I joined CTV NewsChannel to have a look at new movies coming to theatres including the decadent period piece “Hedda,” the kid-friendly monster flick “Stitch Head” and the political thriller “Anniversary.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I appear on “CTV News at 11:30” with anchor Andria Case to talk about the weekend’s best movies, on streaming and in theatres. We have a look at Prime Video movie “Hedda” with Tessa Thompson, the Disney+ series “Mardaugh: Murder in the Family,” Richard Linklater’s latest film “Nouvelle Vague” and the Maya Rudolph Apple TV+ series “Loot.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I join CP24 to talk about the decadent period piece “Hedda,” the kid-friendly monster flick “Stitch Head,” the comedy-drama “Novelle Vague” and the political thriller “Anniversary.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I sit in with Deb Hutton on NewsTalk 1010 to go over some of the week’s biggest entertainment stories and let you know what’s happening in theatres. We talk about the history of Hollywood movies at the White House, Francis Ford Coppola’s $1 million watch and I review the decadent period piece “Hedda” and the kid-friendly monster flick “Stitch Head.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
I joined CTV NewsChannel to have a look at new movies coming to theatres including the decadent period piece “Hedda,” the kid-friendly monster flick “Stitch Head,” the comedy-drama “Novelle Vague” and the political thriller “Anniversary.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I sit in on the CFRA Ottawa morning show with guest host Stefan Keyes to talk about the new movies coming to theatres including the decadent period piece “Hedda,” the kid-friendly monster flick “Stitch Head,” the comedy-drama “Novelle Vague” and the political thriller “Anniversary.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
I join CP24 to talk about the decadent period piece “Hedda,” the kid-friendly monster flick “Stitch Head” and the scary Crave series “IT: Welcome to Derry.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
SYNOPSIS: In “Hedda,” a melodramatic reimagination of Henrik Ibsen’s classic 1891 drama starring Tessa Thompson and now playing on Prime Video, a free-spirited woman plays the guests at a lavish party on a country estate as if they were pawns in her elaborate game of chess.
CAST: Tessa Thompson, Imogen Poots, Tom Bateman, Nicholas Pinnock, Nina Hoss. Directed by Nia DaCosta.
REVIEW: An iconoclastic remake of Henrik Ibsen’s classic 1891 play “Hedda Gabler,” the action is transported from the original late 19th century Oslo setting to 1950s British high society.
The action in “Hedda” takes place during one eventful night at a lavish party thrown by Hedda (Tessa Thompson) and her new husband George Tesman (Tom Bateman) on their newly purchased country estate.
On the surface they appear to be a happy couple, but beneath the polished veneer of their relationship lies dissatisfaction, crippling debt and duplicity.
Drowning in debt after buying a house to impress Hedda, they invite Professor Greenwood (Finbar Lynch) to the bash in the hope he’ll give George a new, good paying academic gig.
As music blares and champagne bottles pop, the party spins out of control when the volatile Eileen Lövborg (Nina Hoss) shows up. Charismatic and brilliant, she is the author of a book exploring sexuality, up for the job George wants and, to complicate matters further, is Hedda’s ex-lover.
“A little chaos is good for the gathering,” says Hedda as the good times give way to desire, jealousy, and betrayal.
“Hedda” is a grand looking film, a document of one hedonistic night, fuelled by the title character’s manipulations. Director Nia DaCosta paints the screen with sumptuous set design and stylish period details that emphasize the decadent vibe of the evening. It’s a cliché, but the setting really is a character, silently creating a Dionysian atmosphere that goes a long way to enhance the storytelling.
This is not a period piece à la Merchant Ivory.
DaCosta, who also wrote the script, throws decorum out the window, portraying Hedda with a crueler edge than previously seen. The character has always orchestrated the lives of those around her, but a character who was once a tragic anti-heroine is now a ruthlessly aspirational, controlling character.
Thompson vividly captures Hedda’s need to “live on her own terms” with a volatile presence that expands the character with racial and queer aspects that add texture to the more than century old character. It’s lively, commanding work that stands out amid the film’s ornate style.
“Hedda” may not work for purists, but in its reinvention of the character for a new generation, it mines new aspects to a classic.
“French Exit,” now playing in theatres, takes place in New York City and Paris, but to be honest, I’m not sure what planet most of these characters live on.
Michelle Pfeiffer is Frances Price, a stylish, eccentric New Yorker whose inherited fortune has almost run dry. She’s famous in society circles for her once giant bank account and in the tabloids as the wealthy widow who discovered her husband Franklin (Tracy Letts) dead in his bed, but didn’t report it until after she returned from a planned weekend ski trip. She has lived her life with no apologies and always says what’s on her mind. “The plan was to die before the money ran out,” she says, “but I kept, and keep on, not dying and here I am.”
Her son Malcolm (Lucas Hedges) has drifted through life since his mother pulled him out of private school at age twelve. They share a rambling mansion, but not everything is out in the open, like his engagement to the prim Susan (Imogen Poots).
With no means to stay in New York, mother, son and their mysterious cat Small Frank (voiced by Tracey Letts), sell off assets and decamp to Paris, staying in the apartment of Frances’ closest friend Joan (Susan Coyne). There, Frances continues her lavish ways, vastly over tipping waiters, going through whatever money is left, as if to fulfill her prophesy that she will go when the money is gone.
An air of ennui hangs heavy over “French Exit” but it’s not a depressing film. The collection of quirky characters—including lonely expat New Yorker Mme Reynaud (Valerie Mahaffey), private investigator Julius (Isaach de Bankole) and clairvoyant Madeleine (Danielle Macdonald)—juice the inherent nihilistic farce out of the story. This doesn’t feel like real life because it isn’t. It takes place in a world constructed by Frances, populated by people who cater to her whims. A séance to locate a missing cat who may, or may not, embody the spirit of her late husband? Sure, and that’s not even her most idiosyncratic request.
At the centre of it all, holding it all together is Pfeiffer. Monumentally self-absorbed and arch, it comes as no surprise when she gets a waiter’s attention by lighting the flowers on her table on fire. She is given to larger-than-life behaviour but as farce gives way to tragedy Pfeiffer takes pains to allow some real humanity to shine through. She is so form-fitted to the character it’s impossible to imagine anyone else hitting the right notes of humour and heartache.
The talented cast stops “French Exit” from becoming a twee Wes Anderson clone. It may not always feel like real life but its unique feel contains just enough earnestness to make an unreal situation feel real and alive.
