Director: Paul King

Writers: Simon Farnaby, Paul King, Roald Dahl

Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Gustave Die, Murray McArthur

Runtime:  Hour Minutes

Synopsis: With dreams of opening a shop in a city renowned for its chocolate, a young and poor Willy Wonka discovers that the industry is run by a cartel of greedy chocolatiers.

The crew review their second musical of the year, Wonka. 

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Director: Takashi Yamazaki

Writers: Takashi Yamazaki

Starring: Minami Hamabe, Ryunosuke Kamiki, Sakura Ando

Runtime:  2 Hour 4 Minutes

Synopsis: Post war Japan is at its lowest point when a new crisis emerges in the form of a giant monster, baptized in the horrific power of the atomic bomb.

The Crew reviews Godzilla Minus One.

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Director: Sean Durkin

Writers: Sean Durkin

Starring: Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Maura Tierney, Holt McCallany

Runtime:  2 Hour 12 Minutes

Synopsis: The true story of the inseparable Von Erich brothers, who made history in the intensely competitive world of professional wrestling in the early 1980s.

The Iron Claw has an absolutely fantastic cast and set of performances and tells the very tragic tale of the Von Erich family. This is definitely a heartbreaking story but it's also a script that doesn't do the full story justice. There's a lot of focus on the tragedy that seems to follow this family around but does so by sacrificing a lot of the context and story. To be fair that context would probably make the story even more heartbreaking but it would have taken the Iron Claw from a good movie with great performances, to a great movie with even greater performances. This is the difference between a film that gets award season buzz for an actor (e.g. Zac Efron) and a movie that gets the full award season push for being an all around great film. 

Listen as Ro, Brandon and Kriss dive in more about The Iron Claw.

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Director: Yorgos Lanthimos

Writers: Tony McNamara, Alasdair Gray

Starring: Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef

Runtime:  2 Hour 21 Minutes

Synopsis: The incredible tale about the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter; a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist, Dr. Godwin Baxter.

Kriss, Ro & Brandon discuss and review the film Poor Things. There's a lot to really enjoy about this film, chief among them is Emma Stone once again showing what an outstanding actress and performer she is. It's not a slight to the other performers in this film to say that Emma Stone carries this film because the story truly revolves around her character, Bella Baxter. But what Emma Stone is asked to do and is able to do is what makes this film. Not too many actresses could have pulled this off and she does it in a brilliant way. This film isn't perfect but is definitely a great modern telling of the story of Frankenstein (or rather the aftermath of the Frankenstein story) that is worth checking out. 

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Director: Bishal Dutta

Writers: Bishal Dutta, Ashish Mehta

Starring: Megan Suri, Neeru Bajwa, Mohana Krishnan, Betty Gabriel

Runtime:  1 Hour 39 Minutes

Synopsis: An Indian-American teenager struggling with her cultural identity has a falling out with her former best friend and, in the process, unwittingly releases a demonic entity that grows stronger by feeding on her loneliness.

Kriss, Ro and Brandon discuss the film It Lives Inside. While 2023 has been a good year for horror films, It Lives Inside represents the rare miss of a film that should have been and could have been so much more. 

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Director: Michael Mann

Writers: Troy Kennedy Martin, Brock Yates

Starring: Adam Driver, Shailene Woodley, Giuseppe Festinese

Runtime:  2 Hour 4 Minutes

Synopsis: Set in the summer of 1957, with Enzo Ferrari's auto empire in crisis, the ex-racer turned entrepreneur pushes himself and his drivers to the edge as they launch into the Mille Miglia, a treacherous 1,000-mile race across Italy.

Once you realize that Michael Mann was a producer on Ford v Ferrari, the "I can do it too" mentality that oozes out of Ferrari makes sense. The problem is, all the charm and intrigue that Ford v Ferrari had is completely missing from Ferrari. Adam Driver is a great actor who is routinely misused by directors and scripts and Ferrari is no exception. Christian Bale and Matt Damon played well off of each other in Ford v Ferrari and made for a compelling story. In Ferrari, Driver is not only boring but Penélope Cruz is criminally underused, leaving Driver without a strong second to play off of. That then leads to the second issue which is there are about 3 different direction this film could have gone which would have made for a great movie and instead it attempts all three directions half heartedly. The best direction this film could have stuck with would have been to follow Cruz's Laura Ferrari and made a much more interesting movie. Instead she's presented as a bitter woman who just can't understand why her great man of a husband is in love with another woman and fathered another child. There j

The other surprising thing about this film is how bad it looks in some action scenes. The crashes in this film are supposed to be big and draw you in. Instead, they're almost comical in how poorly they're shot. Even without looking hard, you can see where stunt drivers have been replaced with crash test dummies or poorly used effects to show gruesome after effects. It's all just very poorly done.

Ferrari is a forgettable film. Honestly, in the end just go rewatch Ford v Ferrari if you want this type of film.

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Director: Blitz Bazawule

Writers: Marcus Gardley, Alice Walker, Marsha Norman

Starring: Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, Colman Domingo, Corey Hawkins

Runtime: 2 Hour 20 Minutes

Synopsis: A woman faces many hardships in her life, but ultimately finds extraordinary strength and hope in the unbreakable bonds of sisterhood.

Ro, Kriss and Brandon review the 2023 adaptation of The Color Purple. There is a wild  swing in opinions and views on this film. It's definitely a "your mileage may vary". Listen as the crew gives their opinions (and jokes) on this film. 

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Director: Hayao Miyazaki

Writers: Hayao Miyazaki

Starring: 

Runtime:  2 Hour 4 Minutes

Synopsis: 

Already acclaimed as a masterpiece in Japan, Hayao Miyazaki’s new film begins as a simple story of loss and love, and rises to become a staggering work of imagination.

Already acclaimed as a masterpiece in Japan, Hayao Miyazaki’s new film begins as a simple story of loss and love, and rises to a staggering work of imagination. Coming after the maker of Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke announced his retirement, The Boy and the Heron is an especially precious gift, and possibly the final film we will see from one of cinema’s greatest artists.

As a boy, Miyazaki read Genzaburo Yoshino’s novel How Do You Live? and embraced it as his favourite. This film was initially announced as an adaptation of that book, but Miyazaki uses it instead as one of many layers in a dazzling tapestry that draws even more upon his own youth.

During the Second World War, young Mahito Maki (Soma Santoki) suffers a heartbreaking family tragedy and must move immediately to the countryside, where his father (Takuya Kimura) works for a family making planes for Japan’s military, as Miyazaki’s own father did.

Isolated, Mahito begins exploring the mysterious landscapes and encounters a grey heron, persistent in its presence. The boy also happens upon an abandoned tower. Curious, he enters. From there, The Boy and the Heron expands into a wondrous, often-startling phantasmagoria.

Visually, the film shows Miyazaki at the height of his powers, filling the frame with gorgeous compositions, vibrant colour, and arresting movement. As it draws you deeper into its mysteries, The Boy and the Heron becomes richer, stranger, and more profoundly beautiful. This is a singular, transformative experience in film, and not to be missed.

 

Everyone knows that Kriss doesn't watch anime but thanks to the Toronto Film Festival and the pre-festival buzz that Hayao Miyazaki's latest Studio Ghibili film was receiving, Kriss added The Boy and the Heron to his TIFF coverage list. And the film did not disappoint. Even for those that do not typically gravitate to anime or Studio Ghibili films, this film will definitely be relatable in its themes around grief, finding oneself and what it means to be a "good person". Another thing that works very well for this film is the time period around when this film takes place. Set during the Pacific War during World War 2, there are a lot of subtle (or not so subtle depending on one's understanding of history) that set a much darker and grim tone for this film. That understanding of some of the background action and characters only serves to make The Boy and the Heron even more of an intriguing and engaging films.

Image credit: Courtesy of TIFF

There have been a lot of great animated films this year but The Boy and the Heron might be one of the best looking films of the year. Audiences should definitely seek out IMAX showings of this film where possible. Even without IMAX, the film is absolutely stunning and pushes the bar higher for what audiences should demand from animated film visuals.

The Boy and the Heron has received a lot of pre-festival buzz and it's all well worth it. Listen as Kriss, Ro and Brandon discuss The Boy and the Heron and dive deeper into the film and what makes it so good.

The Boy and the Heron is now playing in US theaters.

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Director: Cord Jefferson

Writers: Cord Jefferson, Percival Everett

Starring: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams, Adam Brody, Keith David, Issa Rae, Sterling K Brown

Runtime:  1 Hour 57 Minutes

Synopsis:

Starring Jeffrey Wright in one of his most beautifully nuanced performances, American Fiction is both a wickedly smart satire about the commodification of marginalized voices and a bittersweet portrait of an artist forced to re-examine the terms of his integrity.

Thelonious “Monk” Ellison (Wright) is a respected author and professor of English literature. But his impatience with his students’ cultural sensitivities is threatening his academic standing, while his latest novel is failing to attract publishers; they claim Monk’s writing “isn’t Black enough.” He travels to his hometown of Boston to participate in a literary festival where all eyes are on the first-time author of a bestseller titled We’s Lives In Da Ghetto, a book Monk dismisses as pandering to readers seeking stereotypical stories of Black misery. Meanwhile, Monk’s family experiences tragedy, and his ailing mother requires a level of care neither he nor his trainwreck of a brother (Sterling K. Brown) can afford.

One night, in a fit of spite, Monk concocts a pseudonymous novel embodying every Black cliché he can imagine. His agent submits it to a major publisher who immediately offers the biggest advance Monk’s ever seen. As the novel is rushed to the printers and Hollywood comes courting, Monk must reckon with a monster of his own making.

Adapted from Percival Everett’s novel Erasure, Cord Jefferson’s directorial debut is a wildly entertaining send-up of our hunger for so-called authenticity. Featuring stellar supporting turns from Issa Rae and Erika Alexander, and a string of cheeky cameos, American Fiction is a timely reflection on the fictions we tell ourselves about race, progress, and community.

Out of all the films at the Toronto Film Festival, American Fiction seemed like the one that would be a setup for disappointment.      Several big name actors (Jeffrey Wright, Sterling K Brown, Issa Rae, etc). It just reeks of the type of film to draw an audience in but disappoint them. Thankfully, Cord Jefferson does not fall into the trap and makes a very smart, nuanced film that is both funny, serious and insightful all at the same time. 

American Fiction succeeds where other films like it have failed because it does not try to run away from the point it's trying to make by trying to over-explain its point or cater to the wrong audience. It's a very refreshing take on black art and black family. While some will look at the obvious, over-the-top and quite frankly, funny plot of the film, there is a very nuanced, subtle plot that revolves around the complexities of a black family. American Fiction tackles topics like:

Black families and acceptance (or not) of homosexuality in their family

Black male anger that is directed inward instead of expressed safely

How the "Black experience" can be the same regardless of income and social status

Respectability politics in Black Art

and so many more issues

This is the film that so many think they're making when they want to tackle some of these concepts but fail. American Fiction manages to sneak in a lot of complex issues while masking it under superficial which is very meta for the plot of this film. This is definitely a must see film.

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Capsule Review: Napoleon is unimaginative, uninspired, and unrelentingly dry. The score and sound design are masterful, but Scott expects them to do too much work in this inert bolder of a story. It's doesn't even give good costume drama - and I say that as a lover of costume dramas. 

Listen as Ro chats with Kriss about how Ridley Scott tricked her into watching a film that turns pivotal historical characters into Looney Tunes caricatures and makes such a criminal waste of Vanessa Kirby that Ro demands Scott fight her. 

Director: Ridley Scott

Writers: David Scarpa

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Vanessa Kirby, Tahar Rahim

Runtime:  2 Hours 38 Minutes

Synopsis:  [Alllegedly] based on the true story of Napoleon Bonaparte, primarily depicting the French leader's rise to power as well as his relationship with Empress Joséphine

Napoleon opns in theaters November 22, 2023

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