On the March 15, 2025 edition of The Richard Crouse Show we meet Atom Egoyan and Amanda Seyfried of the new film “Seven Veils.” In this a new psychological thriller, now playing in theatres, Seyfried is Jeanine, a director dealing with repressed trauma as she mounts a production of her mentor’s most famous work, the opera “Salome.” Rich with metaphor and suspense “Seven Veils” is an intellectual thriller about art imitating life.
We also meet Sonequa Martin-Green. You know her from “Star Trek: Discovery,” “New Girl” and “The Good Wife.” She also played Sasha Williams, a main character and a survivor of the outbreak in “The Walking Dead.”
Today we’ll talk about her new film, the dark comedy “My Dead Friend Zoe,” now playing in theatres. In it she plays an Afghanistan veteran haunted by her late best friend Zoe. Now in civilian life, she searches for a way forward as she suffers from PTSD and tends to her retired Lieutenant-Colonel grandfather played by Ed Harris.
Then we meet Keira Jang, star of Can I Get A Witness?” a new Canadian eco-sci fi/coming-of-age film now playing in theaters. It’s set in a future where climate change and world poverty have been eradicated. To mitigate these modern-day issues, travel and technology are banned and every citizen must end life at 50. Documenting the process are artists as witnesses, like the character Kiera plays, a teenager on her first day on the job.
Each week on the nationally syndicated Richard Crouse Show, Canada’s most recognized movie critic brings together some of the most interesting and opinionated people from the movies, television and music to put a fresh spin on news from the world of lifestyle and pop-culture. Tune into this show to hear in-depth interviews with actors and directors, to find out what’s going on behind the scenes of your favourite shows and movies and get a new take on current trends. Recent guests include Chris Pratt, Elvis Costello, Baz Luhrmann, Martin Freeman, David Cronenberg, Mayim Bialik, The Kids in the Hall and many more!
All iHeartRadio Canada stations are available across Canada via live stream on iHeartRadio.caand the iHeartRadio Canada app. iHeartRadio Canada stations are also connected through Alexa, Siri, and Google Home smart speakers.
Here’s my interview with Atom Egoyan and Amanda Seyfried of the new film “Seven Veils.” In this a new psychological thriller, now playing in theatres, Seyfried is Jeanine, a director dealing with repressed trauma as she mounts a production of her mentor’s most famous work, the opera “Salome.” Rich with metaphor and suspense “Seven Veils” is an intellectual thriller about art imitating life.
I join CTV NewsChannel anchor Scott Hirsch to talk about the strange sci fi of “Mickey 17,” the kid-friendly “Night of the Zoopocalypse” and the suspense of “Seven Veils.”
Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to make some toast! Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the strange sci fi of “Mickey 17,” the kid-friendly “Night of the Zoopocalypse” and the suspense of “Seven Veils.”
SYNOPSIS: In “Seven Veils,” a new psychological thriller from director Atom Egoyan, and now playing in theatres, Amanda Seyfried is Jeanine, a director dealing with repressed trauma as she mounts a production of her mentor’s most famous work, the opera “Salome.”
CAST: Amanda Seyfried, Rebecca Liddiard, Douglas Smith, Mark O’Brien and Vinessa Antoine. Directed by Atom Egoyan.
REVIEW: “Seven Veils” isn’t an adaptation of “Salome,” the story of violence, desire and the severed head of John the Baptist. Instead, it uses Richard Strauss’s controversial opera as a catalyst for the action.
The real world and the world of theatre converge as director Jeanine (Amanda Seyfried) remounts the opera “Salome,” a production previously helmed by her mentor and groomer Charles. Charles’s successful vision of the show suggested Salome was sexually abused by her father, a notion he reinforced with the use of upsetting videos of Jeanine’s abuse at the hand of her father.
When she says she wants to make “small but meaningful changes” to the show, the opera company management reject her ideas, even going so far as to insist on publishing Charles’s production notes in the program instead of hers. If she wants, they say, she can talk about her ideas for the show on an obscure podcast.
Her personal life is equally unsettled. Her husband may be having an affair with her mother’s caregiver, and it turns out that Charles’s wife may have known more about her husband’s proclivities than she let on.
Over time, as tensions mount, the unsettled situation uncorks Jeanine’s memories as an undercurrent of trauma is revealed.
There’s more, but it’s Jeanine’s main story that enthralls.
Rich with metaphor and suspense “Seven Veils” is an intellectual thriller about art imitating life.
As the parallels between Jeanine and Salome are revealed—the domination by male authority figures, confrontation of desire—Seyfried artfully plays Jeanine’s emotional turmoil, as a person torn between raw trauma and the “show must go on” ethos of her profession. It’s a career high for her as she portrays multitudes with a minimum of dialogue.
“Seven Veils” departs from “Salome” in its closing moments, avoiding the violence of the opera. Instead, it paints a compelling portrait of how trauma molds Jeanine’s personal and professional lives.
On the Saturday January 27, 2024 edition of the Richard Crouse Show we meet Nick Broomfield, director of the new documentary “The Stones And Brian Jones,” now playing in theatres. With candid interviews and never-before-seen footage he reveals how Brian Jones, the founder of the Rolling Stones, was left behind in the shadows of history.
Broomfield props the film up with first-hand accounts, particularly from former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman, whose enthusiasm for the music, and Jones’s contributions to it, is infectious. The old stories are bolstered by the addition of new, fresh interviews but it is the focus on Jones as a brilliant musician and not simply another rock ‘n’ roll casualty, that elevates “The Stones and Brian Jones.” The story has its sordid moments, but Bloomfield emphasizes the very heart of Jones’s being, the music.
We’ll also meet Douglas Smith, author of “The Dream Rider Saga.” Douglas is following up the award winning first two books in the series, “The Hollow Boys” and “The Crystal Key,” with a third book to round out the successful trilogy. The new book, which is available wherever fine books are sold, is called “The Lost Expedition.” Described by Library Journal as “one of Canada’s most original writers of speculative fiction.” Smith calls the series “Indiana Jones meets Teen Titans.” All three books have been “Editor’s Picks” from BookLife, which described “The Lost Expedition” as “The explosive conclusion to this spectacular fantasy joyride.”
“The Lost Expedition” has a five out of five star rating on Good Reads and in this interview we’ll find out how Douglas came to writing as a second career, how he approached writing a trilogy, and much more.
Each week on the nationally syndicated Richard Crouse Show, Canada’s most recognized movie critic brings together some of the most interesting and opinionated people from the movies, television and music to put a fresh spin on news from the world of lifestyle and pop-culture. Tune into this show to hear in-depth interviews with actors and directors, to find out what’s going on behind the scenes of your favourite shows and movies and get a new take on current trends. Recent guests include Chris Pratt, Elvis Costello, Baz Luhrmann, Martin Freeman, David Cronenberg, Mayim Bialik, The Kids in the Hall and many more!
All iHeartRadio Canada stations are available across Canada via live stream on iHeartRadio.caand the iHeartRadio Canada app. iHeartRadio Canada stations are also connected through Alexa, Siri, and Google Home smart speakers.
“The Swearing Jar,” a new drama now playing in theatres, is a relationship story about finding the love of your life, not once but twice.
Adelaide Clemens and Patrick J. Adams are married high school music teacher and novelist Carey and Simon. They’re happily married, but change is in the air. When Carey announces she is expecting a baby, their first order of business is to curb the cuss words that so easily flow out of their mouths. “Holy frickin’ poop,” Simon says, embracing the spirit of the new house rules.
The main thorn in their side is Simon’s mother Bev (Kathleen Turner). She is a dark cloud whose visits are filled with passionate passive aggression, and non-stop references to her own failed relationship with her former husband. Unhelpfully, with the new baby on the way, Bev even goes so far to warn Carey that Simon inherited his father’s worst traits.
Still, despite Bev’s worst intentions, things are OK at home. But when Carey has a chance encounter with struggling musician Owen (Douglas Smith), she finds herself charmed by his flirtatious, but slightly awkward presence.
I am leaving out one major detail of “The Swearing Jar’s” plot. It is a crucial one, and I’m trying to avoid spoilers here, so read on with caution (it’s best to go into this one cold) as I try and talk around the plot twist.
Mixing Carey’s past and present, “The Swearing Jar” examines one person’s experience with grief. Dramatically, when her life is turned inside-out, the film takes on a richer texture, while maintaining the dual nature of humor and drama that fuel the first half. It’s the story of perseverance and an emotional reckoning, and it is effectively rendered by Clemens’s heartfelt performance.
“The Swearing Jar” is has its ups-and-downs, both stylistically and emotionally, but emerges as a nicely calibrated, resonant look at grief, love and moving on.
On the March 15, 2025 edition of The Richard Crouse Show we meet Atom Egoyan and Amanda Seyfried of the new film “Seven Veils.” In this a new psychological thriller, now playing in theatres, Seyfried is Jeanine, a director dealing with repressed trauma as she mounts a production of her mentor’s most famous work, the opera “Salome.” Rich with metaphor and suspense “Seven Veils” is an intellectual thriller about art imitating life.
