Christmas on the Square review — For Dolly completists only

December 11, 2020 flawintheiris

Directed by Debbie Allen | Music and Lyrics by Dolly Parton, written by Maria S. Schlatter, based on her stage play | 98 min | Netflix It's entirely possible this doesn't qualify as cinema at all, given that it's produced by Warner Brothers Television, but either way Christmas on the Square is just awful. I…Read More

Sound of Metal review — Riz Ahmed’s tour de force performance elevates drama

December 8, 2020 flawintheiris

Directed by Darius Marder | Written by Darius Marder, Abraham Marder, and Derek Cianfrance | 120 min | Netflix Ruben Stone (Riz Ahmed) is an addict, four years sober. He drums for a hard core band, and his partner, Lou (Olivia Cooke), is the front person. They've got a pretty good thing going on —…Read More

Mayor review — A street-level perspective of the Palestinian-Israeli problem

December 7, 2020 flawintheiris

Directed by David Osit | 89 min | Screen at Carbon Arc Cinema until December 17 American filmmaker Osit's film is a tragicomic look at municipal politics in the West Bank town of Ramallah, through the work of its mayor — Musa Hadid, a Christian, who we meet at the start of his second term…Read More

Last Christmas revisit review — Better than you’ve heard

December 6, 2020 flawintheiris

People who know me know I love London — I went to high school there and have visited probably a dozen times since those years. Exactly a year ago I in town, a gorgeous week of galleries, theatre, and a lot of walking down streets adorned with all the lights of the holidays — as…Read More

Luxor review — Trauma haunts gorgeous Egyptian romance

December 4, 2020 flawintheiris

Written and Directed by Zeina Durra | 85 min | Amazon Prime Back in 2009, an international co-pro with an Arabic-Canadian filmmaker opened in cinemas: Ruba Nadda's Cairo Time. It's about an American woman, Juliette, played by Patricia Clarkson, who gets to know a friend of her husband, played by Alexander Siddig, while visiting Egypt.…Read More

Rocks review — Extraordinary portrait of the lives of British teens

December 3, 2020 flawintheiris

Directed by Sarah Gavron | Written by Theresa Ikoko and Claire Wilson | 93 min | On Demand "Rocks" is the nickname most know Shola Omotoso by. She's a teenager who lives in a council flat — that's a rent-controlled apartment in one of those tombstone-like concrete towers in suburban London. I've never been to…Read More

Happiest Season review — A gay and merry holiday treat

December 2, 2020 flawintheiris

Directed by Clea DuVall | Written by DuVall and Mary Holland | 102 min | CBC Gem, Crave It's Christmas at the Caldwell home, solidly upper-middle class, white, and midwestern. Daughter Harper (Mackenzie Davis) is bringing her partner Abby (Kristen Stewart) to the holiday celebration. The problem is that Harper hasn't come out to her…Read More

Podcast Update: LENS ME YOUR EARS on David Fincher and Mank!

December 1, 2020 flawintheiris

Despite these difficult days of COVID, Stephen Cooke and I have kept up with our co-hosting duties on LENS ME YOUR EARS, the film podcast — all recorded remotely. In the past while we've discussed films by indigenous filmmakers, courtroom dramas, and mind- and body-swap movies. Inspired by the arrival of Mank, the new David…Read More

#TIFFSecretMovieClub Review: I’m Your Woman

November 29, 2020 flawintheiris

The Toronto International Film Festival offers a Secret Movie Club, where they screen brand new independent films online where you won't know what you're watching until you press play. You can sign up for a screening a month from now through the winter. The films are introduced by NOW Magazine film reviewer Norm Wilner. The…Read More

Song Without A Name review — Dark days in Peru

November 25, 2020 flawintheiris

Directed by Melina León | Written by León and Michael J. White | 97 min | On Demand A haunting, intense drama based on actual events that took place in Peru in 1988, reported on by the journalist father of the director and co-writer, León, against the backdrop of conflict between the Peruvian government and…Read More