Without Limits
The latest film by CHINATOWN scribe Robert Towne, Without Limits is the second film in as many years about the American track runner Steve Prefontaine. It is perhaps no surprise that the press conference for the film was dominated by questions for one of the film’s producers, Tom Cruise. Billy Crudup (‘cruh-dup’, not ‘croo-dup’ as […]
La Vita è bella (Life is Beautiful)
Already celebrated at Cannes, this magnificent film bravely toys with the twins of dramatic presentation, comedy and tragedy. What is remarkable about this film is not just that one can laugh whilst knowing the inevitable tragic outcome, but that these conflicting emotions are delicately nursed through wonderful physical acting combined with witty dialogue. For this […]
A long time collaborator with the Coen brothers, Raimi’s film is a pastiche of many of the elements that made films like FARGO so enjoyable. Incompetence, treachery, shotguns and snow can often make for a good movie, but hampered by yet another cardboard performance by Bill “I’m NOT Chet anymore!” Paxton the simple plan turns […]
Red Violin
Perhaps the greatest epic that Canadian filmmaking has ever produced, RED VIOLIN is a masterpiece of contemporary film making. Shirking the traditional Hollywood formula of linear story telling, Girard’s direction and ’98 Festival ‘god’ Don McKeller’s script seamlessly tie five stories together through the connection of a Red Violin’s travel through history. Girard, who’s last […]
Permanent Midnight
The proliferation of sub-genres in Hollywood continues to impress. You can imagine the pitch for this film – “yeah, it’s LEAVING LAS VEGAS meets WHEN HARRY MET SALLY, with the heroin stuff from TRAINSPOTTING!! The kids will LOVE it!!!”. Catchy pitch aside, in this land of permanent midnight, you just want to curl up and […]
Pecker
John Waters returns after his traditional hiatus between flicks with this quirky portrayal of a young photographer’s rise to fame. Set, as always, in the city of Baltimore, PECKER is a quirky, fun film that is sure to generate cult interest. PECKER, unlike his previous film, SERIAL MOM, seems to explicitly be a ‘John Waters […]
The Mighty
THE MIGHTY is hardly that – a derivative, manipulative film that makes SIMON BURCH look like an Oscar contender. It is an After-School special masquerading as a festival film, and proves to be little more then trite pap that gets fed to adolescents as entertainment. Kieren Culkin reverts to a Macaulay-style performance, complete with wide […]
Little Voice
LITTLE VOICE is a compelling, touching story of a mute woman who can only speak through the imitated voices of others. Based on the West End play that was commissioned to showcase the inimitable imitative talents of Jane Horrocks, the film is all the more remarkable in that the lead character actually is singing what […]
Hillary and Jackie
HILLARY AND JACKIE is the story of two musician sisters whose competitive urges drive them to great artistic heights and deep, personal lows. Based on the life of the du Pré sisters, this film is a tale of the tragedy of artistic genius and the limits of love and trust that may be exhibited by […]
Antz
Existentialism. Marx. Thomas Moore. Woody Allen. Computer generated bugs. As Seseme Street or the SAT’s would so eloquently put it, which of these does not belong? Frighteningly, and perhaps impressively, the correct answer is ‘none of the above’, as all these elements are wedded in this latest gee-whizz, full marketing speed ahead bug movie from […]
Artemesia
The French seem to have a penchant for creating realistic period films without recourse to the gaudiness and ostentation that spoil many American or Merchant/Ivory attempts. The period is recreated as a setting for a particular kind of tale, not as a cliché or forced attempt at injecting some “culture” or “significance” into an otherwise […]
The Spanish Prisoner
For some reason, David Mamet’s scripts always remind me of Nabokov. The deliberate, beautifully crafted phrasing, the immaculate use of language, and the carefulness of pronunciation of the characters (“Lo-lee-tah”). There is a playfulness in Mamet’s language, a mix of the colloquial with the sublimely cool. The playwright/screenwriter/director also often employs a really clever technique […]
Chinese Box
With “Chinese Box”, Wayne Wang has filmed what he himself described as a “love-hate letter” to Hong Kong. Shot on location during 1997 following the events of “repatriation” as they happened on the streets, Wang has crafted a challenging, moving, intensely personal film that traces the unbearably complex relationships between China, Hong Kong and Britain […]
Diary 3
I’m not sure for how many years it has been going on, but one of the most enjoyable things that I’ve discovered at this year’s festival are the “midnight madness” screenings. Screening animation or “alternative” fare, the “midnight madness” programmers have amassed an eclectic, diverse program. It is quite easy to get tickets ahead of […]
I Married a Strange Person
Bill Plympton is one weird animator and cartoonist. From his “25 ways to Quit Smoking” to his MTV promotional shorts, his scratchy, distinctive style is quite far removed from the Disney mould. He is also almost unique in the animation world. for he draws every frame of his films himself (with the colouring done, as […]
?? – A Chinese Ghost Story – The Tsui Hark Animation
In North America (and much of the world), the phrase “animated film with musical numbers” is likely to invoke images of Disney. But not everywhere; in Asia, home-grown animation is king, with especially the Japanese “anime” the recipient much of popular and critical acclaim. The Chinese (and those in Hong Kong) have also been carving […]
Diary 2
Life is not always easy for the plebeian reviewer. Press passes do not abound, nor do free tickets, cheap transportation, or, most depressingly, invitations to the parties for the “cool” people. One seldom feels so socially designated (or denigrated) as during festival time, walking past all the beautiful people with their beautiful hair as they […]
Gattaca
Andrew Nicol’s “Gattaca” has a compelling premise – the “not-to distant future” is a world where your genetics determine your socioeconomic position. With predictive calculations deciding life expectancy and other potential health risks drawn from one’s very genetic code, discrimination lies much deeper than the skin’s surface. Ethan Hawke plays a man conceived “out of […]
Diary 1
Toronto, September 5, 1997 The Toronto Film Festival works a little differently from other festivals as regards class distinctions in the audience. There are a variety of “levels” of tickets for the Gala screenings, ensuring that the “Gold” patrons, those affiliated with the major sponsors, get the priority seats. They get to enter first; then […]
Men With Guns
In most of the press releases for John Sayles’ latest film, “Men With Guns”, reference is made to Joseph Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness”. While Sayles’ film does portray a “journey of discovery” for a central character, with various physical and philosophical confrontations along the way, the comparison to Conrad may be a little abrupt. Unlike […]