[VIFF 2020] REVIEW: 'Falling' sends you into the abyss but never quite pulls you back out

Even though John and Willis have a big cathartic fight that leads to an emotional embrace, it doesn’t feel like there’s a higher level of understanding between the two characters to be attained. Mortensen the director is reaching for this one moment where a strained father-son relationship could be understood, but that moment never quite comes.

Film, New ReleasesJason ChenOctober 3, 2020falling, viggo mortensen, lance henriksen, laura linney, terry chen, drama, viff, viff 2020, review, movies, filmComment

[VIFF 2020] REVIEW: 'My Salinger Year' thankfully doesn't last that long

There are various moments throughout the film where I was left scratching my head, to the point where I wasn’t quite sure how to tie everything together for this review. But I kept coming back to these five main points where the film either missed the mark or left me absolutely bewildered.

Film, New ReleasesJason ChenOctober 1, 2020my salinger year, j.d. salinger, margaret qualley, sigourney weaver, drama, literature, viff 2020, viff, review, movies, filmComment

[VIFF 2020] REVIEW: ‘Tales of the Lockdown’ won’t outlast the pandemic

Some credit has to be given to the filmmakers for the constraints they worked under: tight spaces, entry-level equipment, stringent health and safety protocols. But most of the stories still feel overly rushed, with unconvincing characters and scenarios that don’t rise beyond what’s been posted on platforms like TikTok or Twitter during this time.

Film, New ReleasesRobert SnowSeptember 30, 2020tales of the lockdown, spain, 2020, viff 2020, viff, short film, film, movies, review, comedy, thrillerComment

[VIFF 2020] REVIEW: 'Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness' should deliver a lot more

Director Massoud Bakhshi felt it necessary to introduce several twists to the story, and it’s debatable if it added any more tension or identity to the characters. Did we really need further explanation why Mona had such a vested interest in her father’s empire? Did we really need that twist to further root for Maryam?

Film, New ReleasesJason ChenSeptember 29, 2020yalda, a night for forgiveness, sadaf asgari, behnaz jafari, massoud bakhshi, drama, viff, viff 2020, review, movies, film, legalComment

[VIFF 2020] REVIEW: 'My Prince Edward' is no fairy tale, but it's still a good one

It’s clear that Fong is unhappy with Edward, and Edward is similarly unmotivated in making any changes to their lives, but there’s little recourse either way because they have little financial and political means to drastically change their futures. Rather than watching the characters meander around the streets of Hong Kong, Edward and Fong’s cramped apartment forces them to confront their problems.

Film, New ReleasesJason ChenSeptember 27, 2020my prince edward, stephy tang, chu pak-hong, norris wong, film, movies, review, viff 2020, viff, dramaComment

[VIFF 2020] REVIEW: ‘The Reason I Jump’, a sensory-immersion documentary on autism

It’s the movie’s sound design and editing that makes you take notice; to try to replicate how autistic people process the world, amplifying and fixating on certain details, the filmmakers use extreme close-ups and precise, overwhelming sound mixing. The real experience of autism may well remain beyond what movies can convey, but this is the closest I’ve seen any project come.

Film, New ReleasesRobert SnowSeptember 26, 2020the reason I jump, autism, jerry rothwell, documentary, naoki higashida, viff, viff 2020, review, movies, filmComment

[VIFF 2020] REVIEW: ‘Events Transpiring Before, During, and After a High School Basketball Game’ probably happened on a Tuesday

There’s some genuinely funny moments that’s part Napoleon Dynamite and part The Breakfast Club, but there’s a lack of an overarching arc to tie it altogether. I guess ETBDAHSBG’s supposed to be a slice of life and represent an awkward yet normal day of high school, but perhaps that’s why it’s not very engaging. It feels like a bunch of forgettable SNL skits cobbled together, and there are times where it just drags.

Film, New ReleasesJason ChenSeptember 25, 2020high school basketball game, events transpiring, calgary, 1999, 2020, canadian, ted stenson, andrew phung, paul cowling, viff, viff 2020, reviewComment

[VIFF 2020] REVIEW: 'A Life Turned Upside Down: My Dad's an Alcoholic' provides laughs and tears

A Life Turned Upside Down: My Dad’s an Alcoholic is a funny and touching look at what happens when self-destruction pulls everyone down. Based on a semi-autobiographical web comic by Mariko Kikuchi, director Kenji Katagiri’s sensitive touch and ability to mix humour with the dark depths of human emotion elevates this film above your usual melodramatic fare.

Film, New ReleasesJason ChenSeptember 24, 2020a life turned upside down, kenji katagiri, comedy, manga, alcoholism, tragedy, japan, viff, viff 2020, Mariko KikuchiComment

[TIFF 2020] REVIEW: ‘Shiva Baby’ unleashes charming but brutal cringe comedy

We’re treated (or perhaps subjected) to 60 minutes of non-stop social tension; think of the most intense moments of cringe comedy from a season or two of The Office, lined up into one wince-inducing package. No matter where Danielle goes at the gathering, she struggles to stay a step ahead of every fib she needs to tell - about her whereabouts that morning, her fake job as a babysitter, her program at school. The deeper the hole Danielle digs for herself, the more embarrassed we feel for her.

Film, New ReleasesRobert SnowSeptember 19, 2020shiva baby, emma seligman, rachel sennott, fred melamed, danny deferrari, molly gordon, polly draper, comedy, 2020, movies, tiff, tiff 2020Comment

[TIFF 2020] REVIEW: ‘Shadow in the Cloud’ is a wartime horror with a troubled origin

Garrett’s troubles increase with the arrival of two enemies: the Japanese air force, and a thoroughly supernatural addition, a gremlin. Yes, perhaps I forgot to mention: Shadow in the Cloud is also a creature feature. In an homage to the 1963 Twilight Zone episode “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet”, starring William Shatner, Garrett is plagued by a bat/monkey-like creature that’s trying to tear the plane apart in mid-air.

Film, New ReleasesRobert SnowSeptember 17, 2020shadow in the cloud, chloe grace moretz, roseanne liang, max landis, action, horror, movie, film, review, tiff, tiff 2020Comment

[TIFF 2020] REVIEW: ‘Nomadland’ offers unexpected shelter

Many of the people in the nomad community couldn’t be happier. They are free to travel as they please, without the responsibilities that come with keeping up a piece of real estate. It’s a lot grittier than the manicured illusion of #vanlife on Instagram - a quick scene lays out the benefits of different sizes of toilet buckets - but it’s the most free you can be without becoming a totally off-the-grid hermit.

Film, New ReleasesRobert SnowSeptember 15, 2020nomadland, frances mcdormand, chloé zhao, david strathairn, drama, tiff, tiff 2020, movies, reviewComment

REVIEW: ‘Bill & Ted Face the Music’ is an optimistic riff in a gloomy time

Like either of the two previous movies, the more you think about the details of the time travel, the less sense it makes. This is, after all, the series where characters randomly exclaim “Station!” as a catchphrase, an incredibly dense in-joke from a deleted chunk of the second movie’s screenplay. Somehow, the movie doesn’t need a trim, rules-bound universe - it gets by on sight gags and performances alone.

REVIEW: 'The New Mutants' is more of the same

Envisioned as a haunted house psychological thriller-horror — and those elements are certainly quite good, there just isn’t enough of it — no character embodies the main antagonist. The idea that mutants are a danger to themselves and society is interpreted literally in this film. X-Men is supposed to be a reflection of what it’s to be like an outsider, but when the film traps all five mutants in one location without outside contact, they aren’t given a chance to show why they’re ostracized.

Film, New ReleasesJason ChenSeptember 4, 2020x-men, the new mutants, anya taylor-joy, charlie heaton, maisie williams, blu hunt, superhero, comic book, movie, film, review, 2020Comment

REVIEW: ‘Tenet’ will infiltrate your time, if you let it

With Tenet, Nolan presents his most brain-liquifying examination of time yet, “inversion”. In his earlier movies, Nolan’s playing around with time was wild but still largely comprehensible on first viewing. In the nested dream worlds of Inception, it’s easy to grasp how time slows down the deeper in the dream you travel. But in Tenet, the physics are so surreal we might as well be sipping coffee in the Black Lodge on Twin Peaks.

REVIEW: ‘Project Power’ cuts its thrills with confusion

Given the huge range of results, it gets harder to believe that anyone would actually take the stuff. The extent of the movie’s commentary about drug epidemics is “they exist.”

Film, New ReleasesRobert SnowAugust 16, 2020superhero, superpowers, movie, review, film, jamie foxx, joseph gordon-levitt, dominque fishback, netflix, 2020, actionComment

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