Welcome to WWAC’s Merry Scary Christmas: twelve days of thrills, chills, deadly santas, melancholy, and murder. In this first part, Kayleigh looks at perennial Christmas favourite, Batman Returns. Batman Returns Starring Michael Keaton, Michelle Pfeiffer, Danny DeVito, Christopher Walken Directed by Tim Burton 1992 Batman Returns is the scariest superhero film ever made. Dissect the…
Movies that Shaped Me: Pan’s Labyrinth
“It’s a fairy tale,” you say, as you watch the trailer. And to an extent, you would be right. Pan’s Labyrinth is a fairy tale shaped by Guillermo del Toro’s hands, one that doesn’t shy away from the blood that inevitably spills before the story comes to a close. In 2007, it was a free…
Movies That Shaped Me: Pecker
It was a Friday night in my senior year of high school, I was at a grocery store (most likely buying a two liter of Mountain Dew and Sour Patch Kids), and their bargain bin was overflowing with VHS movies. I sifted through and found a tape that shaped the rest of my life. It…
Reel Geek Girl: Big Hero 6
Big Hero 6 (2014) Written by Don Hall & Jordan Roberts Directed by Don Hall & Chris Williams Starring Scott Adsit, Ryan Potter, T.J. Miller Walt Disney Studios/Marvel Entertainment PG, 108 minutes Disney and Marvel teamed up to bring Big Hero 6 to the screen. It is the first joint venture for the two companies…
ABCs of Death 2: Comme Ci, Comme Ça
Full disclosure: I volunteered at Toronto After Dark, and while I can’t trash the festival to hell and back (would I? I would not), I’m not required to give the films good press. ABCs of Death 2 Directors: Find the full list of 26 directors here. Drafthouse Films R, 124 min Definitely ok, sometimes brilliant,…
Reel Geek Girl: The Book Of Life
The Book of Life (2014) Written by Jorge Gutierrez and Douglas Langdale Directed by Jorge R. Gutierrez Produced by Guillermo Del Toro Starring: Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana, Channing Tatum, Ron Perlman, Hector Elizondo, and Ice Cube 20th Century Fox and Reel FX PG, 95 minutes Flat out and up front: If you loved Pacific Rim…
Scariest Movie of My Life: Event Horizon
I will be the very first to admit that when it comes to slowly building tension, dimly-lit hallways, and ominous music rooted in an ever-increasing progression of minor chords, I am a wimp. I don’t like scary movies, and never have. As a child, I was so terrified by my older sister’s description of The…
The Scariest Movie of My Life: Ringu
“It can’t be that scary,” I told myself as I slid the DVD into my beat-up player and turned on the TV. I was 14, we’d just moved to a new country, and with the school year still a few days from officially starting, I was desperate for something to do that didn’t involve unpacking…
Scariest Movie of My Life: Poltergeist 2
When I was a kid I stayed up late one night and watched Poltergeist with my older brothers. I was only twelve, and that isn’t exactly a kid’s movie, but it wasn’t scary at all with those two cracking jokes every millisecond. I thought it was a cool movie and bragged at school about how…
Suburban Gothic, with Matthew Gray Gubler and Kat Dennings, Is Rad
Full disclosure: I’m volunteering at Toronto After Dark Film Festival, and while I can’t trash the festival to hell and back (would I? I would not), I’m not required to give the films good press. This one deserves it though. Suburban Gothic Director: Richard Bates Jr. Writers: Richard Bates Jr., Mark Bruner Cast: Mathew Gray Gubler,…
Review: The Maze Runner Film
For a story that relies heavily on the unknown, The Maze Runner is built solidly on familiar and easily recognizable tropes. But while those tropes are engaging during the course of the movie, neither the characters nor the plot hold up to further scrutiny. I watched it without having read the series, and I left…
Classic Nerd Movie: Mini Review of Strange Days
Strange Days was a box office flop. An underrated, unusual, suspenseful flop starring Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis, and Tom Sizemore. And it is our next pick for the Classic Nerd Movie Club.