Articles — Original Cin

Since 2017: Career film critics continuing the conversation

Ripley: Patricia Highsmith's Sociopathic Social Climber Gets a Noir Netflix Upgrade

Ripley: Patricia Highsmith's Sociopathic Social Climber Gets a Noir Netflix Upgrade

By Karen Gordon

ReviewJim SlotekApril 4, 2024Patricia Highsmith, Tom Ripley, Netflix's Ripley, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Andrew Scott, Sociopathic social climber, Johnny Flynn, Dakota FanningComment

DogMan: Luc Besson’s Movie Should Stop Trying to Make Fetch Happen

DogMan: Luc Besson’s Movie Should Stop Trying to Make Fetch Happen

By Liz Braun

ReviewJim SlotekApril 4, 2024DogMan, Luc Besson, Caleb Landry Jones, Jojo T. Gibbs, Grace Palma, Christopher Denham, Drama, Absurdist drama, Films with dogsComment

Carol Doda Topless at the Condor: The Saga of an Accidental Revolutionary

Carol Doda Topless at the Condor: The Saga of an Accidental Revolutionary

By Kim Hughes

ReviewJim SlotekApril 4, 2024Carol Doda Topless at the Condor, Marlo McKenzie, Jonathan Parker, Carol Doda, Judy Mamou, Jimi Mamou, Burlesque, Documentary, 1960s, Metallica, Lars UlrichComment

Sugar: Colin Farrell Series Meanders Through the L.A. Detective Genre Sleuthing For Something New

Sugar: Colin Farrell Series Meanders Through the L.A. Detective Genre Sleuthing For Something New

By Liam Lacey

ReviewJim SlotekApril 4, 2024L.A. detective fiction, Apple TV+ series, Sugar, Colin Farrell, Directed by Fernando Meirelles and Adam Arkin, British actress Kirby, James Cromwell, Nate Corddry, Amy RyanComment

The Old Oak: Ken Loach's Last Film Frames Racism at its Most British with a Glimmer of Hope

The Old Oak: Ken Loach's Last Film Frames Racism at its Most British with a Glimmer of Hope

By Chris Knight

ReviewJim SlotekApril 4, 2024Directors' swan songs, Ken Loach, The Old Oak, British-style racism, Writer Paul Laverty, Dave Turner, Ebla Mari, Social issues with human warmth, Rural reaction to Syrian refugeesComment

Win Free Theatre Tickets in Our Cineplex/Stanley Kubrick Contest!

Win Free Theatre Tickets in Our Cineplex/Stanley Kubrick Contest!

PromotionJim SlotekApril 3, 2024Ticket giveaways, Cineplex month-long Kubrick retrospective, The Shining, Barry Lyndon, Eyes Wide Shut, Spartacus, 2001: A Space OdysseyComment

Remembering Gene Wilder: Portrait of an Actor as a Saint

Remembering Gene Wilder: Portrait of an Actor as a Saint

By Chris Knight

ReviewJim SlotekApril 3, 2024Remembering Gene Wilder, Gene Wilder, Ron Frank, Documentary, Richard Pryor, Mel Brooks, Carol Kane, Alan Alda, Ben Mankiewicz, Hot DocsComment

Original-Cin Q&A: Ripley Helmer Steven Zaillian on Why Moral Ambiguity Works in Black and White

Original-Cin Q&A: Ripley Helmer Steven Zaillian on Why Moral Ambiguity Works in Black and White

By Bonnie Laufer

InterviewJim SlotekApril 3, 2024Streaming series in black-and-white, Netflix's Ripley, Patricia Highsmith’s 1955 best selling novel, The Talented Mr Ripley, Writer/director Steven Zaillian, Andrew Scott, Johnny Flynn, Dakota Fanning, Maurizio LombardiComment

Original-Cin Q&A: Star Trek's Strange New Worlds' Ethan Peck on Being Spock

Original-Cin Q&A: Star Trek's Strange New Worlds' Ethan Peck on Being Spock

By John Kirk

InterviewJim SlotekApril 2, 2024Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Toronto Comicon, Ethan Peck, Lieutenant Spock, Strange New Worlds episode Charades, Rebecca Romijn, Jerry O’Connell, Star Trek: Lower Decks Comment

Original-Cin Q&A: Director Ken Loach on his Final Bow with The Old Oak

Original-Cin Q&A: Director Ken Loach on his Final Bow with The Old Oak

By Bonnie Laufer

InterviewJim SlotekApril 1, 2024The Old Oak, Ken Loach, David Turner, Ebla Mari, British film, Contemporary storyComment

Someone Like You: New Film Will Draw Christian Audience. Attention Lions

Someone Like You: New Film Will Draw Christian Audience. Attention Lions

By Liz Braun

ReviewJim SlotekApril 1, 2024Someone Like You, Karen Kingsbury, Romance, Christian, Tyler Russell, Jake Allyn, Sarah Fisher Comments

Renegade Nell: Series About 18th Century 'Highwaywoman' is a Supernaturally Imbued Hoot

Renegade Nell: Series About 18th Century 'Highwaywoman' is a Supernaturally Imbued Hoot

By Karen Gordon

ReviewJim SlotekMarch 29, 2024Period TV series, Women bandits, Renegade Nell, Disney+, Series creator Sally Wainwright, Gentleman Jack, Louisa Harland, Reign of Queen Anne, Frank Dillane, Nick Mohammed, Alice Kremelberg, Jake DunnComment

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire - Like the Old Empire, with More World Landmarks Punched and Smashed

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire - Like the Old Empire, with More World Landmarks Punched and Smashed

By Chris Knight

ReviewJim SlotekMarch 28, 2024Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, 91 years of Kong, Kong: Skull Island, Director Adam Wingard, Rebecca Hall, Kaylee Hottle, Brian Tyree Henry, Dan Stevens, Hollow Earth, Movies that destroy world landmarksComment

Club Zero: Inky Black Satire More Disturbing Than Amusing

Club Zero: Inky Black Satire More Disturbing Than Amusing

By Liz Braun

ReviewJim SlotekMarch 28, 2024Club Zero, Jessica Hausner, Geraldine Bajard, Mia Wasikowska, Amanda Lawrence, Sidse Babett Knudsen, Cannes, Women filmmakersComment

Harried Hot Docs' 2024: Carrying on Regardless

Harried Hot Docs' 2024: Carrying on Regardless

By Liz Braun

PreviewJim SlotekMarch 27, 2024Hot Docs' 2024, Cash-poor arts organizations, Internal strife, Hot Docs President Marie Nelson, Luther: Never Too Much, Born Hungry, Shiori Ito’s Black Box Diaries, Raoul Peck, Cinematographer Iris Ing, Hot Docs lineup, Lucy Lawless’ Never Look Away, EnoComment

Original-Cin Q&A: X-Men '97's Rogue/Ex-Federal MP Lenore Zann Talks Social Justice Onscreen and Off

Original-Cin Q&A: X-Men '97's Rogue/Ex-Federal MP Lenore Zann Talks Social Justice Onscreen and Off

By John Kirk

InterviewJim SlotekMarch 22, 2024Canadian actors turned politician, Lenore Zann, X-Men animated series, Continuation sequel series, X-Men '97, Days of Future Past storyline, Disney+Comment

3 Body Problem: Game of Thrones Series Creators Turn to Dark, Conspiratorial ET Sci-Fi

3 Body Problem: Game of Thrones Series Creators Turn to Dark, Conspiratorial ET Sci-Fi

By Karen Gordon

ReviewJim SlotekMarch 21, 20243 Body Problem, Netflix, Alien invasion story, Chinese science fiction, Liu Cixin, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, Game of Thrones, Benedict Wong, Video games as plot device, Rosalind Chao, Jess Hong, Jonathan PryceComment

Problemista: Under the Laughs, Casting a Cold Eye on the America Dream

Problemista: Under the Laughs, Casting a Cold Eye on the America Dream

By Liz Braun

ReviewJim SlotekMarch 21, 2024Problemista, Julio Torres, Tilda Swinton, Laith Nakli, RZA, Comedy, Absurdist social comment, Immigration, American Dream, Art world, SatireComment

Immaculate: Yawn…. Another Nun-Beset-by-Evil Story with Excess Gore, Absent Pizzazz

By Chris Knight

ReviewJim SlotekMarch 21, 2024Immaculate, Michael Mohan, Sydney Sweeney, Alvero Morte, Nuns, Haunted nuns, Nuns beset by evil, Horror, Supernatural thrillerComment

Shayda: An Homage to The Resilience of Women

Shayda: An Homage to The Resilience of Women

By Liz Braun

ReviewJim SlotekMarch 21, 2024Shayda, Sundance films, TIFF 23, Noora Niasari, Zar Amir Ebrahimi, Selina Zahednia, Leah Purcell, Osamah Sami, DramaComment