Club Paradise (1986) – Harold Ramis

On paper, Club Paradise should have worked like gangbusters. Directed by Harold Ramis, it’s filled with comedy legends like Robin Williams, Rick Moranis, Eugene Levy, Andrea Martin, Joe Flaherty, and Brian Doyle-Murray. It also has reggae superstar, Jimmy Cliff, screen icon, Peter O’Toole, Joanna Cassidy, Carey Lowell, and Twiggy. It’s a fun cast, a perfunctory…

National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983) – Harold Ramis

Harold Ramis directs, John Hughes wrote the original script, and Chevy Chase (despite his off-screen persona) is comedy gold in this 1983 classic. It’s been forever since I watched it, and while I remembered bits and pieces, a lot passed me by, and it was amazing to see it all over again. And oh man,…

Splash (1984) – Ron Howard

Splash remains a magical, enjoyable and funny experience, though some of it hasn’t aged as well as it could have. What it does have is able direction by Ron Howard, wonderful comedic turns by Tom Hanks, John Candy and Eugene Levy, and a beguiling role for Daryl Hannah. It’s a fun little love story that…

TIFF 25: John Candy – I Like Me dir. Colin Hanks

Hockey. Maple Syrup. The Hip. The Sky Dome. John Candy. Quintessentially Canadian. Friendly, polite, beloved. Candy has left an indelible mark on film and our hearts. And Colin Hanks delivers a beautifully poignant and insightful look into the man. Aided by hi family and SCTV alumni, Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy, Bill Murray and Dan Akryoyd,…

REELIES 2016 – Favourite Actor in a Series

Canadian TV is really coming into its own, especially in recent years, and as such, we have a powerhouse line-up of actors available to duke it out and be pronounced as your favourite!  There were so many possibilities, actually, that we had to narrow the list down a bit just to make it more manageable!…

Heavy Metal (1981) – Gerald Potterton

I remember seeing issues of Heavy Metal on the magazine rack when I would buy my Starlog and movie magazines growing up on CFB Kingston. I was young, I was there when I was ten and eleven, but I remember being intrigued by the covers I saw. They were appealing, fantastic art, beautiful women, and…

Finding Dory (2016) – Andrew Stanton & Angus MacLane

  Dory (Ellen DeGeneres), the short-term memory loss suffering blue tang is back in the latest entry from Pixar, that sees her on the journey to find her parents, with Marlin (Albert Brooks) and his son Nemo (Hayden Rolence) helping her out, and going out on an adventure of their own, when Dory gets lost…

Astro Boy (2009) – David Bowers

  The Sci-Fi Chronicles book has been a lot of fun so far, and it’s also introduced me to a lot of things I was aware of, but had never seen. Astro Boy is a prime example, I have been aware of Osamu Tezuka’s manga for a long time, I’ve always recognized the character, but never…

Toronto Screenwriting Conference 2015: Day 2

  Sue and I tackled day 2 of the Toronto Screenwriting Conference at Daniels Spectrum today, and through the course of the day started to come up with the bare bones of a short film we’d like to do, and my brain broke a story that I’ve been thinking about as three sperate tales but…