Tony

It's kind of like a superhero origin story for Anthony Bourdain, starring that kid from The Holdovers, Dominic Sessa. The opening is a quote from Bourdain himself, and I'm paraphrasing, something like, "When I was young, I was a cocky, pretentious little shit who needed an ass-kicking." It kind of sums up the plot of the film. Bourdain, as the film portrays him, comes from a middle-class American family and is going to college, where he's in the running for a writing scholarship. The Bourdain we see is that cocky kid who believes he is going to be a writer and the world is his oyster - he quickly finds out it's not and those suckers are really hard to open. He chases after a girl (Emilia Jones) to Providence on the East Coast, where he finds himself broke and hungover, taken in by the League of Shadows . . . sorry, that's Batman. . . taken in by the chef (Antonio Banderas) of a local seafood restaurant out of pity. Here Bourdain gets some tough life lessons; this is where he matures. As a teenager, I worked in kitchens, also transitioning from dishwasher to prep cook to line cook before leaving it all behind. I did think about going into the culinary arts. What I know about Tony is that it rings true. Drinking, drugs, and alcohol all seem to play a large part of that world, and everyone smokes (or they used to). All of this, all the characters you find in kitchens are put here on the screen and it's authentic. This is Canadian writer/director Matt Johnson's second feature to come out this year (the first being Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie). What a great year Matt is having! So go make a reservation at your local theatre - playing at The Mayfair and The ByTowne here in Ottawa or rent it when it's available from Movies 'N Stuff.

Babygirl

Who ordered hot sex for Christmas? "Body Heat," "The Postman Always Rings Twice" (the 1981 one), "9 1/2 Weeks," "Fatal Attraction," Steve McQueen's "Shame," and last year's "Sanctuary" are all films relating to sexual obsession, affairs, sexual kinks, and shame. You can now add "Babygirl" to this list of films. Starring Nicole Kidman, (who has been in some dreadful stuff this year - "A Family Affair" and "A Perfect Couple") has come out with a brave and powerhouse performance, standing right next to Demi Moore from "The Substance" (both nominated for Golden Globes and I think they should both win). Kidman plays Romy, a successful, high-powered, business woman who is married with two teenaged kids. She has an affair with a young intern, Samuel (Harris Dickinson). Romy likes to be told what to do - this is her fetish, her shame, this is what she has been hiding her whole life from her husband (Antonio Banderas). Written and directed by Halina Reijn, I felt like she has given a fresh voice to women and their sexuality - it's not just men who are weird. Like "The Substance," although not as direct, "Babygirl" also tackles what it is to be an aging woman in today's society. The film is a pretty wild and steamy ride - somewhat by the numbers if you have watched some or all of the films I mentioned at the beginning. However there is enough new and fresh material here, combined with Kidman's brave and powerful performance, and the fact that the film looks amazing - the dance club scene was a particular highlight for me - makes it worth your time. The whole movie feels like a pair of lacy undergarments and handcuffs left under the Christmas tree for viewing audiences. Catch it in theatres this holiday season.