Michael Bublé brings class to Christmas classics and Christmas is solid all the way through. It’s got charm, personality, and brings a new, fresh flavour to songs that get overplayed every holiday season. There are elements of jazz, some contemporary pop, a bit of swing, and even some big band-esque[Read More…]

Emily Doyle / Players’ Theatre Dark comedy is a perplexing concept. Though initially a contradiction in terms, most people understand the subtlety involved in such a label. The work may make upsetting issues “lighter”; perhaps, conversely, it may convey typical subjects of comedy in acidic, disturbing ways. In both of[Read More…]

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…]

filmofilia.com On the all-time stoner comedy list, A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas doesn’t sniff any of the classics—Up In Smoke and Half Baked are safe—nor does it approach the charm of its White Castle predecessor; however, no one’s going to argue that this movie isn’t a good time.[Read More…]

You recognize success in mixing genres when connoisseurs on either side think the music is beyond their field. My friend, a venerable bluegrass expert, recommended Goat Rodeo Sessions to me, saying he failed to understand the classical nuances. After I listened to this album, I wanted to give it back,[Read More…]

Drake is living proof that not every rapper has to resort to insipid, vapid rhymes about dollar bills and girls in order to still talk about dollar bills and girls. Returning strong with his second studio album Take Care, Drake continues to rely on his articulate, straightforward lyrics and his[Read More…]

straight.com The first thing to note about Immortals is that it’s not 300, at least not entirely. Directed by the remarkable Tarsem Singh and produced by 300 frontmen Mark Canton and Gianni Nunnari, Immortals brings an eclectic blend of stunning visual and creative elements together fairly successfully. Set in the realm[Read More…]

Yves Renaud Opéra de Montréal calls Antonin Dvořák’s Rusalka “the story of The Little Mermaid, enhanced by Dvořák’s captivating

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…]

jojonews.com Making a film that deliberately attempts to confuse its audience can be a tricky thing. Not only is there the risk of repelling (or simply boring) viewers, but the incoherence can overwhelm the purpose of the trickery. Fortunately, first-time director Sean Durkin was able to avoid most of these[Read More…]