I appear on “CTV News at 6” with Andria Case to talk about the best movies and television to watch this weekend. I’ll tell you about the wistful kid’s flick “IF,” the surreal film “I Saw the TV Glow” and the sweet and silly “Dolly Parton’s Pet Gala” on Paramount+.
Watch the whole thing HERE! (Starts at )
I join “CTV News Toronto at Five” with host Zuraidah Alman, to talk about the biopic “Back to Black,” the sentimental “IF,” the horror film “The Strangers: Chapter 1” and the surreal “I Saw the TV Glow.”
Watch the whole thing HERE! (Starts at 14:45)
I sit in with NewsTalk 1010 host Jim Richards on the coast-to-coast-to-coast late night “NewsTalk Tonight” to play the game “Did Richard Crouse Like This?” This week we talk about The biopic “Back to Black,” the sentimental “IF,” and the horror film “The Strangers: Chapter 1.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
I join CP24 to have a look at the biopic “Back to Black,” the sentimental “IF,” the horror film “The Strangers: Chapter 1” and the surreal “I Saw the TV Glow.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to sew a button! Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about The biopic “Back to Black,” the sentimental “IF,” and the horror film “The Strangers: Chapter 1.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I sit in with CKTB morning show host Steph Vivier to have a look at the biopic “Back to Black,” the sentimental “IF,” the horror film “The Strangers: Chapter 1” and the surreal “I Saw the TV Glow.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
I sit in on the CFRA Ottawa morning show with guest host Graham Richardson to talk the new movies coming to theatres and streaming including the biopic “Back to Black,” the sentimental “IF,” the horror film “The Strangers: Chapter 1” and the surreal “I Saw the TV Glow.”
Lsiten to the whole thing HERE!
LOGLINE: In the live-action/animated fantasy comedy “IF,” a tragedy gives teenager Bea (Cailey Fleming) the power to see the imaginary friends—“IFs” for short—left behind as their real life friends age and mature. When she discovers her adult neighbor Cal (Ryan Reynolds) has the same gift, they work together to reconnect adults with their childhood Ifs.
CAST: John Krasinski (who also directs), Cailey Fleming, Ryan Reynolds, Fiona Shaw, Alan Kim, Liza Colón-Zayas, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Louis Gossett Jr., Steve Carell,
REVIEW: “IF” is a contemplative story about the importance of friends, imaginary or not, experiencing grief and loss and the power of imagination. Although told from a twelve-year-old point of view, it is more an exercise in wistful nostalgia than kid’s adventure. Writer and director John Krasinski has a lot on his mind, and infuses the story with an unexpectedly healthy dose of melancholy.
The storytelling is a little bumpy, and the pace a bit slow, but it packs an emotional punch as Bea comes to understand her life through interactions with the IFs and their humans. Fleming’s performance cuts through, standing apart from the flashier IF characters (voiced by a-listers like Steve Carell, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Louis Gossett Jr., Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Awkwafina and Bradley Cooper) and even the perennial scene-stealer Reynolds, who hands in his least Ryan Reynoldsy performance in years.
Part “Who Framed Roger Rabbit,” part Spielbergian childhood drama, “IF” is a tad darker than the trailers suggest, and tries a little too hard to strum the heartstrings but as it leans into sentimentality it pays off with a message of the importance connection.
