The air in Toronto is starting to thaw; I went outside this morning and didn’t even need to brace myself for that moment where your lungs crystallize. Hopefully it’s getting better wherever you are, as well. But if you need to hide out in the dark, here are this week’s options.
At Middleton: Andy Rogers’ indie dramedy finds Vera Farmiga and Andy Garcia spending a day together while their kids tour a college campus. Susan plays the “innocuous trifle” card.
First Comes Love: Nina Davenport’s personal documentary follows her journey towards motherhood. Rad has two children and is thus far more qualified to review this project than I.
Labor Day: Josh Brolin ties up Kate Winslet until she’s willing to try his cooking in Jason Reitman’s lavishly produced Stockholm Syndrome romantic dramedy. And yes, all of that happens.
Rhymes for Young Ghouls: Jeff Barnaby’s feature debut is not quite the world-beater you may have heard, but it’s stylish and involving and feels strangely like something Guillermo del Toro might have made if he’d grown up in Quebec instead of Mexico.
A Story of Children and Film: A Story of Film assembly artist Mark Cousins continues to make intuitive connections throughout the history of cinema. His choices may intrigue you!
That Awkward Moment: This Zac Efron romantic comedy is fairly pleasant, right up until it reveals that it’s been made by a sociopath. And much as I like Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan, Imogen Poots and Mackenzie Davis, they couldn’t get me back on side.
Three Night Stand: Pat Kiely’s Montreal-area indie will shock Being Human fans with the sight of co-stars Sam Huntington and Meaghan Rath boning in the first five minutes, but that’s pretty much all it has going for it. Opens tomorrow at the Royal.
12 O’Clock Boys: Lotfy Nathan’s perceptive documentary explores the quad-bike subculture of Baltimore in a way that makes you think you’ve discovered a lost season of The Wire.
Vistors: Godfrey Reggio’s latest feels more like an installation than a documentary, and that’s totally fine by me.
And there you are! I must now drag a reluctant dog outside, where he’ll reencounter the concept of snow having a liquid state all over again.