Sherlock S03E03 – His Last Vow

  And like that season 3 of Sherlock comes to an end, but oh, Mr. Moffat, you crafted a helluva season finale! It took me forever to find time to watch the episode, happily I remained spoiler-free, and it was so worth it… I had been looking forward to this moment all week, and as…

An Astronaut’s Guide To Life On Earth – Chris Hadfield

  Usually when I read a book, I am transported to some faraway land and introduced to characters and situations which ignite my imagination and leave me breathless in anticipation of what might come next.  The really good ones have had me scrambling for more from the moment I read the final few lines.  I…

Toronto After Dark 2013: Found – Scott Schirmer

  Gore night at Toronto After Dark got going with the little indie gem, Found.  Directed by Scott Schirmer, the film opens with a young boy, Marty (Gavin Brown) telling the viewer that his older brother, Steve (Ethan Philbeck) keeps human heads in his closet.  He goes on to tell us very matter-of-factly about how…

TIFF – Short Cuts Canada Programme 4

  The amazing Shorts programme for TIFF 2013 keeps coming with this installment screening today at 6:30pm and tomorrow at 1:45pm at the Lightbox. This bunch is fun and eclectic, featuring some great performances, fun stories, and beautiful imagery. Paradise Falls, directed by Fantavious Fritz is a haunting and beautiful coming of age tale that follows…

Patriot Games (1992) – Phillip Noyce

Phillip Noyce takes over for John McTiernan, Harrison Ford takes over for Alec Baldwin, and Tom Clancy’s techno-thriller follow-up to The Hunt For Red October, Patriot Games finds its way onto the 101 Action Movies list. Jack Ryan (Ford) and his family are on a working vacation in London, when he foils a kidnapping/assassination attempt…

Hot Docs: Here One Day – Kathy Leichter

  When her mother, Nina, committed suicide by jumping from her apartment window, Kathy Leicher made the decision to move into that same apartment as a way of keeping her mother close.  Amongst all of Nina’s belongings was a box of audio tapes which Nina had recorded over the years – a form of journal…

What Firefly Means To Me (or Why I’ll Always Be A Browncoat)

  I came to the ‘Verse pretty late in the game.  I’d never been a fan of Buffy or Angel (I remember refusing to watch the former because it wasn’t Kristy Swanson in the title role), so I wasn’t an automatic viewer of anything Joss Whedon did just because it was Joss Whedon.  I was…

TIFF 2012: Disconnect – Henry Alex Rubin

  For someone who had directed only documentaries thus far, Henry Alex Rubin has manged to create a very human and genuine first feature that’s both thought-provoking and full of and heart.  Disconnect is an up-close and in-depth look at various forms of social media, and how we use the internet to draw us all…

People Like Us – Alex Kurtzman

  I’d probably have to go back and check to be positive, but I think this is my favourite movie so far this year.  I went into it knowing very little – just bits from the trailer, really – but I was definitely drawn to it right from the start, and settling into the theatre,…

My Name Is Faith – Tiffany Sudela-Junker, USA

  “The years before five last the rest of their lives”, or so the saying goes.  But what happens when the years before five are spent in an environment of neglect, abuse and unsafe conditions?  Can a child so broken in their formative years that they are unable to trust, relate to those around them,…