faults-poster 7.5

FAULTS Review

For some reason, I have always had an affinity with films revolving around cults. The psychology behind someone who can be brainwashed into following some self-appointed leader is a fascinating subject to explore. When you throw comedy into the mix it’s even better and such is the case with Riley Stearns’ Faults.  With a breakout performance of Leland Orser, this small, dialogue driven dark comedy provides insight into the manipulation of a cult, while providing some hilarious bits of humor.

focus_movie_poster_1 5

FOCUS Review

A glance in the wrong direction, the ground on which one stands - are you above or below the person? How easy is it to steal their wallet? Can you tap into their subconscious, use memories to bring back feelings? If Focus were directed by someone more attuned to how one can manipulate another person by tapping into their psyche and the physical aspects involved, it could have gone well beyond the typical con artist story.

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THE LAZARUS EFFECT Review

How do you follow-up the rightfully acclaimed documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi? If you’re director David Gelb, it’s with cold fish horror-thriller The Lazarus Effect. The film posits some interesting, if unoriginal, questions and then quickly devolves into a bland amalgam of spurious science and benign, telegraphed “BOO!” moments that fit neatly within the PG-13 aesthetic.

salvation 4.5

THE SALVATION Review

It is 1871 in the American Midwest. After serving in the Danish/German war, Jon (Mads Mikkelsen) and his brother Peter (Mikael Persbrandt) have spent the last several years living on the frontier as pioneers. Jon’s dream of bringing his family to America is finally realized when they arrive in town after they had been apart for seven years.

Wild Canaries 8.5

WILD CANARIES Review

Motives are mounting and blackmail abounds in writer/director Lawrence Michael Levine’s latest film, Wild Canaries, a modern update of the classic murder mystery that marries romantic entanglements and relationship drama along with the tension from anticipating the twists and turns of standard whodunit involving amateur sleuths.

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MY LIFE DIRECTED BY NICOLAS WINDING REFN Review

The documentary My Life Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn acts as a behind-the-scenes look into the life of the director behind the critically acclaimed film Drive, which starred Ryan Gosling. While its goal is to present an intimate look into the life and career of Refn, the film – shot by his wife, Liv Corfixen – only gives us a small peek behind the curtain and ends up feeling much more like a DVD extra than a fleshed-out documentary.

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SARAH’S ROOM Review

Director Grant McPhee is a seasoned professional when it comes to visual imagery in film, working on the cinematography and digital imaging for a number of projects that include Cloud Atlas, Under the Skin and Game of Thrones, just to name a few.

This knack for visual acuity is strikingly apparent in his latest directorial effort, Sarah’s Room. This feature-length film is the product of an experiment to see what kind of product a crew of professional actors and filmmakers can create given the very restrictive constraints of a five-day shooting schedule and a budget of only £4,000. Although this sounds like a probable recipe for disaster, it’s clear McPhee surrounded himself with talented people, as the end result is every bit as polished as a film with ten times this budget.

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BIG HERO 6 Blu-ray Review

Disney’s Academy Award-winning Big Hero 6 will hit the shelves tomorrow, Feb. 24, along with its fellow Academy Award-winning short film, Feast, as part of the studio’s latest Blu-ray/DVD/Digital HD combo pack.

The story of Hiro Hamada, his marshmallow-fluff friend and their crew of crime fighters was released last year to high praise and was lauded as an original story that was both comedic and heartwarming. Snagging an Oscar this week for best animated feature, Big Hero 6 – a film adaptation of the Marvel Comics series – brought to life the origin stories of these two-dimensional characters from the books and laid down a decent foundation for the anticipated set of sequels.

wild-tales 8

WILD TALES Review

An issue that’s difficult for anthology films to overcome is one of batting average. More often than not, there’s a least one segment that doesn’t measure up to the others and regardless of the quality of the rest of the rest of the film, the weak section(s) drag it down a bit. Once the light shines on the uneven, episodic nature of the narrative, you begin to wonder how many more of these stories you have to sit through. With Wild Tales, Argentinian writer-director Damián Szifrón bats a thousand. Sure, some of the six tales of vengeance and justice are better than others, but all are tightly constructed, relatable micro-stories that tap into the foibles and fallibility of savage impulses.

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ALL THE WILDERNESS Review

Yet another trite configuration of the tired elements that always seem to make up these coming-of-age dramas. The only surprising and, perhaps, original aspect of writer/director Michael Johnson’s debut, All the Wilderness, is how uninspired it all feels. No one, on-screen, gives the impression that this is, in fact, a story that needs to be told; yet, told it is going through the motions with little to no passion.

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HOT TUB TIME MACHINE 2 Review

2010’s Hot Tub Time Machine was unquestionably immature, but there was also some measure of humanity behind the various humiliations. Hot Tub Time Machine 2 drops the heart and focuses below the belt with an uninspired string of dick jokes and adlibbed insults. Another thing absent this time around is the original’s most marketable performer, John Cusack, whose character only appears in a still photo and is said to be on a “spiritual journey.” The actor was likely on a journey to find a better script. He wouldn’t have to travel far.

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DIGGING UP THE MARROW Review

For those of you not familiar with the work of horror director Adam Green, he’s amassed something of a cult following since creating the wonderfully gory Hatchet series, as well as the icy thriller Frozen – not the Disney version – and the TV series Holliston.

In his latest film, Digging Up The Marrow, Green explores his own love for monsters and for his eccentric fans by creating a mockumentary about himself making a movie about a fan who claims to have seen real monsters. It’s an interesting premise that I’m pleased to say works on almost every level, and it makes for an entertaining but somewhat-muted ride.

kfe 7.5

KUNG FU ELLIOT Review

What starts out as a Canadian version of American Movie, evolves into something much more than what directors Jaret Belliveau and Matthew Bauckman probably thought when setting out to create the documentary Elliot.  This surreal and awkwardly funny film profiles Elliot “White Lightning” Scott, as he attempts to become Canada’s first martial arts action star with his film Blood Fist.

Sabbatical 7.5

SABBATICAL Review

One might assume that a film revolving around a middle-aged man returning to his hometown in order to care for his ailing mother, recovering from a recent stroke, to be an emotionally-charged affair; complete with numerous breakdowns, tear-stained faces bursting with fear and uncertainty or passionate eruptions brought on by the overwhelming frustrations of the relentless responsibilities characteristic of care-taking. Writer/director Brandon Colvin, however, depicts that narrative in a much different style in his sophomore effort, Sabbatical, opting instead to reduce the emotional volume to near silent levels as the characters attempt to suppress confronting their feelings in a constant struggle to keep the ever-mounting emotions deep down inside.

Wyrmwood-630 6.5

WYRMWOOD: ROAD OF THE DEAD

These days the zombie movie has thoroughly worn out its welcome, with most new entries in the sub-genre bringing very little new to the table. With that sentiment, I was apprehensive about going into Kiah Roache-Turner’s Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead, thinking that it looked like a shameless attempt at merging a zombie flick with Mad Max. Indeed that is the case, but it’s executed in such a fun and ridiculously over-the-top manner, it was impossible for me to not be loving every minute of this Aussie horror-comedy.