It has been a little quiet here over the last week as a well-earned vacation was in order. Sure, there are a slew of films that I probably should be seeing and discussing this summer, but it was important to squeeze in some family time prior to the fall film festival season kicking into gear. […]
Category Archives: Articles
June
24
Revisiting the Works of Errol Morris
posted by Courtney Small
As Errol Morris’ latest film, The B-Side: Elsa Dorfman’s Portrait Photography, opens this weekend, I decided to spend some time revisiting his influential canon. If you are new to Morris’ films, and are wondering where is a good place to dive in, then I am here to help. Over at In the Seats, I looked […]
March
27
Fast & Furious Franchise’s 8 Most Outlandish Moments
posted by Courtney Small
The Fast & Furious series has evolved greatly from its humble beginnings. Over the course of seven films we have watched Dominic Toretto and his crew go from street racing criminals to government sponsored superheroes (or elite task force if you will). While fans can debate the ranking of their favorite films in the series, […]
February
11
Oscars: A Documentary Race for the Ages
posted by Courtney Small
Will La La Land dance its way to the Best Picture win? Does Moonlight or Manchester by the Sea have enough momentum to sway voters? Can Hidden Figures or Fences pull a Super Bowl level come from behind upset? As film lovers and pundits engage in debates comparing the merits of the various Academy Award […]
January
22
The End of #OscarsSoWhite? Not So Fast.
posted by Courtney Small
On Tuesday the Academy Awards will be announcing this year’s nominees vying for the iconic golden statues in various categories. In the past, the lead up to the announcement was a time of speculation and excitement for cinephiles worldwide. This year, however, feels different. The escapist fanfare that the Oscar nominations once provided has been […]
January
02
52 Films by Women: A Lesson in Humility
posted by Courtney Small
If I can be truthful for a moment, I was a little reluctant to sign up for Women in Film’s 52 Films by Women campaign. It is not that I did not support the goal of promoting female filmmakers as diversity in cinema is very important to me. No my hesitance to sign up was […]
December
31
2016: Blockbuster Beatdown
posted by Courtney Small
Millions rallying behind a man who crudely tells it like it is…or at least his skewed version of the truth. Openly misogynistic rhetoric flooding social media; some of which lamenting the loss of the good ole days. Hordes of people rejecting that which was once considered a sure bet. In a strange way, it can […]
August
22
TIFF’s Importance Goes Beyond Oscar Glory
posted by Courtney Small
As I sit here with tears welling in my eyes, having joined the rest of the nation in watching The Tragically Hip’s farewell concert, I want nothing more than to scream. To unleash the rage inside and break free of sense of the melancholy that has been holding me down for months. If there was […]
July
05
Say What You Will, Independence Day Did Summer Blockbuster Right
posted by Courtney Small
It is funny how time changes perception. Back in the summer of 1996, July 3rd to be exact, the world was partly destroyed by aliens, and mankind banded together, at least in America, to fight for the planet they loved. All the while millions of people sat with popcorn in hand watching the events unfold. […]
March
23
Zootopia Offers Parents a Gateway to Discourse
posted by Courtney Small
A little over a year and a half ago, I was at MacDonald’s with my wife and then three-year-old son hoping to grab a quick bite before running a few errands. While my wife stood in line to order our food, my son and I rushed to grab the only seat available in the surprisingly […]
March
09
Nina: Is Controversy Good for Business?
posted by Courtney Small
In the realm of popular culture, last week was one for the ages. Donald Trump’s seemingly inexplicable reign on the campaign trail continued to roll on with the same force, and sense of reckless abandonment, as the runaway train in the film Unstoppable. However, it wasn’t the political mudslinging, the references to penis sizes, or […]
January
13
The Uncomfortable Nature of Race in The Hateful Eight
posted by Courtney Small
Warning the following contains a few spoilers for The Hateful Eight. It is advised that you view the film before reading this piece. An unexpected uneasiness washed over me while watching Quentin Tarantino’s latest opus The Hateful Eight. It was a feeling that hit me with the same surprising intensity as the blood that paints […]
December
02
The Nominating Conundrum
posted by Courtney Small
A few weekends ago I went on a fried chicken crawl around the downtown core. The goal was for each team to sample the wares at four different eateries and rate them based on a predefined ranking system. Everything from the crust, taste, sides, and overall value was up for scrutiny. As one observer joked […]
November
30
The Female Pioneer of American Experimental Cinema: Maya Deren
posted by Rituparna
Rebellious visual artists have always given the world of cinema a distinctive aesthetic. Experimental films, therefore, continue to help cinema remain an art in itself. In an age when Hollywood was producing large scale films with clear narratives, directors like Maya Deren persistently created films which knocked audience off-balance and often left them uncomfortable and […]
November
03
Too Much of a Good Thing?
posted by Courtney Small
One of the things that stuck with me from this year’s Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) was the number of folks who lamented about the quality of films that were being released in 2015. While some praised the strong crop of films, there was a large vocal contingent who noted that there were numerous “good” […]
September
24
The Burden of Anticipation
posted by Courtney Small
“It would have been appreciated a lot more had it not won the Palme d’Or” is a phrase I found my saying a lot when talking about Jacques Audiard’s Dheepan at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) last week. Audiard’s film works well for the small character study it is, unfortunately many people I spoke […]
July
26
Marvel’s Problematic Road to Diversity
posted by Courtney Small
[Editor’s note – Warning this piece contains spoilers for the film Ant-Man.] During one of the post-credit scenes in Ant-Man, Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) triumphantly exclaims “It’s about damn time!” upon hearing that she will indeed be getting the one thing she has craved for the entire film. The moment is meant to signal […]
July
15
Taking My Minion to see Minions
posted by Courtney Small
There are certain milestones that every parent secretly awaits with anxious anticipation. Some of these typically include the first day of school, that moment when they master riding a bicycle without training wheels, or even the day they stroll down the aisle to profess their undying love to that special someone. As you can imagine, […]
June
17
The Surprising Resurgence of Universal Pictures
posted by Courtney Small
Now that the dust has settled and the genetically modified dinosaurs are presumably back in their holding cells until the next Jurassic film is unleashed, the contenders are becoming a little clearer now that we have reached the halfway point of the year. The competition I am referring to is the yearly financial race that […]
June
07
Changing the Conversation: Women and the Box Office
posted by Courtney Small
Casey Newton is the hero the future, and cinema in general, needs. She is extremely intelligent, determined, optimistic, and is willing to sacrifice everything for causes she feels are just. Even if it means sabotaging equipment that will be used to demolish a NASA launch pad – once the demolition is complete her father, a […]
