REVIEW: THE BURLESQUE ASSASSINS (World Premiere Toronto)

                                    Sizzle, Seduce & Destroy: The Burlesque Assassins
The Burlesque Assassins, an independent Canadian production directed by Jonathan Joffe, is the story of Johnny Valentine (Armitage Shanks) and his three protégées, Koko La Douce (Missy Starlight), Bombshell Belle (Rosalind Porter) and the new, initially hesitant, addition to the team, Bourbon Sue (RoxiD’Lite). Koko La Douce, a very sophisticated German spy and the English Bombshell Belle are both more experienced agents having worked alongside Johnny Valentine for years, whereas Bourbon Sue, although new with no proper training or mission experience, sensually surprises the audience very much with her confidence, traits and immense talent as the story unfolds.

In the film, the notion of the burlesque assassins is shown to be founded in 1941 by Johnny Valentine and his fair love Katarina Molotov (Carrie Schiffler) as part of a top secret joint operation and powerful defence strategy to bring to justice those that threatened the general freedom, especially during the Nazi regime. It was believed that packaging the burlesque assassins with the proven irresistible charms of femininity would help The Agency and The Soviet alliance to spy on and gain access to those in powerful positions in order to help the break down and eventual abolition of the Nazi regime and any others that had gained too much power.

The film is set in the 1950’s, with occasional flashbacks of years past, attempt to connect the tale of an evil world domination plan that may now come to fruition. Through the use of tactful espionage and armed with the sultry goodness of beauty, intelligence, talent and a whole lot of cleavage, the burlesque assassins go on the sole mission to seduce and destroy the communist villains who are assumed to have acquired a deadlier-than-ever weapon that could cause destruction on a massively grand scale. This weapon of mass destruction that had until now been lying dormant was constructed using Leonardo Da-Vinci’s paintings shortly after WW2, when the Nazis’ teamed up with the Italians. It has now come to Johnny Valentine’s knowledge that the codes to arm and launch the deadly weapon may have been acquired by the Nazis’.  Ergo, Johnny Valentine, along with the help of his remarkably dazzling trio of deadly enchantresses embarks on this undertaking of finding and killing the two main targets, the first being the Italian dictator’s son Mussolini Jr. and the other being the clone of Hitler himself.

Without giving away the rest of the story, which at this point I’m burning to get more into, I’ll just state now that the story is consistently full of intensity and intrigue,  keeping you interested, involved and always wanting more! The comedy-action-dance has a very Charlie’s Angels less Tarantino-esque feel to it and even goes above and beyond to add more through the use of strong backstories on each of the main characters, along with the use of amazing musical instruments and the visual aspects make you live, feel and believe you are in that era . No amount of praise would be enough for the absolutely marvelous performances by the artists on stage!

Working under a modest budget and shot completely in Calgary last year in 2011, the film was spectacularly well done; everything from the background score, the choreography, the action, to the costumes, props and set. Having only been recently introduced to this sort of art form used in film, The Burlesque Assassins has completely won me over, wanting to explore other such presentations. Heck, I even want to get a hoola-hoop and try some of those Bourbon Sue moves!

In recent years, Burlesque, a sassy form of art, has been garnering a lot attention and the film’s successful incorporation of this art technique has a lot to say. Besides, there is no deficiency of beauties wearing just pasties and fighting crime! It surely doesn’t get more entertaining than that. The film is currently touring Canada and has generated a lot of buzz as of late in the social media world and elsewhere, and rightfully so! After its Canadian tour, the film will makes its international screening abroad in Sydney, Australia. Be sure to check out the Gala Screening of The Burlesque Assassins as part of the 5th Annual Toronto Burlesque Festival at The Bloor Hot Docs Cinema on July 20th. I highly recommend this film as one you do not want to miss! The screening will also have a pre-show burlesque event featuring performances by international artists. To purchase tickets to the pre-party at the Gladstone and for the Toronto Premiere visit: http://torontoburlesquefestival2012.eventbrite.com/ and follow them on Twitter:  @BA_Film

-Myra Rehman
@myrawales

2012 Toronto After Dark Summer Screenings – Summary & Wrap!

        

The Toronto After-Dark Film festival brought something new to the plate this year in advance for fans of the genre by screening 2 days of summer “Spotlight Presentations”  ahead of the main festival that takes place in October every year. This event or “mini festival” was a great opportunity to experiment and gaige the level of interest of current  and new audiences to see if they would actually attend this genre event outside of the main festival during a different time of the year. And what an experimental success it has been for the festival as it brought out crowds to the Bloor Cinema and even had a sold out theatre which fits some 700+ people for its final screening of V/H/S.  The festival quality event has not only been a treat for the loyal fanbase of the genre but also a great opportunity for those new to the festival and its films to actually experience what they can expect from the main event that will take place in October.  The 4 features that screened on June 27 and July 11 this summer included: Juan of the Dead, The Pact, Detention and V/H/S. Both screenings were followed by an after-party pub night at “Paupers” which was an all inclusive perk for ticket and pass holders alike to mix and mingle and get that opportunity to analyze, wow and bash their likes and dislikes. And incase you want to disguise your fear under the pretext of blaming your memory for being “oh so weak” here is a quick re-cap of what went down:

Day 1:

The first feature that screened on day 1 was “Juan of the Dead” by Alejandro Brugues which is a funny, clever and very entertaining zombie flick from and shot in Cuba. The script is fresh, keeps you involved wanting to know what will happen next as nothing feels as you would expect it to be.  This is the story of Juan who is a pretty useless, lazy fisherman and absent father who simply spends his days having an affair with a married woman and/or hanging around with his very good friend Lazaro on his building rooftop patio drinking. While they live their days all of a sudden we see something strange and noticeable that begins happening to the people of Havana island. Zombies begin to appear and then some more as the infection starts to spread rapidly. Instead of making a run for it to a safer haven, Juan comes up with a money making idea to work along his pals and become rich. The services provided would include to quote “killing your loved ones” i.e. killing zombies and training fellow citizens to defend themselves against zombies. Although it does not seem like a very big budgeted film, the zombie lovers will not be disappointed as there is ample gore, slashing and smashing of brains and even the good ol’ fashioned cannibalism going on throughout the film. The film is mostly hilarious, almost burst out laughter funny for me personally in parts, as the humour used is both personal to the characters as well as a mockery of the political system in Cuba under Castro. Eventually however Juan’s business plans fail when things start to get out of control and this is where the audience really begins to get their fill of zombies as herds of them begin to appear feasting on guts. If you have a weak tolerance for too much blood and nibbling on raw human flesh then perhaps this is not for you. Zombie lovers, this will be a treat for you!  

The second feature that screened on day 1 was “The Pact” by Nicholas McCarthy, essentially a ghost film is nonetheless a mix of genres , both horror and mystery. The story revolves around two sisters Nicole and Annie who have had a rough and abusive childhood under their mother’s care. Nicole returns to her family home after her mother’s death to take care of funeral arrangements and insists that Annie come and help her but she refuses. Later that night, Nicole disappears. Shortly after, the rough and tough bike rider,Annie arrives on the scene at the house and begins to witness the creepy and odd noises, doors opening and shutting, things falling. The first half of the film is solid and scary keeping you on the edge of your seat not knowing what to expect next. However the film slows down a bit as we transition a bit from ghostly horror to a mysterious story that eventually leads to the big reveal. Steering away from the conventional horror films, The Pact felt like an experimental cross over of genres with very clever and unexpected writing which might not be for everyone but still makes it quite an interesting watch.

Day 2:

Detention, by Joseph Kahn, the first feature to screen during the second set of screenings at The Bloor cinema was probably one of the summer favourites which had a handsome set of whole-hearted giggles originating through satirical comedy based on teen flicks over the decades, pop culture and a lot of references of the 90’s. It would be fair to say that unless you are well attuned to the pop culture, know and have seen teen flicks over the decades it would be a bit hard to get the fairly fast paced jokes and humour. The story which is a mix of comedy, gore, slasher, time travel, and everything else that could possibly exist, follows a group of teenagers in their final year who play a very exact reflection of their character, a mockery so to say which makes it all the more hilarious to watch. Amidst the usual ho-pla of teenage drama that already exists the group also has to deal with the fact that there may very well be a killer amongst them. It would be unfair to summarize the story of this film in a few lines as there is so much going on in there that it would almost feel disjointed. What I enjoyed the most was when they played two songs from the very famous 90’s boy band The Backstreet Boys in setting where the group of teenagers are in detention trying to figure out who the murderer is. Another highlight was the Canadian character Gord, a passionate meat lover who only wears a sports jersey and quite possibly might’ve even stolen the show here in Toronto per his outrageously hysterical personality. The film definitely has the potential for a re-watch especially if you want to do true justice to it and also if you a bit slow like me to get all the jokes the first time round!

          

The second and last screening of the festival was the greatly hyped V/H/S, an anthology of isolated found footage films, 5 in total, that play against a back drop of a sixth story. A group of crooks hired to break into a house to steal a vhs tape, boldly film their break in and find a collection of VHS tapes which they begin to watch one by one. The first tape which was quite interestingly shot through a pair of glasses is the story of some drunk, drugged out jocks who pick up some girls to get laid and get laid they do! The second is a slasher cum weird story about a couple who are on a road trip taking breaks at motels when someone enters their locked room to film them. The third almost shot in the blair-witch style is the story about four friends who go into the woods where a killer awaits to slice them all up. The fourth and one of my favourites especially since by this time I was in a position to appreciate the motionless camera setting, is the story of a haunted house told through a webcam conversation of a couple. The last film, another one of my favourites is a Halloween story where a group of guys break into a known haunted house for some thrills and actually come to face to face with a she-devil!

All the films were well done in their own respect, with a proper start and finish to their own individual storylines, without any connection or transition to each other. This might or might not have worked in their favour though as it almost affords the audience an opportunity to re-coup from the scares they just witnessed. I quite enjoyed the film overall as it was very different and apart from what I have seen, although the scares didn’t completely live up to the hype that I had originally expected it would. There were definitely some good scares with dark setups and encounters with the devil being my personal favourites that played out in the 1^st, 4^th and 5^th, film. The only thing that could make this film a little difficult to watch for those with motion sickness is the constantly shaky camera and often times authentic yet unclear picture quality that could really give you a headache. Other than that I feel this is an interesting concept and there definitely is a potential films to be made this way.

With that the Toronto After Dark Film Festival 2012 summer screenings wrapped up for now. A little something new and exciting that was announced by the founder of the festival, Adam Lopez on the closing night of the last summer screening is the introduction of indie video game submissions for the main festival that are scheduled to be played at an after party venue of the main event this year. This is in addition to the roughly 20 feature presentations that will screen this year along with a much talked about set of amazing shorts to name a couple of programs. If you weren’t already, I’m sure by now you are just as excited as I am, anxiously awaiting the upcoming festival in October that will bring more horror, sci-fi action, thriller and cult films to Toronto audiences.  Be sure to check it out this year, you wouldn’t want to miss it!

Myra Rehman

@myrawales

Toronto After Dark Film Festival - Summer Screenings 2012

The second film to screen at the 2012 Toronto After Dark Festival’s summer screening was The Pact, by first time feature debut director Nicolas McCarthy, remains to be not a totally conventional scary ghost story that has an unexpected twist towards the discovery and conclusion of its storyline. Although a low budget cross genre horror/mystery film it successfully brings out those perfectly timed chills and thrills that we have seen play out in such familiar ghostly hauntings of Amityville Horror and Paranormal Activity. Nicole Barlow (Agnes Bruckner) from Blood and Chocolate returns to her family house after her mother’s death to take care of her belongings and other things and it’s here when we first witness the looming ghostly presence that haunts the house.

Nicole calls her sister Annie (Caity Lotz), a strong headed biker chick, who refuses to come help her take care of funeral arrangements of their estranged deceased mother with whom they seemed to have had a rough childhood growing up. Later during a skype conversation with her daughter we get to see the first signs of interference as she eventually loses the signal and sees a closet door open off its own accord. This is the night that Nicole disappears. This is where Annie comes into the mix, who pretty much leads the rest of the film when she arrives at the house to discover that her sister is missing. At first Annie does not make much of it in light of Nicole’s irresponsible past behaviour until she gets the first taste of a paranormal encounter in the house. One of the best things done in this film is when we see Annie flee the house upon her first such encounter as opposed to what you usually see happen in regular horror films where the stupidity of messing out with the unknown completely boggles my mind. Light on dialogue, the strength lies in the setting of the house which is quiet, dry and dark making just even being in it ideally cold and creepy; especially when Annie begins to see and hear strange noises, flickering lights, falling objects and a certain GPS mapped location on her phone.  However, the big difference in this film is that all the unusual activity that takes place has a meaning that leads up to (although not perfectly due to a couple loose plot holes)  connect with the missing puzzles of the picture.

We see most of the feature through Annie’s lens who delivers a strong performance through merely her emotions displayed via expressions, reactions and body language something that as of recently I saw done quite well by Daniel Radcliffe in certain scenes of The Woman in Black. The perfectly utilized supporting acts of Casper Van Dien as a police officer and Haley Hudson as a blind psychic are brought in towards the final acts of the film when Annie frightened after seeing and hearing things seeks out help to figure out what is going on in her mother’s house.  Through the medium, Haley’s help and the eventual overcoming of initial disbelief and ignorance Annie begins to realise that the ghostly encounters are not an attack on her but are merely attention-seeking, trying to connect with her, eerily reminding me of events that we saw in The Haunting. The result is the discovery of a room that she never knew existed which then leads up to the final story reveal which is a complete shift from the tension and anxiety that had been build up throughout the first half of the film.  

The experimental mix of genres may not appeal to everybody’s taste, unless you are a hard-core fan of the horror genre,  but surely it was a step forward in providing both the standard, yet perfectly timed scares as well as adding something completely new and fresh to the usual run of the mill scary Friday night paranormal thriller which definitely makes it worth the watch.

Feel like you missed out? No fret! Be sure to check out the next set of spooks that will hit the Bloor Cinema on July 11, 2012 screening Detention, a horror cult comedy and some scary found footage in V/H/S starting at 7PM.

-Myra Rehman

@myrawales

FEMALE EYE FILM FESTIVAL 2012: HIGHLIGHT REVIEWS - Part 2

Female Eye Film Festival `12: Highlights from North American Shorts, Foreign Filmmaker Program & Foreign Feature

The Female Eye Film Festival had a bold line-up of North American and Foreign shorts and features this year and was host to some very insightful and controversial topics, a couple of which shed light directly on issues women are faced with still today.

Terminations (8 mins), a short from the US, directed by Claire Ensslin, is the story about a girl named Maya whose outlook on life is changed completely as soon as she discovers she is pregnant. After telling her boyfriend, who comes across as being both scared yet supportive, Maya is nonetheless faced with the most difficult decision of her life; whether she will keep the child or not. The short beautifully captures the emotional challenges and changes that are faced by the protagonist whose motherly instincts kick in soon enough as Maya becomes attached to her baby. However, Maya’s strength is made visible as she begins to rationalize the situation in order to make the best possible decision for all parties involved, ultimately being prepared for the consequences that lie ahead. The short is based on a true story and tackles a very real and difficult life event. The topic of abortion is still a very current and problematic issue where populations are split between pro-choice and against it. It’s sad how there are both political and religious groups that think they have a say and right to decide and set laws prohibiting abortion. A woman’s body is hers and the ultimate decision as to what she does with it should also rest with her.

The agony of certain woman’s issues is doubled when they belong to a specific group of people. This is Me (45 mins), directed by Lori Young, is a Swedish production set in a neighbourhood of Cape Town, South Africa. The story is centered on a lesbian couple, Tarryn Langton, a forensic photographer and her girlfriend, Stacey, who are simply trying to make a home and go about their personal business without any harm or foul to anyone around them. Tarryn is in the midst of investigating a case of rape killings when she herself along with her partner, Stacey, fall victim to the gang that has been committing these crimes. Soon after the hideous crime occurs, Tarryn, along with the support of her work partner, tries to do everything within her power to bring justice to the criminals responsible by taking the case up to a senior authority figure at the station  but is to no avail.

The story goes on to reveal an absolutely shocking reality about the lack of interest or care from authorities to protect gay couples being subjected to such heinous crimes of pure hatred. The film shows what happens when those in charge to serve and protect turn a blind eye to punishable acts of hostility due to intentional negligence, which often lead to unfortunate circumstances for innocent victims. The strong subject that is presented to the audience, with the grueling reality of the lack of protection and rights of lesbians, is a bitter snapshot of what is still going on in the world even today. It was a real eye-opener to see the number of lesbian women who are still raped by men versus the cases actually reported and rarely ever punished.

A Handful of Sea / Bir Avuc Deniz (113 minutes), a foreign feature and a festival favourite from Turkey, directed by Leyla Yilmaz was a very deserving winner at the festival this year. It is the story of Mert, who has been educated abroad in New York, belongs to an upper class and very socially respectable family in Istanbul, and has decided to return home to setup shop to be closer to his loved ones, especially his mother Rana. Mert, along with his friends and a very elegant and beautiful fiancée, Delik, go on a sailing cruise where he first meets sexy seductress Deniz, who is tumultuous, intelligent, high-spirited, and an artist. Mert  is quite taken by the loud Deniz and her philosophy on life, easily becoming seduced by her and there begins a roller-coaster ride of a steamy yet dangerous love affair between the two. Mert is ready to turn his life upside down for Deniz despite the disapproval of his friends and mother and even at the cost of losing his steady, committed relationship with fiancée, Delik.

Although the film essentially centers on Mert and his association with people around him, the female leads play very strong roles in their individual relationships with him. At first glance Mert comes across as having a solid character, though soon enough his weak personality is made visible when we see him get played at the hands of Deniz and his mother. Personally, it was hard to feel sympathetic for Mert’s cheating character, who becomes so arrested by the love of the two strong women in his life, Deniz and his mother Rana, that he almost becomes incapacitated to make decisions and act when faced with tough situations. His behaviour is completely transformed under the influence of the temperamental and influential personality of the eccentric Deniz, which is instantly noticed and disapproved by his mother. Rana feels her son’s life is being completely destroyed by Deniz’s presence in it and makes ongoing attempts to do whatever she can within her power to “rid” him of this problem.

The fairly small budgeted film is shot in some of the most exquisite and gorgeous landscapes of Turkey. Although the story is based on a specific class within society there were always moments to which everyone could relate to, whether it was the plot itself or its really well fleshed out character plots. The romantic drama was constantly thrilling, successfully building up anxiety along the way and keeping the audience gripped throughout its scenes as the story’s pieces flowed quite naturally. Leyla’s film also delivers those insanely unexpected and climatic moments that are bound to leave the audience awe-struck, questioning and interpreting every little detail in their own way. That is essentially the first mark of a well-executed good film that is a must see.

- Myra Rehman
@myrawales

FEMALE EYE FILM FESTIVAL 2012 : HIGHLIGHTS

Female Eye Film Festival `12: Highlight Reviews: Long Branch, Birdbath, and Beirut Hotel.

As a first timer at this year’s 10th annual Female Eye Film Festival, it has been a charming experience to see the works of talented female directors from across the globe. It’s a delight to see such films being showcased in Toronto on a platform that is solely focused on highlighting the achievements and works done by women filmmakers, who even in this day in age are known to be underrepresented within the entertainment industry. This year’s festival has featured numerous types of films including shorts, documentaries, and full features across various genres and presented in sets of different categories from North America to International, as well as including an Aboriginal Series. Apart from film screenings held at the Carleton Cinema in Toronto, the Novotel Hotel was the venue hosting other industry events including panels, script development programs, a director’s roundtable with industry guests and a “Best in the Biz” series with this year’s honorary directors.

Here is a look into the first set of gems discovered during this year’s festival: Long Branch, a Canadian short (14 minutes) directed by Linsey Stewart and Dane Clark, is featured under the North American and International Shorts category. It is a quirky, sweet comedy shot on a cold winter night in Toronto. The story follows Lynn’s late night journey with a random guy back to his house for a quickie one night stand to get over her ex-boyfriend. However, what she doesn’t know is that the distance to his place is a 2 hour ride via public transit. The short is very romantic and makes you keep believing that often times strangers can surprise you when you least expect it.

Bird Bath (20 minutes), directed by Rebecca Gruihn, another Canadian production  is also featured under the North American and International Shorts category. The short is about three kids belonging to a broken family who are dropped off to their families’ abode for the weekend. The oldest of the three children is a twelve year old boy who comes across as a little bit angry and aggressive, clearly acting up due to the familial situation that they are currently dealing with. Coming from a broken home myself it felt like a very honest presentation of how this child has to understand, grow and self-mature pretty quickly in order to maintain sanity and hold the family together the best way they can. Amidst most relationship break-ups of couples with kids, it’s mostly, if not always, the children who bare the brunt of the challenging changes that they suddenly have to face. The focus remains on the kids throughout as it should and it’s amazing to see how the childen carry the film on their shoulders clearly narrating a story through their reactionary emotions.

Beirut Hotel, directed by Danielle Arbid, is a Lebanon/France co-production and a Foreign Feature screening presentation last night and hands down one of my favourites at the festival this year. The film is an internationally controversial film that has been known to be banned in its home country of Lebanon due to it’s mentioning of ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s assassination. This is the story about Zoha, a gorgeous Lebanese lounge singer who has a chance encounter with Mathieu one evening in a Beirut Hotel bar. Mathieu is a French lawyer in town for some “business” who is coming out of a 10-year old marriage and Zoha, who is  separated from her controlling husband is seeking a divorce. The two find an instant attraction towards each other and there begins the journey of a very hot, steamy and passionate love affair over the course of the 10 days that Mathieu is in Lebanon. It is quite befitting actually as the two leads actors of the film really are very attractive and have this amazing chemistry of sexual tension up until they get together. Alas, love does not come easy when Zoha is bound to believe that Mathieu may be a French spy because of his suspicious activities, meetings with former informer Assad, constant hotel changes, and sudden disappearances. As phrased by the festival director, this screening was a “highly sanitized” version of the romantic thriller and truly had it all; from sex, violence, drama, romance, dirty politics to constant anxiety about what would happen next. Will love conquer all though? Will Zoha and Mathieu be able to battle the forces and agencies that will eventually try to keep them apart? No words of praise are enough for this feature and it’s truly commendable on director Danielle’s part  to make this film and fight the challenges of getting it distributed. I have to mention though that the most entertaining, exotic, engulfing and endearing films, whether they are fictional shorts, features or documentaries, have predominantly been stories set in Middle-Eastern countries. Stay tuned to more coverage of gems that have been displayed at this year’s festival!

Also be sure to check out tonight’s closing feature “Union Square” by director Nancy Savoca 5:30PM at the Carleton Cinema. Nancy will be present for a Q&A after the screening. For more information, visithttp://www.femaleeyefilmfestival.com/

-Myra Rehman

WSFF Review: Official Selection: Love Hurts

“There is no education like adversity” – Benjamin Disraeli. The 8 shorts (90 minutes) in the Love Hurts selection examines a certain group of people faced with some sort of tragedy and/or mishap in their life. We watch these individuals react and deal with grueling uncalled for situations, and how they learn more about themselves, others and the situations they are in. The trick is to master the art of not letting such situations weigh you down.

A stop-motion animation, Life and Stuff , by Kumar Satkunarasa very literally delivers this in 4 minutes and its a very real reflection of how a man consistently ponders over the past and keeps regretting! There’s a real lesson-learner here!

Under (23 minutes) is a Canadian production by Mark Raso and is a story about Sydney and her fiancee’ Tom taking a winter retreat at a remote cabin in order to try and navigate through a low point in their relationship. On their somewhat argumentative journey they face a close call car accident and are forced to camp out in the snow until help arrives. However, unforeseen turn of events put the couple’s love for each other to test – Will they manage to come out victorious? It’s amazing to see how when two people, any two people are isolated, how automatically compelled they are to work through their issues. This is a beautiful story about love, loss and found.

Keeping current with what just happened in our city last weekend at the Eaton Centre, Tuesday (7minutes), a Canadian production by Chloe Robichaud, was a bitter reminder of how one loose canon can upset so many lives all at once. This is the story of of a group of university students who bunk a day of classes just to kickback, relax and have some fun when they get a disturbing phone call from one of their friends. Friendships are put to test as this short captures the movement, response and emotional reactions of individuals who receive news that’s totally uncalled for.

Recently, during one of their performances for their comeback tour after 7 years of hiatus, Shirley Manson from the band Garbage stopped a concert midway when she saw a man hit a woman in the audience. It is not okay to hit a woman no matter what the reason! Sadly, domestic violence of all shapes and form against women is still prevalent in the world today. Ross McDonnell’s Remember Me My Ghost (17 minutes) is an Irish production that addresses this issue and presents the story of a woman’s constant struggle with an abusive husband while she is trying to raise three kids with him. The video shown is a black and white footage of a bad neighbourhood in Dublin which serves a befitting background to the grim subject of wife abuse. The story is narrated from the anonymous, abused partner’s point of view and although you can’t help but sympathize with her it also angered me to question her for putting up with it. No matter the explanations given by the narrator, one’s instant reaction is to believe that there is always a choice! At the end of the day however the choice to outlive fear, move on from past mistakes and to keep loving is one that needs to be made.

I hope I have not painted a dull and depressing picture of this theme as more important than the tragedies with lessons of positivity, looking ahead, overcoming fears and inhibitions and to instill love in your soul as that is what you ultimately project onto others. The theme is nicely packaged with a couple of takes on mishaps presented in a comedic way. One of those is Todd Strauss-Schulson’s The Master Cleanse (15 minutes), a story about a couple that goes on a specific juice diet for 10 days to clean out their systems and eventually their relationship too! It’s hilarious to see the bubble building up during the course of the 10 days and how lack of proper nourishment can serve as a natural lie detector! Gloves come off and the bitter truth comes out!

If you haven’t already checked it out, Love Hurts repeats on Friday, June 8, 9:15 PM at the Isabel Bader Theatre.

- Myra Rehman

T: @myrawales F:www.facebook.com/myrarehman

WSFF REVIEW: Official Selection: Creative Control

Art ! Music ! Dance ! It has it all.

If I were to pick a selection to watch over and over again, even perhaps have a copy of it in my permanent DVD collection this would be it! It’s one of those times where I had completely no idea what to expect and when you do see it, you just fall in love with it. Self-expression, exploration and discovering how crazily creative things can get is what lies within and if this doesn’t get your creativity juices flowing i’m not sure what will!

The first and a personal favourite of this collection is a stop-motion animation called The Maker (6 minutes) by Christopher Kezelos, an Australian production where a creature resembling a rabbit with human teeth and attire has to create a new version of himself before time lapses through an hour glass. Everything about this short is so visually appealing, the design, the colour and to top it all the amazing background score. It really makes you think hard about what the deeper meaning of the story really is? Is it a form of self-renewal or a circle of life, the way with which individuals produce, teach and bring up their off-springs to be self-sufficient in case they are no longer around.

Another topper on my list is the very gripping short from Poland, Heaven(15 minutes) by Jan Matuszynski, a story about a man called Robert, battling a fatal disease who chooses to devote his time towards painting religious art. Most of the short is shot studying Robert’s face and the detail and precision with which he draws his paintings. Without the help of dialogue, and with the addition of another fantastic music score we study Robert’s devotion, his renewed focus and the amazing connection with the creative element within himself. You sympathize the fact that he is ill but somehow you don’t feel sorry for him because he doesn’t allow you to, in fact there is something within the story that energizes and excites you. The completely uninhibited peace and solace that Robert finds through his art is inspirational. This should garner positivity and motivation amongst most of us to do what we love doing remembering never to give up.

Speaking of beautiful music scores the list would not be complete without Thibaut Duverneix’s Gravity of Center (14 minutes) where we join a dance troupe as they express themselves individually and within a group dynamic in some of the most scenic locations. The short is a stunning display of choreography and cinematography that lets you literally get carried away with the movement, it absorbs you. I felt like had a new found appreciation for dance. Try doing a couple of push-ups before you see this short so you can truly applaud the performances in it.

Graeme Joyce’s Life Tripper (14 minutes) is the story of Stan, a single father trying to raise a child while he works as a mechanic but his true potential is yet to be realized. Rob Benedict delivers a very powerful performance as Stan who tries to entertains his fellow passengers on the bus daily on his way to work when one day he meets someone who tell him that he could be doing stand-up comedy. This story is sad yet hopeful as we journey with the lead character on his way to his artistic and personal self-discovery.

This review will not be complete without mentioning Samanou Sahlstrom’s Withering Love (29 minutes) where Maria who meets a writer named Vincent and then sees him commit suicide right in front of her eyes. She instantly becomes attached to the situation and it leads her on to take up the task of finding Vincent’s long lost love. The story is intensive and thoughtful with a real twist at the end. Watch it to find out!

Love films? Love all form of art? Do not miss out on this highly recommended selection at this year’s festival. It screens again on Friday, June 8 4:30PM at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema.

By: Myra Rehman

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