Category Archives: Reviews

TIFF FILM REVIEW: Joe Wright’s ‘Darkest Hour’

Posted on September 14, 2017 by admin

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – Gary Oldman is an unlikely choice to play Winston Churchill but his portrayal of the iconic British statesman in Joe Wright’s ‘Darkest Hour’ is masterful and bound for all the major awards. He is supported … Continue reading →

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Armando Iannucci’s ‘The Death of Stalin’

Posted on September 14, 2017 by admin

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – Having savaged British and American politics on television with “The Thick of It” and “VEEP”, Armando Iannucci turns his wickedly satirical eye on Russia with a perceptive and hilarious depiction of what might have happened … Continue reading →

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Darren Aronofsky’s ‘mother!’

Posted on September 14, 2017 by admin

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – Darren Aronofsky’s “mother!” is pure hokum but it is very enjoyable hokum, a tub-thumping thriller with a gorgeous young woman (Jennifer Lawrence) spiralling into all kinds of fiendish and inexplicable horror. It’s completely pointless but, … Continue reading →

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Saul Dibb’s ‘Journey’s End’

Posted on September 14, 2017 by admin

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – Saul Dibb’s film version of R.C. Sherriff’s “Journey’s End”, a drama about soldiers at the front line of trench warfare, is a valiant attempt but possibly simply because it is a film, it lacks the … Continue reading →

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Guillermo del Toro’s ‘The Shape of Water’

Posted on September 14, 2017 by admin

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – Guillermo del Toro’s “The Shape of Water” is a dazzling piece of cinema, a fairy tale for grownups that celebrates the joys of life amid every day banality with the occasional touch of horror. It … Continue reading →

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: ‘Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool’

Posted on September 13, 2017 by admin

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – “Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool” is a disappointingly dismal film about a has-been Hollywood actress who has an affair with an on-the-make young British actor while she deals with her fading career and a … Continue reading →

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Alexander Payne’s ‘Downsizing’

Posted on September 10, 2017 by admin

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – Alexander Payne’s “Downsizing” is a science-fiction tale that mixes whimsy with social commentary in constantly surprising ways but with ideas so scattershot that they never adhere as a satisfying drama. His filmmaking is so imaginative, … Continue reading →

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Stephen Frears’s ‘Victoria and Abdul’

Posted on September 10, 2017 by admin

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – That Judy Dench stars as the venerable English queen in “Victoria and Albert” tells you all you need to know about what to expect from another tale of one of the widowed monarch’s odd friendships.

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: George Clooney’s ‘Suburbicon’

Posted on September 9, 2017 by admin

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – Joyless, witless and pointless, “Suburbicon” is a would-be black comedy that is simply murky and not in the least comic. It boasts some big names – director George Clooney, stars Matt Damon and Julianne Moore … Continue reading →

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Dee Rees’s ‘Mudbound’

Posted on September 7, 2017 by admin

By Ray Bennett TORONTO: “Mudbound” is set in the Mississippi Delta in the 1940s but with torrential rain, deeply ingrained racial hostility and changes wrought by World War II, it’s no treat to beat your feet. Two poor families – … Continue reading →

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