Category Archives: Thriller

Raid On Entebbe (1977) and 7 Days In Entebbe reviews — Real-life hijack thrillers span generations

March 25, 2018 flawintheiris

Thoroughbreds review — Thoughtful teen thriller explores empathy and murder

March 12, 2018 flawintheiris

Written and Directed by Cory Finley | 92 min Lily (Anya Taylor-Joy) is an unhappy teen from a very wealthy Connecticut family. She's been kicked out of her private school for plagiarism, but otherwise seems your average overachiever with an out-of- touch mother and asshole stepfather (Paul Sparks). Her pal Amanda (Olivia Cooke) is numb—she…Read More

Holiday Movie Preview, and ICYMI: CTV Morning Live, December 15, 2017

December 18, 2017 flawintheiris

The typical December hubbub and commercialized nonsense has not diminished my excitement about the group of stellar-looking new releases soon coming to cinemas. I'd even venture a little hyperbole: This looks like the most promising holiday season in recent memory. A few award-worthy films screened at the Atlantic International Film Festival will be arriving just…Read More

Thelma review — A Norwegian queer supernatural thriller? Cool.

November 29, 2017 flawintheiris

Directed by Joaquim Trier | Written by Trier and Eskil Vogt | 116 min | On Demand We open on a little girl and her father walking in the wintry woods, hunting. A deer appears, and Dad raises his rifle. But instead of aiming at the doe, he points the weapon at his daughter, a…Read More

The Killing of a Sacred Deer review — More strangeness from The Lobster filmmaker

November 1, 2017 flawintheiris

Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos | Written by Lanthimos and Efthymis Filippou | 120 min The Lobster was the picture everyone had to see last year, if only to hold an opinion on its baked-in weirdness. Greek filmmaker Lanthimos' first English-language film brought his unique vision to the world in a big way. His follow-up is…Read More

The Foreigner review — Action thriller spotlights both Brosnan and Chan

October 23, 2017 flawintheiris

Directed by Martin Campbell | Written by David Marconi, adapting the novel The Chinaman by Stephen Leather | 114 min This London- and Belfast-set thriller is right in Martin Campbell's directorial gunsights. He came from suspense-based British TV like Edge of Darkness, eventually launching not one, but two new James Bonds, Pierce Brosnan in Goldeneye…Read More

#AIFF2017 Day 3: The Square, Film Stars Don’t Die In Liverpool, Sweet Virginia

September 17, 2017 flawintheiris

I tend to be impressed by film doing a single thing well and managing to do that one good thing through its running time. Ruben Östlund's Palme d'or-winning The Square manages to be good at doing many things simultaneously, to the point where it's hard to collect all those things in your head at once. I…Read More

New episode of LENS ME YOUR EARS is up!

July 5, 2017 flawintheiris

In recognition of yesterday's celebration of independence by our friends to the south, a new episode of my film podcast (co-hosted by Stephen Cooke), Lens Me Your Ears, is now available. It's #036, entitled "Make America Great," and you can find it on iTunes and on Stitcher. There's no need to worry, this podcast is…Read More

It Comes At Night review — Fighting the vague plague

June 15, 2017 flawintheiris

Written and Directed by Trey Edward Shults | 91 min | On Demand It's rare, but every once in awhile a movie comes along that frustrates not because it's poorly made or awkwardly realized, but because it's thematically so bleak the film leaves you feeling pummelled. It Comes At Night is one of those films.…Read More

New on Canadian Netflix: May 2017

May 26, 2017 flawintheiris

Here’s a cross-section of a number of mildly-to- solidly recommended films recently made available on Canadian Netflix. (You can click on the movie titles to read my original reviews where I’ve written them in the past.) For me, Netflix is a go-to to revisit movies I’ve already seen or to give the odd TV series a…Read More