REVIVAL69: The Concert that Rocked the World

After spending a summer of watching some amazing concerts with my wife (Foo Fighters, Billy Talent, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, Pitbull, BUSH, The Headstones, Iggy Pop, Shania Twain, Weezer, Daniel Lanois, Bran Van 3000, Tegan and Sara, Death Cab for Cutie, Mumford & Sons, and many more!) I realize that 2023 in Ottawa was one of the most spectacular musical events I will see in my lifetime. Maybe one day in the future, like 53 years into the future, there will be a documentary about the 2023 Ottawa Blues and CityFolk festivals that happened here in this little sleepy town. And  maybe somebody will be amazed about all the musical talent that was brought together. Maybe. This brings me to "REVIVAL69: The Concert that Rocked the World," the new CRAVE documentary about a rock concert that took place in Toronto in 1969 that involved some of the worlds greatest rock and roll artists of all time. I was amazed. The lineup included, Chicago, Bo Diddley, Little Richard, Chuck Barry, Jerry Lee Lewis, Gene Vincent, Alice Cooper, The Doors, and John Lennon and The Plastic Ono Band, and many more. And Geddy Lee was there in the audience, on LSD! This is the concert that put the final nail into the coffin of The Beatles and freed John Lennon to go at it alone. This documentary is a time capsule and boy oh boy was it fun to open up and see what was inside. Travel back in time and let a motorcycle gang escort you to one of the most amazing concerts that you didn't know existed (at least I didn't) and almost didn't happen. Catch it streaming on CRAVE. 

Birth/Rebirth

If you told me David Cronenberg had made this movie as a modern remake of Re-Animator, I would almost believe you. Almost. It's far too feminine for Cronenberg, despite all the surgical shenanigans, autopsies, stapled incisions, and science beakers full of bloody liquids. Yes, "Birth/Rebirth" doesn't shy away like some stereotypical 60s housewife who nicked her thumb slicing a cucumber ("Is it bad? I can't look at it, I hate the sight of blood.") This is co-writer and director Laura Moss's first feature length film and she doesn't seem to be shy at all about showing us the insides of people. She certainly left a scar on me. What's it all about? Obstetrics nurse Rita (Monique Gabriela Curnen) loses her daughter to meningitis but mad-scientist/doctor, Rose (Marin Ireland) helps bring Rita's daughter back to life using her own aborted fetuses - as I'm typing this, I realize how insane and gross this sounds. Well it is and I loved it. Welcome to the fertile imagination of Laura Moss. She has birthed out a Frankenstein nightmare of pregnancy and motherhood. It's a tale about how far mothers would go to save their children; in the case of Rita, her actual child and in the case of Rose, her child of a science experiment. Marin Ireland as Rose, the wide-eyed, vegan, genius-on-the-spectrum, mad-scientist is so much fun to watch. The film is too small and likely won't get noticed but I would love to see Marin Ireland get a nomination for her performance. Do yourself a favour and get reborn - catch this one streaming now on Shudder.  

Mob Land

"Dog Day Afternoon," "The Silent Partner," "Heat," "Blood Simple," "No Country For Old Men," "Hell or Highwater," "Good Time.," "Dragged Across Concrete" - these are some of my favourite heist pictures. Now "Mob Land" is on that list. I said it before (when I reviewed "Old Henry") and I will say it again, "I will watch anything Stephen Dorff participates in. If he feels like it's a worthy project, I'm in." This is co-writer and director, Nicholas Maggio's debut feature film and he has exploded onto the screen like a shotgun blast. The plot: Shelby (Shiloh Fernandez), who is scrapping to get by, is convinced by his brother-in-law Trey (Kevin Dillon) to rob a dodgy Oxycodone clinic in their small town. The problem is the dodgy clinic is owned by the mob and they send Clayton (Stephen Dorff) to get the money back. Travolta plays the town sheriff and is the uncle of Shelby. Dorff is absolutely riveting every single time he is on screen and is worthy of a best supporting nomination. Hell, so is Travolta - I loved him in this. And the dialogue in this movie is like Tarantino meets Jean-Paul Sartre. I am simply jealous of how good the writing for this movie was. And the music choices! Bravo. I'm certain this film will make my top ten of 2023. Catch it on streaming services or in a rep theatre near you. 

Painkiller

I confess, I often look at Rotten Tomatoes to see what other reviews are saying before I watch something, especially if it's a TV series where there is a potential for a large amount of my time to be consumed. Like everyone, I only have so much free time. It was my wife's recommendation to watch "Painkiller," based on her friend's advice. As I write this, currently Rotten Tomatoes has "Painkiller" at 49% and an audience score of 61%. Well I'm here to tell you, ignore this. It reminded me of "The Big Short" (the movie about the housing marketing collapse in 2008). I loved that film. "Painkiller" is about the Opioid crisis; more specifically, how Richard Sackler's (Matthew Broderick) pharmaceutical company, Purdue, turned OxyContin into one of the most prescribed drugs in America. OxyContin, the stuff is basically heroin. It has killed hundreds of thousands of people and destroyed as many families. I found this series to be just as riveting as it is heartbreaking. Each episode begins with a true tale of a person who has lost someone because of this drug. This is a story about power and greed and evil. It's worth every minute of your time. Catch this addictive show (oh I couldn't resist! - forgive me) now streaming on Netflix. 

Passages

"Passages" is a film about a narcissistic bisexual German film maker, Tomas (Franz Rogowski) living and working in Paris and the two romantic relationships he ricochets between. At the start of the film, Tomas is living with Martin (Ben Whishaw) in a flat which they both own. I kept wondering where I had seen Ben Whishaw before - he played the new Q in the the recent Bond films. Anyway, Tomas meets Agathe (Adèle Exarchopoulos) and they end up having an affair. Then it turns into much more. But Tomas can't seem to let go of Martin. So why did I like this melodramatic film so much it ended up on my blog? Good question. To me it felt like a Cassavetes's film. If you told me that Cassavetes was alive and well and he made this movie, I would believe you. The pacing, the earnest dialogue, the look of the film all reminded me of John Cassavetes. I don't think there could be higher praise. Director and co-writer Ira Sachs has crafted a little indie film that felt like it was from the 70s. The exchange between Tomas and Agathe's parents alone was worth the price of admission. And Tomas riding his bike! This was pure cinema. I loved it and didn't expect to. Catch it now in rep cinemas or on streaming services when it becomes available. 

Jules

Perhaps the comic theme of aliens to speak about aging is going to become a film subgenre? Ron Howard gave us "Cocoon." Marc Turtletaub ("Little Miss Sunshine") has given us "Jules," which is the story of Milton (Ben Kingsley) who is living in a small town in Pennsylvania. Milton's daughter is worried about her father's mental state after finding some canned vegetables in his bathroom medicine cabinet. Milton, when he is not too confused, likes to  expresses himself to his city council. His recommendation: they should change the town slogan from "A great place to call home," to "A great place to refer to as home," because of the confusion it causes because you might think it's a great place to get on the telephone and call home. E.T,, I'm sure, would like to call home from Milton's house. E.T. isn't around, but who is? Jules. Jules is the little blue alien who has crash landed in Milton's backyard. Of course nobody believes Milton because everyone already thinks old Milt has a few screws loose. Except for Milton's two other vocal citizens, Sandy (Harriet Sansom Harris) and Joyce (Jane Curtin). They find out about Jules and work to both keep Jules a secret and to help the little blue fellow get home. It's far funnier than I thought it would be. In fact, it's much smarter than I thought it would be. Jules surprised me. Delightful. Catch it in a theatre near you. 

Lola

If you had a time machine, would you go back and kill Hitler? I'm sure this drunken university philosophical question continues to bounce around, popping up at campus pubs from time to time. How about if the year were 1941 and you had a machine that could pick up radio broadcasts from the future, so you would know when and where the Germans were coming to attack your English country? Welcome to "Lola," Andrew Legge's first feature length film - although with a very short runtime of only 1 hour and 19 minutes. What's it all about? Two sisters have built, Lola, a machine that can pick up radio broadcasts from the future and they use it to help England fight the Nazis in WWII. For a low budget film, Andrew Legge and his crew have crafted a very special looking film, and one of the most intriguing and ingenious little stories to come along since "Memento." A lot of it looks like modified footage from WWII. Apparently "Lola" was shot on actual film giving this black and white picture a crackling-hiss-pop sensibility of a classic analog movie. Highly watchable and wickedly smart, this "The Man in the High Castle"/"Twilight Zone" story is well worth your time. Clever as all get-out. It put a smile on my face and definitely didn't overstay its welcome. The Kinks, David Bowie, and Bob Dylan are some high stakes we are dealing with - that and the future of the free world. Catch Lola on streaming services or at your local rep cinema when you can.