The Best and Worst of 2017…Thus Far

Welcome to 2017!

This year promises to be a very fulfilling year for cinema, especially given that 2016 was such a monumental year for the medium, I mean, just look at what happened at The Academy Awards earlier this year? Two Best Picture winners? While I truly believed that Moonlight championed its rival in 2016, both Moonlight and La La Land will always be, famously and unanimously associated with one another.

Luckily for us, no matter how many years pass, cinema always seems to be evolving, for better, or for worse, depending how you see it [depending on how much of an optimist or pessimist you are]. Whether it be the forum of the medium, the medium itself, its format or just the way stories are told and presented, cinema is a child constantly growing up.  Continue reading

Review: her

From the moment the screen fills with light, and we come face-to-face with Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), his eyes are desolate while his voice is filled with love as he recites the poetically romantic words of Loretta’s letter to her husband of fifty years, Chris. Theodore works for BeautifullyHandwrittenLetters.com, a company established sometime in the near future where people are either too lazy or just mentally incapable of writing their own letters to their loved ones. The irony of her begins (as do so many other films) with someone else’s love story. The trials and tribulations of Theodore’s love story not only mirrors the love we share with others but also portrays our uncontrollable and inexplicable dependence or ‘love’ for technology. In that sense, her becomes part science fiction love story/part docudrama, with a message that is both a parable of the direction human behaviour is headed and a misunderstood, timeless love story for the ages. Either way, her is the most captivating and responsive film of the year, demanding attention with a grueling look at our ability to love and be loved. Continue reading