TAD 2021: Super Z dir. Julien de Volte, and Arnaud Tabarly

Zombie features at Toronto After Dark are never your run of the mill selections. With so many entries in this horror sub-genre, and so many ways to adapt the subject matter to social commentary, it’s unusual to find a unique offering in the field. France’s Super Z is definitely unique. Having its World Premiere virtually…

Map of Bones (2005) – James Rollins

James Rollins second novel in his Sigma Force series continues the highly enjoyable combination of science, mythology, history and high adventure. This time, Sigma Force’s Grey Pierce is assigned with his team to investigate a massacre at a church in Germany, and the subsequent theft of ancient Catholic relics. Relics that have some strange properties,…

Mission: Impossible (1967) – The Widow, and Trek

Season two of Mission: Impossible launched on 10 September, 1967, with The Widow written by Barney Slater. Viewers knew right away that something had changed, Dan Briggs (Steven Hill) was replaced without explanation by Peter Graves, taking command of the IMF team as Jim Phelps, and Martin Landau finds himself in the opening credits, right…

Never Send Flowers (1993) – John Gardner

James Bond is back, and while I’ve enjoyed Gardner’s efforts with Ian Fleming’s 007, with the minor exception of The Man From Barbarossa, this entry, his thirteenth (of sixteen) feels like a real stumble. It seems to want to be more in line with the cinematic 007, but without a solid story, or set pieces…

Chuck (2010) – Versus the Balcony, and Versus the Gobbler

Chuck (Zachary Levi) is on the verge of (elaborately) proposing to Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski) when she relates a story of her parents’ nightmare proposal, just as a mission is delivered their way that sees them on a trip to France to recover a microchip, using a wine-tasting as their cover, with Casey (Adam Baldwin) as…

The French Connection (1971) – William Friedkin

William Friedkin’s 1971 classic has deserved a rewatch for awhile, and I was quite happy to settle in for it. I like Gene Hackman, who won himself an Academy Award for his turn as NYPD officer Popeye Doyle, and I’m a huge fan of Roy Scheider who plays his partner, Cloudy, and received a nomination…

Saving Private Ryan (1998) – Steven Spielberg

I was stunned when I first saw Saving Private Ryan on opening day, 24 July, 1998. I had never seen war depicted so realistically, so heart-breaking, graphic, and impactful. I held onto the names of Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks like a mantra through the film, to guide me through it, to make everything be…

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones (1995) – Attack of the Hawkmen

Indiana (Sean Patrick Flanery) takes to the air, and fights behind the lines in the next adventure he finds himself on. This television movie first aired on 8 October, 1995, and follows Indy’s time in Africa. 1917 The script, written by Matthew Jacobs, Rosemary Anne Sisson, and Ben Burtt sees our young hero serving now…

Charade (1963) – Stanley Donen

The next title on the What Else to Watch list following the recommendation of Casablanca from The Movie Book, released by DK Canada, is this delightful romp starring Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn. Also featuring turns by Walter Matthau and James Coburn, this romance mystery, with a healthy dose of comedy has a score by…

The Trial (1962) – Orson Welles

I return now to DK Canada’s The Movie Book, where their next big title recommendation is Orson Welle’s opus, Citizen Kane. Having previously reviewed it, I moved right along to the What Else to Watch section, and discovered a Welles film that I hadn’t watched or reviewed before. Based on Kafka’s novel, The Trial features…