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‘Stick’ Has Even More Heart Than Laughs | Exclaim!
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If Apple TV+ sitcoms have a through line, it’s that they aren’t actually at their best when they’re funny. That’s not to say that they aren’t funny — they definitely are — but rather that the laughs seem to come almost secondary to heart. Ted Lasso is probably the best example of this, a hilarious show about leadership…
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‘Murderbot’ Is a Replicant of Other Robot Stories | Exclaim!
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From Wall-E and RoboCop to Short Circuit and I, Robot, we are well-served with stories of robots built to serve that develop distinct personalities and humanity, and then eventually save the day. Apple TV+‘s Murderbot, the latest entry in this subgenre, mashes up several versions of this story into something that straddles the line between the familiar and the new. The titular character…
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‘O’Dessa’ Hits a Flat Note | Exclaim!
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There’s nothing more exciting in film than a big, ambitious swing for the fences. This might mean assembling every hero in the stable to fight against the odds, gambling on a big twist that recontextualizes the entire movie, or — as in the case of O’Dessa— a musical genre mashup made of pure chaos. The…
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‘My Dead Friend Zoe’ Hits Like a Ton of Bricks | Exclaim!
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We’ve seen many films with protagonists haunted by their trauma and soldiers struggling to return home before; what sets My Dead Friend Zoeapart is its performances, specifically Sonequa Martin-Green’s. She proves herself beyond a shadow of a doubt, playing Merit constantly under stress, not only from what’s going on in her world but from Zoe’s…
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‘The Gorge’ Is Promising but Empty | Exclaim!
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In the earliest scenes of The Gorge, we meet our two protagonists, Levi (Miles Teller) and Drasa (Anya Taylor-Joy). Levi, a former Marine scout sniper, lives a life of solitude, wayward and clearly suffering from some form of PTSD. He receives a text telling him to report to a Marine base where he’s interviewed by…
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‘Disco’s Revenge’ Gets the Last Laugh | Exclaim!
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Disco was a dirty word, at least when I was a teenager in the 1990s. It was an exiled musical style from a bygone era, only spoken about to ridicule. Even when the 20-year fashion cycle caught up to us and made bell-bottom — apologies, flared — cool again, we didn’t dare speak favourably of disco…
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‘Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man’ Stands Alongside Animated Superhero Classics | Exclaim!
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Spider-Man endures as one of the most iconic and relatable superheroes. He starts his journey when he’s just a kid, learning hard lessons early about the nature of responsibility — everyone knows the quote — and he spends his time trying to balance his normal life with his superhero life, to varying degrees of…
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The 10 Best Films You Didn’t See in 2024 | Exclaim!
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As part of Exclaim!’s 2024 year-end coverage, I contributed to this year’s 10 Best You Didn’t See list, writing about the Canadian gem The King Tide. The King Tide delivers a striking exploration of community, faith and the lengths people will go to in the name of faith. Set in a remote Newfoundland village, the…
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Exclaim!’s 10 Best TV Series of 2024 | Exclaim!
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As part of Exclaim!’s 2204 year end coverage, I contributed to the ten best television series of 2024 list, writing up the #6 entry: Mr & Mrs Smith: Balancing explosive action with sharp humour and tender moments, the series explores compatibility, trust and the challenges of partnership while on a mission and at home.…
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Exclaim!’s 20 Best Films of 2024 | Exclaim!
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As part of Exclaim’s 2024 year-end coverage, I was invited to participate in their 20 best films of 2024 list, contributing the write-up for the #3 pick: Civil War. Upon this movie’s release in the springtime, it felt like a warning; now, it feels like condemnation. Its plot feels scarily and potentially prescient, and…
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Brotherly Love Is a Balm in ‘A Real Pain’ | Exclaim!
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Everyone has someone in their life they oscillate wildly back and forth on whether they love or hate them. That person’s their complete opposite, but someone they’re inextricably connected to because, in some perverse way, they complete one another. The strengths of one are the weaknesses of the other and vice versa — and…
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‘Shrinking’ Rises to Its Tall Order in Season 2 | Exclaim!
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A great television season is hard to pull off, but following it up with another comes with added pressure to stick with the core ideals that made it good in the first place — which is exactly what the cast and crew of Shrinking have with their second season. Picking up shortly after where Season 1…
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VIFF 2024: ‘Bonjour Tristesse’ Says Hello to a New Canadian Talent | Exclaim!
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There’s something about a lazy holiday. Lounging around on long afternoons and warm nights make for easy days. It’s easy to get lost in these moments, especially for the 17-year-old just starting to figure out their individual wants and desires. There’s freedom but also a touch of melancholy in these times, as they are…
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VIFF 2024: ’40 Acres’ Is a Tried-and-True Post-Apocalypse Story | Exclaim!
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It is interesting to chart our vision of what the post-apocalypse might be. The shortage is never the same, but the outcome always is: we run out of something, people get desperate, and then the rest of the movie happens. R.T. Thorne’s 40 Acres follows this formula, with the shortage being food. The film takes place…
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‘Agatha All Along’ Needs More Script Editors | Exclaim!
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One of the great struggles in modern filmmaking is what to do with great supporting characters. Sometimes, it’s easy; a new series can be made where they’re heroes in their own right with a new story, and they can go on a journey that leads them from who we fell in love with to…