'The Mother and the Bear' Warms a Winnipeg Winter
On a cold Winnipeg evening, a rustling behind a dumpster in an alleyway startles a young woman, Sumi (Leere Park), who slips and falls on
Rachel Ho•Sep 10, 2024
comedy reviews Archive
'Young Werther' Puts a Fresh Toronto Twist on a Classic
Based on the 1774 novel 'The Sorrows of Young Werther' by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 'Young Werther' follows the time-honoured tradition of
Rachel Ho•Sep 10, 2024'Riff Raff' Is a TIFF Laff
'Riff Raff' is a masterwork of typecasting: there's Jennifer Coolidge as a sloppy drunk, Ed Harris as a gruff patriarch who balances caring
Alex Hudson•Sep 9, 2024'Nightbitch' Has Both Bark and Bite
Of all the human experiences, motherhood is a particularly visceral. There's childbirth, of course, but then there are the the struggles
Alex Hudson•Sep 8, 2024'Shook' Tells a Different Sort of Scarborough Story
Movies set in Scarborough tend to show the beauty of the area through its grit and the trauma that follows. While there's certainly a need
Rachel Ho•Sep 7, 2024'The Life of Chuck' Is a Self-Serious Bore
This is the way the world ends, not with a bang but with saccharine sentimentality and ponderous monologues about the meaning of life. The
Alex Hudson•Sep 7, 2024Anderson .Paak's Star Power Makes 'K-Pops' Pop
Anderson .Paak is hardly the first musician to sidestep from music to movies, but his filmography to date is extremely thin, mostly
Alex Hudson•Sep 7, 2024'Paying for It' Is a Wonderful Bit of Oversharing
The backstory alone is unlike anything else: filmmaker/musician/artist Sook-Yin Lee and cartoonist Chester Brown were in a romantic
Alex Hudson•Sep 7, 2024'Presence' Is an Unexpected Fake-Out
More often than not, Steven Soderbergh's career is spoken of as this kind of Soderbergh movie or that kind of Soderbergh movie. His
Rachel Ho•Sep 6, 2024'The Last Showgirl' Ushers In the Pamassaince
The Pamaissance is here. After 2022's 'Pam & Tommy' reappraised Pamela Anderson as a sympathetic hero, the 2023 doc 'Pamela, a love story'
Alex Hudson•Sep 6, 2024Midwife Follows a Long, Hard Road on 'No Depression in Heaven'
Marvin Heemeyer spent 18 months gathering steel for his Komatsu bulldozer. He was going to layer large metal sheets over the cab and engine
Noah Ciubotaru•Sep 6, 2024'Rose Main Reading Room' Is Peel Dream Magazine's Very Own 50 States Project
I am but a simple millennial indie fan: when I hear trilling woodwinds, I think of Sufjan Stevens. There are 50 States Project vibes all
Alex Hudson•Sep 5, 2024Daniela Andrade Rides a Fearless Momentum on "Biking"
The obsession with biking through Toronto is a strange phenomenon I've noticed since moving here. Obviously it's also just a convenient (and
Megan LaPierre•Sep 5, 2024MJ Lenderman Fights the Wind – And Wins – on the Fantastic 'Manning Fireworks'
"Birds against a heavy wind that wins in the end," mourns MJ Lenderman in the very first words of his new album 'Manning Fireworks'
Myles Tiessen•Sep 5, 2024'The Front Room' Scatelogically Squanders a Great Performance
This year has given audiences no shortage of messy, campy horror films with eccentric villains at their heart — from Nicolas Cage's creepy
Vanessa Sanginiti•Sep 5, 2024'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice' Is Yet Another Disappointing Legacy Sequel
Sequels and reboots and remakes, oh my! Audiences have been subjected to these kinds of films for years, but it feels more and more
Vanessa Sanginiti•Sep 5, 2024At FME, Strange Froots Made the Most of Their Time
Not all venues, or set times, are created equal. At a festival like FME, where shows are spread out among transitional venues and more
Scott Simpson•Sep 4, 2024Marie Davidson and Kaya Hoax Were Set Free at FME
Marie Davidson is one of those rare artists that's as comfortable on a mainstream label like Bonsound —for her '80s synth and psych project
Scott Simpson•Sep 4, 2024Haviah Mighty Was an Overqualified Underdog at FME
Depending on who you speak to, the place of hip-hop at the FME is somewhat contentious. Some see the proliferation of rap bookings to being
Scott Simpson•Sep 4, 2024Myriam Gendron Kept It Real and Rapturous at FME
In contrast to the previous night's performance at the Agora des Arts, which started off moderately well attended, tonight's double bill
Scott Simpson•Sep 3, 2024Erika Angell Was Obsession-Worthy at FME
"These songs are off my recent album entitled 'The Obsession with Her Voice.' You'll soon understand why."Thus began Erika Angell's
Scott Simpson•Sep 3, 2024Karkwa Bid Rouyn-Noranda a Subdued Adieu at FME
There were some light grumblings when Karkwa were announced as headliners for the 2024 edition of the Festival de musique émergente
Scott Simpson•Sep 3, 2024Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds' 'Wild God' Finds Jubilance in the Dark
By this point, there isn't much more that can be said about Nick Cave. A post-punk punk who evolved into one of music's elder
Marko Djurdjić•Aug 30, 2024Tycho's 'Infinite Health' Is Melodic Medicine
There are few guarantees in life, but a new Tycho album that doesn't disappoint is something you can always bet on. Based in San Francisco
Dylan Barnabe•Aug 29, 2024'The Crow' Is Caws for Concern
James O'Barr's graphic novel 'The Crow' isn't a dense text. Its core themes aren't so thickly packed in metaphor as to obscure their
Alisha Mughal•Aug 29, 2024Sabrina Carpenter's 'Short n' Sweet' Is a Raunchy Ray of Sunshine
Sabrina Carpenter and summertime have a lot in common: a penchant for nostalgia, brash flirtatiousness, and now, 'Short n' Sweet'
Isabel Glasgow •Aug 28, 2024Season 4 of 'Only Murders in the Building' Has Reached a Moment of Reckoning
For Only Murders in the Building's fourth season, the whimsical investigative trio return to their usual hijinx to solve the murder of Sazz
Leina Gabra•Aug 27, 2024Anciients Stick to What They Do Best on 'Beyond the Reach of the Sun'
Anciients were at the forefront of Canadian metal music after the release of their second album 'Voice of the Void'
Mark Tremblay•Aug 27, 2024Choose Your Own Adventure to Ascension with Jon Hopkins's 'RITUAL'
Jon Hopkins' music is filled with empathy and compassion, even if it often (consciously) struggles with maintaining composure
Marko Djurdjić•Aug 27, 2024Past and Present Dance Hand-in-Hand on Ghostkeeper's 'Cîpayak Joy'
Like a ghost, certain artists tend to stick around. Transformation is the name of the game in a fickle Canadian music market
Em Medland-Marchen•Aug 26, 2024Luna Li's 'When a Thought Grows Wings' Glows with Fearless Optimism
Words fail us as often as they serve us. As we filter the world through our many feelings and sensations
Alisha Mughal•Aug 23, 2024'Strange Darling' Has One of the Year's Most Subtle, Staggering Performances
JT Mollner's 'Strange Darling' understands and trusts lead Willa Fitzgerald to the point of sweaty, lip-licking ecstasy. The film lets her
Alisha Mughal•Aug 23, 2024illuminati hotties Are All Grown Up on 'POWER'
Keeping existential dread at bay has been an underlying current for illuminati hotties since day one. When it inevitably does rear
Ian Gormely•Aug 23, 2024Spectral Wound's 'Songs of Blood and Mire' Is More Party Than Pain
Spectral Wound want you to think they're scary. That's fine, they should — they're a black metal band. Hailing from Montreal
Marko Djurdjić•Aug 22, 2024Fontaines D.C. Pen an Unreliable Encyclopedia of 'Romance'
Love is not patient or kind. It fails and boasts. It appears contorted, grim, armed, and it poisons the angered soul with swarming radon
Myles Tiessen•Aug 21, 2024We've Seen 'Between the Temples' Before
What's "between the temples"? The answer is relatively simple: the brain. And yet, that conclusion leads to an organ so complex and weird
Marko Djurdjić•Aug 21, 2024WUT Claw Their Way to Victory on 'Mingling with the Thorns'
WUT have always been tender but tough. The Vancouver trio — guitarist Kaity McWhinney, bassist Tracey Vath and drummer Lauren Smith
Leslie Ken Chu•Aug 21, 2024OMBIIGIZI Refine Their Craft on "Laminate the Sky"
OMBIIGIZI, the super-duo of Daniel Monkman (a.k.a. Zoon) and Adam Sturgeon (a.k.a. Status/Non-Status) have announced their sophomore album
Alex Hudson•Aug 20, 2024Charly Bliss Are Complex and Colourful on 'FOREVER'
Five years is five years too long since 2019's 'Young Enough,' but at long last, Charly Bliss
Karlie Rogers•Aug 20, 2024Angie McMahon Threads the Anthemic Needle on "Untangling"
Angie McMahon is a master of the affirmation anthem. If the Australian singer-songwriter — who plays Toronto's Axis Club tonight — hadn't
Megan LaPierre•Aug 15, 2024'Alien: Romulus' Grabbed Me by the Face and Wouldn't Let Go
There have been a pile of 'Alien' movies over the past 45 years, from crossovers with 'Predator' to the 'Prometheus' spinoffs and an
Alex Hudson•Aug 14, 2024Skegss Are Doing Strokes Cosplay Right on "Out of My Head"
With the announcement of their new album Pacific Highway Music — out October 18 — Skegss, the Australian duo of Ben Reed and Jonny Lani, pr
Allie Gregory•Aug 14, 2024Awkwafina and John Cena Fail to Hit the 'Jackpot!'
Imagine, just for a moment, if Los Angeles were inhabited by hundreds, if not thousands, of people desperate for wealth and fame. People so
Nathan Chizen•Aug 14, 2024Okay Kaya Dances with Common Sense on "Check Your Face"
There's a juxtaposing icy composure and warm vulnerability coursing through Okay Kaya's discography. Much of it comes in the form of dry
Sydney Brasil•Aug 14, 2024Mumblecore Throwback 'Good One' Speaks Loudly
India Donaldson's directorial debut, 'Good One,' will bring indie film lovers back to the times of camping trips with dad and when
Lindsay Clarke•Aug 14, 2024'Close to You' Is Disjointed, but Held Tightly by Elliot Page
When we first meet Sam (Elliot Page in an explosive and touching performance), he's pensive. As he walks down Front Street towards Toronto'
Rachel Ho•Aug 14, 2024'Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story' Is the Long Overdue Tribute to a Toronto Icon
When thinking of Toronto music talent, Jackie Shane is an often overlooked name — understandable considering how she has largely been lost
Rachel Ho•Aug 13, 2024'Borderlands' Is a Borderline Adaptation
Eli Roth's 'Borderlands' is so disappointing, it's actually kind of comforting. For audiences unfamiliar with the video game series
Lindsay Clarke•Aug 12, 2024'It Ends with Us' Isn't Very Lively
It Ends with Us has all the ingredients for success but, unfortunately, director Justin Baldoni can't consolidate them into a coherent whol
Barbara Goslawski •Aug 9, 2024Justin Townes Earle's Posthumous 'All In: Unreleased & Rarities (The New West Years)' Is a Bittersweet Farewell
Covering Fleetwood Mac's biggest hit is a tall order, even for a performer and interpreter as gifted as Justin Townes Earle
Kyle Mullin•Aug 8, 2024