Happy Friday! And sure, it’s cold again, but keep hope alive: Spring’s gotta kick in sometime. And until it does, well, most movie theatres are nice and toasty.
Borealis: Sean Garrity’s latest lets Jonas Chernick (who also scripted and produced) and Joey King play out a delicate father-daughter drama within the skeleton of a road movie. It’s good.
The Boss: Melissa McCarthy brings her chaotic energy to a riches-to-rags comedy that is an unapologetic mess, but is also very funny. So there.
Demolition: Jean-Marc Vallee’s TIFF opener lets Jake Gyllenhaal play a seriocomic solo through grief and loss. I dug it. You might too.
Francofonia: Alexander Sokurov’s latest wants to do for the Louvre what Russian Ark did for the Hermitage. Glenn approves, with some caveats.
Hardcore Henry: A first-person actioner in which the camera assumes the persona of a cyborg, or something, wreaking havoc in the name of vengeance. Glenn ain’t having it.
I Saw the Light: Tom Hiddleston is Hank Williams … in a movie that doesn’t deserve him. Seriously, this is really bad.
One More Time: Amber Heard plays a would-be rocker who’s spent her life in the shadow of her musician dad (Christopher Walken) in Robert Edwards’ generational drama. I’m hoping to catch up to it.
The Pearl Button: Patricio Guzman’s latest meditation on the restless Chilean conscience plays like a weird echo of Embrace of the Serpent, and the stylistic flourishes feel a little like filler. Not his strongest work, you know?
Sleeping Giant: Andrew Cividino’s slippery coming-of-age drama returns to theatres after December’s under-the-radar awards run. If you missed it then, don’t miss it now; it looks great on a big screen.
The Winding Stream: Beth Harrington’s documentary about the history (and future) of The Carter Family features some wonderful music and some amazing archival footage. If you’re even slightly interested, check it out.
And if you think that’s a lot of movies, just wait until next weekend …