Joker, director and co-writer Todd Phillips’ dark and violent attempt to tell the origin story of one of the nastiest comic book villains of all time, is, like the character at the centre of it all, hard to define, but leaves an indelible impression.
Joaquin Phoenix
One of the most passionless films ever made about the foundations of Christianity and one of the most controversial, divisive, and debated figures in biblical history, Australian filmmaker Garth Davis’ Mary Magdalene relegates its fascinatingly complex titular character to the sidelines of her own story.
A unique, beguiling, and subtly humorous take on the western genre, French filmmaker Jacques Audiard’s adaptation of Canadian novelist Patrick DeWitt’s The Sisters Brothers breathes ingenious new life into a cinematic artform that always feels like it’s on perpetual life support.
An easily digestible, inspirational tale of addiction, injury, disability, and recovery, Gus Van Sant’s John Callahan biopic Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot finds the respected filmmaker firmly in his feel-good, Hollywood friendly zone.
Arriving on DVD this week, clichés are apparently alive and well, whether they pop up on the streets of New York City in the 80s crime-drama We Own the Night, or take the form of characters in Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? I take a look at how these two films deal with their obvious faults, and still manage to keep the story alive and well.
The cast of Reservation Road answer questions at a press conference during the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival.
War movies usually aren’t my thing. Even movies like Born On The Fourth of July or Patton didn’t really do anything for me, but when I saw that Buffalo Soldiers had Ed Harris, Anna Paquin, and the very talented Joaquin Phoenix (who always looks strung out to me), I had to see what the movie was all about.