A bloodied Travis is congratulated by his mother in "This Wrestling Life."

(Stephen Gillis, 2010)

September 7, 2010

by Joel Crary

The wrestlers in “This Wrestling Life” pull no punches about their ambitions. At the end of their road are today’s two biggest promotions: World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action. To describe their training en route as work in the trenches would be too hard on trenches. “The second I found out I was in a hardcore match, I just couldn’t wait,” newcomer Travis admits with a smile on his face. After the match, he’ll be covered in blood from a self-inflicted wound, his horrified mother looking on, his father encouraging him to keep living the dream. (Read the rest of this review…)

Jack takes aim in "The American."

(Anton Corbijn, 2010)

September 5, 2010

by Joel Crary

In scene after scene of “The American,” George Clooney sits or stands, his chiseled chin catching any available light it can, his eyes staring ponderously off to a spot out of frame. Sometimes he’s in the corner of the shot, or sandwiched against the very bottom. Sometimes he’s captured in closeup, where the wrinkles in the corners of his eyes – all but screaming “I look better with age” out loud – shift ever so slightly. We’re always precisely aware of the space around him, and Clooney tries his best to look obsessed with his surroundings without showing any emotion. Nothing happens, and then it happens all over again in another part of town. (Read the rest of this review…)

Danny Trejo speaks softly and carries a big f**king knife in "Machete."

(Robert Rodriguez and Ethan Maniquis, 2010)

September 3, 2010

by Joel Crary

“Machete” debuted as one of the joke trailers preceding the 2007 Robert Rodriguez/Quentin Tarantino “Grindhouse” double feature, one of the last decade’s bravest pop cinema experiments. Purposefully pocked with the grain found on forgotten exploitation fare and slapped with an X rating, the trailer meant to communicate two things: first, that Rodriguez and many other film fans hold a great affection for those old pieces of crap, and second, that gruff character actor Danny Trejo finally deserves some centre-stage recognition for the hours he’s put in as the resident crazy henchman in countless action features. (Read the rest of this review…)

A crowd watches a presentation of "The NeverEnding Story" in East Vancouver's McSpadden Park.

August 31, 2010

by Joel Crary

“The NeverEnding Story” may have been the first film I saw in a cinema. Who remembers? The memory stamp includes moving through an aisle of seats at the old Centre twin theatre on George Street in Peterborough. Was it the first time I’d seen it, or had the Centre been re-running it for parents desperate to keep their kids occupied? The Centre closed its doors the year after the film’s release, so it’s entirely probable that I sat in a chair on a night during the film’s first run, taking in the images and stereo sound, ingesting tiny mittfuls of popcorn, elated at seeing a luck dragon soar across the giant screen, and shrinking in my seat at the terrifying sight of a bloodthirsty monster. (Read the rest of this article…)

A former lover of renowned soprano Edmea Tetua projects her image onto a movie screen in "And the Ship Sails On."

(Federico Fellini, 1983)

August 28, 2010

by Joel Crary

“And the Ship Sails On” opens with a striking monochromatic sequence with little more than a running camera for a soundtrack. When renowned soprano Edmea Tetua’s ashes are escorted on board by the classic Fellini procession, colour is gradually withdrawn from behind the veil, encouraging the craft to embark. Life begins in the presence of death just as the present is yanked from the film techniques of the past, and the indicative whir of the camera insists upon its own corporeality as the boat pitches along on its artificial ocean. Overseeing the obliteration of the fourth wall is genial and self-effacing journalist Orlando (Freddie Jones), who in a humourous moment of meta-staging is distracted from his introductions by a waiter’s request that he move to another part of the room. (Read the rest of this review…)