Not that I need a break from Hot Docs yet, if ever, but there is a lot going on this weekend, and Sue and I were delighted to be invited back for our fourth time to cover the Toronto Screenwriting Conference. The conference is always amazing, and Sue and I start with the best…
Month: April 2016
Hot Docs 2016: The Slippers – Morgan White
Movie history, Hollywood dreams, conspiracies, finger-pointing, millions of dollars, back-stabbing, and the most iconic items in cinema history, Dorothy’s ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz are the topics up for perusal in White’s documentary, The Slippers. Having its Canadian Premiere this afternoon at the Lightbox at 3:15pm, the film delves into the world…
Doctor Who (Peter Davison) – Kinda
This week is a tale of possession as the Doctor (Davison) and company arrive on the planet Deva Loka, and are menaced by the villainous being known as The Mara. This four part story was written by Christopher Bailey and ran from 1st to 9th of February, 1982. Apparently, it was the least enjoyed…
Hot Docs 2016: Operation Avalanche – Matt Johnson
It’s right there in the title, Operation Avalanche, it’s a snow job. This faux documentary is played straight, pretending to be a film edited together from film shot by a pair of agents (Matt Johnson and Owen Williams) posing as filmmakers, working on a documentary about the Apollo program at the height of the…
Hot Docs 2016: Credit for Murder – Vladi Antonevicz
In a documentary that plays more like a thriller than a Hot Docs, Antonevicz’s dark entry into this year’s film festival is a stunning ride. Using pacing, framing and structure like a standard Hollywood thriller this one captivatesd as much as it generates hate for it’s ready made villains, Neo-Nazis. When a YouTube video…
Hot Docs 2016: Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World – Werner Herzog
My Hot Docs got under way this afternoon at about 1pm as I settled in for my first screening at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema, director Werner Herzog’s latest film, Lo and Behold. I was first struck, as I always am, by the amazing turnout this festival has. It should be no wonder of…
Planet of the Apes (2001) – Tim Burton
It’s time for a different vision of Planet of the Apes, as I continue my exploration of the series as I delve into the Sci-Fi Chronicles book. This time around, Tim Burton directs an all-star cast including Tim Roth, Helena Bonham-Carter, Mark Wahlberg, Kris Kristofferson, Michael Clarke Duncan, Paul Giamatti, David Warner and Estella…
Hot Docs 2016: Chatting with The League of Exotique Dancers
The Hot Docs Film Festival gets underway today, and it’s opening night film features some amazing women. Sue and I got to sit down and chat with three of them, the film’s director, Rama Rau as well as burlesque legends, Camille 2000 and Judith Stein. We chatted about the film, feminism, burlesque, stripping, stage…
Magnum, p.i. (1987) – Laura and Out of Sync
Ol’ Blue Eyes, Frank Sinatra finds himself in Hawaii this week, with the episode Laura. Written by Chris Abbott, this one aired 25 February, 1987. Sinatra is Michael Doheny, a New York cop, who in the midst of celebrating his retirement party, has his granddaughter kidnapped, and murdered by a pair of sexual predators….
Star Trek: Triangle (1983) – Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath
There is one thing, and one thing only that is good about this Star Trek novel. It’s the last one written by Marshak and Culbreath. Once again, this one seems as nothing more than an excuse to write some shoddy fan fiction. One could argue that all the Star Trek novels are fan fiction,…
The Mind Reels 