My top seven most anticipated movies coming from TIFF - 2013.

Once again, the Toronto International Film Festival came and went. Numerous films screened, hype was built up, some films bombed, some broke even, and others exceeded preconceptions. So just like last year, in celebration of many of these films, I decided to make a list of my top seven most anticipated films coming from the festival. Please note that if you don’t see a favorite of yours, it’s because I’m not looking forward to it enough, not looking forward to it at all (*cough* Blue is the Warmest Color!), or I simply have never heard of it.

September side-reviews - The Bling Ring, The East, Stories We Tell, & World War Z.

Hello again, everyone! Sorry for my long absence. Things have not been too kind to me in my personal life. However, I have recently found some time to get in a few new viewings. So, with the summer movie season concluded, and with the festival season in full swing, I thought I would put down some small side reviews for these films. Hope you enjoy reading them!

Byzantium movie review.

Bloody Undead! Un-Bloody-Dead! It’s even worse than bloody cats! Undead, what’s the bloody point?!

Indeed, the undead seems to be a popular trend at the moment. We’ve got plenty of shows and movies of zombies, ghosts, and vampires to go around. Shows like The Walking Dead do plenty of justice for zombies, but vampires, however, are not doing so strong. Popular hits like Twilight (noted for “bringing back” the vampire genre) have a deserved reputation for being weak, manipulative teen fare (highlighted by a terrible role model of a lead character). However, there are smaller, better films released that remind us what made the sub-genre so fascinating in the first place, Tomas Alfredson’s Let the Right One In being one of them. Byzantium, the latest from Interview with a Vampire director Neil Jordan, is also one such film.

After Earth movie review.

Of all the careers in Hollywood, none was more unfortunate than that of M. Night Shyamalan…

Unfortunate, indeed. Believe it or not, there was once a time when Shyamalan made good movies. The Sixth Sense we all know is a terrific film, Unbreakable might be the most underrated film of all time, Signs is a great, suspenseful Sci-Fi, and even The Village has its own spectacular merits. But, after leaving Touchstone Pictures, Shyamalan fell from grace hard. Starting with Lady in the Water, he made three horrible films in a row, and has practically become a punchline in his own industry. His latest film, After Earth, didn’t ease things. A starring vehicle for Will Smith’s son Jaden, the studio went so far as to hide Shyamalan’s name in advertising. However, the plan backfired. It seemed like the film had bigger problems than just Shyamalan. So when all is said and done, the movie is finished, and I get to thinking, I come to the conclusion that… It’s not that bad.

Let me just clarify. I am not saying this is a good movie, but it’s perhaps Shyamalan’s least bad film since leaving Touchstone.

Spring Breakers movie review.

Seems like a dream. That dream being Spring Breakers, a thriller from Harmony Korine told in pseudo-Malick montage: just saying such a thing out loud sounds… ridiculous. And I’m not gonna lie, that’s how the film initially struck me. Truth be told, I expected to hate this film. Being a complete newcomer to Korine, I had no idea what to expect from him personally, but the film’s premise had me less than sold. But when I finally sat down and watched the movie, I was surprised by how well acted, how stylish, and how hard hitting the film’s punches are. I could never take my attention away.

Only God Forgives movie review.

Drive was one of the biggest unexpected hits of 2011. Featuring a strong performance from Ryan Gosling (Whose niche as mostly silent characters in thrillers have made him a regular Gordon Freeman), and terrifically directed sequences of slow burning suspense courtesy of Nicolas Winding Refn, critics loved it, and it even got some loving attention in the mainstream as well. Refn’s next film would be highly anticipated, a sort of spiritual successor to Drive called Only God Forgives (albeit with completely different moods). This film seems to split people into two camps: those who love it with the highest of passions, and those who despise virtually every second of the film. At least I had an idea of what to expect, but it’s unfortunate then for me to say that I’m on that second boat. Whereas Drive wound up becoming one of my favorite movies of 2011, Only God Forgives struck me as a discordant purgatory all its own that I couldn’t wait to be over.

The Lone Ranger movie review.

Summer is not kind to us all, kemosabe. Even amidst the spectacular summer thrills (Iron Man 3 and Star Trek, for example), there will always be those of considerably less quality to dampen things. Man of Steel can already attest to this. But for as many problems Man of Steel had, it has nothing on The Lone Ranger. Having been trapped in development limbo for years, the film saw a troubled production, specifically due to a constantly rising budget. It at least had the promise of being a fun little ride, having been directed by the great Gore Verbinski. Unfortunately, the film was a train wreck, not only bombing at the box office, but garnering much critical hatred as well. I ignored all the warning signs in hopes of some decent popcorn entertainment.