Steve James’ documentary about Roger Ebert- filmed in the last few weeks of his life and release after his death- moved me more than any other movie in 2014 so far. The scenes shot in the hospital are harrowing, the unbelievable strength of Roger’s wife Chaz is inspiring, and the film’s dedication to portraying the […]

Part Taxi Driver, Part American Psycho, entirely a biting satire of the modern entertainment complex. Nightcrawler may sound like an X-Men spin off but it’s actually a fascinating spin down the rabbit hole of our modern news landscape, and an interesting twist on the antihero genre.   I don’t want to spoil the journey I […]

In a lot of ways, Birdman Or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) is a creatively masturbatory exercise in pretension. It may also be brilliant.   Just look at that damn title! Uselessly subtitled, with inexplicable punctuation. It begs you to take it seriously, while creating just enough of a wink to pretend its better than […]

 

I was skeptical, at first, about this dystopian Noah’s Ark adapted from a French graphic novel and starring Captain America (forgive the unfairly depreciative evocation; I’ve always liked Chris Evans and know full well that most of the major superheroes right now are actually pretty good actors, but you know what I mean). The first […]

Halloween is imminent, and it’s time to mass-watch some scary movies. Personally, this is my favourite time of year, so I am going to try and post a few extra, short reviews on some of my favourite horror flicks. Warning: spoilers are likely. Extra Intro Paragraph today! Greetings from Salem on my Halloween vacation! Figured […]

Halloween is imminent, and it’s time to mass-watch some scary movies. Personally, this is my favourite time of year, so I am going to try and post a few extra, short reviews on some of my favourite horror flicks. Warning: spoilers are likely. Re-Animator (1985) Herbert West (Jeffery Combs) has recently arrived at a university […]

First things first, I gotta come clean and tell you that I have an ongoing fear of dolls and puppets. I don’t really have a specific memory of where this started, but it has stuck with me for some time. Yet strangely, I have a special place in my heart for movies that are truly […]

… that’s an order. I mean it. If you let awards-ready Sundance hit Whiplash go to wide release without already knowing and loving the work of one of the best young actors in Hollywood, I can guarantee you’ll feel like one of those people who hadn’t heard of Melissa McCarthy until Bridesmaids. From 2010’s Rabbit Hole […]