The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 manages to capture all the elements that has kept the franchise great, but fails to be more than a cash-grab by the studio who felt the need to break the final book in the Hunger Games trilogy into two films. Directed by Francis Lawrence (who helmed Catching Fire), Mockingjay,
Michael Urie may be best-known as Betty Suarez’ gay best friend Marc St. James on the hit series Ugly Betty; he was slightly-over-the-top with a great sense of humour, unforgettable. But Urie’s actor’s palette contains many more colours than that. Urie was a Julliard student in New York when the 9/11 attacks occurred. A few
The rites of BDSM are explored with refinement and intelligence in The Duke of Burgundy and without even a smidgeon of genitalia. The “otherness” of the lifestyle is muted by the exceptional artistry in the world it inhabits, compassion with which it’s executed and the familiar human factor. It doesn’t pretend to shed new light
Xavier Dolan does that other thing he does – acting – in Charles Binamé’s Elephant Song, a noir-ish psychological drama set in a mental institution in which he plays Michael, a patient who may be behind the disappearance of his psychiatrist. The missing man is replaced by another doctor (Colm Feore) but he’s cowed by
Although it is light on action, Tommy Lee Jones’ The Homesman is a slow-moving western that feels authentic and features powerful performances from Jones and the incredible Hilary Swank. The film also benefits from Miranda Otto, Grace Gummer and Sonja Richter – who make the most of their time on screen and force the audience
Change the things you can, accept the things you cannot, and go to jail and die either way. Nominated for the 2015 Academy Awards Best Foreign Film Oscar, and the winner of the Golden Globe, writer/director Andrey Zvyagintsev’s neo-biblical tome is as fascinating to watch as it is dreadful to imagine. Co-written with Oleg Negin,
Loosely based on the popular children’s book, Alexander and the Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, brings lots of laughs Steve Carell-style and is a fun family film. However, with all children’s books turned major motions pictures (think Shrek, Polar Express, Where the Wild Things Are), the originality of the book must be expanded to
Jake Gyllenhaal delivers an intense and mesmerizing performance in Nightcrawler – a film that captures the audience in the opening moments and keeps them on the edge of their seats until the end credits roll. Gyllenhaal is joined by an incredible cast of character actors including Bill Paxton, Rene Russo, Kevin Rahm, Ann Cusack and
Kevin Costner financed his latest film Black or White himself, so strong was his belief in the material. It’s the true story of a battle between Costner’s character, an alcoholic widower, and Octavia Spencer’s character, matriarch of a big family, for custody of their bi-racial granddaughter. Costner also believed in the abilities of award-winning Canadian
Stripped down and heartfelt essay on what it takes to love and be loved. No hold is barred in Stephen Belber’s short and sweet essay on love and commitment. Mike and Lisa show up on Tobi’s doorstep with an odd request. They have travelled from Seattle to New York to interview Tobi for Lisa’s dissertation.