Written by Tim LebbonPublished by Leisure BooksBuy it from the Creature Co! Before I get to the actual review, please allow me an aside: Several months ago, I bought and read my first Graham Masterton novel: Manitou Blood. Unless someone convinces me otherwise, it’ll be my last. It’s a vampire novel. I try to avoid … Continue reading
(Nick’s Review) Watching Pan’s Labyrinth doesn’t just deliver the joy of seeing a well-made film. It doesn’t just deliver the wonder of a darkly beautiful fantasy brought to life. Watching Pan’s Labyrinth gives you the excitement of experiencing a filmmaker blossoming into true greatness, a director taking his spot alongside the other genius fantasists of … Continue reading
Last week my father went to see Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young and was surprised to see people getting up and leaving when the group launched into some of the stuff off Neil Young’s latest album. It was the political music, especially Let’s Impeach the President, that sent them scurrying out of the venue, which … Continue reading
South KoreaBong Joon-ho Monster movies get short critical shrift, especially when they’re massive blockbusters that run on CGI like a Dodge guzzling leaded gasoline. But when the same film has a strong family component and undercurrents of environmental and political awareness, people pay attention. Such is the case with The Host, which has broken records … Continue reading
Hungary/Austria/FranceGyörgy Pálfi A few months back, I caught the trailer for Taxidermia and immediately had to see the film. A triptych of tales, the thin script follows a family born into poverty. The original patriarch is an orderly at a wartime orphanage; while lusting after the two deliciously teenage girls stationed within, he explores his … Continue reading
Hong Kong / ChinaJonnie To I probably say this every year, but I’d pretty much written off Hong Kong cinema a few years back. Then I saw Breaking News, Johnnie To’s ambitious flick about the interplay between criminals and the media. The movie didn’t deliver, exactly, but it got close, with enough going on to … Continue reading
USA/CanadaGuy Maddin On my first trip to the Toronto Film Festival, I was thrilled to sit in the Elgin Theatre for the premiere of Guy Maddin’s The Saddest Music In The World. He’s entered a handful of short films into the fest in the years since, but no other features have been forthcoming. Brand Upon … Continue reading
What’s your tolerance for misery? Man Push Cart aims to explore how much misery you can take – this little independent film is almost oppressive in how sad it is, and it often comes very close at times to becoming a complete bummer or a maudlin pile of crap. It never quite does, a testament … Continue reading
AustraliaMurali K Thralluri While I was in Toronto a Montreal student opened fire in his university, proof that the pressures which created Columbine are everywhere. For much of 2:37, which follows troubled, seemingly normal high school kids for a day, it’s easy to infer that Columbine has come to Australia, too. The lives of these … Continue reading
I did not see Tony Jaa’s film Tom Yum Goong in its original form, but there was no way to miss the bleeding gashes inflicted on the movie by the Weinstein Company as they turned it into The Protector. The film is often completely incoherent, with characters dropping in and out of the story at … Continue reading