Film
Cinephilia: Self/Less fails to be philosophical
July 13, 2015Donald Davidson is casually going for a stroll in a swamp when — bang! — a flash of lightning comes down and kills him. Another bolt carrying all of Davidson’s DNA hits the swamp and creates his perfect replica: Swampman. If the naturalist and materialist were correct, Swampman would go on to finish writing Davidson’s essays as though nothing had happened. This famous philosophical thought experiment — an imaginary situation that examines the consequences of a theory — seeks to support the dualists’ view that personal identity is not identical with anything physical. I mention this thought experiment in relation…
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Rachel Browne documentary screens at Dancing on the Edge
July 6, 2015The mother of modern dance in Canada is honoured in Danielle Sturk’s insightful documentary, A Good Madness. Rachel Browne founded the first modern dance company in Canada in 1964, Winnipeg’s Contemporary Dancers, and served as artistic director, choreographer and teacher…
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The art of on-screen sex
July 6, 2015One human experience that still needs more artistic exploration is sex. There is a discomfort associated with sexual activity and talking about sexual experiences that I find curious. This uneasiness seems to cause filmmakers to neglect sex scenes as legitimate…
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Cinephilia: SFU alumnus creates a subversive, anti-romantic comedy
June 29, 2015We know how this story is supposed to go. There is a guy, there is a girl. He is married, and she is too. His wife is boring. Her husband is adulterous. We see them laugh; we see them flirt;…
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Leo Awards nights two and three: documentaries, dramas, and the red carpet
June 26, 2015The second night of the Leo Awards were hosted at the Fairmont Hotel on June 13, and included awards for motion pictures, television movies, dramatic series, animation, documentaries, short dramas, and web series given out by British Columbia’s finest on-screen…
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The Italian Film Festival Summer Series ends with a free screening on August 7
June 26, 2015June is Italian Heritage Month, and in Vancouver, that means a magnificent celebration of art, music, cinema, food, and amore, lots of amore. Italian Day on the Drive was hot, delicious, and filled with hundreds of thousands of people, great…
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Cinephilia: Bigger dinosaur teeth can’t save Jurassic World
June 22, 2015Just like I wouldn’t want to go to a surgeon who knows lots of theory but no practical skills, I didn’t like Jurassic World, which recognizes the reasons that it is so bad while failing to practice what it preaches.…
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Cinephilia: Greg is an unlikely hero in Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
June 15, 2015If Me and Earl and the Dying Girl were a person, I would wrap my arms around them and squeeze as hard as I could. Based on a single viewing, this is one of the most affecting and lovely films…
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Pixar succeeds with adult-oriented hit Inside Out
June 15, 2015Life is like a long bike race: a grueling trek to the finish that consists of exhilarating ups, depressing downs, and moments of uncertainty where you feel like quitting. Inside Out takes place near the beginning, during the exhilaration period.…
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HUMOUR: SFU alum to Kickstart documentary on the Universal Studios rides that almost were
June 15, 2015For Jas Khattra, the choice between going to Disneyland or Universal Studios was always an easy decision to make — even at the age of five. “Universal Studios,” he said, laughing. “Mom and dad would always roll their eyes at…
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