#FIN2021 Review — Titane

September 21, 2021 flawintheiris

Directed by Julia Ducournau | Written by Ducournau with Jacques Akchoti, Jean-Christophe Bouzy, and Simonetta Greggio | 108 min | Crave The only film in FIN's 2021 Extreme program — can a program really be called a program if it only includes a single movie? Discuss — Titane is from the director of French cannibal coming-of-age…Read More

Between Waves review — Impressive ideas, flawed execution

September 21, 2021 flawintheiris

Directed by Virginia Abramovich | Written by Abramovich and Katherine Andrews | 100 min | On Demand It's a rare thing, a first time feature filmmaker who also happens to be a woman (with her co-writer who is also a woman) diving deep into hard science fiction. There's a lot to admire in Abramovich and…Read More

Malignant review — Veteran horrormeister Wan returns to comfort zone

September 20, 2021 flawintheiris

Directed by James Wan | Written by Wan, Ingrid Bisu, and Akela Cooper | 111 min | Netflix James Wan, Hollywood writer-director-producer who launched beloved horror franchises Saw, The Conjuring, and Insidious, and one superhero franchise, Aquaman, returns with what's bound to be another popular series. Malignant is fine. I didn't love it. But it…Read More

#FIN2021 Reviews — Wife Of A Spy, The Worst Person In The World

September 19, 2021 flawintheiris

Wife Of A Spy | Directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa | Written by Kurosawa, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, and Tadashi Nohara | 115 min Kobe, 1940. The military presence in Japan is cracking down on free thinking merchants and amateur filmmakers like Yusaku Fukuhara (Issey Takahashi), who heads to Manchuria with his nephew on a business trip. Is…Read More

#FIN2021 Review: Memoria

September 18, 2021 flawintheiris

Written and Directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul | 136 min It's been more than a decade since I've seen a film by the revered Thai filmmaker with the challenging-to-pronounce name. It was his Palme d'Or-winning Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, a picture that is delightfully resistant to the tyranny of traditional narrative. His…Read More

Best Sellers review — Talented cast lost in predictable dramedy

September 17, 2021 flawintheiris

Directed by Lina Roessler | Written by Anthony Grieco | 100 min | On Demand Here's how the IMDB describes this film: "A cranky, retired author reluctantly embarks on a final book tour to help out a young publisher." This isn't entirely accurate. First off, the author isn't retired, he's Harris Shaw (Michael Caine), an…Read More

FIN Atlantic International Film Festival 2021 — Preview

September 16, 2021 flawintheiris

The FIN Atlantic International Film Festival is back, and this year it's a hybrid presentation: Features, documentaries, and shorts programs will be available for in-person screenings from September 16 through 23rd at Cineplex Park Lane while the Atlantic Canadian program is online at FIN Stream for the duration. Go to finfestival.ca for the full schedule…Read More

LENS ME YOUR EARS September Update

September 10, 2021 flawintheiris

If you're new to this blog, you may not be aware I also cohost a podcast about movies. I do it with award-winning Halifax arts journalist and all-around living cinema encyclopedia, Stephen Cooke. It's called Lens Me Your Ears, and here's what we've been up to lately: LMYE Episode #129: Marion Bright - The Career…Read More

The Card Counter review — Paul Schrader’s all in with dark thriller

September 9, 2021 flawintheiris

Written and Directed by Paul Schrader | 109 min | In Cinemas "Nothing can justify what we did. If you were there you’d understand that. Otherwise, there is no understanding.” This is a little truism spoken by William Tell (Oscar Issac) —his surname's actually Tolliver, but his nom-de-pari is the poorly chosen Tell. He's a professional…Read More

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings review — Tony Leung is this superhero movie’s MVP

September 7, 2021 flawintheiris

Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton | Written by Cretton, Dave Callaham, and Andrew Lanham | 132 min | In Cinemas The first thing anyone who might've been a fan of the original Marvel comic, Shang-Chi: Master of Kung Fu — as problematic as it could sometimes could be — should do coming into this feature is…Read More