By Alan Hurst Cards on the table: I’ve been a major fan of singer Anne Murray since she released “You Needed Me” in 1978. I think I knew about “Snowbird” (1970), “Danny’s Song” (1973), “Love Song” (1974) and her cover of the Beatles’ “You Won’t See Me” (1974), as well as her very 1970’s Canadian…
Directed by Ridley Scott (***) Now in theatres There is a scene in House of Gucci where we first see Lady Gaga as Patrizia, the character who will later marry Maurizio Gucci, and then years later, have him killed by two hitmen. She enters her father’s trucking depot wearing high heels and a skirt that…
By Geoff Wertheim (**) In theatres In recent years, the trend for franchises to refresh themselves is to have the characters constantly remark and reflect how awesome the original was, while pretty much recreating the original. They’re films made for the fans, by fans. We saw this with Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Jurassic World,…
By John H. Foote (****) Streaming on Netflix Had Spielberg’ Schindler’s List not opened in the final months of 1993, I am absolutely confident that Jane Campion and The Piano would have taken Best Picture and Best Director Awards, making Campion the first woman to ever win the Academy Award. As it played out, Spielberg…
By John H. Foote (***) Streaming on Netflix Beyond being an exciting new musical directed by the gifted Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of Hamilton, this new film announces the arrival of Andrew Garfield to the pantheon of great American actors. Garfield is at his best to date here, playing Jonathan Larson, the creator of Rent. In…
By John H. Foote From writer Ira Wells comes the superb new biography of Canadian film director Norman Jewison who broke through in Hollywood in the mid-sixties to become one of the most beloved, reliable and talented directors in modern film. Jewison rode the tide of New Hollywood with his great film In the Heat…
By John H. Foote (***) Streaming on Netflix Red Notice will not be nominated for any major Academy Awards, but still I had a hell of a good time watching the film. The three stars do what they do best. Dwayne Johnson is spectacular as an FBI agent travelling the world in hot pursuit of…
By John H. Foote (****) In theatres When Belfast won the coveted People’s Choice Award at TIFF this year, I must confess, I wondered what all the fuss was about. Call it fatigue from watching endless films in the confines of my office, but the endless raved surprised me. Maybe that was the trouble, all…
By John H. Foote (****) Streaming on Apple Tom Hanks has twice won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his superb work in Philadelphia (1993) and a year later in Forrest Gump (1994), an unforgettable performance. He has been nominated for the Oscar another four times. He should have won a third for his…
By Geoff Wertheim (**) In theatres A team of immortal beings were specifically created to protect Earth from monsters called Deviants; a job that began 7,000 years ago and finished about 7,000 years ago. Since then they’ve just pretty much hung out, witnessing the events of human history, giving nudges in our evolution to improve…