Over on the Sundance side of my coverage, I take a look at the very funny romantic comedy CHASING SUMMER, which teams up star/writer Iliza Shlesinger with boundary pushing indie filmmaker Josephine Decker and yields great results.

Also over on YouTube, a talk with actress and writer Camille Wormser and director Alec Goldberg about their pilot episode of SOFT BOIL, which premiered in Sundance's first ever Episodic Pilot Showcase.

Head on over to the YouTube page to check out my interview with director Rachel J Morrison and producer Will Butler about their documentary JOYBUBBLES, which premiered at Sundance this week and tells the story of one blind man's ability to connect the world through unusual methods.

Also on the Sundance side of things, I talked to director Lily Platt about her short CRISIS ACTOR, which just picked up an award at the festival.

Haven't had time to highlight it much, but I have also been doing a bunch of Sundance coverage! Including this interview with Canadian actor/writer/director Kelly McCormack about her short film HOW BRIEF, which made its world premiere at the festival this week.

The new Jason Statham movie SHELTER is everything you think it's going to be, but on the good side of what you think it's going to be. Opens in theatres this Friday.

Although I think it would work better at a tight 85 minutes (or even better as a Tales from the Crypt episode), Sam Raimi's darkly comedic survival thriller SEND HELP manages to be a lot of fun. In theatres everywhere Friday.

Crazy week over here between life stuff, regular work stuff, and Sundance prep, but I wanted to point out a delightful chat I had with filmmakers Dusty Mancinelli and Madeleine Siws-Fewer and actors Grace Glowicki and Ben Petrie about the thriller HONEY BUNCH, in Canadian cinemas starting today.

This week has started off with a broken tooth, food poisoning, a death in the family, and the continued collapse of society. But good news, I have Friday off.

I saw CHARLIE THE WONDERDOG. It's a thing I saw. I have so very little to say about it. In theatres tomorrow.

On the pretty decent animated adaptation ALL YOU NEED IS KILL (which was the source material for Edge of Tomorrow). Opens in select theatres tomorrow.

Thoroughly loved Nia DaCosta's 28 YEARS LATER: THE BONE TEMPLE, which is both a worthy follow-up to its predecessor and a cranked to 1,111 kinetic experience. In theatres everywhere Friday.

Here's a look at the okay documentary 76 DAYS ADRIFT, a story of survival at sea that's very basic in construction, but well told by its subject. Screens tonight at Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema in Toronto.

Ditched Twitter years and years ago, so I'm a few weeks late seeing this, but hooooooooly shit is this cool to see.

Want to hear my thoughts on other new releases this week, like Primate, Father Mother Sister Brother, and The Choral? You can find all of those here in this video.

Here's a chat I had with Korean-Canadian actor Jonathan Kim (Brilliant Minds, Sheriff Country) about his role in the comedy-drama THE MOTHER AND THE BEAR, which hits select cities today.

I know that the world is hell right now, but if you don't mind a bit more emotional devastation, ROSEMEAD opens in select Canadian cities this weekend, and it's outstanding. Career defining work from Lucy Liu and a tremendous feature debut for actor Lawrence Shou.

Season two of THE PITT kicks off tonight. It goes just as hard as the first. Best series going right now.

It’s hard to keep going or build up momentum doing the things you love when you’re constantly reminded that the world can be an unfathomably, inexcusably cruel place. Fuck ICE, fuck Trump and the apocalyptic horses they rode in on.

Had a lovely talk with filmmaker Johannes Roberts about his latest horror thriller, PRIMATE, which hits theatres Friday and is a lot of gory, killer chimp movie fun.

One more new release of note opening in Toronto this week, and that’s the charming, crowd pleasing Sundance award winner DJ AHMET, opening at TIFF Lightbox today for a limited run. www.thegate.ca/film/071748/...

If you caught my best movies of the year list last week, you'll probably notice that THE PLAGUE was one of them. Here's a bit more of an in-depth look at a movie that's part Lord of the Flies and part Beau Travail. Opens in select cities, including Toronto at TIFF Lightbox, tomorrow.

Back at it right again in 2025, starting with this look at the okay post-apocalyptic zombie thriller WE BURY THE DEAD, which is more about finding closure than scaring the viewer. In North American theatres tomorrow.

Stranger Things finale is great stuff. If nothing else, it makes up for a lot of season four and the first part of this season feeling like a slog to get through. Goes out on a strong note.

Here now, for your skimming/reading pleasure and to close out my year, here is my list of the TOP 100 FILMS OF 2025. Yes, top 100. Because anyone who says the movies are dead is wrong.

Time to start my year end wrap up coverage, so let's begin at the bottom with my list of the TEN WORST FILMS OF 2025.

Had a really lovely chat with actor Aaron Moten about his role as Maximus in the series Fallout, the second season of which premiered last night. (Re-uploaded because the original post had the wrong edit.)

The biggest and most pleasant surprise of the holiday season for me is Paul Feig's THE HOUSEMAID, an absolute blast of a throwback domestic thriller with a gleefully nasty sense of humour. In theatres Friday.

AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH: looks amazing, but that's the best I can say about this. Slow, clunky, and pretty much just a rehash of everything that came before it. Not very enjoyable. Will make a zillion dollars. In theatres this weekend.

It's hard not to get fully caught up and immersed in the bonkers, colourful, and chaotic world of Bryan Fuller's fractured fairy tale, DUST BUNNY, in theatres today.

Ben Whishaw is on some true next level shit in Ira Sachs' latest banger PETER HUJAR'S DAY, a compelling film built around a topic that sounds extremely boring on paper. Opens in Toronto at TIFF Lightbox today.

Local Paolo Sorrentino hater shocked to discover that he actually enjoys LA GRAZIA, a film his defenders seem to actively dislike. Weird! Opens in select theatres today.

The documentary CUTTING THROUGH ROCKS takes a verite look at one female activist trying to navigate the world of small town Iranian politics. Fascinating. Opens in Toronto and Vancouver today.

For a change of pace this holiday season, I chatted with the artistic director of Second City Toronto to find out what goes into their tradition of year end, yuletide shows.

Had a great chat with writer/director Mike P. Nelson about his reimagining of SILENT NIGHT DEADLY NIGHT, shooting in Canada, and why The Holiday is one of the best Christmas movies.

Sofia Bohdanowicz's elegant and emotional MEASURES FOR A FUNERAL screens at noon on Sunday at TIFF Lightbox, and you owe it to yourself to see it in a big loud auditorium.

JUJUTSU KAISEN: EXECUTION is less a movie and more like a clip show and season premiere of a series all rolled into one so-so package. In North American theatres starting today.

Here's a chat I had with Michelin star chef Masaki Saito and filmmakers Jamal Burger and Jukan Tateisi about their documentary STILL SINGLE, which opens at TIFF Lightbox today.

THE SECRET AGENT opens at TIFF Lightbox in Toronto today and Cineplex Forum in Montreal, and it's one of the most fascinating films of the year. Here's my review from TIFF.

Kinda hard to notice, but Joseph Kahn's ICK quietly slipped onto digital in Canada yesterday, and while it's my least favourite of his chaotic flicks, it has some good moments throughout.

Opening in Toronto this weekend at the Carlton is the well intentioned drama CALORIE, which comes from the heart, but is too stilted and stagey to fully work.

ZOOTOPIA 2: a sequel that's on par with the original. A good time. Opens everywhere tomorrow.

Here's a conversation I had with filmmaker Tasha Hubbard and actor Michael Greyeyes about the drama MEADOWLARKS, which hits Canadian cinemas this weekend.

Had a great talk with journalist and author @hertzbarry.bsky.social about his deep dive into the Fast and Furious franchise, WELCOME TO THE FAMILY, which hits all fine booksellers this week.

Had a lovely chat with Edgar Wright about THE RUNNING MAN. Talked about soundtrack choices, action cinema techniques, revisiting Stephen King's source material, and assembling an ensemble cast.

Not sorry in the slightest for enjoying the hell out of NOW YOU SEE ME, NOW YOU DON'T, a franchise that holds the kind of joy for me that I think others get from the Fast and the Furious movies. In theatres tomorrow.

Here's a look at the disappointing, but laid back documentary BEING EDDIE, which hits Netflix today and won't tell you anything you don't already know about Eddie Murphy.

I watched PLAYDATE, a movie so awful that it can fuck right off into the goddamned sun.

Had a great chat with the very charming and warm hearted Lee Pace about his role as a masked network assassin in Edgar Wright's upcoming adaptation of THE RUNNING MAN.

Surprised at how much I ended up liking NUREMBERG (in theatres today), which takes a look at several individual perspectives on the titular trials and not a sprawling, overstuffed history lesson.