REVIEW: Eyes Wide Shut [1999]

“Fidelio” Would you gamble everything for lust? Is thinking about infidelity as egregious an offence as the act itself? After all, faithfulness isn’t merely a construct of the physical world—our trust and respect goes beyond the exterior into the very fibers of our being to make the words “I’d never cheat on you” flow effortlessly and involuntarily from our lips even when thinking about the person we’d commit it with in a heartbeat. But lust clouds our judgment. It makes us do things we wouldn’t normally do. It allows for…

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TIFF15 REVIEW: Hellions [2015]

“Blood for baby” There’s a lot I like about Bruce McDonald‘s latest horror Hellions. Just as much also has me scratching my head, though. While this sometimes enhances the experience by cajoling you into wanting to watch it again to catch any little details you may have missed, I’m not sure this is one of those times. Unfortunately, right when the creepy factor breaks through its gauge to push me over the edge, it suddenly devolves into silliness. I don’t think it’s of the intentional kind either because screenwriter Pascal…

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Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition preview

TIFF may be known for the film festival that makes up its name’s acronym, but they offer so much more ever since the TIFF Bell Lightbox opened a few years back. Along with an extensive screening schedule of new releases we in Buffalo may never see on the big screen, the organization has set itself apart as an East Coast venue for cinema-centric exhibits we had to previously enjoy from afar via internet recaps and photo galleries. Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition was the latest of these, debuting at LACMA last…

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Top 20 Films of 1999

(short and sweet and to the point; culled from watching 71 releases. constantly updated as i catch up to those i missed. click poster for review if applicable) #20: Any Given Sunday directed by Oliver Stone #19: The Iron Giant directed by Brad Bird #18: Election directed by Alexander Payne #17: Being John Malkovich directed by Spike Jonze . #16: Stigmata directed by Rupert Wainwright #15: Toy Story 2 directed by John Lasseter . #14: Three Kings directed by David O. Russell #13: eXistenZ directed by David Cronenberg #12: The…

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