A Goth’s Month in Review: July 2013

Go Canada. Woo! Wooooooooo! Yeah. Woo!

Woo! Canada!

Yeah!

Cough.

No, but seriously, we really love Canada.

And love her movies. So much so that we’ve reviewed more than 230 CanCon and Canadiana type movies on this site. The list keeps on growing and we don’t seem to tire of watching, reviewing and cataloguing the greatness of Canadian film.

As I look back on July, I feel grateful for the terrific life I have in Canada. This was a month of roadtrips, chasing interesting food trucks in our home town and hunting and pecking for vinyl for my favourite teenager Miss_Tree. I also feel pretty grateful to this site for giving me to the opportunity to explore films that I would probably never have an opportunity to see.

So here’s to another celebration of Canada with my favourite, surprise, disappointment, least-liked, and a pick from a Canadian I am most grateful to have met those many, many years ago. 

Favourite
Real Time (2008) on 2013/07/15

* * * *

“I am a little ashamed to admit that it took This Is the End  to kick off a serious fondness, bordering on quiet obsession, with the work of Jay Baruchel. While I wasn’t sure I liked the character of Andy at the start one little bit, Baruchel carried the entire film on his charming, fascinating face. I was reminded by a quote attributed to Hitchcock about Martin Landeau’s acting abilities and fascinating brain, “I know you’ve got a carnival in there, Marty.”

Surprise
Grown Up Movie Star (2009) on 2013/07/31

* * * *

“I grew up in a small town and Maggs has the ennui and restlessness of that experience nailed. There’s the constant talk of “getting out,” the sheepishness of living in a backward town, that’s “nowhere” with no future. There’s also the pitch-perfect capture of what happens when someone dresses or acts even a little bit unusually in that setting (ask me about the time I wore a 1940s coat with mink collar to high school). Kudos to Maggs for all of it. If my beloved teenager Miss_Tree ever asks me what being a small-town teenager is like, I am going to show her this film.”

Disappointment
Helicopter Canada (1966) on 2013/07/23

* * *

“Take some bumpy aerial footage, offensive narrative about Canada and Canadians, a condescending narrator, audio of children musing aimlessly, and what do you have? You’ve got the 1996 documentary Helicopter Canada, a piece compiled to celebrate Canada’s centennial in 1967.”  

Least-Liked
Before Midnight (2013) on 2013/07/17

* * *

“Okay, I know this isn’t a Canadian drama… but the Before movies are beloved to me. They are like the high holiest of holies in my secular Dead Sea Scrolls of collected human wisdom. I’ve always marveled at these films’ ability to make me care about two people who literally do nothing but talk and walk around through the streets of Vienna and Paris. My heart pounds at the suspense of these movies more than it does during most block-buster action films. That’s why Before Midnight was such a shock. It was the shock of seeing someone you love turn into an unhinged, ranting, narcissistic monster.” 

Show Me
Cheech (2006) on 2013/07/22

* * * *

“Prostitutes, swearing, hold-ups and chases, killings, and plenty of nudity. Cheech isn’t exactly the Quebec I imagined, all easy jokes set aside. Cheech managed to insinuate its darkness and depth through the allure of a near-poppy cheer. As a drama, it doubles as a comedy of errors and, as a noir, it’s as close as Canada gets.”