Stray: A day in the life of an Istanbul street dog speaks as much to human activity as to canine
ReviewJim SlotekDocumentaries about stray dogs, Louis de Bernières, Birds Without Wings, Street dogs in Istanbul, Elizabeth Lo, Stray, Zeytin, Syrian street kids in Istanbul, Taksim Square, Diogenes, Pariah Dog, Rescuing Rex
The United States vs. Billie Holiday: A magnetic performance in a mess of a biopic
ReviewJim SlotekBillie Holiday, Andra Day, The United States vs. Billie Holiday, Golden Globe winner, Awards season movies, Lee Daniels, Strange Fruit, Diana Ross in Lady Sings the Blues, John Szwed, Billie Holiday: The Musician and the Myth, Harry Anslinger, Suzan-Lori Parks, Johann Hari’s Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs, Abel Meeropol, James Baldwin, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, The Burning of Will Brown’s Body, Natasha Lyonne, Tallulah Bankhead, Garrett Hedlund, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Miss Lawrence
Notturno: Images say it all in haunting documentary about the survivors of ISIS's brutal 'caliphate'
By Karen Gordon
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The Vigil: Chilling Jewish folklore proves Catholics don't have a monopoly on religious-based horror
ReviewJim SlotekJewish supernatural legends, Golem, Dybbuk, Keith Thomas, The Vigil, Shomer, Dave Davis, Menashe Lustig, Lynn Cohen, The Limehouse Golem, The Possession
The Mauritanian: A nightmarish ordeal gets second billing to a less compelling tale of legal wrangling
ReviewJim SlotekThe Mauritanian, Guantánamo Diary, Mohamedou Ould Slahi, Guantánamo Bay detention camp, Bob Dylan’s The Man in Me, 9/11, Kevin Macdonald, The Last King of Scotland, Jodie Foster, Shailene Woodley, Tahar Rahim, Benedict Cumberbatch
Minari: Heart and playful moments in this tale of South Koreans seeking the American Dream in Arkansas dirt
By Karen Gordon
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ReviewJim SlotekMinari water celery, Minari film, Lee Isaac Chung, Immigrant farmers, Steven Yeun, Yeri Han, Alan S. Kim, Noel Cho, Yuh-jung Youn, South Korean immigrant experience, Award season films
Mafia Inc.: A Solid Montreal Gangster Drama That Breaks New Heads If Not New Ground
ReviewJim SlotekCanadian crime movies, Mafia Inc, Frank Paterno, Sergio Castellitto, Daniel Grou, 7 Days, L’Affaire Dumont, Sylvain Guy, André Cédilot, Donny Falsett, Marc-André Grondin, Gilbert Sicotte, Montreal mob scene, Underrated Canadian movies
Deragh Campbell Soars As a Woman on the Edge in Kazik Radwanski’s Anne at 13,000 ft.
By Linda Barnard
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Review, PreviewJim SlotekAnne at 13000 ft., Deragh Campbell, Kazik Radwanski, Lawrene Denkers, Matt Johnson, TIFF 2019, Canadian movies, Drama, Woman on the edge, Skydiving, Dorothea Pass
Human Rights Watch Film Festival: Free Documentary Series a Midwinter Gift
Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci Shine in Moving Drama Supernova
By Linda Barnard
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Love in the time of COVID: Three in-the-moment movie romances for a viral Valentine
By Karen Gordon
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ReviewJim SlotekValentine's Day during COVID, Films shot under pandemic protocols, Palm Springs, Andy Samberg, Cristin Milioti, Groundhog Day, Bill Murray, Andie MacDowell, Max Barbakow, Andy Siara, Locked Down, Anne Hathaway, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Doug Liman, Steven Knight., Malcolm and Marie, Sam Levinson, Zendaya, John David Washington
Breaking News in Yuba County: Great cast in a caper comedy that breaks real bad
ReviewJim SlotekCaper comedies, Breaking News In Yuba County, Allison Janney, Matthew Modine, Mila Kunis, Bridget Everett, Juliette Lewis, Jimmi Simpson, Keong Sim, Awkwafina, Clifton Collins Jr., Amanda Idoko, Tate Taylor, The Help, Ellen Barkin, Regina Hall
Judas and the Black Messiah: In this essential bit of Black Panther history, Judas is the more intriguing character
Cowboys: Tender Drama About Trans Kid Checks Boxes But Misses Wider Mark
I Blame Society: Mockumentary Better as Film Critique than As a Black Comedy
Skyfire: Things go boom the same in any language, and the next Irwin Allen just may be Chinese
ReviewJim SlotekDisaster movies, Irwin Allen, Skyfire, Jason Isaacs, Hannah Quinlivan, The Poseidon Adventure, The Towering Inferno, The Impossible, Simon West, Chinese adaptations of Hollywood genres, The Tower, Tidal Wave
Toronto Black Film Festival: An eclectic collection of starkly different Black experiences, connecting the past to the present
Preview, ReviewJim SlotekToronto Black Film Festival, Black Lives Matter, Foster Boy, Shaquille O'Neal, Youssef Delara, Matthew Modine, Louis Gossett Jr., Shane Paul McGhie, Truth to Power: Barbara Lee Speaks for Me, John Lewis, Shirley Chisholm, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Stateless, Removal of Dominican Republic citizenship, Elsa Joubert, The Long Journey of Poppie Nongena, Clementine Mosimane, #LANDoftheBRAVEfilm, Elize de Wee, Dope Is Death, Dr. Mutulu Shakur
Paradise Cove: Movie of the Week-ish Thriller Not Thrilling (Movie of the Weak Maybe?)
Sator: The unbearable tightness of waiting for a demon in the woods
ReviewJim SlotekDemonic possession, Horror films set in the woods, Sator, Jordan Graham, “Automatic writing.”, Gabriel Nicholson, Paganism, Michael Daniel, Rachel Johnson, June Peterson
A Glitch in the Matrix: Reality Not the Only Thing Put to the Test in Wonky Documentary
