TIFF 25: Degrassi – Whatever It Takes dir. Lisa Rideout

Degrassi has been with me since 1989. I was living on my own out in Halifax, and discovered it airing on television and was hooked. I recognized myself in these characters. Over the years I’ve been fortunate enough to chat and befriend members of the original Degrassi Juniour High and Degrassi High cast. I was…

Toronto Fan Expo 2025 – Day 3

Sue and I returned to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre today to continue our exploration of fandoms and all things geekery. There were plenty of great moments, cosplayers and merchandise to tickle your geek needs. There were a number of fun panels today, Catherine Tate, Bill Shatner, Bob Gale and Mary Steenburgen but we started…

Toronto Fan Expo 2025 – Day 2

I have to say, today’s venture into Fan Expo was a good one. After too long apart, I was reunited with my creative partner, Sue Lawley-Maynard. Can you believe we hadn’t seen each other in person since before covid? There was a point that if one of us was around then the other was probably…

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (2024) – Blu-ray

I’ve been with the Ghostbusters since before the first movie came out, forty years ago. I remember seeing the advertising for it on the back of my comic books, I also tried writing my own version of the story before I even knew what it was or what it was about. I had a little…

Mister Magic (2023) – Kiersten White

Kiersten White’s Mister Magic is an unnerving and spooky tale that definitely has a commentary on religion and those who believe. Mister Magic was a radio program, and later a television show that ran until the 90s when the final episode ended in tragedy. It seems a number of people remember the show, and remember…

Footloose (1984) – 4k

There is no way this film is forty years old. I remember very well the summer of ’84, and the first time that I saw Footloose. I was completely swept up in the music, I just recently discovered pop music, having grown up in a predominantly country household, and the rhythms and beats really spoke…

TAD 2023: UFO Sweden dir. Victor Danell

Do you want to believe? Young Denise (Inez Darl Torhaug) does. She remembers the night her father disappeared chasing down UFOs, and it’s been an obsession ever since. She’s grown to be a young woman, tech savvy in the mid-90s and is determined to find the truth of what happened. As she begins to cross…

Moonrise Kingdom (2012) – Wes Anderson

The framing, the quirky characters, the details, the whipsmart dialogue and its delivery. Every time I watch a Wes Anderson film that one becomes my new favourite until I watch another one. I love how he tells his stories, how his characters interact, and all the little moments, styles, and touches that make a Wes…

The Impossible Fortress (2017) – Jason Rekulak

I loved Rekulak’s Hidden Pictures, so when I checked to see what else he’d written and discovered he’d penned a coming-of-age story in the 80s with characters who were exactly the same age I was in the year 1987, I had to check it out. And I LOVED it. The Impossible Fortress takes us into…