“The spit takes are lame and the monkey motif is laboured.” That’s not to be taken as a particularly aggressive start to this review, rather, it’s the judgment of a character in The Drowsy Chaperone—about the show itself. The self-deprecation is just one of the many charming aspects of this[Read More…]
Articles by Chris Liu
Ain’t Misbehavin’ is the Real McCoy
The Segal Centre kicked off its season with a delightfully rambunctious musical revue. Ain’t Misbehavin’ celebrates music from the Harlem Renaissance, a period in the “Roaring Twenties” when African-American artists sought to affirm pride in a new black identity. First conceived by Richard Maltby Jr. and Murray Horwitz with music[Read More…]
The dirty dozens
12 Years a Slave is agony in the fullest sense of the word. Chronicling the life of Solomon Northup, a free black man from New York kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841, the film sees director Steve McQueen (Hunger; Shame) at the very zenith of his formidable artistic talent. It takes a horrific portrayal to capture a horrific institution. 12 Years is a mesmerizing, intoxicating tale of man’s capacity for both unspeakable cruelty and incalculable courage.
Despite ethereal visuals, Gravity is full of narrative antimatter
For a space film, Gravity is fairly un-spacey. Sandra Bullock and George Clooney star as astronauts who must struggle to survive when a space mission goes horribly wrong. Gravity doesn’t disappoint visually—director Alfonso Cuarón’s famous long takes seem particularly amiable to outer space—but the film repudiates much of the intellectual legwork done by previous sci-fi masterpieces. Insofar as Gravity’s message is being reduced to humanity finding itself in adversity, the film is as thematically sophisticated as a made-for-TV space horror. But such a criticism may mean little to some. As a straightforward action flick, Gravity is certainly meritorious, with some flashy technical bells and whistles thrown in.
Neither a lender nor a borrower be: Financing McGill theatre
McGill dramatists are, by necessity and by definition, a passionate group. Unpaid as student artists, unrecognized in a frequently desolate and fine arts-free environment, passion is often all they have. Despite these conditions, they have thrived. Productions that fly under the radar still sell out. Shows rivaling those on professional[Read More…]
Groenland: The Chase
A title like The Chase begs the question: chasing what? The album is purposefully coy in providing an answer, but one can rule out ‘talent’ as a possibility—Groenland already has that in abundance. The Montreal six-piece’s release is staggeringly accomplished for a first effort. The Chase occupies a nebulous arena[Read More…]
Brighton MA: Oh Lost
“We weren’t built to last; we were built to explode,” croons Matt Kerstein. The lead singer of Chicago-based quintet Brighton MA delivers the line evocatively in “Bulletproof,” the opener for the group’s sophomore release Oh Lost—and at first, one is tempted to believe him. Unfortunately, the sonic vitality seen in[Read More…]
Fanning the flames of violence
I loathed Django Unchained—Tarantino’s masturbatory exercise in self-aggrandizement. Yet even I can admire the beauty of one particular shot from the film, when a rich ruby blood spurt sprays across a field of snow-white cotton. Not only did this visual reinforce the horrific human toll of commodification—it also looked downright[Read More…]
An accessible opera brings mixed results
Rather than deter crime, religion may stimulate it. That is the controversial conclusion of a new criminological study published last month, which found that criminals—sometimes with rudimentary if not outright false understanding of religious tenets—often use faith as a justification for their crimes. This finding was in the forefront of[Read More…]
Dead Man Down is dead in the water
In the land of action-thrillers, there is a fence. On one side lies territory that is ‘edgy,’ ‘atmospheric,’ and ‘cool.’ The other side is ‘stifling,’ ‘slow,’ and ‘boring.’ Nicolas Winding Refn found himself on the former side of this fence with Drive and Bronson, and the latter with Valhalla Rising.[Read More…]
Behind the scenes: theatre
A fatal thrust of the sword while your heart somersaults; the delightful ease with which a smile is teased from your lips. For many, such moments of passion and emotion epitomize the experience of live theatre. The sight of a performer, excelling in her craft before your very eyes, conveys[Read More…]
McGill’s Savoy succeeds with uproarious comic opera
As senate reform once again makes its awkward, halting round through this country’s public consciousness, it is perhaps timely to reflect on this peculiar institution’s elder brother: the British House of Lords. No longer a bastion of the hereditary aristocracy—though they still hold a seventh of the seats—the upper chamber[Read More…]
Picks for the 2013 Oscar Winners
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has a reputation as tame, dust-covered fossils that shirk from innovation and gravitate towards the crowd-pleaser. This was true for the Best Picture winners of the last two years—both The Artist and The King’s Speech are fine, but not spectacular, eulogies for[Read More…]
A legendary film dynasty unveils its prince
Charlie Sheen is clutching a bottle of vodka in one hand, and $800 worth of caviar in the other. The two alternate in entering his mouth. These are comfort foods—the taxi driver was unable to supply the “coke” and “grass” that Sheen initially requested. No, this isn’t TMZ’s latest update.[Read More…]
A History of Violence
“Empire does not require love, only loyalty.” With this, the stage is set. Waiting for the Barbarians is decidedly anti-love, presenting instead a steel-cold latticework of power relations and authoritarian abuse. For Empire imprisons all semblance of humanity, then throws away the key. Treading a thin line between provoking masochism[Read More…]
A long and torturous path to justice
Minute misfortunes, cringing incompetence, and wanton, inexplicable malevolence—that’s all one needs to hang a boy. Steven Truscott’s case is a black stain on Canadian history. In response to the violent rape and murder of a child—12-year-old Lynne Harper—our neighbours, our courts, and our society took the life of another. Just[Read More…]
What happened last week in Canada?
Dawson Defends Expulsion of Al-Khabaz Montreal’s Dawson College expelled computer science student Ahmed Al-Khabaz after he discovered vulnerability in the college’s student portal. The college cited this as a violation of the department’s code of professional conduct. As the student portal is shared with other CEGEPs, the error compromised the[Read More…]
Despite potential, West Side Story leaves something to be desired
America, despite its violent early emancipation from its colonial overlords, has always harboured a deep-seated, almost shameful Anglophilia. This is perhaps most evident in the cultural sphere, where only the audacity of the American would allow him to appropriate that most revered of all English literary titans, William Shakespeare. West[Read More…]
Short in length, but with long-lasting delight
Every year, popular media whips up a great hullabaloo over the Oscars. However, it’s important to keep in mind exactly which aspects of the awards generate buzz: Who is leading in the Best Picture race? When will the next Harvey Weinstein temper-tantrum be? Is Bjork wearing a swan around her[Read More…]
Setting the stage for the future: English theatre in a French city
QS World University Rankings recently named Montreal one of the best student cities in the world, but you didn’t need a pollster to tell you that. Cheap food, cheap rent, and enough culture to last a lifetime—for many, these are the principal attractions of the bohemian, dynamic metropolis. At the[Read More…]
Film Wrap-Up
Looking back on this year in film, the Tribune’s Arts & Entertainment editors weigh in on the hits, misses, and the movies that slipped through the cracks. The Good Looper Telekinesis, time travel, mafia men—your average director would have combined these elements into something resembling a B-movie from the ’80s.[Read More…]
What happened last week in Canada?
Classified document reveals Harper’s new foreign policy Last Tuesday, the CBC announced it had obtained a confidential document prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, urging the federal government to focus on economic, rather than diplomatic and humanitarian concerns when dealing with emerging markets such as China.[Read More…]
Students voice education grievances at SSMU summit
Last week, the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) held a series of consultation sessions to prepare for the Parti Québécois’s (PQ) summit on higher education planned for February 2013. Led by SSMU Vice-President External Robin Reid-Fraser, the three sessions covered many topics, including student representation at McGill, and out-of-province[Read More…]
Lincoln: moral progress has never looked so glorious
The vote to finally abolish slavery in the U.S. was so very close—shockingly close, in fact. Two more votes could have continued to condemn an entire class of living, breathing human beings to the status of property. If the arc of the moral universe bends toward justice, Abraham Lincoln is[Read More…]
A ‘must-see’ that lives up to the name
This is what the much-lauded American meritocracy looks like: urban, moral, and spiritual decay; an existence battered by the cruelty of Lady Luck, who wields the Sword of Damocles—always one misstep away from the abyss of abject poverty. Playwright David Lindsay-Abaire, who received the Pulitzer Prize for Rabbit Hole (2007),[Read More…]
Expert discusses Bo Xilai in context of Chinese legal system
Last Tuesday, the Asia Pacific Law Association of McGill (APLAM) hosted Pitman Potter for a lecture on the criminal case of Bo Xilai and the political and legal issues that surround it. Bo Xilai, a former Chinese politician who is now at the centre of the country’s biggest political scandal[Read More…]
Students’ reach shouldn’t exceed their grasp
Many may be familiar with the story of Icarus. His father, Daedalus, built him wings to soar through the sky, leaving just one word of warning: go too high, too close to the sun, and the wax affixing the wings to your body will melt. We know how the story[Read More…]
War, worship, and wine: resurrecting ancient Greece
It’s been said that art finds its highest form in the Grecian tragedy. After watching The Bacchae, it’s easy to see why. Scapegoat Carnivale’s production of Euripides’ classic benefits from an original translation by director Andreas Apergis and assistant director Joseph Shragge. The resulting textual clarity aided the talented cast[Read More…]
Waldron offers controversial views on constitutionalism
Last Thursday, McGill’s Research Group on Constitutional Studies (RGCS) hosted scholar Jeremy Waldron in Leacock 232 for a lecture entitled “Constitutionalism: A Skeptical View.” Waldron is a professor of law and philosophy at New York University, and Chichele professor of social and political theory at All Souls College, Oxford. With[Read More…]
Argo uncovers the personal in the political
What does it take to fool the Iranian Revolutionary Guard? If Argo is to be believed, the answer lies in a little Hollywood magic. Director and star Ben Affleck excavates the human story that so often gets buried beneath the rubble of political turmoil. The result is a tightly-wound, deftly-scripted[Read More…]
The long arm of the law is dripping with blood
“It’s a fucking meatgrinder,” says one soon-to-be meat patty towards the end of Dredd. He is talking about Mega-City One, the dystopian cesspool of violence and despair in which the story is set, but he might as well have been referring to the film itself. At its best, the action[Read More…]
Beast of burden
If a script can be personified, Bullhead needs but one word: cruel. Not because it mistreats its audience—on the contrary, the film is as beautiful as it is miserable; dazzling as it is horrific. The sheer amount of sadness that writer-director Michael R. Roskam packs into two hours is so[Read More…]
Bodybuilders have feelings too
Teddy Bear is a study in contrasts. The dissonance between a tattooed, muscle-bound hulk of a man and his utter domination by those thin and frail is a wonder to behold. This is the state in which Dennis, the titular character of Teddy Bear, is introduced: so nervous on his[Read More…]
Title 66 Productions puts Satan on trial
Julia Milz / Title 66 Productions For many, good and evil are so straightforward. Truth is good, lies are bad; helping is good, hurting is bad. Easy. The History of the Devil takes the notion of black-and-white ethics and grinds it into the dirt. Its tale of sin and sympathy,[Read More…]
Ghost Rider sequel crashes and burns in stunning 3D
filmbuffonline.com There are some films which one enters with such low expectations that, by the grace of Providence, the movie manages to just barely surpass them. Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance is one such case. Like a resuscitated drowning victim, the few elements of the film that worked coughed and[Read More…]
Phèdre: Phèdre
Though I was alone when I first watched the video for Phèdre’s “In Decay,” I still threw some nervous glances around. The scene was nothing less than Dionysian paradise: golden elixir pouring down naked bodies, followed shortly by sex-plumped lips, all within a panoply of thick verdant vegetation and[Read More…]
Academy Awards 2012
Best Actor Who will win: Jean Dujardin (The Artist) Before the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards, this category looked like a fight between Dujardin and George Clooney (The Descendants). Once the SAG went to the effervescent Frenchmen, the race appeared to be closing in on an early end. Neither[Read More…]
Heigl flick proves it’s all for the money
thelastreel.blogspot.com There are few pleasures in life that come close to seeing a good film. At its best, cinema can elicit profound sentiments, change one’s view of the world, or simply get one through a crappy day. This makes it all the more disheartening when one has the misfortune of[Read More…]
The demon barber gets a haircut
Sam Reynolds / McGill Tribune There are stories that are fun, pleasing, and uplifting to the soul and spirit. Then there are others that are dark, brutal, and challenging to watch unfold. And then there’s Sweeney Todd. One of Stephen Sondheim’s best known works, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of[Read More…]
Laughter is the best medicine
Sam Reynolds / McGill Tribune My mother, like many, used to stress the importance of good manners. But what happens when yours has none to spare? Well, something like Hay Fever, apparently. Set in the bohemian period of the roaring twenties, the play follows the eccentricities of the Bliss family[Read More…]
Carnage doesn’t translate to the silver screen
hdfreewallpaper.info There are films that I want to like so, so very much, and Carnage is one of them. The fact that all the right ingredients—a Tony-winning play, a famed auteur, A-list talent—resulted in a mediocre exercise in uncontrolled social degeneration proves that cinema cannot be explained via reductionism. Some[Read More…]
With The Artist, silence is golden
eraziel.com The Artist is cinema for cinephiles. Set at the dawn of the Golden Age of Hollywood, it’s at once a post-mortem and celebration of the silent genre. Director Michel Hazanavicius crafts a rich, beautiful world using minimalist cinematic strokes by today’s standards, and in his effort takes the viewer[Read More…]
Melancholia is more than a singular emotion
magpictures.com The apocalypse has never looked so beautiful. Melancholia, the latest from maverick Danish auteur Lars von Trier, is magnificent. With a script that joins human introspection with nihilistic celebration, von Trier creates two hours of rich, thought-provoking and breathtaking cinema. Its long journey from Cannes to Canada now complete, Melancholia is assuredly one of[Read More…]
Coma Unplugged is very much alive
Talisman Theatre It’s a terrible thing to watch a mind go to waste. Yet Pierre-Michel Tremblay’s Coma Unplugged makes it so infectiously fun. Talisman Theatre’s latest production is proof that when you mix a sharply written script with a cast whose energy knows no bounds, magic occurs. The play, translated[Read More…]
The Ides of March
When a film title references the assassination of Caesar, viewers can’t expect lollipops and unicorns. The Ides of March, directed by George Clooney, is a film that strangles hope with its bare hands, throws it in the trunk, then dumps the body in the wilderness of political cynicism. Not to[Read More…]
Curtain rises for Music Theatre Montreal
Music Theatre Montreal The word “actor” can have some rather glitzy connotations. Perhaps visions of Johnny Depp or Anne Hathaway just danced through your head. Maybe little golden statuettes, or the multi-million dollar paychecks that Taylor Lautner receives for taking his shirt off and mumbling. Yet, for every star[Read More…]
Beauty parlour in the south sets stage for drama
It’s strange to consider the human condition as revealed in a beauty parlour. Steel Magnolias, however, accomplishes exactly that. Upon the death of his sister, playwright Robert Harling interwove reflections on religion, tragedy, and the myriad complexities of human relationships in a script that is nothing short of a linguistic[Read More…]
Neon Indian: Era Extraña
Nowadays, music genres rise and fall in popularity on a yearly, if not monthly, basis. There was a time when Texas’ Neon Indian was the vanguard of Extraña” cuts through the synth haze of previous tracks with a spacious and grandiose delivery. Yet these few tracks all share a[Read More…]