Christmas movies are an institution. They’ve been teaching us the true meaning of Christmas for decades. One thing they’ve never been good at, however, is teaching us realistic limits of the human body. Of course this isn’t limited to movies about the holidays; clearly I know that Indiana Jones should have died in that fridge.* However, for some reason, Christmas movies are the most egregious offenders for portraying the human body as nigh invincible in late-December.
A movie that should only be seen once isn’t necessarily a bad movie, just like the movies we watch over and over again aren’t necessarily good ones. All it means is that for some reason something about it makes for unpalatable second viewing, even if it might be an important film or one that we initially enjoyed. If you’ve only seen these movies once so far, consider yourself warned against second viewings. If you haven’t seen them at all, you probably shouldn’t read this because this short list might actually spoil your first viewing in some cases too.
Fubar 2 opens on Friday and it’s amazing. The film’s stars, Terry and Deaner, took time out of their busy schedules to hang with ION Magazine and talk about fashion, what they’ve been up to, Facebook and Ronnie James Dio. At the end of our interview, Terry and Deaner kindly judged a shotgunning competition for us.
Terry and Deaner on Vancouver and Fashion
more videos with Terry and Deaner after the jump (more…)
We just got back from hanging with Terry and Deaner. We’re drunk but figured we should put this up anyways. Full interview with Terry and Deaner coming in the next few days. Fubar 2 opens this Friday.
ION contributor David Bertrand recently moved to Montreal to open up a movie theatre with Canada’s cult cinema queen, Kier-La Janisse. Blue Sunshine is billed as a “psychotronic screening room” and the plan is to have screenings three nights a week. Thursdays will feature rare music films, Fridays will feature bizarro trash and cult films and Saturdays will be dedicated to avant-garde and art cinema. The space will also be home to the Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies. One of the first things they have lined up is master class in adapting H.P. Lovecraft for the screen taught by Stuart Gordon (The Re-Animator). Amazing! Oh, and we highly recommend you see the movie Blue Sunshine. It’s about people who do bad LSD, lose their hair and go on murderous rampages.
The secret to Salazar Motion Picture Collective’s triumphs may be cliché, but it’s honest: they’re driven by passion. The popularity of their narrative shorts (cleverly disguised as music videos and ad promos) is due not to fancy equipment, which they don’t have, or inflated budgets, which they haven’t been afforded—it lies in their eagerness to go anywhere to obtain the best shot possible. It is this commitment to outstanding location, built upon the sound structure of a creative and truly collaborative collective, which is the key to their well-earned success. (more…)
Ti West is very concerned with being sincere. This concern probably stems from defending and explaining his choice to set his newest feature film The House of The Devil in the Eighties and go as far as possible to make it in the style of an Eighties horror movie. The movie had an extremely limited theatrical release and it’s doubtful that anyone who reads this publication had seen it until it aired on the HD Network and was subsequently leaked online. The plot of House of The Devil is simple. A young girl in need of cash takes a babysitting job during a full lunar eclipse, only to discover her employers are devil worshipers. (more…)
Why should vampires get to have all the sex? Zombies are enjoying an extraordinary renaissance in pop culture right now. Fast zombies, funny zombies, pet zombies. We’ve seen practically every variation on George A. Romero’s modern zombie spawned by his cult debut Night of the Living Dead in 1968. But Canadian filmmaker Bruce LaBruce is finally taking zombies to the next level – gay porn. (more…)
You know how much better the White Stripes are than most bands on the planet? Well, this movie is that much better than most concert movies ever made. Under Great White Northern Lights documents The White Stripes 2007 tour of every Canadian province and territory, including a one-note show in St. Johns and a show that commemorated their tenth anniversary as a band in Glace Bay, Nova Scotia. Directed by Emmett Malloy, it’s beautifully shot, gives great insight into the band and the music is, of course, spectacular. Bonus, Meg White actually speaks!
Spencer Maybee is the fourth of four Canadian short filmmakers we’ve featured in issue#61
Stories and images have always gone hand in hand for Spencer Maybee. Well-known as an actor from many films and the TV series The X-Files, Spencer has spent an unusual amount of time around film.
“I watched a lot of films and began to take in stories that way,” he says. “When it came time for my turn to tell a story, I was like, ‘Okay so where’s my camera?’” (more…)
Dusty Mancinelli is the third of four Canadian short filmmakers we’ve featured in issue#61
Caught lugging around a big, bulky VHS camcorder when he was just two feet tall—Dusty Mancinelli was a kid obsessed with cameras. “I’ve always wanted to be a filmmaker, even though as a kid I didn’t always know what that meant,” says Dusty who, at age 23, now holds a BFA in film production from York University. (more…)
Jereme Watt is the second of four Canadian short filmmakers we’ve featured in issue#61
Thirty-three-year-old Jereme Watt had not always planned on becoming a filmmaker. After receiving a diploma in Outdoor Pursuits at Mount Royal College, he moved to Fernie, B.C. to improve his snowboarding skills. But after two years on the slopes, he decided to make a change and go back to school. Jereme went to the Fernie library intending to research a post-secondary program, such as physiotherapy, that would allow him to expand on and nurture his love for the outdoors. However, the library’s collection of academic calendars was quite sparse, and instead Jereme encountered information on a film program in Calgary. He has since graduated from the program and worked on several projects. Everything’s Coming Up Rosie is his first short that has generated buzz outside the realm of YouTube. (more…)
Jamie Travis is the first of four Canadian short filmmakers we’ve featured in issue#61
The Armoire is the final instalment in Jamie Travis’ Saddest Children in the World trilogy. Like the other films in the trilogy, Why the Anderson Children Didn’t Come to Dinner and The Saddest Boy in the World, it highlights the lives of what the filmmaker refers to as “disenfranchised children.” Jamie is perhaps better known for another trifecta of short films he’s made, The Patterns Trilogy. With The Armoire, he builds on his unmistakable style in which environment and dress are married to create a calming and aesthetically pleasing backdrop. The more you watch, the more you appreciate the care he puts into every layer of detail. (more…)
[REC] is easily one of the scariest movies of the millennium. The sequel, [REC]2, is even scarier. You’re forgiven if you haven’t caught [REC] yet. It is, after all, a low budget Spanish horror film that never had North American distribution. [REC] was a film festival darling, though. So much so that the rights to it were quickly acquired so that a shot-for-shot English language remake called Quarantine could be made. Oddly, the remake, which did quite well, was playing in theatres as the original was still doing the festival circuit. (more…)
Screw objectivity. Eli Roth is awesome. He’s almost singlehandedly responsible for reinvigorating the horror genre back in 2002 with Cabin Fever. Yes, his directorial debut was an entertaining, low-budget, gore and boobiefest. More importantly though, Cabin Fever was wickedly successful and let Hollywood studios know it was okay to make R-rated horror films again. Not one to fall victim to a sophomore slump, his follow-up was one of the most memorable and controversial films of our time: Hostel. Love it or hate it, Hostel is extremely slick and driven by a brilliant concept. Brutal and uncompromising, it’s a film you can’t forget, even though a lot of people wish they could. (more…)
“We have no distributor as of yet,” Glenn Ficarra and John Requa said on stage after the world premiere of I Love You Phillip Morris at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. “Who’s buying?” So far, no one. Months after the festival came to a close, its most star-studded selection remains distributor-free. (more…)
![[REC]2](http://www.ionmagazine.ca/magazine_graphics/issue60/rec2.jpg "[REC]2")
