The strains of “O Canada” faintly emanate from a television set towards the end Hello Destroyer, Kevan Funk's bold, and boldly Canadian, feature debut, which recently premiered in Toronto and will play in the BC Spotlight program of the Vancouver International Film Festival. That it takes place in the world of (junior) hockey makes it recognizably, unmistakably Canadian; that it puts that hallowed institution under an unsparing microscope is what makes makes it daring. Red background—white lettering. Hello Destroyer—hello, Canada. From its opening frames—an intense on-ice scuffle, shot in tight, almost abstract closeups—the film is steeped in the hyper-masculine milieu of professional hockey that Funk first explored in his 2013 short, Destroyer (which shares the same setting, but charts a standalone narrative). But it would be inaccurate to call the feature (or the short film, for that matter) a “hockey movie,” much less a “sports movie.
- 9/23/2016
- MUBI
The luxurious banquet hall in Toronto’s Royal York hotel was electric with excitement as Tiff senior programmers including Steve Gravestock and Agata Smoluch Del Sorbo announced the robust lineup of Canadian films (several world preems) at this year’s Tiff plus the 40+ short titles (out of an astounding 840 short films — an increase of over 200 titles from last year) that will screen at the prestigious festival. With features populating almost every section at the fest, among the headliner items from English Canada, Cairo Time‘s Ruba Nadda returns to the fest with October Gale, while also world preeming is Bang Bang Baby — Jeffrey St. Jules marks his feature film debut with a film that is equal parts Rocky Horror Picture Show and early Cronenberg. Starring Jane Levy of the recent About Alex, it revolves around a small-town teenager in the ’60s whose dream of becoming a famous singer is dashed...
- 8/6/2014
- by Leora Heilbronn
- IONCINEMA.com
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