RVCQ’09 Preview: The Big Hitters
The Rendez-vous du cinema quebecois‘ 27th Edition begins tomorrow night with the premiere of Cadavres, starring Patrick Huard. While probably the most intriguing ticket in town for the festival, it’s by invitation only - and if you haven’t heard by now, you’re out of luck. Don’t fret. There are plenty of other proverbial big hitters in the coming weeks, including Un ete sans point ni coup sur (A No-Hit No-Run Summer), with an equally big star: Roy Dupuis. The story about a boy coming of age in 1969 and falling in love with the sport of baseball as the world around him changes is a good bet, as are some of the titles below. Read more »
Tags: Benoit Pilon, Borderline, C'est pas moi je le jure!, Ce qu'il faut pour vivre, Francis Leclerc, Le Banquet, Le piege americain, Lea Pool, Lyne Charlebois, Maman est chez le coiffeur, Rendez-vous du cinema quebecois, RVCQ'09, The Necessities of Life, Un ete sans point ni coup sur
Film Festivals | 
February 17, 2009 | Comments Off
You cannot deny the mainstream appeal of Disney’s latest success story. It began as a television movie event, invaded the homes of millions of American tweens, spawned a television sequel and finally made the jump to the big screen in its third iteration. High School Musical 3: Senior Year will smash into homes this week, and there’s very little stopping it: an average Chuck Palahniuk novel adaptation, modern-day Kingdom of Heaven, and Michael Moore-esque slant against organized religion. None can compete with the raucous squeaky-clean popgasm that is Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens. Love it or hate it, if you have kids, seeing it is an inevitability. 
Mark your calendars. This Black History month, Concordia University (thanks to the student union, and student funds) is hosting a two-hour-long lecture with renowned director Spike Lee. Known equally for his charged dramas as his revealing documentaries, he is one of the few auteur filmmakers to bring an African American perspective to the screen. The lecture takes place Wednesday, February 18th at 4:30pm. Doors open at 4pm and the event is on a first come, first serve basis. Don’t miss it! 
Every year, the St. Patrick’s Society of Montreal and others have helped sponsor Cine Gael, a non-profit organization run by members of the Montreal Irish community that highlights the latest in Irish film. Starting this Friday, February 13th with the screening of Kisses, the 2009 schedule continues until the end of April. Screenings take place at Concordia University and are often preceded by a guest speaker. 
The latest offering from the NFB is Shots in the Dark (Silence, on vaccine), directed by Lina B. Moreco. It tackles the subject of the possibility of a link between immunization and the onset of developmental disabilities such as autism. Offering a personal insight from the POV of parents and medical practitioners inclined to believe there is, the documentary is revelatory in many of the assumptions its talking heads take, while at the same time offering large inaccessible chunks due to some heavy medical jargon. 
Two film releases in particular this week have respected names behind them: Spike Lee & Oliver Stone: Miracle at St. Anna and W., respectively. The first is about black combatants during WW2, a blockbuster that mixes in issues of race we’ve come to expect from a Lee movie. The second is another presidential biopic from Stone, though clearly he has become so self-conscious of his leftist bent that he has instead faulted Bush on Freudian rather than political grounds. The problem with both films is they are so obviously films by their respective directors, and poor efforts at such, that we’d all be better off renting something from earlier in their filmographies: how about Do the Right Thing and Platoon? 
As you may or may not have heard earlier last week, the NFB/ONF has recently opened their online Screening Room with a launch of over 700 titles available for free streaming. While their titles have always been accessible at NFB locations across Canada, this further democratizes their library. 
The second half of the week offers some great oldies, from Roger Corman’s The Masque of the Red Death (part of the ongoing Edgar Allen Poe series) to Jacques Demy’s live-action adaptation of Japanese manga Lady Oscar. The most interesting, however, may be the silent 1926 film starring Norma Shearer: Upstage. Being a silent film, the Cinematheque Quebecoise is once again accompanying the film with a live pianist. This echoes how films were watched at the time and is a rare opportunity for modern filmgoers. 
In an effort to switch towards Montreal-centric news and previews, I am changing up my formatting for DVD releases as of this week. Frankly, there are countless other sources for film enthusiasts when it comes to upcoming DVD releases (
Subscribe