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Sample: Title; rating (out of 4); principal
setting; year of release; international co-producer (if any); cast; description;
scriptwriter; director; content warning; running time.
COBRA (TV Series)The three leads were genuinely appealing with good on-screen camaraderie in this TV series, which went for a "Magnum P.I."-style mixture of humour and drama, but ultimately it just wasn't...riveting. Not terrible, but blah and not sufficiently well done or unique to really make it catch on. Ultimately it suffered from the same problem as a lot of American TV mogul Stephen J. Cannell's filmed-in-Vancouver series (Two, Street Justice): professional, but a little too generic. Best bets: "Caged Fury" using the old reliable 'corrupt cops in a small town' scenario and featuring Hossack in a more principal role. Created by Stephen J. Cannell and Steve Long Mitchell & Craig W. Van Sickle. Hour-long episodes, not shown nationally until 1996-1997 on Showcase! |
THE COCKROACH THAT ATE CINCINNATI*
* 1/2
(1996) Alan Williams, Deborah Drakeford, Oliver Dennis.....A
couple of amateur filmmakers decide to chronicle the eccentric ramblings
of neurotic, British misfit (Williams). Entertaining, kinetically directed,
lively comedy, essentially just a collection of monologues with the central
character relating quirky anecdotes from his life and commenting on pop
culture and Western Civilization. Williams' energetic and amusingly eccentric
delivery, though initially fascinating, can actually be a bit exhausting,
with the viewer struggling to keep up with him as the film progresses.
And the movie never quite generates a narrative drive, despite the monologues
progressing chronologically and a cute revelation near the end. As well,
since the stories often veer off into absurdism, it's not always clear
what's based on reality, and what's just silly, undermining some of the
socio-political commentary. An enjoyable, amusing movie, but one that might
play
better being watched in instalments. Apparently this was director McNamara's
second take on it, after his original footage was wrecked (allowing him
to rethink the material in the interim). sc: Alan Williams (from his Cockroach
trilogy of one man shows). dir: Michael McNamara. 92 min.
THE COCKTAIL PARTY *
* setting: other
(1960) Murray Matheson, William Hutt, Helena Hughes,
Mary Savidge, Jane Mallett, Gillie Fenwick, Jeremy Wilkin.....Story
of mores and infidelities among some upper middle class Britons. Black
& white, staged for CBC version of the T.S. Eliot play doesn't seem
to have aged well. It seems like an odd collision between completely separate
ideas and even genres (sometimes realistic...sometimes surreal) that don't
really form a satisfactory whole. The first part is the best, if a little
overly written, focusing on characters and their soap opera-y relationships
in the aftermath of a cocktail party...then it segues into a heavy handed
sequence involving a psychiatrist, and final resolves with a bizarre conclusion
involving martyrdom! Adapted by Desmond Scott. 83 min.
|
(2001) (/France) * * 1/2 Cameron Bancroft ("Ethaniel"), Ingrid Kavelaars ("Dr. Laura Keating"), Andrew Gillies ("David Banning"), Gordon Currie ("Dent"), Joseph Baldwin ("Byder"), Olivier Gruner ("Tawrens"), others......Science fiction/suspense set in contemporary America about an alien (Bancroft) -- initially suffering from amnesia, but from the planet Therian -- and a psychiatrist (Kavelaars) who continually seek to sabotage the world-destroying plans of another alien (Gillies), also a Therian, who masquerades as a respectable, big business man. Currie played the evil alien's chief henchman, a shape shifting android. Gruner was another alien who sided with the heroes and Baldwin a computer hacker who helped them. This series is essentially cut from the same cloth as First Wave, with aliens, disguised as humans, engaged in secret plots, while lone wolf heroes seek to stop them, knowing no one in authority would believe them. And every episode is, well, kind of like every other episode, since you always know who the villain will turn out to be. Although that very repetition can, one supposes, give a series a clearly defined identity. The plots tended to be kind of thin, the stories repetitive (all flaws shared with First Wave), but there was a certain, low-key charm to the thing that First Wave doesn't quite have. The actors are genuinely ingratiating, and even villains Gillies and Currie are kind of fun in their movie serial malevolence. Not a great series, but an O.K. watch from time to time. And though set in the U.S., all the actors in this Canada-France co-production were either Canadian or European, save for Baldwin (and the occasional guest star like Billy Dee Williams). Its biggest weakness was it's inability -- or unwillingness -- to articulate even its basic premise. Thhis was on purpose early on, since even the heroes weren't entirely sure what was going on or why, but even later the series could be kind of hard to just drop into. It wasn't that the premise was particularly esoteric -- it just wasn't explained often (no voice-over during the opening credits telling us who was who). This lack of accessibility may have factored in to the series' short life. I believe it was cancelled after one season. The final episode ends kind of downbeat with the bad guys basically succeeding in unleashing their world destroying plan...presumably it was just intended to be a cliff hanger rather than the actual end of the series. Ah well. a.k.a. Codename: Eternity. 26 Hour long episodes, with the copyright date at the end of the episodes being 1999...but it didn't air nationally in Canada until 2001 on the Mystery Channel. |
LE COEUR AU POING *
* 1/2 setting: P.Q.
(1998) Pascale Montpetit, Anne-Marie Cadieux, Guy
Nadon, Guylaine Tremblay.....Young woman (Montpetit), feeling rootless
and directionless, creates her own "game" wherein she goes up to perfect
strangers and offers herself for one hour -- one hour in which she will
do whatever they want. O.K. drama is slickly put together, boasting
an intriguing, provocative premise, with nice performances from Montpetit
and Cadieux (as her patronizing sister), but it doesn't quite live up to
its full potential. Instead of getting insightful episodes exposing the
Human Condition, a lot are just trivial vignettes, not entirely building
to the denouement the movie's going for. Some good scenes (the security
guard, the gay man) but even the heroine's motivation is a bit undeveloped.
Not bad, but should've been better. A few too many sexual encounters (no,
no, this isn't an erotic drama) which though probably realistic,
doesn't really exploit this premise (if the filmmakers wanted to do that,
why not just make her a prostitute, ala "Crimes of Passion"?) English title;
Streetheart.
sc: Monique Proulx, Charles Biname. dir: Charles Biname. - explicit sexual
content, partial female nudity.- 97 min.
COLD COMFORT
* * * setting: Sask.
COLD FRONT *
setting: B.C.
COLD JOURNEY
* * 1/2 setting: Man.
The third season dumped everyone but Stewart from
the cast and de-emphasized the whole "cold squad" concept, making it just
another cop show, usually splitting the episodes into two stories: one
an investigative piece, the other an action one with lots of running about
and stakeouts in back alleys. Gone was the gritty, "just the facts, ma'am,"
ambience in favour of "colourfully" eccentric cops in designer fashions,
soap opera-y interplay, chases, comic sub-plots (even to the point of bad
taste)...and lame plots. The fifth season added Bennett, a welcome addition
with his low-key intensity (kind of like a Canadian Kevin Spacey), and
a new story concept: a single case, stretched over the entire season (interwoven
with other, episode-by-episode cases).
Though initially cut from the same cloth as series like
the U.S. "Homicide" and the British "Prime Suspect", it initially avoided
the more odious cop show cliches (like right wing rants against pesky things
like civil rights) with the stories mysteries with surprise endings, but
it tended toward being a bit dry and housebound. Not bad, not great, but
it was a respectable effort -- arguably one of the better shows to come
out of Canada in the late '90s. At least, that was true of the first two
seasons. But with most of the subsequent changes, the series seemed to
be getting dumbed down...you can practically feel your brain shrinking
as you watch. Too bad. And the fifth season single-case idea was mishandled;
the series didn't bother with "previously on..." montages at the beginning
of the episodes, so it was hard to even know what they were investigating
or why if you missed the beginning of the season!
Like a lot of '90s Canadian series intended mainly for
the Canadian market, it was made with looser restrictions than most U.S.
series, indulging in some profanity and, occasionally even nudity (at least
one scene in the 4th season involving the obligatory strip club with a
brief glimpse of more -- or less -- than a bikini). Despite the series'
constant efforts to reinvent itself hinting that it wasn't quite the success
it wanted to be, it can be seen as having begat a whole trend of "gritty"
crime dramas in Canada, preceding series like Da Vinci's
Inquest and Blue Murder, as well
as various TV movies. In 2003, American producers came out with the notably
similar "Cold Case", leading to legal action from the producers of "Cold
Squad" (CTV didn't seem to mind, and happily carried both shows).
Created by Matt MacLeod, Philip Keatley, Julia Keatley. Hour long episodes
on CTV. COLD SWEAT *
* 1/2 setting: Ont.
A COLDER KIND OF DEATH
* * *
LE COLLECTIONNEUR
* * setting: P.Q./USA.
THE COLLECTOR see Le Collectionneur
(2004-) * * 1/2
Chris Kramer ("Morgan Pym"), Carly Pope ("Maya") (1st), Sonya Salomaa ("Maya")
(2nd-), Ellen Dubin ("Jeri Slade"), with Ona Grauer ("Katrina"), with Aidan
Drummond, Colin Cunningham, Rick Tae ("Peter")
.....Supernatural suspense-drama about a medieval monk (Kramer) who sold
his soul to the Devil and now operates as the Devil's bag man in
modern day Vancouver collecting the souls of others who've made deals with
the Devil and whose time is now up. The catch is, he's made another deal
with the Devil, wherein he is given 48 hours to try and redeem the people
and nullify their deal. Pope plays his neighbour, a troubled ex-prostitute/junkie
he's befriended and helping to reform (replaced by Salomaa, playing the
same character). Dubin a suspicious investigative reporter who's autistic
son (Drummond, looking eerily like a progeny of Donald Sutherland) seems
to perceive more of the supernatural goings on than she does. Grauer crops
up in flashbacks as a peasant girl "Pym" loved, and the reason he sold
his soul in the first place. Tae plays the autistic boy's teacher. The
Devil appears as different sardonic actors each episode, but Cunningham
recurs, in flashbacks, as the version with which the hero made his initial
bargain (and also provides the introductory voice over). The gimmick is
that the episodes don't have guaranteed happy endings. Sometimes he saves
a soul, sometimes he doesn't; sometimes the people are good people who
made a bad decision, other times, they turn out to be bad people.
This TV series was wildly promoted for its Canadianess
-- though Canadians have been involved in mmany fantasy/SF series, some
quite successful, this was one of the few that was actually set
in Canada, and with an all-Canadian cast. The basic premise seemed a little
slapped together at times, borrowing shamelessly from past TV series such
as the U.S. "Brimstone" (good guy reluctantly working for a sardonic Devil
collecting souls) as well as Canadian ones like being a darker version
of Twice in a Lifetime, even with shades of
Matrix.
Series that only ran one or two seasons -- wouldn't you think, if you were
going to take your inspiration from something, it should be a successful
something? The series started out rather uneven, often delivering slow,
clunky episodes (supposedly spending 1.4 million per episode, but you'd
never guess it), and with the basic logic of the premise not always consistent.
But it seems to be improving as it goes, delivering stronger stories, and
with Kramer and Pope growing into their roles, both bringing a sincerity
and humanity to their parts. And the prominent roles given to guest stars
makes this an increasing rarity in modern TV...a series that provides a
showcase for performers to strut their stuff. Despite its growing pains,
the series will presumably be around for a while -- supposedly the producers
committed to multiple seasons even before the first episode aired! Ironically,
Kramer, a practising Catholic, had some initial qualms about even accepting
the part. Best bets: the one about a roboticist (played by Gabrielle Miller)
for its stronger plot and ironic ending; the one with Winston Rekert as
a loveable rogue for, well, Winston Rekert as a loveable rogue; others.
Created by Jon Cooksey, Ali Marie Matheson. Hour long episodes, shown on
various CHUM affiliates, such as Space. COMIC BOOK CONFIDENTIAL
* * * setting: USA.
COMING OF AGE *
* * setting: CDN.
COMING OUT ALIVE *
* 1/2 setting: Ont.
COMMENT FAIRE L'AMOUR AVEC UN
NEGRE SANS SE FATIGUER * *
COMMON BONDS a.k.a. Chaindance
THE COMPANY OF STRANGERS
* * 1/2
Go to Top
(1989) Maury Chaykin, Margaret Langrick, Paul Gross.....Trapped
in a blizzard, a travelling salesman (Gross) finds himself the "guest"
of a strange man (Chaykin) and his daughter (Langrick) in the middle of
nowhere. Atmospheric, well-acted artsy-thriller doesn't quite build the
way it should, but still good. Won Best Adapted Script Genie. sc: Richard
Beattie, L. Elliott Simms (from the play by James Gerrard). dir: Vic Sarin.
- partial female nudity.- 90 min. (video)
(1989) Martin Sheen, Michael Ontkean, Beverly D'Angelo,
Kim Coates, Yvan Ponton, Jan Rubes, Miguel Fernandes.....U.S. cop (Sheen)
in B.C. and his Mountie partner (Ontkean) investigate a psycho killer involved
in espionage. Thriller lacks suspense -- since the plot is explained in
an opening prologue -- or interest -- since it's so derivative and badly
done. The cultural undercurrents amount to nothing more than a few dumb
jokes, rather than any difference in characterization. Sheen must've
been desperate. sc: Sean Allan, Stefan Arngrim. dir: Paul Bnarbic. - violence.-
94 min. (video)
(1975) Johnny Yesno, Buckley Petawabano, Chief Dan
George, Alphonse Dorion, Guy L'Ecuyer, Denis LaCroix.....Story of a
confused Native Indian teen (Petawabano) falling in the cracks between
his erstwhile Cree culture and white society after spending years in a
residential school, which leaves him neither one thing or the other. Years
before Where the Spirit Lives was this
less sensationalistic indictment of the Residential School system (no reference
to abuse, just the flaws in the system itself). Oddly presented, relying
a lot on narration by Yesno (playing the school's Ojibway janitor who befriends
him) as though a documentary, and a bit rough and uneven. But ultimately
kind of works thanks to its naturalism, its seeming authentic look at people
and their culture, in a matter-of-fact way not usually depicted, and a
sincere performance from Petawabano (of Adventures
in Rainbow County). Yesno remains best know for the classic Wojeck
episode, "The Last Man on Earth". '70s Canadian starlet (if Canada had
stars) Sue Helen Petrie (a.k.a. Susan Petrie a.k.a. Sue Petrie) has a bit
part as L'Ecuyer's daughter. sc: David B. Jones with George Pearson (story
Martin DeFalco). dir: Martin DeFalco. 76 min.
COLD SQUAD (TV Series)
(1993) Ben Cross, Adam Baldwin, Shannon Tweed, Dave
Thomas, Henry Czerny, Lenore Zann, Maria Del Mar.....A troubled hitman
(Cross), haunted by a ghost (Zann), gets involved with a murder plot involving
business partners (Thomas and Czerny) and the former's adulteress wife
(Tweed). Suspenser benefits from a decent cast, clever twists, off-beat
ideas and black humour. But it's a bit sluggish, with a thin story and
undeveloped, unsympathetic characters (perhaps the influence of Prom
Nights II and III's Ron Oliver -- who's
given a consultation credit). Still, there's a surprisingly lot of sex
and exposed flesh, with Tweed doing the lion's share, followed by Zann,
but Czerny, Baldwin and even, very briefly, Del Mar doff some garments
as well...all scenes extensively re-shot and edited for TV (even Canadian
stations show the adulterated version) which, admittedly, hurt its interest-level.
sc: Richard Beattie. dir: Gail Harvey. - partial female nudity and casual
male nudity, sexual content, violence.- 93 min. (video)
(2001) Wendy Crewson, Victor Garber, Robin Dunne,
Patrick McKenna, Cynthia Gibb, Terri Garr, Eric Peterson, Kari Matchett,
Soo Garay.....Joanne Kilbourn (Crewson) investigates when someone is
arrested for the 6-year old murder of her husband, and is himself subsequently
murdered, hinting at a conspiracy involving her husband's old political
cronies. Fourth made-for-CTV Kilbourn movie is arguably the best of the
bunch so far, thanks, in part, to the more personal nature of the crime
being investigated. see The Joanne Kilbourn Mysteries.
sc: R.B. Carney, Andrew Wreggitt (from the novel by Gail Bowen). dir: Brad
Turner. 89 min.
(2001) Maude Guerin, Luc Picard, Lawrence Arcoutte,
Charles-Andre Bourassa, Yves Jacques, Julie Menard, Yvan Ponton, Christian
Begin, Alexis Martin, Francois Papineau.....Police detective (Guerin)
investigates a grisly serial killer who murders his female victims, then
steals their body parts, while also acting as a reluctant surrogate mom
to some street kids (the cop, that is, not the serial killer). Suspense-thriller
is ultimately a bit too slow moving (not to mention periodically gory and
unsavoury), with the stuff involving the street kids more interesting than
the serial killer plot. Doesn't really maintain tension...with even the
climax seeming a bit anti-climactic, and with the whole movie just going
on longer than it needs to. With its familiar aspects (a serial killer
with a mother fixation and into taxidermy!) and its various disparate plot
elements, it seems a bit like its subject matter...something cobbled together
from parts of other stories. Even the intentions of the filmmaker are a
bit vague, like when exactly are we supposed to guess who's who (and when
are the characters supposed to guess, too). Picard is memorable as the
villain. English title: The Collector. sc: Jean Beaudin, Chantal
Cadieux (from the novel by Chrystine Brouillet). dir: Jean Beaudin. - extreme
violence.- 125 min.
(1989).....Adult documentary presents an overview
of the last fifty years of U.S. comic books, with a look at superheroes
and horror but focusing principally on the alternatives and underground.
Interviews with the likes of William Gaines, Robert Crumb, Stan Lee, Will
Eisner, etc. Innovative techniques make the comics come alive and it's
at its best when the creator's read from their work. Interesting, though
hardly comprehensive. In addition to the perfunctory treatment given superheroes,
other genres (romance, funny animals) are only touched on. And Canadian
and other non-U.S. comics are ignored completely. The film may have inspired
the TV series Prisoners of Gravity. A later documentary
by another filmmaker, Once Upon a Time, gave
greater focus to the genre of super heroes. dir: Ron Mann. 85 min. (video)
(1993) Marion Gilsenan, Jan Rubes, Bernard Behrens,
Jennifer Phipps, Julie Stewart, Esther Hockin, Jacelyn Holmes.....A
recently widowed grandmother (Gilsenan) finds herself taking in borders
to make ends meet: a flamboyant handyman (Rubes) and a man (Behrens) whose
wife (Phipps) has alzheimers. Serio-comic pic occasionally seems too formal
and stiff, with forays into the obvious, but has a good cast all around
and some memorable scenes. Rubes was associate producer. Behrens and Phipps
received the Best Supporting Actor and Actress Geminis. sc: Donald Martin,
Betty Jane Wylie. dir: E. Jane Thompson. 79 min.
(1980) Helen Shaver, Scott Hylands, Michael Ironside,
Christopher Crabb.....When her son (Crabb) is kidnapped by her ex-husband
(Ironside), a woman (Shaver) runs out of options until finally turning
to a troubled mercenary (Hylands) -- and they discover there was much more
to the husband than meets the eye. Suspense-drama starts out a For
the Recordish drama, then becomes pulpier as it goes along. Good performances
(with bit parts by Doug McGrath, Winston Rekert and Barbara Gordon) and
Hylands is particularly notable in a rare flamboyant lead role. But the
filmmakers don't quite seem to grasp the finer points of doing a thriller,
making it mildly diverting, but with a lot of wasted potential. Still,
it's a nice reminder that the CBC once did things other than true-crime
stories and L.M. Montgomery adaptations. sc: John Kent Harrison. dir: Don
McBrearty.
77 min. (video)
(1989) (/France) Isaach de Bankole, Roberta Bizeau,
Maka Kotto, Myriam Cyr, Antoine Durand, Julien Poulin, Roy Dupuis.....Story
of an aspiring writer (de Bankole) and his friend (Kotto) and of his affairs
with various white women. Breezy serio-comic film has some cute scenes
and good performances from de Bankole and Kotto but is too insubstantial
and indulges in its own racist and sexist stereotyping. English title:
How
to Make Love to a Negro Without Getting Tired. sc: Dany Laferriere,
Richard Sadler (from the novel by Laferriere). dir: Jacques W. Benoit.
- partial female nudity, sexual content.- 999 min. (video)
(1990) Alice Diabo, Beth Webber, Catherine Roche,
Cissy Meddings, Constance Garneau, Mary Meigs, Michelle Sweeney, Winifred
Holden..... Eight women, most elderly, find themselves stranded in
the middle-of-nowhere when their bus breaks down and, as they wait for
help, learn survival skills (sort of) and about each other. Likeable, effective
comedy-drama, using a realist, semi-scripted, semi-improvised style and
non-professional actors. A big hit with critics and audiences. U.S. title:
Strangers
in Good Company (so it wouldn't be confused with the simultaneously
released U.S. film, "The Comfort of Strangers"). sc: Gloria Demers, with
Cynthia Scott, David Wilson, Sally Bochner. dir: Cynthia Scott. 101 min.
(video)