Film
Burning Man documentary finds success and Leo nominations
June 11, 2015I had the pleasure of interviewing Leo nominees Joel Ashton McCarthy and Bryant H. Boesen, the co-directors, producers, and editors of Taking My Parents to Burning Man. Bryant, who along with his parents were the stars of the movie, says the experience was spontaneous, dusty, and emotional. They were nominated for Best Feature Length Documentary Program, Best Direction in a Documentary Program, Best Picture Editing, Best Sound Editing (by Robert Phaneuf). Joel and Bryant were classmates at Vancouver Film School and used to team up to make stoner comedy movies. Joel noted that they are “very different people, but are…
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Leo Awards 2015: Behind-the-scenes film geniuses honoured
June 11, 2015The Leo Awards are about celebrating excellence in the film and television industry of British Columbia. The first leg of the 2015 Leo Awards took place on June 6 at The Westin Bayshore Hotel, where local technical geniuses were celebrated.…
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Aloha suffers from an incomprehensible plot
June 8, 2015Aloha is about, um, it’s about. . . Okay, let’s start with the basics: Brian Gilcrest (Bradley Cooper) is a contract worker for the military who has come for a brief stop in Hawaii to convince a group of native…
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A mysterious falcon is Aloft in this feel-bad movie
June 8, 2015Here are some things you can look forward to in Aloft: a pig giving birth in the opening shot, numerous sex scenes where the characters seem to be enjoying themselves as much as the aforementioned pig, and a pigish mother…
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San Andreas’s only fault is clichés
June 8, 2015Oh my God, that was the most awesome movie I’ve ever seen. Yes, yes, I know, no written work, let alone a film review, should start with those words, but it’s truly the only way you can talk about San…
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Cinephilia: When Marnie Was There is a poignant film about loss
June 1, 2015If you’ve ever lost a loved one, you’ve experienced the emptiness, depression, and longing to retain every memory. How are you going to live without them? Old photographs, bedrooms, and other significant places draw old memories which bring solace, but…
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Poltergeist doesn’t live up to its original
June 1, 2015The original movie is better. I know that is probably not what you’re wondering about as you go into 2015’s Poltergeist since most of the time remakes don’t hold a candle to their original. Usually, if a movie’s remade, it’s…
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Five obscure films you should see
June 1, 20152015 was looking like a horrible year for movies. The first six months saw some tremendous disappointments like Michael Mann’s clichéd Blackhat, the Wachowski’s stupid Jupiter Ascending, and Joss Whedon’s mind-numbing Avengers: Age of Ultron. I also managed to sit…
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The latest Mad Max is a bizarre spectacle
May 25, 2015[caption id="attachment_2703" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures.[/caption] For the last decade, prolific film director George Miller has been synonymous with one blockbuster franchise. Yes, I’m talking about Happy Feet! It’s hard to believe that the same mastermind…
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Timbuktu’s Islamic fundamentalism is repetitive and disjointed
May 25, 2015[caption id="attachment_2708" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Photo courtesy of Cohen Media Group.[/caption] There’s a moment in Timbuktu where a woman handling fish in a market with her bare hands is violently threatened by a Jihadist soldier. He demands that she wear thick…
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