By John Corrado ★★ (out of 4) After a violent bank robbery, a group of corrupt cops turned criminals led by ex-special forces operative Michael Atwood (Chiwetel Ejiofor) are blackmailed by Russian mob leader Irina Vlaslov (Kate Winslet) to pull off a 999, police code for officer down, to distract from an even bigger job. Disgruntled cop Marcus Belmont… Read More DVD Review: Triple 9
Alice Through the Looking Glass Review By John Corrado ★½ (out of 4) Here’s a conundrum for you. Alice Through the Looking Glass is a film that expects us to care about things, without giving us any real reasons to actually care about them. This is a film that is often so bafflingly undercooked in terms of… Read More Three Views: Alice Through the Looking Glass
By John Corrado ★½ (out of 4) After losing his wife (Christine Taylor) in a freak building collapse, and having his son (Cyrus Arnold) taken away by child services, the infamously dumb Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller) decides to quit modelling and live as a “hermit crab.” But when pop stars like Justin Bieber start getting killed, and… Read More Blu-ray Release: Zoolander No. 2
By John Corrado ★★½ (out of 4) When Jesus (Cliff Curtis) is crucified, and his body goes missing from the sealed tomb, Pilate (Peter Firth) hires a doubting Roman military tribune named Clavius (Joseph Fiennes) to investigate and find a body. Pilate is worried by the implication of claims that the Messiah has risen from the dead, but Clavius has his faith… Read More DVD Review: Risen
By John Corrado When a terrifying blizzard struck off the snowy coast of Cape Cod in 1952, an oil tanker was ripped in half by the high winds and raging waters, leaving young engineer Ray Sybert (Casey Affleck) and his crew struggling to keep the boat afloat. When the Coast Guard picked up their signal, Bernie… Read More Blu-ray Release: The Finest Hours
By John Corrado ★★★★ (out of 4) It’s only fitting that Shane Black, who breathed new life into the buddy cop genre with his screenplay for Lethal Weapon in 1987, a film that mixed action and dark humour to launch a successful franchise, is now reviving this same genre with The Nice Guys. Following his underrated directorial… Read More Review: The Nice Guys
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) After graduating from film school in 1985, Will Allen joined the Bhuddafield cult, an experience that took up over two decades of his life, as he made short films for the cult and became their documentarian. Starting in California, Bhuddafield was a secret community of young spiritualists who were all looking for answers… Read More Bloor Cinema Release: Holy Hell
By John Corrado ★★½ (out of 4) Following a group of aging burlesque performers, who still retain their sex-positive attitudes even as seniors, League of Exotique Dancers, the recent opening night film at Hot Docs, provides a fun alternative history of the women’s rights movement. Although using their bodies and mostly performing for men, these dancers all… Read More Bloor Cinema Release: League of Exotique Dancers
By John Corrado ★½ (out of 4) When a mysterious ship starts hovering above the earth, and the first four waves of an alien invasion unfold, the humans are either wiped out by viruses and dwindling resources, or forced to join the army. When high schooler Cassie (Chloë Grace Moretz) gets separated from her father (Ron Livingston), she… Read More Blu-ray Review: The 5th Wave
By John Corrado One of the most critically acclaimed horror films in recent memory, The Witch takes place in 1630, when a deeply religious family relocates to a rural farm property in New England. But when crops start to fail, and their newborn child mysteriously disappears, the father (Ralph Ineson) comes to believe they have been… Read More Blu-ray Release: The Witch
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) When Cassie Cranston (Jewel Staite) returns to the prudish small town of Beaver’s Ridge for her mother’s funeral, years after an embarrassing incident as a teenager had her labelled the “town slut” and led to a career as a sex columnist, the eccentric locals convince her to plan an orgy.… Read More Review: How to Plan An Orgy in a Small Town
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) Still reeling from his sister’s suicide, Shane (Andrew Martin) dreams of finally getting away from his small Native community in Northern Ontario, and going to university in Toronto with his secret boyfriend David (Harley Legarde-Beacham). But his depressed mother (Jennifer Podemski), dwindling money and being forced to hide his… Read More Review: Fire Song
By John Corrado There are many things about Easy Rider, which received a new Criterion Collection release on Blu-ray last week, that remain iconic. The sweeping images of motorcycles riding along wide open landscapes, a soundtrack featuring some of the best rock songs of the era, and Jack Nicholson’s first of many unforgettable Oscar-nominated roles. But it’s the… Read More Criterion Review: Easy Rider
By John Corrado Hot Docs has come to a close, but before we officially wrap things up until next year, below are my thoughts on the final few films that I had the chance to see. I have also included links to my previous sets of reviews at the bottom of this post, so that you can look… Read More #HotDocs16: Final Batch of Reviews
By John Corrado We have now reached the final weekend of Hot Docs, and below are my thoughts on some more films that I had the chance to see over the last few days. Please come back on Monday for my final batch of reviews, and you can find more info on any remaining showtimes through the links… Read More #HotDocs16: Fourth Batch of Reviews
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) A master of finding intersecting lines between comedy and drama, writer-director Lorene Scafaria has crafted a touching and yet still often laugh out loud funny film in The Meddler, using feel good humour to sensitively explore the different ways people grieve. This is the sort of film you can see… Read More Review: The Meddler
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) Eugene (Dylan Harman) is a young man with Down Syndrome, who still believes in the power of rainbows to deliver gold. Living in Toronto and riddled by extreme poverty, he practically has to take care of himself alongside his terminally ill mother. Eugene sets out to find the proverbial… Read More Review: The Rainbow Kid
Captain America: Civil War Review By John Corrado ★★½ (out of 4) The latest superhero teamup, a concept that has grown less novel since the first Avengers four years ago, Captain America: Civil War packs a lot of stuff into its 146 minute running time. To be sure, there are things here that do work, but after a certain point… Read More Three Views: Captain America: Civil War
By John Corrado Although we are coming up to the final weekend of Hot Docs, there are still plenty of films left to screen. Below are my thoughts on eight more that I saw this week, including several standouts and fascinating conversation starters. Please come back for more reviews over the weekend, and you can find info… Read More #HotDocs16: Third Batch of Reviews
By John Corrado To celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of Top Gun this year, Paramount is releasing a brand new steelbook edition of the classic 1986 action film. Starring Tom Cruise in one of his most iconic roles, and featuring a great soundtrack, this remains a campy and entertaining staple of its decade. Although this release… Read More Blu-ray Review: Top Gun: 30th Anniversary Edition Steelbook