddry and Omar Benson Miller, both from the HBO show Ballers, and was created by two of the guys behind 3rd Rock From The Sun. Wait, was that too old of a reference?
Downton Abbey – Four years after the hit BBC series that captivated audiences all over the world finished its run, the residents and servants of Downton Abbey hit the big screen in this brand new and heavily anticipated feature film. The story of the Crawley family, wealthy owners of a large estate in the English countryside in the early 20th century, continues in 1927 as the household prepares for the imminent arrival of the Royal family to visit. The entire cast is present for this one, including patriarch Hugh Bonneville as well as Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Michelle Dockery, Elizabeth McGovern and Penelope Wilton and also features the return of audience favorite Maggie Smith. Full disclosure, I have not finished the entire series yet so going any deeper on this movie would put myself in the realm of spoiler territory.
Rambo: Last Blood – It’s Sylvester Stallone’s reportedly last time of stepping into the role of the bigger than life John Rambo, which is indicated by the movie’s title, and I have to say that this is kind of a nostalgic moment for me as these films were everything to me as a kid. Hell, even the last movie, released in 2008, was a kick-ass action piece that satisfied the audience’s bloodlust and gave a great reason for the hero to return to the screen. This film is a little more self-contained as it has Rambo making a last stand on his country farm against a threat from his past looking to snuff out his legacy. With a hard R rating once again, expect this movie to go balls to the wall in violence and to end this story, that started in Hope, B.C., with a deafening bang. I’m so excited.
Ad Astra – If you are an A-list star and haven’t been to space yet in one of your films are you really an A-list star? It’s a weird question but f you think of all the space films we’ve had over the last forty years it kind of makes sense. That said, this one is a movie that has been on my most anticipated list since it was announced, all because it teams Brad Pitt with acclaimed filmmaker James Gray. Pitt plays astronaut Roy McBride who undertakes a mission to journey across the solar system to uncover the truth about his missing father and his doomed expedition that now, 30 years later, threatens the universe. The reviews have been absolutely stellar, skirting the line of being a compelling science fiction story with the emotional human drama of the connection between an estranged father and son. I knew this was going to be a solid film and the trailer really backs me up on that.
Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson And The Band – 2019 has been such an incredible year for music documentaries and retrospectives and it continues here with this look at the legendary Robbie Robertson and the group he led, The Band. Yes, if you’ve seen Martin Scorsese’s The Last Waltz you are very familiar with their work but instead of a focused concert, this tells the story of a group that went from backing up Bob Dylan to become one of the most influential groups of its era with a catalog of songs that are so beautifully written by a group of songwriters with unfathomable cohesion. With both me and my wife being huge fans of The Band, this movie was incredibly special to us. (Opens in Toronto and Vancouver. Opens in Calgary and Hamilton on Sept 27 and Edmonton on Oct 3)
Miles Davis: Birth Of The Cool – To quote a line from Billy Madison “if peeing your pants is cool you can consider me Miles Davis”. I really don’t know why I placed that line in here, it just felt right, but this is a pretty definitive documentary about the gifted musician’s life and legacy. As a horn player, bandleader and an innovator, Davis was an absolute force of nature and the very embodiment of cool, something I’ve known for years thanks to my very music smart mother. The film explores archival photos and home movies shot by Miles and his colleagues, his manuscripts and original paintings all to give a glimpse into the man behind the music featuring interviews with Carlos Santana, The Roots, Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Herbie Hancock and more. (Opens in Toronto and Vancouver)
Blu-Ray:
Dark Phoenix – I haven’t had any faith in an X-Men movie since Bryan Singer ripped the reigns of the franchise back from director Matthew Vaughn after First Class, which was phenomenal, to make Days Of Future Past which was a film that crumbled under the weight of simply deconstructing it after my viewing. Then came Apocalypse, which was a dismal piece of convenient plot piece garbage and now we have this movie, the end story to this long-running Marvel created story but produced by Fox franchise, directed by usual EP Simon Kinberg, who I think is the reason, along with Singer, that this series took such a nosedive. So, where does this one lie in the pile of X-Men crap movies? I’d say it lands with a dull thump alongside Apocalypse but still being a bit better than it. The acting and story are incredibly awkward and the main adversary for the film is so lackluster that no matter how cool the final X-Men battle is, and it does look great, it’s hard to really care about anything going on. It’s fitting that this who Fox battle with Marvel went out with such a whimper of a movie.
Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am – Heading into this documentary, my knowledge of Toni Morrison’s work was slightly limited. I was a huge fan of the Jonathan Demme directed film Beloved, based on her novel and knew she was the frequent author of choice for Oprah’s famous book club. This film gave me a crash course in this gifted and important literary voice and Nobel Prize winner and, most importantly, it all comes from Morrison herself who tells her story to the camera, leaving no stone unturned. Including interviews with friends like Black Power activist Angela Davis, writer Fran Lebowitz and Oprah Winfrey herself, we get a full portrait of how pivotal she is to black literature, the preservation of it and the need to keep it on the forefront of history. As far as biographical documentaries go, this one is top notch.
Above The Shadows – Two of the three bigger Blu-ray releases this week have zero clout or push behind them and, when it comes to the previous movie Dead Water, that’s probably for the best but with this film I think it could command a bigger audience but, besides me talking about it here, it will go unnoticed. Juno actress Olivia Thirlby stars as a young woman who has faded to the point of becoming invisible and must find her way back to society with the help of the one man who can see her, a former MMA champion, played by Alan Ritchson, who has fallen on hard times. I really enjoyed this one, an engaging fantasy romance film that capitalized on good chemistry between Ritchson and Thirlby which manages to shine through even if some of the thematic elements are a little muddled. I’m interested to see what writer and director Claudia Byers does next as both her other films Fort Bliss and Kettle Of Fish aren’t bad either.
Dead Water – Sometimes you just know a movie is going to be bad just by looking at the cover and this tells that warning pretty quickly. The movie has Banshee’s Griff Furst as a former soldier returning home after a tour in the Middle East and suffering from PTSD who is taken on a sailing expedition with his wife by a family friend played by Casper Van Dien. As soon as the trio get into open waters and out of cellphone reception things begin to get weird and their host starts to act out of character but unfortunately for the audience all of the acting, production level and directing is so awful it will put you off even before the dumb reveal of Van Dien’s intentions. Of course, all of this also happens before Judd Nelson, the reason I wanted to see this, appears on screen and, for the record, he’s terrible too. This movie is a waste of time.
Kung Fu League – Receiving all of these Asian releases from Well Go USA has been an absolute privilege as it gives me access to martial arts films that I wouldn’t have seen otherwise and the movies I have been getting have ranged from good to great and I feel like I’ve been very lucky. Well, my luck ran out on this movie, a truly awful abomination of a film that felt like utter nonsense throughout. The story follows a nerdy comic book artist who yearns for his dream girl but is constantly blocked by the bullying CEO of the company he works for causing him to use some magic to summon four martial arts masters to aid him. This film is hokey, badly put together with shoddy special effects and confusingly haphazard story and script and some of the worst music and songs I have ever heard. If the only thing I do today is deter you from watching this garbage, I’ll be happy. What a waste of time.
The Good Fight: Season 3 – I definitely consider myself a fan of the CBS series The Good Wife, a show that got me from the get-go with great characters and compelling storylines so when it was announced that a spin-off would be made with big wig partner Diane Lockhart leading the way I was excited and I think this show has satisfied in every way. The show picked up where the other series left off, Diane readying for retirement when her investment banker is arrested for fraud and she is left penniless. Now years in at her new firm, she is just as ruthless as you remember but the supporting cast of Delroy Lindo, Audra MacDonald and Game Of Thrones alum Rose Leslie this show is stellar with that same character work as well as making good use of the no rules CBS All Access platform. It may go heavy on the anti-Trump message, which may turn other viewers off with its heavy hand, but I totally love it.
Elementary: The Final Season – This modern take on the cases of Sherlock Holmes came to a close this past television year and now it is on DVD for everyone to check out, as well as in a complete series box set. I initially saw a lot of hate about this series and it’s approach when it came out and I finally checked it out with the release of the last season, the sixth one, and, truth be told, I kind of dug it. I’ve always enjoyed Jonny Lee Miller ever since I saw him in Hackers and his cocky attitude works brilliantly as Holmes, especially incorporating the former addict angle as well, and Lucy Liu is the perfect foil I never would have saw as Watson. There really is a reason this show lasted seven years and got to go out on its own terms.
The Case Of Hana & Alice – More anime, Steve? Yes, I guess so but this one has all sorts of acclaim behind it so I’m predisposed to enjoy it, right? This one is kind of weird as I feel like even the title was toned down from it’s original Japanese title of “The Murder Case of Hana & Alice” to the current and more innocuous one we have now but the movie does revolve around an unsolved murder case as it follows a new girl who starts at a new school and is mercilessly bullied after being assigned the “Judas” seat who’s previous occupant was killed. Weird storyline and that is how these movies operate but this movie actually is fascinating in its plot reveals and would transition to an interesting live-action piece.
Steve’s Blu-Ray Geekout:
Vice Squad – The cool thing about being hooked up with Shout Factory is getting these weirdo 80s tough-guy movies that I have never heard of and I definitely had no clue what this film was when I received it. Actress Season Huxley plays a prostitute named Princess who is forced by a Los Angeles detective to take down a brutal pimp named Ramrod, played with an edge by Cole Hauser’s dad, Wings, who has been killing other ladies of the night. The movie was made by Gary Sherman just after he directed to killer horror film Dead & Buried and, interestingly enough, the guy now makes true crime documentary series for A&E like The First 48. This movie had a lot of backlash behind it with people denouncing its violence, especially against women, but it did have an advocate in its favor with Martin Scorsese defending it, he himself going through the same thing with Mean Streets and Taxi Driver.
Endless Love – Let’s dig into a bit of controversy from the 1980s this week with this film that definitely pushed the boundaries but this was something director Franco Zeffirelli was not new to. The now infamous film starred Martin Hewitt and a very young Brooke Shields as a teen girl who falls for an older high school boy despite the protests of her parents, so essentially this is a Romeo and Juliet story. The film featured on-screen sex between the two teens and was initially awarded an X rating before being given an R after being resubmitted five times. Interestingly enough, this film was remade just five years ago and no one cared at all. The shock of having such a torrid romance film with this young of a focus has worn off.
Wildland – This is a weird one so I had to bring it right away to this section. This film, also titled Young Men And Fire, is available in the States on Blu-ray, is also screening at this years Vancouver International Film Festival, so in a rare occasion, you can get up on this movie in advance of that. The movie brings you closer than ever to the wildfires that ravage the western side of North America every year, following the fire crews in a sweeping yet deeply personal account of as they struggle with fear, loyalty, dreams, and demons within themselves. The movie is a true testament to the very real threat of climate change and is a slap in the face to any deniers, especially in the face of all the adversity these crews face doing their very deadly job. This is a massively important documentary.
Television:
Disenchantment: Season 2 (Netflix) – Matt Groening’s third original series and his first with Netflix enters into its sophomore season, following Princess Tiabeanie or ‘Bean’, voiced by Broad City’s Abby Jacobsen, a royal in a world of fantasy that wants desperately to shed the shackles of what a princess is supposed to be, yearning for action ad adventure. After meeting Luci, a demon, and Elfo, an elf, she gets more than she wished for in a series that is honestly a bit hard to get into through the first four episodes. Towards the end of the first season the show kind of finds its footing so I really hope that this new season builds on that from the get-go because, honestly, it feels slow and we are talking about an animated series here.
Between Two Ferns: The Movie (Netflix) – Who would have thought that the insane little interview sketch show that Zach Galifianakis created for Funny Or Die would see its own feature film but here it is and I’ve been ready for it ever since its announcement. The story sees Zach trying to make amends with his public access network after killing Matthew McConaughey (and reviving him), so he sets out on a road trip to try and gather a catalogue of episodes to satisfy his bosses. The trailer for this movie is straight insanity and the hilarious burns on his guests, mispronouncing of names and the ignorant insults are so funny. This is going to be the most streamed thing this weekend I think.
CriminalUK-France-Spain-Germany: Season 1 (Netflix) – This new series is massively ambitious and maybe can lead to some more very open platform series to be created as this thriller is made up of twelve stories set in four different countries, each takes place within the confines of a police interview suite and each countries series sitting as a stand-alone season on Netflix. A focus on the intense mental conflict between detectives and suspects, the show’s UK counterparts features David Tennant and Hayley Atwell, the German one has Phoenix actress Nina Hoss and honestly, cast aside. the approach to this show has me interested.
A Little Late With Lilly Singh: Season 1 (NBC) – As a Canadian I was overjoyed when I read on Twitter that homegrown YouTube star Lilly Singh was getting the spotlight of taking over the secondary late-night talk show on NBC from Carson Daly who seemed to have had that show for over a decade and a half and no one seemed to care about it. I’m really looking forward to what Lilly has planned for the show as the week’s go on but I’ve enjoyed what I’ve seen after the first night. I do feel she relies a bit on the fact that she is both a woman and a person of color in this position and so she should, it’s very progressive of NBC and I hope they are protective of that. The only thing I can see working against this is she is slightly unknown to the larger audience.
American Horror Story: 1984 (FX) – I’m kind of hit and miss with the American Horror Story series but I feel like this season was tailor-made for me to fall in love with and get over my edgy feelings about creator Ryan Murphy. Taking his cue from his two-season series Scream Queens, this season delves into that whole slasher genre like Friday The 13th and Halloween by bringing the homage to us in bright technicolor and it even takes place at a summer camp! Oh man, does that ever excite me as a huge horror fan and while the show doesn’t have such AHS staples as Jessica Lange and Evan Peters, it still has Emma Roberts from the before mentioned Scream Queens as well as Billie Lourd, Glee’s Matthew Morrison and Twisty the Clown himself, John Carroll Lynch who now plays Mr. Jingles, the killer for this series. I am so psyched for this season!
The Goldfinch – Based on a bestselling novel from Pulitzer Prize winner Donna Tartt, the bidding war from studios for this adaptation was high but it ended up with Warner Bros. and most notably in the hands of gifted director John Crowley, following up his brilliant film Brooklyn. The film is about a boy in New York who is taken in by a wealthy Upper East Side family after his mother is killed in a bombing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The trailer plays everything pretty ambiguously but what is known is that the kid, who is played by Oakes Fegley from Pete’s Dragon as a child and Ansel Elgort as a teen and adult, harbours a deep secret which could blow up all his newly found relationships. I’m fascinated to see this film because the story sounds incredible. (Not opening in Hamilton)
Hustlers – Just looking at this movie it is pretty much completely unappealing to me. This film is toplined by Constance Wu, an actress I really enjoyed in Crazy Rich Asians but her real-life diva antics have really turned me off, and Jennifer Lopez who I’ve never really been a fan of so it has a bit working against it. That said it has Cardi B and Lizzo in supporting roles and is about a crew of former strippers who band together to turn the tables on their Wall Street clients so I have a glimmer of hope for entertainment in this. The fact that, at the time of writing this, the movie has eleven positive reviews makes me a little bit intrigued.
Freaks – My first narrative film of last year’s VIFF, this hit me with all sorts of parental feelings like a loaded punch to the face. Freaks is a paranoid mystery that slowly blooms to its audience but, interestingly enough, shares a few different qualities from the Academy Award-winning hit Room. Just like young local actor Jacob Tremblay dazzled in that film, nine-year-old actress Lexy Kolker is the battery at the heart of this film as well, it’s driving force. From the directing and writing duo of Zach Lipovsky and Adam B. Stein, the story drops you into a rundown house with papered windows and padlocked doors with our main two characters, Chloe (Kolker) and her dad played with deep nuance by Emile Hirsch. With what appears to be an unhealthy amount of itching paranoia, he constantly quizzes his young daughter on how to act outside the walls, in the real world, something that is absolutely foreign to Chloe. It’s life and death to Dad though. Inside the house is where they are safe and outside everyone will try to kill them. It’s a bleak and horrifying message to instill in a child, raising the immediate question: Is he indoctrinating his child with his own psychosis or is he protecting her from the reality he already knows? This movie is a must-see tour de force of acting and will hopefully make some waves a full year after I discovered it. (Only opening in Toronto, Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver)
Riot Girls – If you’ve been reading my stuff since I’ve started publishing you would see a trend that odd movies are really my thing, especially in the horror, sci-fi and action genre so this new film from Canadian director Jovanka Vuckovic, her first feature, is a red alert on my radar. The movie takes place in an alternate 1995, as a mysterious disease has wiped out all of the adults. In the new forged age, two gangs are pitted against each other in a brutal war for territory, resources and survival. One thing that grabs me immediately, besides the post-fall dystopia, is that it’s led by two badass ladies with the names of Nat and Scratch and that it’s the first feature from Vuckovic who made her mark with me in the all-women anthology movie XX. This could be a great breakout film for her. (Only opening in Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver)
Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken! – Morgan Spurlock is back with a follow up twelve years after he almost killed himself, eating nothing but McDonald’s for a month, supersizing whenever it was offered. This time he takes on the task of opening up his own fast food restaurant with the focus being on the fastest rising piece of that menu right now, the almighty chicken sandwich. With his focus on being transparent with the public, fresh and healthy food and a sustainable business model, Spurlock gives us an in-depth crash course on how the big corporations handle their business, the costliness of organic food and how “big chicken” is constantly screwing over the little guy who’s product it miles better than what these evil bastards shop to us. As a huge chicken sandwich guy myself, I found myself laughing with the filmmaker’s charm but also horrified at the facts I was being given. A beautiful companion piece to Super Size Me, Holy Chicken is about to give you way more food for thought. (Only opening in Toronto and Vancouver)
One Cut Of The Dead – Enduring a week of horror films, this movie definitely did the trick of spinning my brain around in my skull. The movie starts out as this low budget behind the scenes of a Japanese zombie film that gets totally disrupted when real zombies attack them at their location, forcing the cast and crew to desperately escape as the eccentric filmmaker follows behind, trying to make his magnum opus. Then after thirty-seven minutes of a single shot take the story ends and credits roll and I’m confused but then we rewind to the beginning of this project to find out that the making of was the real movie and we get to see how this who one-shot madness came to be. This film is massively original, totally fun and playful and exuded that Japanese cinema charm. The only thing that didn’t hold me was the over the top sentimental silliness that ends the movie, otherwise, I think horror fans should check this out. (Only opening in Toronto and Vancouver)
Blu-Ray:
Aladdin – Yes, Disney has been making so many of these live-action updates but something about Aladdin feels so sacred, firstly the fact that we all have such reverence for Robin Williams’ performance as the Genie. That aside, I wanted to believe in this movie because it is directed by Guy Ritchie but his last film King Arthur: Legend Of The Sword was such a horrible mess. The good news is that the film is vibrant, gorgeous and always fun to watch and does try to forge a separate identity while still keeping all of the songs intact and also a lot of Genie’s lines are the same but done with the stylings of Big Willy himself, Will Smith. The movie isn’t bad, the attempt to keep true to the heart of the film is there but it just isn’t memorable.
Aladdin: Signature Edition – It’s probably easy to say that a lot of people hold this movie high up as their favorite Disney animated film and who could blame them? It’s an absolute classic and makes us all feel warm and cozy with the voice of Robin Williams to guide us. Now, coinciding with the release of Guy Ritchie’s live-action remake, we get the Signature edition which has a sing-along track which is fun for the whole family, commentaries with the directors and animators, new featurettes, a brand new alternate ending and outtakes from Robin that will bring a tear to your eye. This may not be my favorite of the bunch but it is definitely in the top three.
John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum – Definitely one of my most anticipated films released this year, both movies leading up to this one have been like a gift from the action film gods, bestowing on us the perfect anti-hero story all birthed from the death of his dog. Now in this next piece, the whole world is after John Wick due to his decisions in the second movie and he has to bring in an old friend, Halle Berry’s character, to make it out alive. This movie burns all action movies to the ground and shows them how it’s really done, a story that would work as a Kurosawa samurai movie or a Sergio Leone spaghetti western told through Keanu Reeves dispatching assassins in a heightened world of secret organizations, blood oaths and neutral ground hotel establishments. It is awesome and if you aren’t on board with it by now I don’t think you ever will.
The Dead Don’t Die – Jim Jarmusch takes his hilariously deadpan style and applies it to a genre that always needs a bit of fresh breath, zombie horror. Bringing some of his staple stars including Bill Murray from his film Coffee And Cigarettes, Adam Driver from his last effort Patterson and, of course, Tilda Swinton, Jarmusch crafts a small-town story of a zombie outbreak where the weirdo citizens have to band together to survive. This movie is definitely not going to rope in everyone as horror fans will be possibly put off by the dialogue style and, well, all of this great filmmaker’s movies have a less than mainstream appeal but I found myself really enjoying it despite some of the parts of the film that sort of drag. I was definitely not ready for the movie to go full meta in the end which had me laughing hysterically. Again, it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea but it got me and oh man is the ending bleak.
SEAL Team: Season 2 – Even though the series ended fifteen years ago I will always see David Boreanaz as the brooding vampire with a soul Angel from the Joss Whedon created Buffy spinoff and that’s even after twelve seasons as Seeley Booth on Bones. His new series is going very well though, a series that follows the lives of an elite Navy S.E.A.L. team as they train, plan and execute the most dangerous, high-stakes missions for the American government. Created by first-time showrunner Benjamin Cavell, this series has compelling characters and has the potential to get better in this vein if they can steer away from being a mission by mission procedural. I have enjoyed both seasons that Paramount sent me though.
Hawaii Five-O: Season 9 – As far as new series reboots of old classic shows go, I’d have to say that Dan-O and company are doing pretty well heading into season ten, especially after two cast members left the show due to pay inequality. Well, season eight and nine went off fine without them, adding The Event and Salvation’s Ian Anthony Dale and Michelle Borth, who was last seen in the big DC Comics blockbuster Shazam, and this season has some solid guest stars with John Wick 3’s Mark Dacascos returning to terrorize the Five-O, Andrew Lawrence in addition to his brothers bad guy role from the previous season and even Dog The Bounty Hunter as himself. Also, to keep with the theme, all of the episodes have names that are unpronounceable.
Curious George: Royal Monkey – An easy go-to for any kid is the Curious George stories and in theatrical form only one of them has made it to the big screen, featuring voices by Will Ferrell and Drew Barrymore. The film did very well for itself, opening the door for a bunch of direct to video releases as well as a television series. Now with this new one, the adventure continues as George goes on a journey with his pal Princess Isabel to deal with all matters of the grown-up world. Not only is this a weird one to bring to my regular feature but my own daughter told me halfway through watching this that this was too baby like for her to enjoy so now I’ve got emotions about the passage of time and I was left to watch the rest of it by myself. Thanks, Paramount!
Steve’s Blu-Ray Geek Out:
Charlie Says – This seems to be the year of Charles Manson in movie form as we got a quick glimpse of him in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon A Time In Hollywood and here we get former Doctor Who Matt Smith shedding some of that timey wimey stuff to influence some easily led sheep to do some horrific slaughter. Smith has quite a few recognizable stars around him for this one as Nurse Jackie’s Merritt Weaver and Game Of Thrones’ Hannah Murray co-star in this film that is directed by American Psycho’s Mary Harron who continues to lead a great number of women in the horror director’s chair. Some very cool character work for Matt Smith in this one.
Babylon – This movie has a very interesting story as it was originally intended for release in late 1980 and appeared at the Toronto International Film Festival in September of 1981 but then didn’t get its American theatrical release until this year. Why? Because the powers that be deemed it as “being too controversial, and likely to incite racial tension”. The movie centers around Brindsley Forde’s character Blue, frontman for a reggae band based in west London and captures the trials and tribulations of young black youths in troubled London in the early eighties. The film is a fascinating character study against a socio-political landscape and it’s a cinema crime that we’re only seeing this film now.
Mountain Rest – Now that Stranger Things has made her a star on the rise, Natalia Dyer’s indie career is getting a bit of a focus including this moody emotional drama led by Six Feet Under’s Frances Conroy. She plays an ageing actress who sequestered herself to a small mountain town years earlier and is now calling her estranged daughter and granddaughter home for reconciliation and one final celebration before she passes away. The film is the debut of writer and director Alex O. Eaton and is a great film about the erosion of family relationships over time against a gorgeously shot canvas of cinematography.
Cruising – When this film was made in 1980 the backlash against director William Friedkin was huge because he put one of the hottest stars working at the time, Al Pacino, in a controversial role that was getting nothing but hate. Fresh off of Norman Jewison’s And Justice For All, Pacino played an undercover detective who entered the world of the underground S&M gay subculture in New York City to catch a serial killer who is preying on gay men and the public and critics alike were perturbed, with the ratings board saying “there aren’t enough XXXs in the alphabet to rate this movie”. Heck, Friedkin was even nominated for a Razzie that year, the first year they existed. Is the movie that bad? No. It’s progressive for its time and showed an abandonment of safe mainstream filmmaking but it would be a trend that would have a hard time catching on. Beyond that, it is a fantastic Al Pacino performance.
Television:
Unbelievable: Season 1 (Netflix) – Look, it is just a given with me that if you cast Toni Collette in the lead of something then you have me as a fan immediately and not only does this new original series have her but it has Merritt Weaver who has already made an appearance on my list this week as well as Booksmart’s Kaitlyn Dever. The show is the true story of Marie, a teenager who was charged with lying about having been raped, and the two female detectives who followed a twisting path to arrive at the truth. In a time where the #MeToo movement has helped so many women come forward with painful truths, this series digs into what all of these victims face, the ability to undoubtedly prove their story and the burden of truth. Created by Ern Brockovich writer Susannah Grant, Wonder Boys writer Michael Chabon and Ayelet Waldman, this could be the must-see Netflix series to start the month.
Mr. Inbetween: Season 2 (FX) – A breakout hit from Australia, this show is another great film about a brutal anti-hero that I loved with the very first episode, a show I was turned on to by Drex. Created by the show’s star Scott Ryan and directed by Nash Edgerton, the series is a black comedy-drama about Ray, a guy who has to juggle being a father, ex-husband, boyfriend and confidant as well as maintain his employment as an enforcer for hire, dishing out violence to whomever his clients want him to. Scott Ryan is a fascinating actor to watch onscreen in a series that hugs the line between wholly grim and hilarious, sometimes in the same moment. I really think that this show needs to catch on in a Breaking Bad sort of way.
Mr. Mercedes: Season 3 (Crave) – As a Stephen King fan I feel massively late to the party with this show based on a later novel in his writing career and this one stars a favorite of mine, actor Brendan Gleeson as well as the always incredible Holland Taylor. The show tells the story of a psychopathic killer who drives a stolen Mercedes into a crowd and a recently retired detective who tries desperately and a little outside the bounds of the law to bring him down. Brought to television by one of the greatest showrunners ever, David E. Kelley, through that shepherding this show has great dialogue, nuanced character work and a creepy and intense plotline that keeps you on the edge of your seat. This is a solid binge for anyone looking for something to occupy the void that Castle Rock left.
Undone: Season 1 (Amazon Prime) – Coming off her guest spot on Parenthood and this year’s underrated sci-fi adaptation Alita: Battle Angel, I’m a pretty big fan of actress Rosa Salazar which has me looking forward to this new Amazon original which again sees the streaming service spread their wings into different things you wouldn’t see on conventional television. She plays a woman who discovers she has physical control over time after surviving a car accident and the really weird thing is this is the brand new show from BoJack Horseman creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg and writer and producer Kate Purdy. Just the trailer alone is enough to convince people who love shows like Lost to jump on board.
The I-Land: Season 1 (Netflix) – Netflix again reaches out for something a little fresher for their new series that has an interesting cast featuring Kate Bosworth, Alex Pettyfer and Canadian actor Kyle Schmid. The show is a twisted mystery about ten people who wake up on a treacherous island with no memory of who they are and how they got there and set off on a trek to try to get back home only to discover the world is changed for the worst. I love weird shows like this as they remind me of the unpredictable nature of a show like Lost. Yes, I’m kind of fixated on that show this week which means I might be a bit nostalgic for it.
It: Chapter Two – Stephen King is a special writer in my life because e is a big reason why my reading level started to excel when I was a preteen as I ravenously ate up everything he had written in chronological order. His novel It was among my absolute favorites and after the TV movie in 1989 I was hoping that a big-screen version would come and I’m so happy director Andy Muscetti nailed it in the first chapter, released two years ago, and now we get the follow-up and I’m so excited to see it. We get the adult versions of the Losers Club this time as they look to put away the evil of Pennywise the Dancing Clown who has lurked in Derry, Maine for decades and, although I may be a bit biased, I think this could be one of the biggest horror events of the year.
Blu-Ray:
Men In Black: International – Seven years after the attempt to bring this franchise back with the lacklustre Men In Black 3 we are going for the reboot treatment with really no returning cast members except for Emma Thompson who only appeared in the last film. Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson reunite to take on intergalactic threats which may tie back to a mole in their own organization. I enjoy both actors a lot so I really want this film to work and rejuvenate this story but the trailers leave me with absolutely nothing aside from a hopefully funny animated side character voiced by Kumail Nanjani. I don’t really have enough faith in director F. Gary Gray to pull this off either.
Booksmart – To start this off, I think this is one of the best comedies of the year right here and I have yet to find someone who saw this and didn’t fall a bit in love with the story of friendship between two brilliant friends, Amy and Molly. Olivia Wilde makes her directorial debut with this story of two academic overachievers who decide to let loose in a big way on the eve of their graduation, almost in the Seth Rogen/Evan Goldberg Superbad way which is fitting as Feldstein is the little sister of Jonah Hill but I feel like that descriptor undersells it a bit. Starring Kaitlyn Dever from Justified and the hilarious Beanie Feldstein from Lady Bird and Neighbors 2, this movie is a fantastic blend of a fantastic script, dutiful and grounded direction with an incredible pair of performances form these two ladies. Now that the movie is on Blu-ray you have no excuse not to see it and fall in love.
Ma – This new thriller reteams Octavia Spencer and The Help director Tate Taylor in a genre movie that is far different then either of them has done, aside from Spencer’s quick scene in Rob Zombie’s Halloween II. In this film the Academy Award winner plays Sue Ann, a lonely woman who befriends a group of students, letting them party at her house, nicknaming her “Ma”. Slowly, the kids begin to realize that Ma isn’t quite right and the friendship shifts to murderous obsession. The film features some really stellar character work form Spencer but after all of the reveals are given to her real motive I honestly felt a little bored by its simplicity and wanted far more from it. In the end, the movie, although not bad, is just forgettable.
Mary Magdalene – Lion director Garth Davis takes on another ambitious project with this film following the story of Jesus Christ but from the perspective of one of the closest to him, Mary Magdelene. Rooney Mara takes the lead role with Joaquin Phoenix playing the “lord and saviour” but as much as the film breaks the mould of faith-based movies and showing some filmmaking guts I couldn’t really get engaged with this one and felt bored for the most part. Both actors usually impart such a deeply gratifying charisma that just seems to be lost in the void in a story that feels too long and sparse to be called a good film. It’s sad because Joaquin was and still is on such a great roll.
Nightmare Cinema – Being raised on films like Creepshow, Cat’s Eye and Tales From The Darkside, I am a huge fan of anthology horror films are we’ve gotten some pretty cool modern cinema ones like Trick r’ Treat, VHS and Southbound, so this new one crossing my path was certainly welcomed. Put together by five incredible directors, Alejandro Brugués (From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series), Joe Dante (Gremlins), Ryûhei Kitamura (The Midnight Meat Train), David Slade (30 Days Of Night) and Mick Garris (The Stand), this is about five strangers who stumble upon a haunted movie theater owned by The Projectionist (Mickey Rourke). Once inside, the audience members witness a series of screenings showing them their deepest fears and darkest secrets over five tales. Look, like other films like this some stories are better than other but oh man do some of these stick out as great moments in horror with great chills and insane gore. Plus, Mickey Rourke is a creepy special effect himself.
Cold Blood – A brand new action thriller starring a favorite of mine, Jean Reno, I had no idea this movie even existed, which is a fail on my part. Reno, settling into some familiar territory like Leon The Professional, plays a hit-man that lives by himself in a cabin at the edge of a lake who takes an injured woman in who arrives in front of his house one day, possibly putting himself in danger of being discovered by past enemies. This film is so unknown that it doesn’t even have a Wikipedia page but it has Across The Universe’s Joe Anderson in a supporting role as well as Canadian actress Sarah Lind as Reno’s protectee and former Ms. Moneypenny Samatha Bond. You should also read into the fact that this is writer and director Frédéric Petitjean’s first feature film and it has a big fat zero on Rotten Tomatoes.
Santana: Live At US Festival – I really love classic rock but honestly Carlos Santana’s older catalogue of music is something I never really delved into. Of course, I do know probably his biggest hit Black Magic Woman by name but the others I can’t even really remember titles for. That aside, getting this concert Blu-ray was something very cool for me. Taking a full look at one of his greatest performances ever, at the US Festival in 1977, I got a full scope of why Santana is considered one of the greatest guitar players ever ad the cool thing is he introduces and talks about each song in retrospect, giving a whole new quality to this classic concert. Any music fan will want to get their hands on this and crank that surround sound loud so you feel like you were there.
NCIS: Season 16 – Holy crap, Season sixteen? Yes, I fully acknowledge that I have been rining a season a week of these shows for the last three weeks but it all ends of with this show that started it off, well, after it had spun off of J.A.G. but you get the point. Mark Harmon plays Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, the leader of the Major Case Response Team in the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and rocks possibly the worst haircut in television. This season treads new ground as it is the first season without series mainstay Pauley Perrette after her very public exit that seems to be because of bullying from the lead himself. Although we are without the fan-favorite of Abby in the lab, the show has added Wilmer Valderrama and Maria Bello over the last few seasons to make it better.
Bull: Season 3 – Look, this show may feature a former NCIS star in lead Michael Weatherly but it has more in common with Dr. Phil than it does that crime procedural as this is a show based on the famous television psychiatrist’s life although, I assume, very loosely. Weatherly plays Dr. Jason Bull a brilliant, brash, and charming observer of jurors, attorneys and witnesses to get the pertinent edge his firm needs to defend their clients and, in some cases, condemn them. Unfortunately this show has the stink of the bad conduct the star showed towards at the time possible co-star Eliza Dushku but I actually enjoyed the handful of episodes I’ve got through so far and it featured some pretty good guest stars like Mercedes Rheul, Jill Hennessey for a couple of episodes and former Bond girl and Law and Order original Carey Lowell.
Steve’s Blu-Ray Geek-Out:
Lust For A Vampire – Shout Factory digs deep in their vaults of screams for this new special edition of this 1971 b grade horror film by one of the biggest pieces of the Hammer Film empire, Jimmy Sangster. The movie is about a rich Count and Countess who conduct a satanic ceremony to resurrect their daughter, which has an effect on the entire lands around their Karnstein castle which includes nearby Finishing School rife with nubile women for the taking. The film was originally supposed to star Hammer staple Peter Cushing who asked to bow out shortly before filming so that he could continue to look after his ailing wife. The person who was cast in his place, The Horror Of Frankenstein’s Ralph Bates, has said that this is his most hated performance.
BoJack Horseman: Season 1 & 2 – I feel like whenever I review anything that is available of Netflix I have that majority of readers wondering why they would even bother with picking up a physical copy of a title you could easily stream. I get it entirely, especially if you’re only in it for the one watch and are done with it. A show like this animated brilliance I really want as a part of my collection and I’m glad that Shout Factory has now put the first twenty-five episodes in this box set with full cast and crew commentaries for each one as well as extensive behind the scenes featurettes and storyboard to screen comparisons. It’s more than enough to keep a television nerd like myself happy.
The Island – Another great resource with reviewing Blu-ray, Well Go USA has been very kind in gifting me brand new films that I wouldn’t have had the chance to see like this Chinese comedy. The film is about a man with dreams of striking it rich finds himself stranded on an island with a multitude of different people from different walks of life in sort of a light-hearted Lord Of The Flies. The movie is the directorial debut of actor Bo Huang who is a sizeable star in China, starring in hit films like Journey To The West and No Man’s Land and has it’s moments although some of the comedic moments get lost in translation a little.
The Swindlers – Being a huge Korean film fan, I was very excited to receive this new movie from Well Go USA as the stylishness of their cinema is something I always look forward to. A bit of a con man mystery film, this movie has unlikely allies from different sides of the law working together to achieve the common goal of trapping the world’s most legendary con man. Expect double-crosses and moments of devious outsmarting in this film but as much as the style will keep you engaged visually, I felt the plotting pretty flimsy and the twists a little predictable. While this movie is not in the realm of bad movies it doesn’t rise to the occasion of being a good con movie.
S.W.A.T.: Season 2 – Revivals and remakes of classic properties have been pretty lucrative for television with the successes of Hawaii Five-O, MacGyver and Magnum P.I. and with this show it is relying on its past as a series that ran from 1975 to 1976 but a Colin Farrell led movie as well. The new incarnation of this show has ex-Criminal Minds and soap opera superstar Shemar Moore playing a locally born and bred S.W.A.T. lieutenant who is torn between loyalty to the streets and duty to his fellow officers when he’s tasked to run a highly-trained unit that’s the last stop for solving crimes in Los Angeles. A procedural, yes, but one that has a really good cast behind Shemar with Jay Harrington from the cancelled way too early Better Off Ted and Kenny Johnson from The Shield and Saving Grace and if you have a good cast I’m willing to give your show a chance.
Television:
Paper Champions: Season 1 (Amazon Prime) – This week I’m not just starting with some Canadian content but some homegrown local stuff to me as Vancouver’s Matt Ewart and Brady Roberts bring this new web series to life. The show follows Aubrey, a woman that has to shoulder a large responsibility when her father passes away as she must oversee his indie wrestling promotion in middle Amerca. You can see that involving wrestling plays right into the things I love and Roberts is a pro wrestler himself as cast member and friend of mine Paul “The Mauler” Lazenby and former ECW, WCW and WWE legend Lance Storm who also plays in this movie. The series is funny, well written and showcases one of my favorite pastimes and I hope to see more of it.
Mayans M.C.: Season 2 (FX) – Sons Of Anarchy fans, myself included, still have something to cling to as this series enters its sophomore season and is reportedly Kurt Sutters last as a showrunner, leaving it to co-creator Elgin James. The show has now established it’s new Jax, EZ, played by JD Pardo, a character that starts his journey from the bottom as a prospect which adds to a different dynamic in the show. I love the supporting cast like Edward James Almos and Tudors star Sarah Bolger and the returning actors Ray McKinnon and Emilio Rivera in their Sons of Anarchy roles, this all taking place in a post-Jax Teller world. As a merchandise owning fan of the original series, I will ride with this show until the wheels fall off. Heck, I even watched the entire series of The Bastard Executioner for Kurt Sutter, this is far better.
Untouchable (Hulu) – This may not be exactly a television series but it’s new to Hulu this week and it is both important and completely relevant as it this figure was really the accused that pushed the Me Too movement. This documentary is a look at the rise and fall of disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein featuring interviews with former colleagues and those who accused him of sexual misconduct which makes this film, to me, absolutely fascinating. Weinstein is now known to have blocked the careers of Ashley Judd, Mira Sorvino, Rose McGowan and many more and to see this catalogued in a tell-all film makes this one can’t miss and a really interesting conversation to have.
Brittany Runs A Marathon – Sometimes just looking at the lead actress of a movie will totally misrepresent what you think you are going to get with it. Starring comedic actress Jillian Bell, the scene-stealer from 22 Jump Street, Comedy Central’s Workaholics and Office Christmas Party, the immediate thinking is that this will be a romp of a movie, not the inspirational piece that it really is. This film has Bell as the title character, a woman living in New York who takes control of her life by taking control of her weight and her motivation, a beautiful character study that will resonate with many viewers and may push you in your own direction of self-realization. Jillian Bell is incredible in this movie, showing a range that totally surprised me. I really hope this movie catches on with audiences because it is a really special and also true story. (Only opening in Toronto and Vancouver)
Tigers Are Not Afraid – This movie has a couple of things working against it coming out of the gate. Firstly, this is an independent film so if you want it to hit the big time it needs to have that word darling attached to it. That’s not going to happen because the second deterrent from that additive title is that this s a horror film as well. Hopefully, Guillermo del Toro calling this Issa Lopez written and directed movie one of his favorites of the last year can help because I found this movie to be incredibly special. The film is a dark tale about a gang of five children trying to survive the horrific violence of the cartels, led in a way by a girl who can see the ghosts created every day by the drug war, spirits looking for vengeance. Lopez’s style breathes right off of the screen and sort of reminds me of the earlier del Toro film The Devil’s Backbone, signifying that she has a huge future ahead of her. (Only opening in Toronto and Vancouver)
This Changes Everything – The equality gap across the world is a huge issue that only seems to get better in sputters and spurts but where it is the most evident is in show business. This documentary delves right into that battle with a lot of the heavyweights of Hollywood including Reese Witherspoon, Meryl Streep and Jessica Chastain, showrunners like Shondra Rhimes and Jill Soloway as well as those affected directly in recent scandals like Rose McGowan, in a collected group of interviews that illuminate women’s roles in film over the years, leading to now, and what the future of the gender in that medium could possibly be. With help from the Geena Davis Institute of Gender Studies, we get a fascinating look at just the numbers when it comes to equality o screen but the movie is a little awkward with driving its point home by relying on focused point moments at the end of each interview bit and the end is almost anthemic with the message which felt largely unnecessary. Otherwise, I think this movie is massively pivotal and a must-watch. (Only opening in Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver)
Blu-Ray:
Rocketman – After Bohemian Rhapsody’s success last year, this Elton John biopic had been hotly anticipated although it is less of a straightforward film than the Queen movie was, instead taking more of a musical route. Taron Egerton stars as Elton with Jamie Bell playing his co-writer Bernie Taupin in a film that has the definitely hugs the line of being fantastical and serious in the same beat. It’s interesting to note that Egerton did all of his own singing in the film and the sounds incredible in it, giving the music a whole new life in my opinion. This movie totally lives up to the hype and gives us a flamboyant but unflinching look at a legendary singer who has multitudes of demons and flaws and where Bohemian Rhapsody seemed to shy away from Freddie Mercury’s sexuality, only giving a sort of suggestion to it, Rocketman wears it out in the open and is unafraid which should always be the lead choice. Not only is Rocketman one of the best ways to approach a musical biopic, but it may also be one of the best films this year.
The Secret Life Of Pets 2 – Illumination Entertainment brings out this new sequel, one that isn’t connected to their Despicable Me franchise and all without the problematic Louis CK providing the lead voice, this time around being replaced by one of the good guys, Patton Oswalt. All the other favorites have returned including Eric Stonestreet, Jenny Slate and Kevin Hart along with newcomers Tiffany Haddish and Harrison Ford, so all the kids should be happy and I actually thought the first movie was pretty fun and this one maintains that feeling, even if it is a little bit of a diminished return. The animation is definitely continuing that cute style, the voices are well cast and if there was any real issue with the film it would be its tendency to meander a bit in the story, which is odd for a movie that clocks under an hour and a half.
Godzilla: King Of The Monsters – Five years ago Gareth Edwards rebooted the giant Japanese monster that has headed the longest-running franchise in history with Jordan Vogt-Roberts placing the next piece with Kong: Skull Island, a prequel. Now Krampus and Trick r Treat director Michael Dougherty furthers the story with this highly anticipated rumble pitting Godzilla against the most devastating monster in existence King Ghidorah. A massive effects-driven film, this movie is going to blow everyone away with some really great massive battles between these iconic monsters but as far as the human element of the story goes, that’s where all of the brains drop out of the whole project. The dialogue and story for the main three characters played by Vera Farmiga, Millie Bobbie Brown and Kyle Chandler are so bad and nonsensical that it really almost cripples the film, it’s just a great thing that everything else works to save it.
Apocalypse Now: Final Cut – In my opinion, one of the greatest films ever made, Francis Ford Coppola has put the final touches on his Vietnam War masterpiece with this new director’s edition of the 1979 movie. Everyone knows the story here, Martin Sheen playing U.S. Army officer who is given the mission of navigating through the treacherous jungle in order to assassinate a renegade Special Forces Colonel named Kurtz who has gone rogue, insane and now sees himself as a god. This role is played brilliantly by Marlon Brando who was incredibly difficult to work with according to Coppola. A movie I have bought in various editions, it is fantastic to finally now own the definitive vision of a filmmaker who almost went crazy to make it.
Akio Jissoji – Another great release from Arrow Academy, this box sets features three films from Akio Jissoji, a Japanese television and film director best known outside Japan for the 1960s TV series Ultraman. In this collection known as The Buddhist Trilogy, his very Japanese famous erotic series is showcased, which consisted of This Transient Life, Mandala and Poem, each film focusing on taboo and disturbing subjects including incest and rape as an overhanging subject. Made from 1970 to 1972, these films came from a time where no creator was willing to put this sort of subject matter into their work out of fear of being blacklisted or exiled from their country and Jissoji spearheaded his own cause with unflinching attitude. I love that movie collectors can now dig into some of the forgotten film culture in Japan with this new set.
NCIS Los Angeles: Season 10 – What’s that? More NCIS you say? Well, yes, but this is the cool one because if features former Robin Chris O’Donnell and LL Cool J and that guy has the word cool in his name. They play key agents in the Office of Special Projects branch of the organization which puts them undercover to crack cases, utilizing their backgrounds as street kids. I’m fully aware of the dime a dozen nature of crime procedurals but I will admit something about this particular one and that is that I kind of like it and, really, at the end of the day it needs to be somewhat good to make it to season ten and now eleven, right?
Steve’s Blu-Ray Geek-Out:
The Reptile – Bring out some more classic horror, and some of the best of that genre with the “accidental experiment/incantation gone wrong” kind, this special edition revitalizes a film from 1966. The movie takes place in a Cornish village where various locals are dying from mysterious snake bites but the city officials rule the deaths as heart attacks until a family of newcomers starts an investigation. The film was made by the historic Hammer films and was filmed back to back with the infamous Plague Of The Zombies, reusing a lot of the sets, the village being the most obvious. This collector’s edition features the film in two separate aspect ratios, commentary with film historians, a new interview with the first assistant director and an all-new documentary on the making of it. Shout Factory has again released a golden oldie.
Quatermass II&Quatermass And The Pit – A very cool thing about a cinephile like me getting sent all of these old classics is I get to see some of the films ad stories that paved the way for every original story we see today and the films of Quatermass was a springboard point for a lot of the sci-fi genre. I received two of these movies this week as the second Quatermass movie, probably the most famous one, has our titular professor trying to gather support for his moon colonization project and discovers that there might be some sinister inhabitants that could spell doom for the move of humanity. The second of the new Shout Factory releases made ten years later and with a different lead actor, has a mysterious artifact unearthed in London, causing Quatermass to be called to investigate its origins and explain its strange effects on people. Both movies have a brand new 2K scan for the Blu-ray as well as commentaries by film historians and even, in some cases, limited commentary with the actual filmmakers.
Television:
The Dark Crystal – Age of Resistance: Season 1 (Netflix) – As a kid from the eighties, I found myself obsessed with the Dark Crystal world, created in the mind of the great Jim Henson, Frank Oz and David Odell, and brought to life in a film that I still feel like I’m unpacking to this day. Dealing with alien philosophies, gods and a quest to find the missing shard of a magical crystal, the tale of the Gelflings is massively complex and one I’m surprised we got to see on such a massive level. Well, friends, Netflix has given us more of what we crave as we get not just a movie but a ten-episode series that returns to the world of Thra, where three Gelfling discover the horrifying secret behind the Skeksis’ power and set out to ignite the fires of rebellion and save their world. Ever since this show was announced my childhood has been singing in my soul and I can not wait to binge it all.
Carnival Row: Season 1 (Amazon Prime) – Amazon Prime seems to take a lot of chances with their original series and this one is no exception and it comes from the mind of the Pacific Rim creator Travis Beacham and features episodes directed by Lucky Number Slevin’s Paul McGuigan, Entrapment’s Jon Amiel and two veteran television stalwarts Anne Foerster and Andy Goddard. The show stars Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevigne as a human detective and a fairy respectively who rekindle a dangerous affair in a Victorian fantasy world, where the city’s uneasy peace collapses when a string of murders reveals an unimaginable monster. I really enjoy world-building things like this and seeing Foerster’s background on Outlander has me even more intrigued because she shoulders the most amount of work in this at four episodes. This may be your sleeper hit here.
Ballers: Season 5 (HBO) – Closing out with its final season, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson returns to his role as Spencer Strasmore, former football star and now the financial manager to the best of the best in the NFL. Coming from the producers of Entourage, this show fills the niche of big muscles, fast cars and scantily clad women but also is a massively entertining series with great supporting turns from Rob Corddry and the breakout star of Blackkklansman John David Washington. My favorite part of this show is seeing Johnson flex a different muscle in his repertoire which is his dramatic range that I think the average viewer forgets he has. Spencer is the moral center of the series, just as he is the visual one, and The Rock never lets you forget that.
The Affair: Season 5 (Showtime) – It seems like this is a year of endings for not just big shows like Game Of Thrones but smaller critically acclaimed shows like this show, one I was very late to discovering and wish I had been up on it earlier. For those who haven’t had a chance to see it, the show is a multi-faceted story about a struggling novelist and a young waitress who strike up an extramarital relationship that promises to forever change the course of their lives as well as their spouses and the people around them. Over its run, the series has picked up three Golden Globes, for best series as well as actresses Maura Tierney and Ruth Wilson, and nominations for Primetime Emmys and Writer’s Guild awards and I think this final season will give it more accolades on the way out.
Workin’ Moms: Season 3 (Netflix) – Originally broadcast on our very own CBC, this show got the boost from Netflix but still needs a little push I think for people to really dig into it. I think what I’m saying is after you’ve finished Schitt’s Creek and Kim’s Convenience, check this one out before you make the mistake of watching Mr. D for your Canadian content. Starring the creator of the show, the very funny Catherine Reitman, this is the story of four very different thirty-something working moms and friends as they try to balance their jobs, family life and love life in the reported center of the universe, Toronto, Canada. This may have the stigma of Canadian broadcasting all over it but Reitman comes from the writing staff of It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia so have some faith.
Ready Or Not (Opened on Wednesday) – Horror can be a dime a dozen bunch of releases that all look like one another, a random ghost story or slasher film or maybe even a reboot of a horror franchise that didn’t really need it. This is the appearance to none fans and mainstream film watchers. Then a movie like this comes along from two unproven writers and a couple of indie guys to bring something that feels fresh, funny and with an acerbic wit that makes it all come together. Samara Weaving plays a bride who’s wedding night takes a sinister turn when her eccentric new in-laws force her to take part in a terrifying game where they play hide and seek in their giant mansion but the only catch is that when they find her, they kill her. Weaving delivers a star-making performance that also features killer (no pun intended) outings from veterans like Henry Czerny and Andie MacDowell. The best way to go into this movie is with as little knowledge possible and enjoy the ride. Thank me later.
Angel Has Fallen – Sometimes I am completely baffled to what gets the green light in Hollywood and what gets sequels and for how much I enjoyed Olympus Has Fallen, which was a bit above middling, London Has Fallen was complete garbage so why do we have this movie? The film has Gerard Butler returning again as the head of the Secret Service, this time he is framed for the attempted assassination of the new president, the former vice played by Morgan Freeman. Not much to expect from this one other than Butler dispatching bad guys left and right which spitting out one-liners and Danny Huston playing a smirking villain while chewing the scenery. Basic eighties and nineties action film fodder and I don’t expect good things from it.
Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles – Not being a fan of musicals, the appeal of the production Fiddler On The Roof is kind of lost on me even though my dad got us kids to watch it in our childhood, you know, the movie version made by Norman Jewison. You’d get me more interested with a documentary on it, which is what this is, the origin story behind one of Broadway’s most beloved musicals and its creative roots in early 1960s New York. The progressiveness of the show when society was completely uninclusive on gender roles, sexuality, race relations and religion is interesting and pretty groundbreaking in retrospect. Coming from a little known documentary maker, this movie could be a total hidden gem for theater buffs.
Aquarela – This film is, no joke, a movie about water but deep than that, no pun intended, this movie is about being immersed in it. Confused? Me too but to simplify it, this is Russian director Victor Kossakovsky’s cinematic journey through the transformative beauty and raw power of water in all of its forms. Done without the traditional style of talking-head interviews or voice overs, this is the story of Siberia’s frozen Lake Baikal and it’s rapid change of temperature, icebergs off the coast of Greenland and more all told in ninety six frames per second, capturing every essence of the moment. Just for comparison, all other films are shot in twenty-four frames per second.
The Peanut Butter Falcon – Shia Lebeouf is an actor that went through a lot of issues in his transition from child and teen star to the crush and expectations of adulthood. He was mocked mercilessly in the press but the whole time he was still giving knockout performance after performance, never slowing down but just doing movies you haven’t heard of. Now with this film, I really hope he gets the recognition he deserves. The film is about a man with down syndrome named Zak who escapes his care home in the hope of finding his wrestler idols school in the hopes of being trained. Along the way, he runs into Tyler, a troubled fisherman who is on the run from others on the same dock. Deeply grieving the loss of his brother, Tyler reluctantly forms a bond with Zak and the end result is a beautiful emotional journey filled with redemption for Lebeouf, both in this character and hopefully to the skeptical viewer. This movie is massively special and I loved it.
The Death And Life Of John F. Donovan – French Canadian filmmaker Xavier Dolan has made some incredible movies over his career and is, in my opinion, one of the best writers and directors we have to offer. That said, his last movie It’s Only the End of the World was an infuriating mess of disjointed arguing for two hours of my life that I will never go back so even with his incredible skill I go into this movie with a bit of a chip on my shoulder. This film has Game Of Thrones star Kit Harrington as a young actor who reminisces the written correspondence he shared with an American TV star who passed away a decade earlier, as well as the impact those letters had on both their lives. The cast around Harrington is big, both internationally and nationally, as it has Kathy Bates, Natalie Portman and Susan Sarandon as well as local star Jacob Tremblay, the fantastic Sarah Gadon and Letterkenny creator Jared Keeso. I really want to have faith that this movie will be great as Dolan needs to rise to the top again.
The Queen’s Corgi – It seems like there is a lot of these little studio animated films that fly under my radar and another one just crossed my inbox today so on short notice I have to scramble together what this one is all about. The film is pretty simple, the British monarch’s favorite dog gets lost from the palace and finds himself at a dog fight club and then needs to make his long and arduous journey home, so it seems like a… wait… did that say “dog fight club” like dog fighting ring? Whoa, this just got dark and with the only recognizable name in this being Dam Julie Walters and other characters being ones named “Trump” this movie may be just enough under the radar to be completely weirdo. I think I’m in.
Overcomer – Oh fantastic, another faith-based film. This movie comes from a couple of the heavyweights in this genre of films, the Kendrik brothers who are responsible for movies like War Room, Fireproof and Facing The Giants, which were all successful within that audience. This film has one of the brothers Alex taking a front and center role, playing a high school basketball coach who has to use his faith to uplift his team when the local plant closes, losing most of their parents their jobs in the process. Expect a lot of religious pandering and terrible acting and direction as none of these films seem to rise to the level of any mainstream movies, content to give the lowest form of talent just to drive home their message.
Blu-Ray:
A Dog’s Journey – I really don’t think the first movie A Dog’s Purpose or the unconnected canine film A Dog’s Way Home really drummed up enough theatrical interest for these dog movies but watching my daughter’s eyes light up in moments in this movie makes it pretty clear why Sony would keep on this path. The story of this film is the continuing story of a dog learning about existence and the strength of love through continuous reincarnation, which sounds sweet but only if it wasn’t presented in such a contrived and totally cheesy way. Yes, this will definitely land with the kids but the first one was such a plodding and grating mess of a movie this one even undershot that. Even with the delighted joy my daughter found in the playful moments of this film, there is still the crushing blow of inevitable death in each of these dog’s incarnations which is a hard pill to swallow as both parent and child. The kids may like it but you will have some explaining to do afterwards.
Brightburn – Coming from the mind of the brilliant writer and director James Gunn, this movie poses the question “what if Superman didn’t take the path of good?” Yes, deeply a horror film, the movie has an alien boy crash land on earth, adopted by a small town family but snaps when bullying and life’s problems get too much and he learns of his extraordinary powers. The film isn’t directed by Gunn but his style is all over the script and the trailer is so deeply satisfying to genre fans such as myself. This one could be really cool.
The Hustle – Just looking at the title of this new comedy film you wouldn’t know that it’s a remake with a gender twist but once you get about thirty seconds in you realize “Hey, this is Dirty Rotten Scoundrels!” Now after watching it I’m wondering how did a reimagining of one of my favorite comedies turn into such a pile of garbage? Minutes into the film I knew I was in for a terrible time as Rebel Wilson and Anne Hathaway stood in for the iconic Steve Martin and Michael Caine in a cringe-worthy update filled with easy jokes, corny sentimentality and completely predictable beat after beat. By the end of this hour and a half mess, I felt like I’d been locked into it for three hours.
The Sun Is Also A Star – I’m really on the fence with this one because on the surface it looks like a standard teen romance film, something that has never really found any resonance with me. Looking deeper, the movie is about a girl on the eve of being deported from the United States, the only home she has ever known, who meets a boy that sparks an immediate connection with her. The trailer invokes feelings of Richard Linklater’s Before Sunrise, a burgeoning romance that unfolds over one day and that intrigues me. The added factor that Ry Russo-Young, director of the surprisingly great Before I Fall, is the director behind this film gives it that much more weight. This movie has a lot of potential and seems to be timely in its delivery.
The Tomorrow Man – Two stellar actors in John Lithgow and Blythe Danner lead this lighthearted romantic drama about two ageing people who have seemed to have given up on love and friendship. Lithgow plays Ed, a recluse who is constantly preparing for the end of the world, constantly buying provisions to stock in his bomb shelter at the local grocers, the place he spots Blythe Danner’s character Ronnie, who works at the local knick-knack shop, buying things she will never use. Ed eventually steels up enough nerve to ask Ronnie out and the odd relationship of feeling out each other’s quirks begins. The story feels a bit standard but these two veterans are really what the draw is here because they make every moment of the film feel so deeply meaningful.
The Biggest Little Farm – This documentary is the start of a really great trend this week, the “feel good” doc because this one is full of good intentions and celebrated outcomes. The film follows the journey of John and Molly Chester, a Los Angeles couple who dream of owning their own sustainable farm, something that seemed like a pipe dream to them. Through a string of circumstances, they decide to put their ideas out into the world and find many financial backers to help get them the land they need, two hundred acres north of the City Of Angels. Now on the farm, a dilapidated space that needs a complete overhaul, the two find themselves in control of the next step. This movie was massively inspirational in a push to follow what drives you and has surprising depths of emotion that seem to bubble up here and there. I found myself enthralled with the Chesters’ story very quickly and was gripped to the end.
NCIS New Orleans: Season 5 – The expanded spinoff series seems to be a thing of the past as we only have one Law & Order now, there are no CSis left and the Criminal Minds one didn’t work out, although I heard it wasn’t bad. This all seems to have skipped the NCIS franchise, which is a spinoff of JAG itself and has not one but two extra shows with NCIS Los Angeles and this one starring Scott Bakula as the lead. The show is your standard fare for these, just factoring in a cajun flavor for the locale, but the charm of Bakula himself, the friendly face of classics like Quantum Leap and Star Trek Enterprise may draw you to it. I like the cast formed around him like stalwart veteran CCH Pounder and former child star Lucas Black.
Blue Bloods: Season 9 – Starting with the traditional procedural, I now move onto the primetime crime dramas with this Tom Selleck and Donnie Wahlberg led show that moves into the double digits in seasons next month. Basically, this is like the Charles Bronson series of made for television movies A Family Of Cops but told much better as we have Tom Selleck as the patriarch of the family and also the commissioner of police, his sons Wahlberg and Will Estes as a detective and police sergeant respectively. The cast rounds out with Bridget Moynahan as the sister, an assistant DA, and the great Len Cariou as the grandpa, a former commissioner himself and the show is actually very solid and its long tenure is indicative of that.
Ronja – The Robber’s Daughter: Complete Series – It’s time for another adventure of Steve’s foray into the anime genre as he attempts to grasp an opinion on it. Okay, that’s a long title that needs shortening but it’s fitting as this box set is a full series consisting of twenty-six episodes. Told over a four-disc blu-ray, this is the story of Ronja, a young girl whose father is the chief of a tribe of bandits in a huge castle in a forest. The show follows her as she encounters mystical creatures and experiences life in her element. It’s based on the fantasy story Ronia the Robber’s Daughter, written by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren who also brought us the classic Pippi Longstocking so my daughter latched on to that as it kind of resonates in the same way.
Steve’s Blu-Ray Geek-Out:
Weird Science – This is a special little gift from Arrow Video, a collector’s edition of one of the greatest comedies of the 1980s and a movie that got young Steve on his way to loving movies and comedies. From the mind of writer and director John Hughes, the absolute legend, this is the story of two computer nerds played by Anthony Michael Hall and Ilan Mitchell-Smith who bring the woman of their dreams to life through their computer in the form of mod eighties it girl Kelly LeBrock. This new edition features three different cuts of the movie, which includes an extended version and one edited for television as well as a treasure trove of brand new featurettes. All of it is so great for any movie buff looking to celebrate a Hughes classic.
Pretenders With Friends – A cool part of being hooked up with MVD Visual Entertainment is they put Blu-ray, DVD and CD combos like this one that I never would have checked out otherwise. Chrissy Hynde and her band The Pretenders put together this show where they invited guests like Kings Of Leon, Incubus, Shirley Manson of Garbage and the legendary Stooge, Iggy Pop to do some songs with them, recorded live at the Decades Rock Arena in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The little switch up in this collaboration is The Pretenders perform their guest’s hits with them so we get to hear Hynde’s voice on songs like Only Happy When It Rains, Drive and The Bucket. For a guy that’s been raised on songs like On The Chain Gang and Day After Day, this is a real treat of a show even if the video quality isn’t amazing.
Television:
13 Reasons Why: Season 3 (Netflix) – Every time Netflix announces that a new season is coming for this show I’m a little taken aback because I always thought that this would be kind of a standalone series but I think the property must be too lucrative for them to sit on. Now, heading into a bit of spoiler territory, this third season has Dylan Minnette’s character Clay Jensen investigating the murder of Bryce Walker, his fellow classmate putting the whole film noir aspect of this show back into high gear. My question is how much longevity does this show have ad how many suspicious deaths can one high school contain?
American Factory (Netflix) – A brand new Netflix produced documentary, this movie has a pertinent place in the world right now, especially with the Trump administration’s trade wars, tariff threats and promises of an increase to the industry in America. The film focuses on post-industrial Ohio and a Chinese billionaire who opens a new factory in the husk of an abandoned General Motors plant, hiring two thousand blue-collar Americans who had been laid off due to outsourcing. Unfortunately, all of the hope and optimism give way to setbacks as high-tech China and calls for speed and efficiency clashes with working-class America and their needs. In the news and politics of today films like this are massively important for us to take in, giving us a broader look at the industry depths of Americans.
Hyperdrive: Season 1 (Netflix) – This is a super easy one to describe. Former UFC champion and British trash talker Michael Bisping hosts this reality series where drivers from around the world compete in one of the largest automotive obstacle courses ever made in a tournament to whittle the customers down to find the best. This will appeal to the subscribers who already take in every episode of Ultimate Beastmaster or check out things like American Ninja Warrior, Robot Wars and those type of series but we get fast stunt cars instead. All I know is that my daughter is probably really excited about this one.
This Way Up: Season1 (Hulu) – If you like to follow along with comedians on Twitter, the name Aisling Bea might be familiar to you, a hilarious comedian from the U.K. who doesn’t pull her punches and will come at anyone. Well, now she has her own Hulu original that she stars in with the equally funny Sharon Horgan, who recently made an impression on North American audiences with her supporting role in Game Night. This series follows Bea as a young woman who is trying to put her life back together after suffering from a nervous breakdown so probably something totally relatable for a lot of people. We need more shows that deal with depression, anxiety and other very common life issues that bog all of us down.
The Righteous Gemstones: Season 1 (HBO) – As a huge fan of Danny McBride’s work, crudeness being a main factor, I have always been massively supportive of his work. Starting with his insane character study Eastbound and Down, the ballad of burnt-out baseball player Kenny Powers, then his turn on Vice Principals about two men battling over a vacant principal position, I love all of his work so this one is sure to be great too. Co-starring his Vice Principals co-star Walton Goggins as well as John Goodman and Adam Devine, this show follows a world-famous televangelist family with a long tradition of deviance, greed and charitable work which I love as a premise because someone has to take the piss out of a user like Joel Osteen and Danny McBride is the perfect person to do it I think.
Steve Stebbing 