The show begins with Josh (Jay Baruchel) awkwardly leaving the apartment of his now ex-girlfriend Maggie (Maya Erskine). As he walks away, heartbroken, suddenly it starts raining. But it’s only raining on him, nobody else. Dead birds fall from the sky and hit him, furthering his depressing state. The show only gets weirder from there. Within the …
FXX’s newest comedy shows a lot of promise, mainly due to its willingness to dive into absurd fantasy sequences that are not only funny, but help deepen the audience’s understanding of the lead character and his relationships to others.
RoboCop Written by Joshua Zetumer & Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner Directed by José Padilha USA, 2014 Paul Verhoeven’s science-fiction films RoboCop and Total Recall take place in different environments and eras, but share a similarly raucous, ramshackle, satiric attitude. These films are products of their time, filled with garishly practical effects and grimy, tactile …
RoboCop Written by Joshua Zetumer Directed by José Padilha USA, 2014 The remake of RoboCop is a largely different beast to Paul Verhoeven’s original film, and is all the better for choosing not to be a slavish re-creation minus the trademark ultra-violence. The 2014 take may be less gory and far less cartoonish, but there …
This is the End Directed by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg Written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg USA, 2013 Seth Rogen, more than most comic leading men of his generation, always seems to end up playing himself, for good or ill. From Knocked Up to Pineapple Express to even The Green Hornet, it’s hard …
Cosmopolis Written for the screen and directed by David Cronenberg Canada/France/Portugal/Italy, 2012 Though dissimilar in regards to thematic or narrative content, Cosmopolis bears a noticeable similarity to David Cronenberg’s last film, A Dangerous Method, in that both are heavily packed with lengthy, slow-moving conversation sequences that are predominantly free of sound outside of the spoken …
Goon Directed by Michael Dowse Written by Jay Baruchel and Evan Goldberg Canada, U.S.A., 2011 A sports theme film will more often than not do two specific things. First, it will share the story of either and individual or team, considered to be the underdogs against the clearly more powerful and skilled opposition, who overcomes …
Good Neighbours Written by Jacob Tierney Directed by Jacob Tierney Canada, 2010 Essentially a misbegotten remake of Shallow Grave without an ounce of that film’s humor or thrills, Good Neighbours is a daring but nevertheless disappointing attempt at a psychological thriller, buoyed by the early promise of a novel setting and quirky characters, but ultimately …
It was Canada’s turn for glitz and glamour last night as the red carpet rolled out for The 31st Annual Genie Awards, Canada’s biggest night in film. Awards were handed out at the National Arts Center in our nation’s capital last night and hosted by icon and current funnyman William Shatner. The televised event on …
“The principal difficulty in making a story like this work is that the central contrivance is, of course, utterly preposterous and potentially irritating.” The Trotsky Directed by Jacob Tierney What a horrible mess The Trotsky might have been. Saddled with a dreadful-sounding high-concept premise (privileged high schooler thinks he’s the reincarnation of Leon Trotsky), Jacob …