In the old days monsters were usually found in places like Transylvania or in remote castle laboratories, recognizable by protruding fangs or giant, square green heads but Frankenstein and Dracula are now symbols of an older kind of scare fare. Today, as the movie “Unfriended” shows us, the most terrifying places on earth aren’t far flung physical locations but closer-to-home sites like Twitter, Instagram and Skype.
“Unfriended” begins a year after popular high school student Laura (Heather Sossaman), was cyber shamed into killing herself when an unflattering video of her passed out at a party went viral.
Jealous of her popularity, six of Laura’s schoolmates—Blaire (Shelley Hennig), Jess (Renee Olstead), Val (Courtney Halverson), Ken (Jacob Wysocki), Adam (Will Peltz), and Mitch (Moses Jacob Storm)—were chief among the internet bullies behind the distribution of the video.
One night, on the anniversary of their classmate’s death, and during a group Skype session, they begin to receive cryptic and threatening messages—“If you hang up all your friends will die!”—from Laura’s old account. “It’s a glitch!” “Well, the glitch just typed!”
Secrets are revealed and the danger is amped up as they try and save themselves by checking chat rooms like “Do Not Answers Messages From the Dead.” Something is, as they say, srsly messed up. Cue the cyber screams.
The mysterious killer is a hoary old horror convention, but here it’s told in the contemporary language of Millennials who are all too familiar with the everyday brutality of social media. They understand what a minefield the web can be and the director, Leo Gabriadze, realized the narrative possibilities of creating cinema’s first deadly internet troll. Freddy Kruger is your father’s baddie; the new face of horror comes in bits and bytes. After all, what’s more terrifying than a missing “forward” button on an e-mail?
“Unfriended” is a “Blair Witch Project” for a new age. It’s a found footage film of sorts—the action takes place entirely on a computer screen—and there are no bells and whistles. Entire scenes go by with very little or no dialogue, just the eerie clicks of a computer mouse and there is even an homage to the famous “Heather’s extreme close-up” from the 1999 film.
It’s a very modern thriller that relies on old school scare generators like unnerving silence, anticipation and darkness and shadows, while throwing in a little gore—hand in a blender!—for good measure.
“Unfriended” puts very real seeming (although slightly hysterical) teens in an unreal situation. As the stakes rise so do the emotions, so parents, be warned that you may be as horrified by the language as you are by the thrills and chills.
“Monkey Kingdom,” the new film from Disneynature, begins with “(Theme from) The Monkees” on the soundtrack. The actual monkeys in the film—a tribe of toque macaques—however, don’t sing, but they do monkey around.
This time Mark Linfield and Alastair Fothergill, the co-directors of Disneynature’s “Earth” and “Chimpanzee” show us a family of monkeys living in ancient ruins in the jungles of Polonnaruwa in Sri Lanka. It’s a complex society built around the hierarchy of the stone structure and a tree. Those at the top, like alpha male Raja, enjoy blazing sunlight and all the ripe fruit they can eat. Like a feudal lord Raja carefully guards his place and the rank of the other “high-borns” from interlopers.
Under him are “the sisterhood,” red-faced (not embarrassed monkeys, they are literally red-faced) moms and aunties who are the next in charge. “These ladies get what they want,” says narrator Tina Fey. They are brutal and uncompromising. Think “The Walking Dead’s” Carol and you get the idea.
In this world a jackfruit isn’t just food, it’s a political tool used to assert prominence and humiliate underlings.
Born at the bottom of the tree, figuratively and literally, is Maya, a “low-born” toque macaque and single mom of Kip. Like a simian Kitty Foyle all she wants is to make a better life for herself and move up the social ladder. When a warring clan overruns their home Raja and company are forced to leave and relocate in a nearby city. Urban life stands in stark contrast to the rural kingdom they left behind, but it is here Maya thrives and improves her standing in the macaque community.
A mix of education and entertainment, “Monkey Kingdom” is filled with useful information, beautiful imagery and ape anecdotes. Fey’s narration blends learning with light-hearted joshing—like a parent reading a picture book to a child—and images guaranteed to appeal to up younger viewers. Is there anything cuter than a snoring monkey? I’ll answer that for you. No there isn’t, and I’m sure your kids will agree. The voice over occasionally tries a bit too hard—describing Maya’s mate as “fifteen pounds of hunky monkey” is too cute by half—but as a vocal tour guide to the story Fey is an agreeable presence.
“Monkey Kingdom” does feature some mild “circle of life” scenes but focuses most of its kid-friendly 77 minute running time on the familial lifestyle and complicated relationships of these fascinating creatures.
“Dancing with the Stars” has brought dance into the very center of popular culture. Each week b-listers don sparkly outfits and strut their stuff to huge ratings. Whether it’s the Cha Cha Cha or a Quickstep or the Paso doble, dancers are rated and celebrated by a panel of judges.
There is no “Dancing with the Stars” in Iran. Dancing of any sort has been banned in that country since the 1979 revolution, and it is against that backdrop that the story of “Desert Dancer” takes place.
But this isn’t a Middle Eastern “Footloose.” It’s the true story of a young Iranian man named Afshin Ghaffarian (Reece Ritchie). Obsessed with dance as a youngster, he grew up in the shadow of oppression, hiding his passion from the world until he enrolled in university in Tehran. There he met a small group of like-minded people, including Ardavan (Tom Cullen), Sattar (Simon Kassianides) and the beautiful but troubled Elaheh (Freida Pinto), who poured over contraband dance videos and tried to emulate the moves of Rudolf Nureyev and Michael Jackson.
In the days leading up to the 2009 presidential election the underground troupe staged an illegal dance show, a rebellious act that gave them their first taste of true freedom but was also is a dangerous political act.
“Desert Dancer” contains important messages about human rights, cultural liberty and the significance of artistic expression but, despite the real-life source material, is weighed down with clichés. More background and a dose of nuance could have fleshed out the story, elevating it to a strong statement about creative freedom instead of simply a presenting a manipulative tale that put me in the mind of a dogmatic “Dancing with the Stars” episode.
Richard takes part in the Artscape Salon April 2015. Here’s some more information from artscapesalon.com: Artscape Salon is a dinner party with a big difference. Yes, we serve up a four-course meal (plus hors d’oeuvres!) by Toronto’s hottest restaurants and an open bar of expertly mixed cocktails….but that’s just the beginning. During dinner, we plant guest stars from the world of arts and culture at every table to ignite conversation. Musicians, artists, filmmakers, choreographers, producers, community builders and many others circle through the crowd until every table is lit up with ideas. More than a dinner party, it’s an electrifying experience. Feel the spark; join us for Salon! Get tickets HERE!
Joining Richard will be:
Shauna Levy, President of Canada’s Design Museum, Design Exchange (DX), is a Canadian design visionary and pillar of the nation’s design community. Leading DX in a revitalized strategic direction beginning March 2012, Levy celebrates and promotes design that’s accessible to everyone. As part of this vision, the museum has secured renowned traveling exhibits from prestigious cultural institutions across the globe, curated its own exhibitions featuring Canadian and international design, and increased educational experiences with both youth and adult programming.
Michael Mori is the Artistic Director of Tapestry Opera.
Britta B. is a spoken word poet, keynote speaker and artist educator currently residing in downtown Toronto. She has captivated audiences across Canada both in competitive and feature performances. She has also showcased in New York City, Detroit and New Orleans. Most recently, Britta has been requested to be a guest speaker at TEDxDistilleryDistrictWomen in Toronto.
“You could fit everything I know about dresses into a tiny garment bag, but if I had to choose a future classic gown it would be the green satin halter dress Keira Knightley wore in Atonement. Knightley can wear clothes—she always looks great—but the sleek design and elegant long train make the dress memorable and majestic.” – Richard Crouse
Richard Crouse interviews “Daredevil” star Deborah Ann Woll
On her Daredevil character Karen Page: “She starts out quite innocent, quite sweet and a little naïve and towards the end becomes a heroin addicted porn star. It is really quite dark and a little scary. Then she gets redeemed and then she dies. It’s a very tragic turnaround. I like characters that change and have that exploration but I also feel when you do it separately, when she is just the Madonna or just the whore, it’s less interesting. What I like is when a woman encompasses all sides. For my Karen I said, ‘Alright, she’s going to have moments when she’s innocent, sweet and fun to be around. And she’ll have moments where she’s dark and a little addicted to that adrenaline rush and danger, and I want both of those things to love in her at the same time.’ Luckily we didn’t start her as innocent. We started her with a bit of a past, which hopefully, if we get to do any more of Daredevil we’ll find out about. I like that she doesn’t start super innocent. There’s something dark about her already. We’ll see what comes.”
“Outlander” star Sam Heughan on fan reaction to him and the show: “It’s been so positive and supportive. They are very vocal and I’m sure if we mess this up they’ll be the first to let us know. I love the support. There were people outside this morning when we were doing some taping and it was freezing cold but they were there, waving flags and supporting us. It is fantastic. We make it for them and for new fans as well. I’m pleased that we can give them what they want but also keep surprising them as well.
“We’ve been filming in Scotland, so we’re kind of in our own bubble. The show has only just aired in the UK so there is no recognition there, which is fantastic because we can concentrate on the job. We flew to Comic Con this past year and the reaction was incredible. We did a big panel and I’ve been in Los Angeles recently and people do recognize you. On the whole it is very genuine, very friendly. They just sort of siddle up next to you and whisper, ‘I really enjoy the show. I’m a big fan,’ and they’ll leave you to do your thing. But that sort of thing is very new to me.”
A few years ago the romantic comedy was flat lining, suffering from a seemingly incurable case of the Katherine Heigls. The once proud genre—think “When Harry Met Sally”—had surrendered to predictability with witless stories and characters who took the bus straight from Central Casting.
Director Matt Sadowski skirts around this by calling his new movie “Pretend We’re Kissing,” a non com, but make no mistake, this is a rom com, but the kind of romantic comedy that won’t make you run from the theatre suffering from saccharine overload.
Dov Tiefenbach is Benny, a pensive twenty-something who pays the rent by covering downtown Toronto with band posters. His flatmate is a nudist (Zoë Kravitz) with a worldview somewhere between Shirley MacLaine and Gloria Steinem who has crashed there for a year while looking for work.
Despite living with a beautiful, often naked woman Benny is a lonely heart. Single, until he meets Jordan (Tommie-Amber Pirie) and is instantly smitten but too insecure to do anything about his feelings. Soon a courtship begins—this is a rom com after all—but it’s not all smooth sailing because this isn’t a Drew Barrymore rom com.
“Pretend We’re Kissing” is tribute to Toronto—the Toronto Islands and the Cameron House are almost characters in the film—and a funny, occasionally sweet, occasionally cringe-worthy look at ups and downs of millennial love. More importantly it breaks the mould as to what a romantic comedy can be.
Richard will be a team captain and cheerleader at Pongapalooza to help raise money for the First Book Canada’s important literacy programming.
SPiN Toronto will once again host a night of epic ping pong on May 12th in support of First Book Canada where thirty-six teams of four will battle it out for the 2015 Scotiabank Pongapalooza Cup. Will The Pong Masters come out on top once again? Join us amidst the battlefield of swinging paddles and stray balls, where guests can win some remarkable prizes, play some recreational ping pong, taste SPiN’s amazing hors d’oeuvres and cool off with a refreshing beer.
Last year’s event, sponsored by Scotiabank, raised over $30,000 helping First Book Canada give away more than 825,000 brand new books to children in need across the country. First Book Canada is elevating the quality of education for children in need on a permanent, sustainable basis – but they cannot do it alone. Their partners in ending illiteracy represent some of the smartest, most generous organizations across the for-profit and nonprofit sectors and they want you to join them in this epic ping pong event.
Help us reach thousands of Canadian children who want to experience the joy of reading and owning their very own first book.
Can’t make the event, but would like to support First Book Canada? Make a donation HERE!
In the old days monsters were usually found in places like Transylvania or in remote castle laboratories, recognizable by protruding fangs or giant, square green heads but Frankenstein and Dracula are now symbols of an older kind of scare fare. Today, as the movie “Unfriended” shows us, the most terrifying places on earth aren’t far flung physical locations but closer-to-home sites like Twitter, Instagram and Skype.
