by Grace Crawford

All images courtesy of Bellwether Pictures, Lionsgate Films, and Roadside Attractions.

I like Shakespeare. I always have. I know there are some who think he’s stuffy, pretentious, and the single leading cause of boredom among high school students. But I’ve just always liked him. I once played a witch in my school’s grade nine production of MacBeth (I’m not altogether certain what the fillet of a fenny snake is, nor what use eye of newt and toe of frog are for, but apparently it’s important for witchy things). I understood every word of Othello. I love writing a parody script of Twelfth Night. Had I not ended up in communications, I would have made an excellent English major and subsequent long-term barista/waitress.

I don’t really know how else one is supposed to begin discussing an adaptation of something, particularly when that something has already been adapted countless times over the years. In the case of Much Ado About Nothing, I thought Kenneth Branagh’s version hit the nail on the head. It was clever, well cast (with the exception of Keanu Reeves—not even high school students deserve to listen to his mechanically delivered lines for two and a half hours), and true to the source material. Whenever I think of how much I like Much Ado About Nothing, that’s the benchmark for me.

Continue reading →

by Thom Yee

Let’s pretend this didn’t happen.

Green Lantern.  Its mere mention is enough to send shivers down the spines of comic book fans and moviegoers alike.  And it’s probably the reason we haven’t heard as much from Ryan Reynolds lately (R.I.P.D. not withstanding).

For my part… I didn’t hate Green Lantern.  On the plus side, Ryan Reynolds and Mark Strong were strong choices as Hal Jordan and Sinestro (spoiler alert Sinestro is sinister) and the basic plot was serviceable.  On the minus side, none of the characters were all that likable, the villains were either pathetic, uncompelling or poorly defined, the movie failed to capitalize on all the weird-looking aliens the way a lot of the marketing seemed to be going for, and I really just think the Green Lantern power set — which is basically a magic wishing ring — doesn’t translate that well to the screen.  You just don’t get that visceral thrill of people hitting each other (giant, green energy fists don’t count).  And Blake Lively was just awful.

Continue reading →

by Grace Crawford

All images courtesy of Marv Films, Ingenious Films, and Paramount Pictures.

“A philosopher once asked, ‘Are we human because we gaze at the stars, or do we gaze at the stars because we are human?’ Pointless, really. Do the stars gaze back? Now that’s a question.”

I like fairy tales. I always have, and I’m not ashamed of it. I try to make a point of seeing all the new Disney movies in theatres, and I’ve done that ever since I first saw Pocahontas, and wow, does that ever make me feel old (even though I’m really not). I have a leather-bound book of fairy tales by my bed, I watch Once Upon A Time even though it’s not even that fantastic a show anymore, and I once appeared as the Wardrobe in my high school’s production of Beauty and the Beast. I like fairy tales, and I don’t expect that to change anytime soon.

Continue reading →