Tim’s Thirteen of 2013

So ends 2013, just like that! What a year! We have continued to grow and do so much here at The Mind Reels, and we’re hoping for an even bigger year next year! So I decided to throw together a list of the movies I most enjoyed this year, the ones that got to me,…

Show People (1928) – King Vidor

  The Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book brings me the last tie in recommendation for The General with this fun and joyous, a occasionally satirical look at Hollywood silent film. Peggy Pepper (Marion Davies) has arrived in Hollywood from Georgia, escorted by her father Colonel Pepper (Dell Henderson) with dreams of being…

The General (1926) – Buster Keaton & Clyde Bruckman

  The book, Great Movies – 100 Year of Cinema brings me it’s next big title under the comedy genre. This time talented physical artist Buster Keaton is center stage as the film’s lead and one of its directors. Based loosely on a true story, this one for me fell more into the acion-comedy genre than…

Toronto After Dark 2013: Stalled – Christian James

  I haven’t seen a movie where things go so wrong at Christmas since the days of Gremlins and Die Hard.  In Stalled, a custodian-type everyman, W.C. (writer/star Dan Palmer) finds himself trapped in the women’s washroom at a company party on Christmas Eve when the zombie apocalypse suddenly breaks out.  Soon he’s barricaded himself…

City Lights (1931) – Charlie Chaplin

  Great Movies – 100 Years of Film has already proven itself a rather joyous addition to my collection, as I had an opportunity to watch another film listed as a recommendation after The Gold Rush. This time around Charlie Chaplin’s Tramp, one of the most iconic characters in cinema wanders the streets of the…

The Gold Rush (1925) – Charlie Chaplin

  Welcome to a new book for me to work my way through , this time it’s Great Movies, 100 Years of Film. The book itself is broken into genres and each genre has about 10 films, but with each recommendation (many of which I’ve seen), there are 5 or more additional titles that tie-in…

TIFF 2013: Bad Words – Jason Bateman

  I adore Jason Bateman. I think his wicked and often irreverent sense of humour is amazingly similar to my own, and his talent on screen really knows no bounds. So when I found out he was setting his feature directorial debut in the competitive world of the national spelling bee (I was Area 4…

Drunken Master (1978) – Woo-Ping Yuen

Jackie Chan debuts on the 101 Action Movies list with this Kung-Fu classic that cemented Chan’s style of stunning fight sequences with a comedic streak. Directed by Woo-Ping Yuen, who would later become the fight choreographer of such films as The Matrix, Drunken Master is a fun romp and a favorite amongst fans of the…

Noises Off… (1992) – Peter Bogdanovich

Stage comedy is wonderfully adapted in this all-star adaptation of Michael Frayn’s gut-busting play. If you’ve never seen this film, have a look at this cast… Michael Caine, Carol Burnett, Denholm Elliott, Julie Hagerty, Marilu Henner, Mark Linn-Baker, Christopher Reeve, and Nicollette Sheridan, who spends most of the film in her undergarments. With a cast…