Canadian Film and Television

inthemouthofcinema:

CRONENBERG

on the set of The naked lunch

(via fuckyeahdirectors)

nationalpost:

Celebrating Canada’s Walk of Fame
This weekend, six of Canada’s brightest talents will receive one of the highest honours this country can give: the chance to have their names tromped on by Toronto pedestrians. Ben Kaplan looks at the people who will be inducted into Canada’s Walk of Fame at Saturday night’s gala, and tells us why we should be proud to step all over them. (Illustration: Kagan McLeod)

Ken Finkleman

David Cronenberg on The Newsroom

In the new comedy Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays, Watts plays 30-year-old Michael, a man who suffers from generalized anxiety disorder. The neuroses can manifest themselves in fears of anything from heights, vomit and snakes, to simple communication with other people. Watts knows the character well; Michael is based on his own lifelong struggle.

Michael’s best hope is David, a psychiatrist specializing in cognitive behavioural therapy, which uses real-world exercises and exposure to help patients face — and overcome — their phobias. David is played by TV and theatre veteran Bob Martin, who also serves as the show’s writer and executive producer. Martin shares the latter role with Canadian film icon Don McKellar (who also directs some episodes).

Watts’ personal battles are about to go public — often with comical results. The series premieres Wednesday, Sept. 14 on CBC.

(source)

You can also watch the show online at cbc.ca, and if the rest of the season is as good as the premiere was I think we’re all in for a treat, so tune in and support!

The show airs Wednesday at 9pm et/pt on CBC

Don McKellar directing an episode of Michael Tuesdays & Thursdays

Wetlands (Guy Édoin)

Following his remarkable trilogy of short films — The Bridge, The Dead Water and La battue — Guy Édoin makes his eagerly awaited feature debut with this haunting coming-of-age story about the conflict between personal longing and family obligation. Filmed on a dairy farm in Quebec’s Eastern Townships, Wetlands is a swampy tale planted on dry soil and set against the backdrop of a long, hot summer. 

The story follows seventeen-year-old Simon (Gabriel Maillé), son of Jean (Luc Picard) and Marie (Pascale Bussières), a hard-working couple who expect their son to lend a hand on the farm. But Simon can’t seem to do anything right: his half-hearted contributions fail to impress his father; worse, his younger brother drowned under his supervision two years earlier. Early in Wetlands, Simon bears additional responsibility for an accident that pushes the story into darker territory. 

Working alongside his resentful mother, Simon resolves to help out in earnest, but the farm is nearly bankrupt. Simon’s world is thrown into further turmoil when he accepts an offer of help from a local bum (François Papineau), who ends up abusing Marie’s vulnerability. The fallout takes the form of an Oedipal nightmare. 

Édoin’s aesthetic is a cross between naturalism and melodrama, reminiscent of Fassbinder. In a role designed for her, yet unlike any of the characters she’s played before, Bussières is perfect as a flawed mother who sacrificed her dreams for the sake of her husband. Papineau, an actor whose range expands every year (he was last seen at the Festival in the 2010 films Route 132 and Mourning for Anna), is mesmerizing in a role that requires a shift from saviour to predator in a heartbeat. As the patriarch, Picard delivers a textured performance that continues to resonate long after his character disappears — an effect not unlike that of this haunting and powerful film.

(summary written by Martin Bilodeau)

1. Friday September 9

   Isabel Bader Theatre

   6:30pm

2. Sunday September 11

   AMC 5

   12:45pm