Reviews

Clever, funny, moving, sometimes sad... Living With Yourself raises questions that have no answers: who are we, really? Where will science and progress take us, and should we even go there? The questions are not new, but are presented here in a fresh, fun way.

The series is an obvious showcase for Paul Rudd, who is consistently entertaining, but the supporting cast is strong. The writing is witty and the dialogue entirely believable, even in a setting that should defy belief; the fact that it doesn't makes the characters more real, and it works. It won't be for everyone, but there's no need to nitpick the flaws, which are few and far between. Sit back, enjoy the ride. It's an easy binge watch, and compellingly addictive, in a way that makes you wish the story continued, while knowing it doesn't need to. Loved it.

This is a familiar sort of story, with strong female leads, established producers, and a solid support platform. Unfortunately, 'Lou' is a film that falls a bit short of what the viewer would like it to be.

The film's biggest flaw is that it suffers from lacklustre and unoriginal dialogue that seems to either weigh down the actors, or give them little to work with; it seems to lack a strong enough director to either help the characters develop or salvage the fact that we can see where this is all going very early on.

A few (budgetary) steps above a made-for-tv thriller, there is neither anything new nor particularly exciting to see here. I am a fan of Janney, and so it is certainly entertaining enough to watch her as the eponymous character - and that's really all 'Lou' offers. The film tries a little bit too hard to be a few too many things, and only Janney - and the child actress playing Vee - notch this one up to a fairly generous 6/10. Not that the other actors don't do a solid job, but you've seen it all before. A fair way to spend a couple of hours, since you've paid your Netflix subscription anyway.

The film is not 'insipid' as several reviewers without a grasp of vocabulary have suggested, it's light fare for a different demographic than most of the reviewers here. Reading the reviews by entitled millennials offended by a satirical take on entitled millennials might be the best thing about this film, and that's okay. The actors are solid in a film released perhaps several years past its Best Before date, and the story does not strive to teach any new lessons - this is pure entertainment for the Fed Up With Entitled Snowflake Millennials gang, and nothing else.

Enjoy it, or don't - like these lost characters with little sense of the real world: No One Cares.

Good for a laugh, especially the reviews from the targeted age range of viewers who cannot understand irony. 6/10.

I wasn't sure about this one at first, but it grew on me... a second viewing cemented it as a solid, enjoyable festive film that will be watched regularly during the holiday season.

This is definitely *NOT* a family-friendly Christmas film, and it doesn't pretend to be. This is set in a universe where a still-capable-of-kicking-some-serious-ass Mel Gibson reminds us that he didn't get the job of Santa because he is fat and jolly.

This holiday film fare offers less of 'The Santa Clause' and more of 'Die Hard', and it works. A great change up from the usual saccharine holiday movies. Put the kids to bed, grab some Christmas cookies, and just enjoy the ride. 'Fatman' manages to restore your Christmas hopes without letting you get too comfortable. We found the ending a bit abrupt the first time around, but definitely warmed to the ending as an effective way to wrap up the plot on the second watch.

Solid, silly, violent fun - it's not for everyone... but not all Christmas entertainment is. Give it a chance.

Three decades on, 'The Muppet Christmas Carol' (1992) still works on every single level as wholesome Christmas entertainment. This film shouldn't really work, and certainly shouldn't still be so very watchable, but it does, and it is.

Caine's Ebenezer Scrooge is perfection - not ever does Caine's characterization slip, and the very believability of Dickens' Yuletide creation is preserved. Never once does Caine misstep, and his Scrooge is one of the most memorable from the second half of the 20th Century film portrayals. What could - and almost certainly would - have been kitchy and campy and trite in another thespian's hands instead brings the genuine fear and discomfort of the original literary tale. Even with a musical number at the end that feels like it should be cringe-worthy, Caine's Scrooge never really is.

The songs are, of course, as much characters in the film as the muppets themselves - memorable and catchy, these tunes are all a reminder of Dickens' purpose in writing 'A Christmas Carol': that ignoring the harsh realities of the lives of the less fortunate, particularly children, will result in inescapable moral corruption.

At turns sad, funny, joyous, and genuinely moving, 'The Muppet Christmas Carol' is a family-friendly retelling of Dickens' classic cautionary Christmas tale that ticks all the right boxes, deserving to be watched year on year in the days leading up to Christmas.

Straight up: this is NOT a good film. However, it is not the worst film you will watch before this pandemic is over... if you can keep watching it. Five minutes in, most viewers, expecting something very different to what this is, will abandon this sometimes painful, often visually interesting film.

Watch it for what it is: a low budget, Canadian film pretending to be American, with unknown actors, from a director who is better known as a producer. If you know what you're going into, it may be worth your time. I like to support Canadian cinema, but The Sanctuary, like so many other 'entry level' Canadian films, suffers from that worst of afflictions - a lack of *genuine* actors. Every single scene looks like a college director's stage play; there are so very many 'look-at-me-acting-like-I-am-frustrated/upset/scared/cold/tired' moments that make this film cringeworthy.

While there are definitely worthy attempts to invite the viewer into these characters' lives - some of the settings are effective and visually fascinating - the terrible makeup and affected acting of the 'old' couple weighs down The Sanctuary's familiar storyline. Unfortunately, you won't care about any of these people - the director has been far too heavy handed with stereotypes and predictable actions and reactions that there is nothing new to see here.

Ultimately, it is the god-awful script that relegates The Sanctuary to what might, possibly, be a fairly decent film school student film. The dialogue raises the question of whether or not the writer has ever actually watched and listened to people interacting before. Absolutely unforgivably bad writing. Robin E. Crozier, please - PLEASE! - do not continue down the screenwriting path; it is not for you. I am sure you have other talents, but writing for film is not one of them. Good luck in any other career.

If you enjoy community theatre and Canadian B-movies, give The Sanctuary a whirl on a rainy afternoon or boring evening. Maybe while you're doing another task.

5 out of 10 for Canadian effort, and the earnestness of John-Riley O'Handley, who - under a practiced director - may have a future in film.

This isn't a bad little flick - an engaging watch for fans of The Twilight Zone and Black Mirror. The actors are solid - all of them - and the story develops as increasingly horrific.

Unfortunately, there is little to no real mystery here - the title makes it clear what you are going to watch, and then delivers. It is, perhaps, a bit too long; I'm not sure what I would cut out though, as most scenes help to build the claustrophobic atmosphere of isolation.

No shocks, no jumps, but a very good way to spend a weeknight or a Sunday afternoon for fans of the genre. 7/10

What a shame - this has a LOT of potential... but the cast of unknowns secondary to the two leads are terrible. Like, community college theatre bad. Baaaaad.

I once read that a truly bad actor will surround (in this case) herself with worse actors, to look better. I suspect that's what someone in casting was thinking, which only results in an amateurish mess.

This is the most unbelievable crew on a spaceship I have ever watched. Whiny, unlikeable, rather stupid 20somethings, under some premise of 'they're stupid enough to go' - no really, that's why. Because over 30, everyone gets too scared to do anything interesting.

Which brings me to the script. Oh, boy. This is baaaaad writing. Really bad. High school drama club bad. Honestly, this is just really bad TV.

VERY low budget Christian propaganda piece that clocks in at just under an hour, which is definitely long enough; unless you buy into what's being sold here, the first ten minutes will almost certainly be long enough.

I don't have a problem with religious propaganda, truly. To each his own - you don't have to tune in, folks, and you don't have to hate those who do. That said, I do resent a presentation of bizarre, made up garbage decorated as pseudo-science.

I rate this two stars because, for what it is, it's a below par, mediocre example that works hard to convince you that there cannot be aliens, unless you accept that 'aliens' = God.

For the rest of us, it's a timely reminder that modern society is leaving The Church by the thousands, and that this is a response to a difficult, ecumenical issue.

This film is everything that folks who make fun of Lifetime movies are making fun of. It suffers from a very poor script, and actors from the Mediocre School of Acting. The mother, in particular, is pretty dreadful, though the daughter could probably do quite well in another story with a different director.

Part of the problem is that at its heart, this is little more than an after school special, about a stupid teenage girl who does stupid things. We get it - we have been 'getting it' for the past ten years. And as such, this feels tired and washed out.

Some of the offerings from Lifetime are really very good, but this is not one of them. As average as they come. It should be called 'Breakup Nightmare: Now in Beige!'

Salutations. This title is marketed as Drama,Horror,Thriller. It's not horrific, or thrilling, so I suppose that leaves drama. It's a strange, cut and shopped together piece that takes the viewer through one night inside the head of a very disturbed young woman. She has no idea what's going on, and confesses the same; unfortunately, neither does the viewer.

The film gets stranger and more deliberately confusing as it goes on. I suspect this is in the name of art, but some shots are painfully long and uncomfortably self-indulgent.

I forced myself to watch it all, but frankly, I wouldn't recommend it. From the teaser 'lesbian sex scene' at the film's opening, through the distasteful running undercurrent of 'rape', to the final slide show of tenuously connected frames, it's not good cinema.

*** for actually getting me to watch it through.