It’s barely spring, but summer arrives with a boom in 2013’s first worthwhile blockbuster, G. I. Joe: Retaliation. Picking up threads left dangling from the first film no one liked, this sequel finds the elite military unit ambushed by terrorists Cobra and out for revenge. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson once again elevates whatever role he’s […]
Jacob Boon
Posted inNews + Opinion
Khyber renovation is going nowhere
It’s been over a year since city workers started tearing up the first floor space at the Khyber, but the renovations remain indefinitely stalled. The city was supposed to be helping the 125-year-old building get up to code when construction crews started tearing holes in the walls back in October, 2011. Shortly thereafter, the work […]
Posted inArts + Music
Troubled water
It was a big year for Halifax at the Academy Awards. Ariel Nasr picked up a live-action short nomination for Buzkashi Boys, while NSCAD graduate John Kahrs walked away with the Best Animated Short Oscar for his film, Paperman. Sadly, emerging artists back in Nova Scotia will have to make do with one less funding […]
Posted inArts + Music
A Royal Affair
Something’s rotten in the state of Denmark, namely a tryst between the Queen and her physician in the superb period piece A Royal Affair. The lavish story dramatizes the true tale of Danish queen Caroline Mathilda, whose marriage to mentally ill King Christian VII eventually pushes her into the arms of royal physician Struensee (a […]
Posted inArts + Music
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone
Duelling magicians compete for the love of Las Vegas showmanship in the clunky comedy The Incredible Burt Wonderstone. After losing his “magical friendship” with partner Anton Marvelton (the always game Steve Buscemi), Wonderstone (Steve Carell) has to give up his lavish lifestyle and relearn the roots of stage magic if he ever hopes to defeat […]
Posted inArts + Music
The Call
WWE Studios continues to crank out actual movies with actual actors, as in this mostly entertaining 911-thriller The Call. Halle Berry stars as a fierce 911 dispatcher whose eagerness to help inadvertently gets a kidnapped teenager killed. When the killer’s next victim (Abigail Breslin) tries calling for help, Berry is forced to take over and […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Try a little temperance
It’s the oft-touted folktale of boastful pub crawlers that Halifax has the most bars per capita of any city in the history of the universe. True or not, it certainly isn’t hard to find a pint in the downtown. These streets weren’t always so sudsy, though. Prohibition, the 1920s American movement designed to supply a […]
Posted inArts + Music
Dead Man Down
Colin Farrell continues to act in movies, what with his new revenge drama Dead Man Down. A low-level gangster with a secret, Farrell is on a one-man mission of vengeance when his plans get disrupted by an emotionally and physically scared neighbour (Noomi Rapace) with plans of her own. Terrance Howard also shows up, utterly […]
Posted inArts + Music
Oz The Great and Powerful
Sam Raimi remakes Army of Darkness in Oz The Great and Powerful, which is far from the worst thing in the world. James Franco is no Bruce Campbell, but does his darnedest as the womanizing carnival cad whose hot air balloon gets swept away to a far off kingdom easily impressed by prestidigitation. Prophecies foretell […]
Posted inArts + Music
On the Road
Fiery youths scat and screw across the country, as the Beat generation finally gets the Hollywood movie they’ve been waiting for in On the Road. Gestating for decades as a film adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s legendary novel, Brazilian director Walter Salles (The Motorcycle Diaries) has dealt with financial collapse, budget cuts and Francis Ford Coppola […]
Posted inArts + Music
21 And Over
Just in time for spring break comes 21 and Over, essentially The Hangover but set in college. Which is exactly as appealing/obnoxious as that sounds (depending on your tastes). With one last semester before they all graduate to the real world, two high school friends come back together to take longtime buddy Jeff Chang out […]
Posted inArts + Music
Gritty city
“I love this city. I love what it could be,” says Michael Melski. “But it’s not a postcard anymore.” Filmmaker, playwright and longtime Haligonian, Melski has woken up early on a snowy morning to discuss the theatrical release of his movie, Charlie Zone, over coffee at Mary’s Place on Robie Street. A dramatic thriller, about […]