Quo Vadis, Aida?: Oscar-Chosen Drama on Grim Chapter in Bosnian War Nails Emotional Tenor
Review, PreviewJim SlotekDrama, TIFF 2020, Jasmila Žbanić, Jasna Đuričić, Oscar nominee, Bosnia, Serbia, Bosian War, Quo Vadis, Aida?, 1995 Srebrenica massacre
French Exit: Michelle Pfieffer Riches-to-Rags Drama Leaves a Bitter Taste and Impression
Review, PreviewJim SlotekFrench Exit, Azazel Jacobs, Patrick deWitt, Michelle Pfeiffer, Lucas Hedges, Into the Wild, The Marksman, Riches to rags stories, Paris, Imogen Poots
Shoplifters of the World: Tribute to Alt-Rock Icons The Smiths Tender But Trite
The Canadian Film Festival: Films by emerging Canadian filmmakers find a second-time-around pandemic home on Super Channel
PreviewJim SlotekCanadian Film Festival, Super Channel, Film events streaming during the pandemic, Sugar Daddy, Wendy Morgan, Kelly McCormack, White Elephant, Andrew Chung, Woman in Car, Vanya Rose, Chained, Titus Heckel, Between Waves, Virginia Abramovich, The Last Villains: Mad Dog and the Butcher, Paul “The Butcher” Vachon, The Corruption of Divine Providence, Jeremy Torrie, Events Transpiring Before, During and After a High School Basketball Game, Ted Stenson, Range Roads, Kyle Thomas
The Marksman: Liam Neeson’s Latest Average-Guy-Cum-Hero Actioner True to Form… Sigh
Review, PreviewJim SlotekThe Marksman, Liam Neeson, Robert Lorenz, Clint Eastwood, Action movies, Mexico, Drug cartels, Juan Pablo Raba, Jacob Perez, Mexican border
Original-Cin Q&A: Ingrid Veninger on Creating the Ultimate Female Pandemic Collaboration
Review, Preview, InterviewJim SlotekOne (nine), Ingrid Veninger, Female Eye Film Festival, pandemic, Pandemic movies, Female filmmakers, female directors, 2020
Six Minutes to Midnight: Eddie Izzard-Guided WWII Drama Intriguing but Unfulfilling
Shiva Baby: Sex, Death and A Buffet Table in Strong Debut Feature
By Linda Barnard
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Review, PreviewJim SlotekShiva Baby, Emma Seligman, TIFF 2020, Rachel Sennott, Polly Draper, Fred Melamed, Dianna Agron, Comedy, Jewish funereal tradition, Coming of age, Generation Z, Sex and death
Enhanced: Familiar Mutants Among Us… But Duller Than Ever
Hot Docs 2021: COVID, consciousness and issues of colour, streaming to the fest's biggest audience ever
PreviewJim SlotekHot Docs International Film Festival 2021, A.rtificial I.mortality, Ann Shin, Brett Hendrie, Hotdocs.ca, Yung Chang, Wuhan Wuhan, With Drawn Arms, Tanya Talaga’s Spirit to Soar, The Taste of Desire, Come Back Anytime, The Death of My Two Fathers, Magaluf Ghost Town, The Silence of the Mole, Songs That Flood the River, Gaucho Americano, International documentary film festivals, My Mohamed is Different, The Colonel’s Stray Dogs
Iron Mask: Jumbled Schwarzenegger/Jackie Chan Period Piece May Watch Better While High
Review, PreviewJim SlotekIron Mask, Jackie Chan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Actioner, Period piece films, Oleg Stepchenko, Fantasy, Yuri Kolokolnikov, Jason Flemyng, Yao Xington, CGI
Doors: Weird End-of-Days Sci-Fi Thriller Nods to Stanley Kubrick… and Breakfast Club
Review, PreviewJim SlotekDoors, Sci-fi, Saman Kesh, Jeff Desom, Dugan O'Neal, Breakfast Club, Stanley Kubrick, 2001: A Space Odyssey, David Hemphill, Darius Levantè, Kyp Malone.
Rose Plays Julie: Revenge Thriller Tackles Adoption/Identity Issue with Powerful Results
Wojnarowicz: Remembering a Voice of Protest and the New York AIDS-Generation Art Scene
Review, PreviewJim SlotekWojnarowicz, documentary, New York, New York art scene, 1980s, '80s AIDS epidemic, Chris McKim, Keith Haring, Fran Lebowitz, David Wojnarowicz
Enforcement: Muddled but Forceful Danish Cop Drama Echoes Current Issues in Throwback Style
Review, PreviewJim SlotekAnders Ølholm, Jacob Møller, Enforcement, Danish films, Cop drama, Immigrant experience, Police violence, Simon Sears, Jacob Lohmann, Tarek Zayat
Crisis: Drama About the Opioid Calamity Less Intense than Real Headlines
Review, PreviewJim SlotekCrisis, Drama, Opioid crisis, Nicholas Jarecki, Gary Oldman, Armie Hammer, Evangeline Lilly, Lily-Rose Depp, Michelle Rodriguez, Kid Cudi, fact-based drama
Sacrilege: Strong Female Characters get Wasted (Literally) in Suspense-less Horror
Review, PreviewJim SlotekSacrilege, Horror, David Creed, Tamaryn Payne, Emily Wyatt, Sian Abrams, Naomi Willow, Paganism, Nightmares, British, Thriller, Midsommar
Hawk and Rev Vampire Slayers: Proving Even Super Low-Budget Can be Super-Fun
Death of a Ladies’ Man: Nice Try but Alas, Only Leonard Cohen Gets to be Leonard Cohen
Praise for Cloris Leachman’s Outstanding Final Role in Jump, Darling
By Linda Barnard
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Review, PreviewJim SlotekJump Darling, Cloris Leachman, Jayne Eastwood, Thomas Duplessie, Drag Queens, Price Edward County, Canadian movies, Phil Connell, Comedy, Drama, Family, Aging, Actors' final performances
