McDonald turns to horror in Pontypool

Pontypool
Rating: ***
Director Bruce McDonald makes his requisite TIFF appearance with Pontypool, his first horror film. The entire movie takes place in a radio station where a Don Imus-style DJ is trapped and must report on a zombie attack occurring outside. Of course, these zombies aren’t presented in the traditional flesh-eating fashion, but become walking members of the undead as the result of saying certain words.

For the first few reels, the movie is tense and suspenseful, but once the writers attempt to explain the zombie outburst things fall apart. Still, Pontypool is still a worthy entry in McDonald’s career and boasts a sensational performance from Stephen McHattie.
– Phil Brown/For Metro Toronto

Il Divo
Rating: ***
This Italian biopic has a lot of style —?enough to earn filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino the Jury Prize at Cannes this year. But unless you’re familiar with former Italian prime minister Giulio Andreotti and his accusations of collusion with the mafia, you’ll be lost watching this slick-looking drama. An action-packed opening and a stunning performance from Toni Servillo might make it worthwhile if you have some knowledge of Italian politics.
– Steve Gow/For Metro Toronto

Zack and Miri Make a Porno
Rating: *** 1/2
For years, Kevin Smith’s detractors predicted that the filmmaker’s career would die once he stopped using his stock characters’ Jay and Silent Bob. Fortunately, Smith has proved them wrong with Zack and Miri Make A Porno, a delightfully raun­chy and surprisingly touching romantic comedy that only he could make. The title says it all plot-wise, with the almost-overexposed Seth Rogen and the about-to-break-through Eli­zabeth Banks perfectly cast in the title roles.

As with all of Smith’s productions, the ambition is low. All he’s aiming for is laughs, but when they come this consistently and uproariously, it’s hard to complain.
– Phil Brown/For Metro Toronto

A Year Ago in Winter
Rating: ** 1/2
Alexander died tragically almost one year ago in a hunting accident. As a memorial tribute, his mother commissions an artist to create a portrait of her deceased 19-year-old son and his 21-year-old sister. We soon learn that Alexander actually committed suicide — that is when the tortured truth starts to emerge. This German film, directed with finesse by Oscar winner Caroline Link, explores the lies we tell ourselves to avoid dealing with feelings that may be too overwhelming to confront.
– Steve Veale/For Metro Toronto

24 City
Rating: ****
Jia Zhangke is China’s most elegantly contentious filmmaker, and 24 City (the title refers to a condo development/industrial park that’s being erected in place of a long-standing factory) is perhaps his subtlest provocation yet.

The film examines a half-century’s worth of social and industrial upheaval through intimate interviews with the people who lived it, but sharp-eyed viewers will catch a few well-known Chinese actors giving testimony alongside the factory’s real employees. This blurring of the doc/narrative line expresses the difficulty of definitively putting history onscreen — a gesture that speaks both to Jia’s audacity and his humility.
– Adam Nayman/For Metro Toronto

Medicine for Melancholy
Rating: ** 1/2
Melancholy showcases the 24-hour period following a one-night stand between Joanne (a feminist-leaning T-shirt designer) and Micah (an angry fish-tank installer who punctuates racially char­ged rants with, “I’m just sayin’”). Richly filmed in San Francisco, the drama works best when it plays with ideas of gentrification and living in one of America’s most expensive, but beautiful cities. Unfortunately, the two leads just aren’t all that interesting. Hey, I’m just sayin’.
– Steve Gow/For Metro Toronto