By John Corrado ★★★★ (out of 4) The story of Joy Mangano (Jennifer Lawrence), highly successful entrepreneur and inventor of the self-wringing Miracle Mop, might not sound like obvious fodder for an awards season biopic, lest the basis for gripping entertainment. But in the hands of director David O. Russell, and star Jennifer Lawrence in their… Read More Review: Joy
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) Through brilliant cinematography and sound, first time director Laszlo Nemes depicts the unspeakable cruelty of the concentration camps in almost uncompromisingly bleak detail in Son of Saul, a gripping and harrowing drama that is also one of the year’s best. Saul (Géza Röhrig) is a prisoner at Auschwitz, who has… Read More Review: Son of Saul
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout, I’m telling you why, because if you don’t, an ancient evil spirit will come and terrorize your family over the holidays. This is the dark premise behind Krampus, an incredibly entertaining and also surprisingly heartfelt Christmas horror… Read More Review: Krampus
A few more last minute book ideas! These four are published by Chronicle books (distributed in Canada by Raincoast) and can be found in the film and art sections of most book stores. – Erin Corrado The Art of Inside Out The book opens a foreword by Amy Poehler (voice of Joy) and an introduction by the film’s… Read More Christmas Gift Ideas – Four books featuring behind-the-scenes art from Pixar
By John Corrado Last week, Sony Pictures released acclaimed director Jean-Jacues Annaud’s Wolf Totem on Blu-ray 3D. Taking place during China’s Cultural Revolution, the story follows Chen Zhen (Shaofeng Feng), a young student who is sent to live with the herdsman in Mongolia. Although their livestock face threats from the surrounding wolves, the villagers have found ways to live symbiotically,… Read More Blu-ray 3D Release: Wolf Totem
By John Corrado Today, Sony Pictures is releasing the popular faith-based drama War Room on Blu-ray. Tony (T.C. Stallings) and Elizabeth Jordan (Priscilla Shirer) live a privileged life with their daughter Danielle (Alena Pitts), but their lives are actually crumbling under the weight of increasing distance and a stalled out marriage, aggravated by his constant… Read More Blu-ray Release: War Room
By John Corrado Today, Elevation Pictures is releasing the solid biopic Pawn Sacrifice on DVD. The film dramatizes the famous 1972 chess match between the increasingly paranoid American prodigy Bobby Fischer (Tobey Maguire), and celebrated Russian Boris Spassky (Liev Schreiber), in a battle that becomes about much more than just pieces on a board. Directed by… Read More DVD Release: Pawn Sacrifice
Every year, I like to profile a few film-related books as suggested gifts for Christmas. These three from Dorling Kindersley can all be found in most book stores, so are easy to pick up last minute. For Disney & Pixar fans on your list, these are all sure to be a hit! – Erin Corrado… Read More Christmas Gift Ideas – Three books for the Disney fans on your list…
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) I would like to start my review of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the seventh instalment in the classic space opera that arrives after years of almost insanely high anticipation, by saying that the film is a lot of fun. And that’s exactly what I was expecting. Fun. No, Episode 7… Read More Review: Star Wars: The Force Awakens
By John Corrado Today, Paramount is releasing Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation on Blu-ray. This fifth film in the series once again follows super spy Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise), who has now gone rogue to track down a syndicate of highly trained agents, becoming closely involved with Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferugson), a British agent who may… Read More Blu-ray Release: Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) The seventh entry into the Rocky franchise, which started nearly forty years ago with the Oscar-winning original film, Creed arrives like an unexpected knockout. This is the rare spinoff that is able to both meet high expectations and stand up to lofty comparisons to its predecessors, while emerging as a winner in its… Read More Review: Creed
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) The title of Youth, the latest and one of the greatest from Oscar-winning Italian filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino, is perhaps meant as a reminder of life’s bitter irony and the elusiveness of being young, when memories of the past are constantly fading. The film unfolds over a few weeks at… Read More Review: Youth
By John Corrado The most recent entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Ant-Man is being released on Blu-ray 3D today. The film shows the origin story of Scott Lang (Paul Rudd), who has just gotten out of jail and teams up with scientist Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), who has developed a suit that allows the… Read More Blu-ray 3D Release: Ant-Man
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) Perhaps the most surprising thing about The Night Before is that this raunchy buddy comedy proudly wears its heart on the sleeve of its brightly coloured novelty sweater. This is a Christmas movie that has all the beats of a new holiday classic, along with some of the biggest laughs… Read More Review: The Night Before
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) After premiering at TIFF, Al Purdy Was Here is starting a limited run at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema tonight, tickets and showtimes can be found right here. A “Sensitive Man” beneath an ultra masculine persona, who rose from his humble working class origins to leave behind a lasting legacy… Read More Bloor Cinema Release: Al Purdy Was Here
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) The music documentary All Things Must Pass: The Rise and Fall of Tower Records is opening at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema this weekend, tickets and showtimes can be found right here. Founded by Russ Solomon in the back of his father’s convenience store, Tower Records blossomed into the premiere place for music… Read More Blood Cinema Release: All Things Must Pass: The Rise and Fall of Tower Records
By John Corrado ★★ (out of 4) Back in the 1960s, the Kray Brothers owned the crime-riddled streets of London, and these notorious gangster twins are given the glossy and often overlong biopic treatment in Legend. The only real twist here is that they are both portrayed by Tom Hardy, in an admittedly impressive dual role.… Read More Review: Legend
By John Corrado ★★½ (out of 4) The fourth and final chapter in the blockbuster series, adapted from the bestselling trilogy of impressively staged young adult novels, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 sadly closes this dystopic cinematic franchise with more of a whimper than a bang. Although this is a serviceable last act that mostly ties… Read More Review: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2
By John Corrado Last week, D.A. Pennebaker’s classic 1967 documentary Don’t Look Back was released on Blu-ray, through the Criterion Collection. Following Bob Dylan on his 1965 London tour, the film captures the young folk singer at the height of his early fame, being chased by adoring teenaged fans, hanging out with fellow musicians like Joan Baez and… Read More Criterion Release: Don’t Look Back
The Joy of Movies 