Did we need a Road House re-boot/re-imagining? No, but the locations make for a pretty picture. But that doesn’t mean it has the charm of the original, most of which was because of the casting of Patrick Swayze and Sam Elliott. This time out, Jake Gyllenhaal takes on the lead role of Dalton, a former…
Tag: production design
Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare (1968) – Yoshiyuki Kuroda
As much as I loved 100 Monsters, Spook Warfare almost disappointed me as much. It feels like a bit of a goofy film, and I get that this is the point of the series, the same way Godzilla went from a dark film to ‘who is he fighting this time?’ It starts out promisingly enough,…
The Creator (2023) – Gareth Edwards
There’s a lot to like about The Creator, though it could be argued it’s a little too slow. There seems to be an intentional parallel between the battle between Artificial Intelligence and the Vietnam War, as the film sees America involved in a war with New Asia, not the people, but those they are harbouring,…
Confess, Fletch (2022) – Greg Mottola
I loved the 1985 Fletch adaptation starring Chevy Chase, and I’ve read a few of Gregory McDonald’s novels, and have been eager to see the iconic and laconic investigative reporter return to the screen. That journey has been long and arduous and has seen many creative people involved in trying to resurrect the character. Greg…
Johnny Mnemonic (1995) – Robert Longo
William Gibson wrote the screenplay for Johnny Mnemonic based on one of his short stories, but you get the impression it changed a lot from what he had written to what ended up on the screen. A lot of the tech seems to be glossed over, and with an hour-and-a-half runtime, this film feels like…
Titanic (1997) – 4K
James Cameron’s epic Oscar-winning film, Titanic, finally comes to 4K in time for the holidays, and Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Rose (Kate Winslet) have never looked better. Man has this film come a long way. I remember seeing this on the big screen and marvelling at the spectacle Cameron put on the screen. It was…
Road House (1989) – Rowdy Herrington
Patrick Swayze plays Dalton, a lethal but zen bouncer in the cult-favorite, Road House, which also features the famed blind Canadian guitarist Jeff Healey as the bar band of the Double Deuce. Dalton is hired by Tilghman (Kevin Tighe) to help change his bar, the Double Deuce, into something a little more profitable. It has…
Renfield (2023) – Chris McKay
Nicholas Hoult, Nicolas Cage, and Awkwafina star in Chris McKay’s bloody, hilarious, and over-the-top love letter to the supporting character of the original Dracula story, Renfield, including some wonderful homages to the original 1931 film. It’s modern-day America and Renfield (Hoult) has relocated Dracula (Cage) yet again to hide him from those who would hunt…
TIFF ’23: 100 Yards
Xu Haofeng, an accomplished fight choreographer, writer and director and first-time director Xu Junfeng delivers a period piece set in 1920s China, specifically, Tianjin, where the master of a wushu academy has just died and has passed on its leadership to his apprentice, Quan Qi (Andy On) instead of his son, Shen An (Jacky Heung)…
TIFF ’23: The Holdovers
Director Alexander Payne reunites with his Sideways star, Paul Giamatti in this earnest and laugh-out-loud dramedy that takes us back to the winter of 1970 and Barton, a boy’s prep school where Paul Hunham (Giamatti) teaches Ancient Civilizations and often finds himself clashing with not only his fellow teachers but his students as well, particularly…
The Mind Reels 