Dolemite is My Name

I love underdog stories, whether it's a sports story or in this case, a entertainer past his prime and who really has no shot of making it in the showbiz world. This is the true story of Rudy Ray Moore, played by the great Eddie Murphy. Dolemite is My Name is kind of like the Black 1970s version of Ed Wood or The Disaster Artist. Rudy is a man who's hell bent on making something of his life after his farmer father told him he would amount to nothing. The story begins with a middle aged, slightly overweight Rudy, working in a record store with a failed singing and comedy career already behind him. But Rudy is tenacious, the belittling words of his father linger in his head; he presses on. He creates the character of Dolemite, a crude, rude, rapping pimp persona with a catch phrase, "Dolemite is my name and fucking up motherfuckers is my game." This line is delivered (multiple times) by Murphy with a profane panache that plastered a big smile onto my face. Murphy is great in this role.
So Rudy begins to have some mild success with his Dolemite character on vinyl records - a large segment of the black intercity crowd loves Dolemite. But when Rudy goes and watches the film, The Front Page, a white comedy for white audiences, he realizes that to be a true star, he needs to make a movie. Rudy goes all in to make a B- version of Shaft with very little in terms of experienced talent or budget. I had a hell of a good time watching it all go down. Catch this bad motherfucker on Netflix.

Younger

Are you looking for a new light, funny, smart series you can binge? If so, look no further, Younger is the show for you. What's it all about? It about Liza Miller (Sutton Foster) a forty-something year old woman who is going through a divorce and needs to find her way back into the workforce. She used to be an editor before motherhood. When she applies for a job, she is told she is too old. Liza Miller looks young for age - still gets asked for ID. So she decides to lie, pretend she is 26, dresses really young, and boom, she lands a job as and assistant in a publishing house, Empirical Press.
This is a very likable show with a very likable cast. I was very skeptical going in, as it was a recommendation for my wife from a friend and I thought, oh god, not a chick-flick series; which it kinda is. It also stars Hilary Duff - large eye roll from me. My prejudices are coming out. Duff is great in the show as is the entire cast. The writing is smart enough and the ideas are fresh from show to show. I found myself surprised over and over again about just how good Younger really is.
And here is a little bonus for you, the fashion of the show is something to behold. The clothes! OMG I don't think I saw a single outfit worn more than once by any character. Nobody could afford the clothes in this show, but who cares? Pay close attention to Liza's boss, Diana Trout (played wonderfully by Miriam Shor). This woman has an astounding collection of necklaces, some of which are ridiculous, while others are stunningly beautiful.
Shows run about 22 minutes an episode and there are 12 episodes per season. There are 6 seasons and it's has been renewed for a 7th.
Slide into this DM by catching it on Amazon Prime.

Midsommar

The movie Hereditary was one of my favourite films last year. I actually let out an audible gasp while watching it. I didn't and still don't understand the Exorcist cult-like ending - it was bananas. But I loved every minute of it. So when I heard Ari Aster had a new film coming out, well I was giddy.

Midsommar is off the hook bananas. OMG did I love this movie. It's like if The Wicker Man had a Rosemary's Baby with The Holy Mountain. What's it all about? Good grief, where do I start?!

The simplest explanation, it's about a bunch of university kids who go spend their summer at a Swedish hippie farm for their summer festival. But not all is as it seems (of course) and the weird factor just keeps ramping up and up. I think in this day and age, it takes courage to go this weird. It's also about Dani (played by Florence Pugh) who has lost her parents and has a clingy relationship with her boyfriend Christian. There is a lot going on in Dani's post traumatized head and it's compounded with everything that's going on the Swedish Kool-Aid Acid Farm. Take a trip to Sweden and catch this one on streaming services or in a rep cinema near you.  

Us

It's October, so let's get into some horror movies. Let's begin with something that came out earlier in the year, Us. Us is the second horror film from comedic star, Jordan Peele. Critics gushed over his first film, Get Out. I liked it, didn't love it. Peele seems to have embraced the horror genre with loving arms, so much so that he has rebooted The Twilight Zone. So I went into Us with somewhat midgrade expectations; horror is hard to do well. I was delighted to find a very creepy monster knocking on my cinema's door.

What's it all about? It's about the childhood fears of getting lost and it's about adult fears and guilt of losing a child. It's also about the innate existential fear of being replaced - somebody could take my job; my partner could leave me and get a better me; my kids could have a better stepfather than their real dad; our very existence will one day be gone and we will be replaced.

It's about the Wilson family, Gabe and Adelaide (played with great intensity by Lupita Nyong'o) and their two kids. One night a strange family comes knocking on the Wilsons's door. It's their doppelgangers dressed in red outfits and wearing ornate racing gloves - it's scary shit.

Peele is a comedian and he has sprinkled humour throughout his new monster movie of the self. Elisabeth Moss calling for the police is particularly amusing. This is all I want to tell you - go watch it with the lights out.

You couldn't do much better than Us, to begin your Halloween horror movie season. Catch it on streaming services. 

Between Two Ferns: The Movie

Comedy is tough. It takes a lot for me to laugh out loud at a film. Between Two Ferns: The Movie made me laugh out loud, multiple times.
There is no reason for this film to exist other than it acts as a way to string a bunch of episodes of Between Two Ferns together (it's very self aware and we know they know).
If you are not familiar with the comedic genius of Zach Galifianakis, well it's time to get to know him. He plays that awkward guy with beard in The Hangover movie series. He has alone been in It's Kind of a Funny Story and Due Date - if you haven't seen these, they are worth your time. If you have never watched an episode of Between Two Ferns, watch this one with Brady Pitts:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnF-zTrHvGs

Galifianakis deadpan insults his star guests with the most cutting and rude questions imaginable and they all sit there and take it. It's extremely funny and for some reason it doesn't get old, at least not in this movie. Catch it on Netflix. 

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Nostalgia - it's the one word I would use to describe Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. As I write this, Tarantino is fifty six years old and I just turned forty nine. A seven year gap. But I'm old enough to remember old TV shows like Bonanza, Adam West's Batman, and have spent a good portion of my life watching the films of the 1960s; Steve McQueen, Bruce Lee, and the spaghetti Westerns of Clint Eastwood to name a few. Tarantino is a film geek; I say this with great affection because so am I. He has packed so much of the zeitgeist of the late 1960s Hollywood into his new movie, it oozes with polyester, sunglasses, and cigarettes. This is a homage to the stars and the films of that area. It's also the first film where Tarantino has shown some real depth of character with Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio). What's it all about? It's about Rick Dalton and his stunt double Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt) who chauffeurs Dalton around. Dalton is a former TV Western star trying to make it in feature films but only manages to land roles as the bad guy. He has a drinking problem and not a lot of prospects. Oh, and he lives next door to Sharon Tate and Roman Polanski. I know what Charles Manson's family did, so when we reach the climax of the film, well Tarantino gives us his fictional version of the Manson-Tate events like he did in Inglorious Bastards. Why? I'm left puzzled by the ending. Perhaps by subverting the truth, he is giving us the "Hollywood ending" we all want - we want the hero to kick ass and win. Maybe this is Quentin's point. The ending is the only thing about the film I didn't care for but there is sooo much to like, it's worth your time to check it out, especially if you are a film geek like me. Catch it in theatres now.

The Peanut Butter Falcon

This kind of small independent film is why I love going to the movies. This is a touching funny movie and if you are looking to spend your money at a major chain cinema, this is what to spend your money on. What's it all about? It's about a young man, Zak who has Down syndrome, played by Zack Gottsagen who really does has Down syndrome. Zak is living in an old age home because he has no family and there is no other facility to look after him. He dreams of becoming a wrestler like he has watched a thousand times on his VHS tapes and wants to get to the Salt Water Redneck wrestling school (the Salt Water Redneck is played by Thomas Haden Church and he is great). With the help of Zak's roommate (played by Bruce Dern) he escapes the old age home and runs into Tyler (Shia LaBeouf) who is also on the run from fishermen he has really pissed off. Eleanor (Dakota Johnson) is sent to find Zak. When she does, it's a lovely adventure. This little film charmed the pants off of me. Catch it now in theatres.

Parasite

This South Korean film took me by big surprise. I had a strong feeling just after the halfway point I would be writing about this one for the blog. I don't think I've seen anything like this since I watched another South Korean film entitled Oldboy (which was remade for American audiences, staring Josh Brolin). What's it all about? Well it's a about a poor family that poorly assembles pizza boxes in their home for money. They don't make pizzas, they just assemble the boxes. Their son Ki-woo gets a tutoring job for the daughter of a very wealthy family. From there he manages to get his sister a job as a fake art therapist for the rich couple's son. Pretty soon the whole family has weaseled their way into the wealthy home - our pizza box family manages to get the current driver and house maid fired and the pizza dad and mom take over these positions. It's a dark comedy that takes a strange twist when the rich family returns unexpectedly from a soggy camping trip. Boy oh boy is it bananas. It's funny, twisted, and rather sad. It kept my full attention. I need you to watch it so we can talk about it. It's coming to theaters soon. Catch it when it does.

Mindhunter

The second season of Netflix's Mindhunter is now out. If you haven't watched this already, it's truly binge worthy; but this not for the faint of heart. This is Silence of the Lambs stuff. If serial killers and the FBI profilers who track them sound like your bag, then you have found your next series. What's it all about it? This a fictional account of the birth of the Behavioral Science Unit of the FBI - fictional but it's all based on true events and real serial killers. It's fascinating stuff. The two main agents are Holden (played by Jonathan Groff) and Bill (Holt McCallany). Holden is young and naive but brilliant, whereas Bill is older, gruff, and smokes like a chimney. They have a kind of Laurel and Hardy chemistry. To understand serial killers, they interview serial killers. The first season Holden and Bill spend much with serial killer Edmund Kemper. The man who plays Kemper, I've heard, is spot on to the real thing; which makes watching this series both super fascinating and rather creepy. I binged the second season and its focus is on The Atlanta Child Murders. David Fincher is one of the driving forces behind this and David seems to have a thing for serial killers (Se7en, Zodiac). If you're a Fincher fan, this is must viewing. It's pretty dark stuff and if you have the stomach for it, catch it on Netflix.

The Boys

Here are my thoughts on superhero movies: they mostly suck. Even the good ones are just okay for me. There are a few exceptions: I loved Christopher Nolan's Batman Trilogy. I enjoyed Ant-Man and the first Iron Man, but the Marvel Universe and the DC Universe have worn me down. I don't derive much joy out of them. So for me to highly recommend a superhero series, it has to be pretty darn good. If you haven't heard of and already binge-watched The Boys, this is your next series.
What's it about? Imagine if superheroes were real and living in America, and they were corporate - action figures, their faces on cereal boxes, etc. The Boys is a dark parody of not only superheroes, but of corporate America and the Christian right. This isn't for kids. It's graphic, violent, and profane. It's also smart, funny, and rather brilliant. It stars Jack Quaid (Meg Ryan and Dennis Quaid's kid), and has smaller roles by Elisabeth Shue and Simon Pegg as the big names attached. Catch it on Amazon Prime.

Crawl

Jaws is one of my favorite films of all time. I must have seen it close to twenty times (I know, ridiculous but true). There have been a lot of rip-offs over the years, some of which I have enjoyed (Piranha 3D, Lake Placid, Open Water) and some I have not (The Meg, Jaws: The Revenge). Love them or hate them, none of them are Jaws, which to me is the gold standard of water monster movies. I'm a sucker for these types of films; Jurassic Park, Alien, The Thing (remake), Halloween. The premise is simple, some monster comes along and starts killing people and people run like hell to get away. Well done, it's suspenseful riveting stuff - the celluloid equivalent to a rollercoaster. Crawl, thankfully, is well done. OMG did I have fun with this one. I was bitten from the opening credits. The open shots are of Haley (Kaya Scodelario) swimming in an Olympic pool and coming in second place in her racing heat. You know she just needs the right motivation to swim faster. How about a giant alligator?

Haley travels to South Florida to find her missing father (Barry Pepper) in a  Category 5 hurricane. She finds him trapped, injured, in the basement of her childhood home with a big ass hungry alligator, the hurricane rain water rising and no hope of getting out. Enough said. Crawl is summer popcorn fun and if you watch it in that spirit, it will grab you and pull you deep under. Enjoy. Catch it at a discount cinema near you.

The Art of Self-Defense

I wasn't going to write about this one but it stuck with me long after it was over and that's usually a good sign. I have known multiple friends over the years who have participated in various martial arts classes, Karate, Jiu Jitsu, etc., and I even have a few who teach them. I put my kids in Jiu Jitsu. They bowed out at a certain point. There is a whole culture of discipline, rituals (no shoes on the mat!), and dress that goes with martial arts clubs and all of it gets relentlessly mocked in "The Art of Self-Defense." Jesse Eisenberg plays Casey, an introverted nerd accountant who gets badly beat up by a mysterious motorcycle gang. Post hospital recovery, he stumbles across a Karate martial arts Dojo. There he enrolls in classes. His instructor, Sensei, is everything Casey wants to be; a man's man. Sensei tells Casey he shouldn't be learning the French language because the French always surrender, he should be learning a language like Russian or German. He tells Casey he should also be listening to metal, as in the musical genre, metal. It's ridiculous and hilarious and if you are looking for a goofy dark comedy that punches like a kick, The Art of Self-Defense is your movie. Catch it at a rep cinema near you.

Skin

So on the same lines as American History X and The Believer, we have yet another white supremacist story (based on a true story) with another incredible lead performance; this time it's Jamie Bell in Skin. Do we need another one of these? I would argue more than ever. I heard an interesting theory about extremist movements. They are born from, above all else, poverty. Whether it be Middle Eastern jihadists or good old USA white nationalists, the underlining similarity is angry young men (mostly men) who are poor and have nothing to lose. You take them in, feed them, and explain to them, the guy over there, the one with the different skin colour, well he's your problem - this is why you don't have any food, because he stole your job, etc. We get a glimpse of this. However the main focus of the film is about Bryon leaving his Nazi brethren behind with the help of black activist, Daryle Lamont Jenkins (played by Mike Colter) so Bryon can be with his new wife and kids. He cuts a deal with Daryle and in exchange, goes through an extremely painful and lengthy tattoo removal process to clean his skin from the hate that covers much of his face and body. It's a violent and dark film but an important and timely one. Bell is excellent in it. Catch it at a theatre near you.

The Dead Don't Die

Why does the world need another zombie film? The answer is, it doesn't. Or at least it doesn't need any traditional contemporary zombie films; AMC's The Walking Dead has destroyed my love of zombies - well almost. Since George A. Romero's The Night of the Living Dead, zombie has equaled social commentary about society's pressing issues - whether it be race relations in The Night of the Living Dead or consumerism in Dawn of the Dead - the zombie motif is usually a fun way to talk about all different aspects of humanity's cruelty and ignorance which we inflict upon one other and the Earth.
Jim Jarmusch isn't traditional and we could certainly use a conversation about climate change. Hence, The Dead Don't Die is the zombie film we need right now. In this self referential, winking at the camera world, polar fracking has put the Earth off its axis and off its rotation and the result is the dead have risen.It stars Bill Murray, Adam Driver, and Chloë Sevigny, plus there are cameos by Tom Waits, Rosie Perez, Carol Kane, Iggy Pop, Selena Gomez, Tilda Swinton, and Steve Buscemi to name a bunch. This is a fromage-homage to Romero and the entire horror geek genre - it's funny. It's not Jim's best film, but if you are looking for something goofy light, I had a lot of fun with it.
Catch it at rep theatre near you.

Paterson (2016)

I'm going to write about Jim Jarmusch's new film, The Dead Don't Die, but before I do, I must talk about Paterson. I mentioned to a friend I was going to go see, The Dead Don't Die and she told me she was a big Jim Jarmusch fan. So I asked her, what did you think of Paterson? She hadn't even heard of it. How big a fan could she be, right? I don't blame her. She has two kids and a busy life. I miss stuff all the time from writers, directors, and musicians, which I consider myself to be a big-fan of. But it got me thinking, if she missed it, then likely many others did too.
So, if you haven't seen Jim Jarmusch's Paterson, starring Adam Driver and Golshifteh Farahani, you really owe it to yourself to do so.
Jim is an arty director. He makes arty movies. They might not be everyone's cup of tea, but they are mine. Paterson could be his best movie. It's certainly my favourite film he has every made. What's it about? It's about a bus driver who writes poetry (the poetry comes from real writer Ron Padgett). He lives with his wife, who wants to open a cupcake business. Paterson goes to work every day and eats the same thing for breakfast. He occasionally stops for a beer after work at the local watering hole and writes poems in his journal. Um, yeah, that's about it. It's slow and there are no bad guys or explosions. It's a thoughtful meditation on beauty and the beauty of words. It's about love and poetry. I adored this movie. I have nothing more to say. Go watch it.
Catch it on streaming services.

Jellyfish

My daughter came in and took one look at what I was watching and asked, "Is this like The Florida Project?" She is very astute, my daughter. I hadn't thought about it, but she was pretty much bang on. The Florida Project, American Honey, and We the Animals are a kind of modern trilogy (not made by the same people) of impoverished America. In all three of these films, children are raising themselves or each other. They are all dark, sad movies with some elements of joy along the way. We are living in dark times where the economic divide between rich and poor is atmospheres apart, so it's no wonder we are getting these timely movies now.
Across the pond, England is making their own versions of similar ilk. I, Daniel Blake brought me to tears. If you have time, watch it.
Jellyfish is about a young high school student, Sarah, who is looking after her two siblings and her manic depressive mother. She has an after school job at an arcade cleaning the machines and she makes a little extra on the side by giving handjobs to old patrons in the alley. Yeah, it's dark. We also follow her journey at school as she works on becoming a stand-up comedian for her drama class.
Sarah is played by Liv Hill and this kid is something to behold. Liv Hill is the main reason you should watch Jellyfish, besides from being a sad, moving, and poignant film. She is so good in this she steals every scene. She is an actor to watch.
I would like to mention director James Gardner. He seems to come from the Steve McQueen (English director not the American actor) school of holding the shot long, let the audience fully take time to think about what's going on; it really worked well.
So, if you want to see a future star, catch Liv Hill in Jellyfish on streaming services or in rep theatres near you.

The Grizzlies

You could argue that this is just another white-man saviour movie and in some sense you wouldn't be wrong. What is The Grizzlies all about? You could say it's about a privileged white guy who goes up North to the Arctic and teaches down and out Indigenous kids about Lacrosse. That would be an oversimplification. It's also an unflinching look at Indigenous life in Nunavut. The film addresses teen suicide, poverty, and the affects of the residential school system have had on generations of Canada's Indigenous people. It's also a fantastic underdog sports story. And it based on true events.

I find often that Canadian films look terrible. I can't explain it, they just have a horrible CBC look to them - like they were cheaply made. The Grizzlies isn't like that at all. It's really good, well acted, and the dialogue, for the most part, sounds authentic. If you see one Canadian film this year, make sure it's The Grizzlies. This snowy tale warmed my heart.
In Ottawa, catch it at Imagine Cinemas Ottawa. Catch it at a rep cinema near you.

Easy

"Easy" is a Netflix show. There are three seasons, about eight episodes each, and they run about 30-40 minutes long. Easy to watch. What's it all about? I'm going to say it's about relationships. Couple relationships. Men and women; women and women. It's also about sibling relationships and parent-child relationships. Even neighborly relationships. It's more drama than comedy and every episode is different, although over the course of three seasons we get to see some of the same characters reappear. Sometimes one character will make a brief appearance in another episode. For the most part though, they are stand alone episodes. The only thing they all share is they are set in the city of Chicago.

Why did I love it so much? I found it fascinating. The dialogue was some of most authentic dialogue I have every heard in any film or TV show. I'm not sure if the actors went ad lib, but everyone in the show was so believable. Some of these episodes were about characters that are never given a voice in regular movies or film. There is an episode in season three entitled "Number One Seller" about a black man with a neck tattoo selling glow sticks and plastic swords to families in the park - I loved it. There are some many characters to love in "Easy" - you will see yourself or someone you know in all of them.

Relationships are hard, so maybe that's the joke of the title, Easy. Catch it all on Netflix. 

Apollo 11

I watched "First Man" last year and loved it. It made my top ten list of the best films of 2018. So do we need another film about the Apollo 11 mission to the moon? The surprising answer is: Absolutely yes! In fact you can skip "First Man" if you haven't seen it already and watch CNN's documentary "Apollo 11" which is comprised of entirely real archival footage from the 1969 trip to the moon. There is no modern voice over. All the narration comes from the commentators and reporters of the time. There may be some music added, but that's about it. Todd Douglas Miller who directed and edited this movie must be given high praise for being able to cobble together a riveting tale out of all this old footage. For me, to see how many people were actually involved on the ground was even more impressive than its docudrama counterpart had portrayed it. To see this movie is to marvel at how brilliant humanity can be when we work together. This is something to behold. Fly away with this one on streaming services or catch it at your local cinema.

If you are in Ottawa, catch it at the Bytowne now: https://www.bytowne.ca/movie/apollo-11

 

Paddleton

Maybe I'm getting old and soft, but there were tears. I've always liked Ray Romano. He played a character on the TV show "Parenthood" who had Aspergers ("Parenthood" was a fantastic show by the way). Ray's character, Andy, in "Paddleton" also seems to be a little on the spectrum. What's it all about? Well it's about two grown men, Andy and Michael who live in the same Californian apartment building who spend a lot of time together drinking beer, watching Kung Fu movies, and playing board games. They have made their own tennis game, "Paddleton" which they play against the back of an abandoned Drive-In movie screen. They aren't gay, they are just good friends who spend a lot of time together. Mark Duplass's character, Michael gets diagnosed with terminal cancer. They go on a road trip to get his die-with-dignity euthanasia suicide pills. Yes it sounds grim. It's also tender and slow, and at times, quite funny. I don't know if this will my top ten by the end of 2019 but I wanted to share it with you because it's a beautiful little film that will get lost and forgotten, like an old Kung Fu movie, unless somebody watches it. You might be a little sad when it's over.

Catch it on Netflix.

Touch Me Not

"Touch Me Not" - is a film by Adina Pintilie. I have never seen anything quite like it. It will stay with you long after it’s over and it will push even the most open-minded person to place that he or she might not be comfortable going. "Touch Me Not" is not a mainstream movie; this is as art-house as art-house gets. What’s it about? I don’t even know where to start. It supposed to feel and look like a documentary, but it’s fiction. It revolves around a middle-aged woman who seems to have serious intimacy issues – she doesn’t like to be touched, yet seems to crave it. There is a whole fictionalized touch therapy class involving real-life physically challenged individuals; this whole part reminded me of George Lucas’s "THX 1138" and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest." The film raises questions about our personal relationships with our own body and the bodies of others. "Touch Me Not" is also about voyeurism, sexuality, power relations, kink, and the blurring of truth. There is so much going on here that everyone who watches might end up taking away a bunch of completely different things.

There is something lovely about the pacing of this film – it’s extremely slow, which makes it so personal and intimate. I don’t know how much was improvised and how much was scripted, but does it really matter? "Touch Me Not" is taboo breaking and pushing boundaries, but it does so in such a beautiful sensitive way, that we can face what we would normally find most shocking.
Let it touch you on streaming services or at your local art house movie theatre.

Dragged Across Concrete

If "Pulp Fiction" and "Heat" were to have a baby, it would be "Dragged Across Concrete." OMG did I love this film. I love bank heist pictures and I like dark- this is both. It's super violent and has a sick sense of humour.

Before I watched this film on a whim, I had no idea who S. Craig Zahler was. He is the writer and director of this masterpiece of a movie. He is also the co-writer of "Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich" (which was a guilty pleasure of mine from last year) and the writer and director of "Bone Tomahawk" - a violent Western staring Kurt Russell I very much enjoyed.
Mel Gibson is in the third act of his career and it's looking impressive - Blood Father, The Professor and the Madman, and Dragged Across Concrete.
With a crazy run time of 2 hours and 39 minutes, Dragged Across Concrete is one of the best action/thriller pictures of 2019 and you should watch it right now.

Leaving Neverland

I can no longer watch Bill Cosby. I grew up watching Fat Albert and The Cosby Show. I loved them. I shared one season of The Cosby Show with my daughter. I wanted her to watch all of it. Then it came out: Bill Cosby drugged and raped women. He is now sitting in jail. I can no longer watch Bill Cosby.
What is far more difficult for me is Michael Jackson. I was never a huge Jackson fan growing up, however he was the biggest pop star of my generation. Songs like Thriller are ingrained in the fabric of our Western culture. Thriller has been used in movies I like and it's a staple of every Halloween party soundtrack. I can hear it in my head and it's catchy. Michael Jackson sexually molested children for decades. I can no longer listen to Michael Jackson in the same way. Every song now has this baggage.
HBO's two part, four hour documentary, Leaving Neverland, focuses on Jackson's abuse of two boys, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who are now adults. Questions like: How could the parents allow this to happen? Why didn't anyone say anything? Are somewhat answered, at least for me. I found it to be riveting, shocking, and disturbing. I was glued to it. Catch it on HBO.

Isle of Dogs

The first Wes Anderson film I saw was Rushmore; I loved it. Then came The Royal Tenenbaums, which I thought was weird and quirky, but lacked emotional depth; it was just okay. And it wasn't all that funny. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou was awful. I can't remember if I made it to the end; painful. Moonrise Kingdom I turned off after the first twenty minutes. What I had once found to be charming about Wes Anderson was now annoying. I thought The Grand Budapest Hotel was Wes's best outing in a while. So it was with great reluctance and pessimism I went into my viewing of Isle of Dogs - I didn't want to like it. It turns out I loved it. Wes Anderson's weird and quirky ways completely work in animation. Maybe all of his films would be better if they were animated.
I had so much fun watching this goofy and ridiculous film - maybe because I'm a dog owner. Bryan Cranston as Chief was wonderful; his performance had bite - pun intended. If you are looking for something light and fun, adopt this dog. Catch it on streaming services.

Shoplifters

This Oscar nominated Japanese film for Best Foreign Language Film is simply lovely. Shoplifters is why I go to the movies - a perspective that gives us insight and empathy into our fellow human beings. It's about a poor Japanese family who steal just to get by. It opens with what we believe are a farther-son duo ripping off food from a grocery store. On their way home they pick up a little four year girl who is outside on her balcony shivering, hungry; her parents can be heard inside screaming that neither of them wanted her. They give her food and ask if she wants to come with them. She is happy to go. They bring her to their tiny home where Grandma, Mom, Dad, older sister, and the son (who sleeps in a closet) live. Several days go by and the young girl isn't reported missing. So they keep her and make her part of their family. It turns out the son isn't really their son either, he was found in a car while 'Dad' was stealing something.
Shoplifters brings into focus what it is to be a family, what it means to be a mother and a father, and it puts morality out in the yard to play. Nothing in this film is heavy handed and there are no sharp tales or lessons to be had. It will give you something to reflect about your own notions of right and wrong are and what is 'family.'
Shoplifters stole my heart. Catch it at a rep cinema near you or at an online streaming service soon.

Let's get high! Touching the Void, Valley Uprising, Free Solo

Do you want to get high? Then try these three documentaries about climbing.

Touching the Void (2003) After emerging from the Bytowne Cinema in 2003 I was in a daze. I really needed to talk to someone about this film. It had a major impact on me.

Touching the Void is the true story of Joe Simpson and Simon Yates who in the mid 80s were the first to reach the top of Siula Grande (a Peruvian mountain). Joe breaks his leg on the descent and Simon must lower him bit by bit down the mountain. A snow storm blows in and Joe slips off a ledge and is dangling on the side of the mountain unable to pull himself up. Simon is braced in the snow on the side the mountain, holding his friend by a rope unable to pull him up. They can't hear each other because of the storm. They are both going to freeze to death. Simon cuts the rope.

The film is narrated by the men themselves and the whole event is re-enacted with actors. So you know they both live. It doesn't make any of it less riveting. I was glued to my seat. Catch it on DVD or Amazon streaming. 

Valley Uprising is a fascinating history of rock climbing in Yosemite Park. It takes us from the 1950s to 2014. It's a history lesson and an exploration of the hippie geek climbing culture that existed among those illegally living in the park whose focus revolved (and continues to revolve) around climbing two major rock faces, Half Dome and El Captain. These are massive rock walls and the early climbers spent years trying to get to the top. Like surfing culture, climbing culture is for a select set of odd and interesting characters. One climber basically lived off the condiments of the concession stand for years while evading park rangers - this is crazy dedication to climbing. By the end of this documentary, climbing has been taken to the ultimate level - free climbing: no ropes, no clips, nothing. We meet a young climber, Alex Honnold, who successfully free climbs Half Dome - a truly amazing death defying feat. Catch it on Netflix.


Free Solo Remember Alex Honnold I just told you about, well this young man is back and after studying El Captain for a decade (and when I mean study, I mean each and every foot hold and crack written down in a notebook and memorized, each position, and where to go next). To understand the magnitude of what Alex is undertaking you should really watch Valley Uprising first - it isn't essential viewing, but it really gives you a dizzying perspective. My fourteen year old daughter (who is currently binge watching Friends) watched glued with me. In other words, this is captivating viewing for almost anyone.
This documentary is nominated for an Oscar. It was made knowing that Alex, could at any time, fall to his death and that would be that. His possible death is openly discussed by everyone. If he were to die, he would be following in the footsteps of hundreds of climbers before him. And now Alex has a girlfriend and for the first time in his life seems to be getting injured when she is around.
There are certain sections of El Cap (as the climbers call it) that are super difficult to climb - like the Boulder Problem. As I watched this, even knowing that Alex doesn't die, my palms became moist. It's completely bananas and I couldn't look away. Catch it at your favourite rep cinema or on streaming services soon.
   

Can You Ever Forgive Me?

I'm a sucker for films about writers, especially ones who are struggling to make it - go figure. Melissa McCarthy plays Lee Israel, a writer we meet after she has penned two biographies. She gets fired from her current day job for drinking and her foul mouth. She is behind in her rent and she has a sick cat and can't pay her tab at the vet. After ranting to her literary agent (played by Jane Curtin) about Tom Clancy getting a three million dollar advance - it's funny stuff - her agent tells Israel she can't get her a ten dollar advance and needs to clean up her act. As Israel is doing research in a library she finds some old letters by someone famous in a book. She tacks on a funny PS of her own to one of the letters and then takes the letter into a used book store to sell. The store owner tells her that the PS really makes it. Thus Israel begins her criminal career of forging letters by people like Noel Coward and Dorothy Parker and selling them for a lot of money. This is based on a true story.
Melissa McCarthy won my heart for her performance in Bridesmaids (if you haven't seen it, it's really funny). McCarthy, like the late great Robin Williams, can go over-the-top and off the rails quickly. Sometimes it works, sometimes it's too much. McCarthy was nominated for the Golden Globe and for an Oscar for her subdued work in this film. Williams won an Oscar when he wasn't over-the-top; maybe McCarthy will win too. And her co-star Richard E. Grant who was also nominated for both the Golden Globe and the Oscar is fabulous. His performance reminded me of his performance in one of my favourite films, Withnail & I. Catch Can You Ever Forgive Me at your local rep cinema or on streaming services soon.

At Eternity's Gate

I thought to myself, "Oh God, please, not another film about Vincent Van Gogh's life." After watching Loving Vincent (2017)  - well I didn't even watch the whole thing; I got about halfway and turned it off and never went back - I felt we didn't need more Vincent. Loving Vincent was a bore despite the crazy amount of effort that went into making it.

At Eternity's Gate would mark my fourth feature film into the life of Vincent Van Gogh (plus one Doctor Who episode where the good Doctor visits the troubled artist and brings him to present day to show him what a success he becomes - it's actually quite a touching episode).
I didn't want to watch At Eternity's Gate but I'm such a film awards whore and Willem Dafoe was nominated for the Golden Globe and the Oscar, so I thought, fine, let's get this over with.

When Dafoe flops from a few lines of French into purely English at the beginning of the film, well I was certain my disdain would be justified. I was entirely wrong. In fact this might be the only thing to criticize about it, that everyone, for the most part, speaks English. If you put this aside, it's a beautiful, thoughtful, and meditative film. I was completely drawn in and time flew by. There are new revelations about Van Gogh which surprised me. And Dafoe! He is really good and deserves his nominations. At Eternity's Gate was a delightful surprise.

Catch it now on Amazon, iTunes, OR

your local video store February 12th, 2019.

From the Archives - The Silent Partner (1978)

I would like to introduce something I call, "From the Archives"; these are films that I absolutely love and if you haven't seen them, then you really should.

So for my first film I'm going with something you might never have heard of, The Silent Partner (1978). This is a Canadian film that was shot in Toronto's Eaton Centre starting Elliott Gould, Christopher Plummer and Susannah York, featuring a cameo by the late, great (and in this film, very young) John Candy. Christopher Plummer plays the bad guy, and he comes across as truly evil - he is fantastic.

This is the first film I remember seeing Elliott Gould in and made a big impression upon me.

The Silent Partner is a bank heist picture. I'm a sucker for a good heist picture. I also love prison escape films. Maybe I just love cheering for the bad guys.

The biggest star of this movie though is Curtis Hanson's screenplay. Now if you don't know Curtis Hanson, (he passed away in 2016) he is the fellow who directed L.A. Confidential, Wonder Boys, and 8 Mile to name a few. The story and the dialogue are fast and at times, funny as hell. It's an extremely clever game of cat and mouse. The Silent Partner has brought me so much joy that I have watched it a least a dozen times over the years.

Where you can watch it: https://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-silent-partner/1031949/where-to-watch/

Beautiful Boy

When I grew up I had a friend who introduced me to all kinds of things, including smoking, Jimi Hendrix, hashish, Peter Gabriel's back catalog, LSD, Nirvana (the band, before many had heard of them), Charles Bukowski, The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe, Southern Comfort, The Doors, and the list goes on and on. He was charming, super smart, and an extremely talented writer. He had a gift for language. He also had a thing for drugs. He like drugs and romanticized them. And my friend was fearless - needles didn't bother him. He liked them. He became a heroin addict. He almost died. Then he got better, got clean. Then cancer killed him at 29.

So when I watched Timothée Chalamet give his stunning performance as Nic Sheff, an arty kid with a gift for language and a taste for the dark side, I couldn't help but think of my friend. I know that guy; that guy is real, that guy is my friend.

I found my eyes wet more than once in the first hour of the film because of Steve Carell. He is also fantastic in this film. He plays David Sheff, Nic's dad. I'm a father with two kids and I know that I would do pretty much anything to help them. So when David is speaking with a counsellor about his son with such urgency and earnest, well it brought me to tears. Beautiful Boy isn't just the story of David and Nic, it's about how drug abuse affects an entire family; we get a good look at David's mother, step mother, and his siblings. It's unflinching, raw, and very human. It's also a beautifully shot film. It's seriously nice to look at despite the tough subject matter. It is one of the best films of 2018 and it would have made my list had I seen it earlier. Catch it when you have a chance.

Unbreakable, Split, Glass

Let's talk about M. Night Shyamalan for a minute. I don't know of a director who has received more unwarranted insults, bad mouthing, and criticism than M. Night Shyamalan has. It's some sort of weird obsession film reviewers have to criticize his entire backlog at every opportunity. I can't explain it. Whenever I hear that M. Night is coming out with a new film, I'm excited in the same way when I hear names like Darren Aronofsky‎, Steve McQueen, Christopher Nolan or Ana Lily Amirpour are releasing a new film - I can't bloody wait to see it! For me, Shyamalan is much like De Palma, a student of Hitchcock, who is the master of suspense. M. Night knows where to put the camera, he knows how to create tension. This doesn't mean I have loved everything he has done. There have been slips. But why go on and on about them? I didn't like Nolan's Dunkirk, but when Nolan comes out with a new film, I'll be there in a heartbeat. Same goes for M. Night Shyamalan. He is a director I want to watch.

Reviewers piss all over M. Night's twist endings too. Can't the same mockery be made about Christopher Nolan's films - think Memento, The Prestige, Inception, and Interstellar, they all end with a twist. But nobody is speaking disparagingly about Nolan, not like they do about Shyamalan. I believe M. Night Shyamalan has been unfairly treated and he deserves your time as a movie goer. You should be watching his films, because most of the time, they are good (The Happening, The Visit) and some of them are great (The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Split).

So, let's get to M. Night Shyamalan's comic book masterpiece of Unbreakable, Split, and Glass(BTW, Nolan has one of these too and Batman Begins is the weakest of the three in my opinion, but it might be the third, and of course the second is his masterpiece).

1.Unbreakable

Shyamalan's second Hollywood film, is just as good as his first; that being The Sixth Sense. I think there is an argument to be made that Unbreakable might even be better because you can watch Unbreakable multiple times, whereas The Sixth Sense is a special kind of one trick pony (although I recently re-watched it with my kids and after such a long time between viewings, I loved it almost as much). Don't listen to anyone bad mouthing Unbreakable, just watch it if you haven't already. And if you haven't seen it in a while, time to see it again, because it holds up over time.

2. Split

Split is the Godfather II of the series. I absolutely loved it from the opening shot right to the end. In fact I have re-watched the opening five minutes of this film several times. It's the open shot of Anya Taylor-Joy sitting alone in a crowded restaurant, muted, and different; we all know something awful is about to happen. It's riveting stuff.
This is James McAvoy's film. He plays a man with 23 personalities and a 24th is about to reveal itself. James McAvoy was so good I thought he was deserving of an Oscar nomination - he didn't get it.
Split had me on the edge of my seat the entire movie and it's one of my favourite films of 2016. "I have red socks." 

3. Glass

It's hard to stick the landing. The Godfather III, Back to the Future III, Return of the Jedi, Mad Max Beyond the Thunderdome, The Matrix Revolutions, to name a whole bunch of films that wobbled and fell trying to land the trilogy. All of these films had great starts. Great starts and in some cases, even better sequels (The Godfather II, The Empire Strikes Back, Split).
Glass is worth your time if only to see James McAvoy do it again (although it's not as much fun as the first time). What's really fun is M. Night's super hero fight sequences. This isn't Marvel stuff where nobody really gets hurt and it's just noise and explosions and you sit there bored to tears. When James McAvoy and Bruce Willis fight, it feels like a gritty bar fight, where someone might actually get seriously hurt. It's refreshing.
Glass may be the weakest of the three, but should you see it? Absolutely. Make sure to see Unbreakable and Split first.

Channel Zero

How does a knife-wielding-contortionist-clown-who-hides-under-your-back-deck sound to you?


When I was a kid, I would tape old episodes of The Twilight Zone on my VCR and watch them before I went to school, or at lunch, or right after school. Watching Rod Serling introduce us to the "dimension of imagination" was something I cherished. As a teenager I watched Tales From the Dark Side. This was a lower budget, cheesier, but maybe slightly creepier version of The Twilight Zone. I loved it too; maybe not as much, but there was not much else at the time - this was the 80s.
A few years back I discovered a show called Black Mirror. I thought I had found my show, something contemporary that gave me the nostalgia of The Twilight Zone and yet it was fresh and updated. Black Mirror isn't really that, it's much more. It's often a commentary on modern society, technology, and/or our use of social media. Black Mirror is a smart show that makes you think and makes you intentionally uncomfortable. But the problem for me is the ugly nihilism the show seems to have for its characters and sometimes even its viewers . I haven't watch a show yet where there is any real sense of redemption. It's just ugly. And that's fine. But after watching two shows with my wife, she said, "I don't like this show, I don't want to watch this." So now I watch Black Mirror alone.
Last year, flipping about my digital world, I came across an odd looking icon of what looked like a white skull and took a chance on a show called, Channel Zero. It had a nice Twilight Zone sounding name; Channel Zero. I'll watch one and see. Oh man did I fall hard for this show. As I type this, the American SYFY network has now released four seasons of this series. Each one is a stand-alone season, much like American Horror Story. The latest one, The Dream Door, ranks up there as one of the best. Each season is six episodes and all episodes clock in around the 60 minute mark. The only big name actors are John Carroll Lynch from season two and Rutger Hauer from season three.
The only person I have met who has seen this show is my dental hygienist, Jennifer. I was so happy to talk to her about it. She loved it too.
Channel Zero taps into the same zeitgeist as The Twilight Zone - there is something compelling here, and slightly frightening. It's a fantastic and fantastical show and you need to watch it so I can talk to you about it.


Catch it on the SYFY network, Shudder, or Showcase On Demand. 

Love

So the first TV show I would like to recommend to you is Love, which is a Netflix show and one of the co-creaters is Judd Apatow. Now if you don't know Mr. Apatow's work, he is the man who wrote and directed such comedy treats as, Knocked Up, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and This Is 40.This Is 40 has become one of my favourite films in the past decade. The funny-honesty that pervades, This Is 40 also pervades throughout the short and sweet 3 seasons of Love.
The key players are Gus (Paul Rust) and Mickey (Gillian Jacobs) and this is their love story. It's set in contemporary L.A. Gus is a major geek. In his spare time he hangs out with his friends and they compose movie theme songs for movies that don't have theme songs. It's geeky funny stuff. Mickey on the other hand is a jaded unhappy girl with an alcohol and drug problem. An unlikely pair as there could be.
The show is sweet, funny, and it's often uncomfortably honest; in a good way. The episodes are short, running around the 30 minute mark. So if you are looking something short and light, check out this series that you may never have heard about. Catch it on Netflix.

Private Life

Okay, the first movie in 2019 I want to recommend is, Private Life starting Paul Giamatti and Kathryn Hahn. It’s written and directed by Tamara Jenkins, who brought us The Savages. I loved The Savages (Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman star) which is about a brother-sister relationship and putting their father into an old age home. Linney played a playwright and Hoffman a writer. It seems that Tamara Jenkins likes writers and playwrights. In Private Life, Giamatti is the playwright and Hahn is the writer, not brother-sister, but a husband and wife who are trying to get pregnant, in their late forties.

As someone who spent close to three years travelling down the fertility highway with my wife, and having written my own comedic book about it (The Cube People – shameless plug) I know the material well and Private Life is authentic, not only in its mechanics, but the in how the characters behave, feel, and react. Like, The Savages, Tamara Jenkins has written real people with candid dialogue. And it’s funny. Not roll-on-the-ground funny, but there is an honesty to the characters and what they say, and it will put a smile on your face. It's also heartbreakingly sad.

I love Paul Giamatti and Sideways is one of my all-time favourite films. He is as good in this film as any of his best work (Sideways, American Splendor, or Barney's Version).

Anyone who has been down the fertility highway will know this material, but even if you don’t, I think Private Life is worth the trip. Catch it on Netflix.

Top Films of 2018

Let’s first start with great films of 2017 that I didn’t see until 2018 that deserve mentioning.

All the Money in the World – Christopher Plummer and Charlie Plummer (no relation) are both fantastic in this film based on the true story about the Getty family. Riveting.

Columbus – One of the most aesthetically beautiful films I’ve ever seen. Every shot could be a photo to hang on your wall. Plus there is a great story here with great performances. This is one to check out for sure.

Molly’s Game – another film based on a true story about high stakes poker in New York. Loved it.

Landline – a quiet family dramady with Edie Falco and John Turturro. If you are looking for something light and off the beaten path.

Super Dark Times – coming of age film, kind of River’s Edge, kind of Mean Creek, and it’s dark.

OKAY, 2018 the Best films I’ve seen this year. The top ten in no real order.

1. Lean on Pete – Charlie Plummer (a name to watch) stars in a story about a boy and his horse. It’s heart wrenching stuff.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/lean_on_pete

2. White Boy Rick – based on a true story of a 14 year old kid turned FBI informant, growing up in 1980s Detroit poverty. Matthew McConaughey’s best performance since Mud/Dallas Buyers Club. It’s dark, sad, and one of the best films of the year. “We are lions.” It haunts me.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/white_boy_rick

3. American Animals – docudrama told by the players themselves, this fascinating film about bored white kids trying to pull off an art heist. I found it captivating.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/american_animals

4. Annihilation – Imagine John Carpenter’s The Thing, but set in Maine with an all-female cast. This is a smart movie that will leave you thinking.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/annihilation

5. Puzzle – A housewife learns she is really good at doing puzzles and she meets someone who is also really good at doing puzzles. It’s a drama. It’s really good. Watch it.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/puzzle_2018

6. Under the Silver Lake – Reminded me of The Player, Burn After Reading, to name a few. There is homage to Hitchcock, Film Noir, and films of the 30s, 40s, and 50s. It’s a stoner comedy with the backdrop of a mystery set in the Hollywood Hills. I had a lot of fun with this one. If you like old movies and own a twisted sense of humour, check it out.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/under_the_silver_lake

7. First Man – Neil Armstrong goes to the moon. I was completely pulled in. I felt like I was in the capsule with him. As good as The Right Stuff or Apollo 13.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/first_man

8. Hereditary – My favourite horror film of the year. It’s a bit bananas. My hand actually covered my mouth during one scene – I was like, “Oh my God! I can’t believe they did that.” They did.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hereditary

9. Revenge - #Metoo on steroids. This is what should happen when you rape a girl and leave her for dead (not that you should be doing that obviously). This is a film Tarantino would have proud to have made. It’s way over the top and bloody as all hell, and I absolutely loved it. (female director Coralie Fargeat)
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/revenge_2018

10. Mission Impossible: Fallout – I can’t believe this made my top 10, but it did. I fell out of love with the Mission Impossible franchise a few films back. This one is as good as any of the Bourne movies or as good as any of the great Bond films. It was non-stop action and I was always on the edge of my seat. Impressive. It’s hands-down the best action picture of the year.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/mission_impossible_fallout

The 2018 Honour Roll

All of these movies could easily be in somebody else’s top ten. They would be part of my top 22 of 2018 and worth your time.

First Reformed, Blackkklansman, A Prayer Before Dawn, Sorry to Bother You, Three Identical Strangers, RBG, You Were Never Really Here, Mandy, Eighth Grade, The Endless, Green Book, and The Old Man and the Gun