Gainsbourg goes for fantasy
Gainsbourg (Vie héroïque)Tuesday September 21st, 9:25pm, Park Lane 7 A short while and walk down Park Lane’s carpeted corridor separates the screenings of Trigger, a fictional film, and Gainsbourg (Vie héroïque), a biopic/fantasy based on the life of the in/famous French singer. But the two films connect across cinematic and geographic distances. Thematically, the Canadian…
A Trigger response
TriggerTuesday September 21st, 7:10pm, Park Lane 4 Built into its very name, rock ‘n’ roll is a duality. Two kinds of energy meet and intermingle. A single force forms and reforms. Point and counterpoint; counterpoint becomes point and vice versa. In that way, rock ‘n’ roll resembles life. It is life. (I can’t imagine my…
AFF: A Canadian Legend and Let Me In
Gordon Pinsent has one of those voices you’d love to have reading your kids (or you) bedtime stories. Deep, gentle and soulful, a warm fireplace of a vocal that’s enjoyable just to bask in. I had the pleasure of basking in Pinsent-glow this afternoon. The Newfoundland-born actor is in town to introduce tonight’s screening of…
Dr. Perfect
Dear gorgeous, charming, witty PSYC professor, It takes everything in me not to just completely give up on taking notes and instead stare at you and giggle. I’m lucky that you’re also a good teacher, otherwise I would probably fail. I wish it wasn’t totally inappropriate for us to be friends (the kind who fall…
What goes around?
To whomever posted the sign on your garage door near the Rotary that simply reads, in large type, ‘be grateful’, thank you so much. The message really touched me on my morning commute and as I continued on my drive, I thought for a minute about all the blessings, large and small, that I have…
Who is your owner?
Those cat drawings around the city really make me smile. —On my way
The Pro Choice Girl
At least once a week I have to walk through a group of Pro Life protesters in front of the hospital. They drive me nuts and I always toy with the idea of one day showing up with a pro choice sign. Today amongst the group I saw you standing there quietly with you sign…
PTG!
Thanks for offering a healthy alternative! And to the staff- you’re incredible, funny, and super cute!—Murphy’s
No Need to Waffle
To the girl serving up fresh waffles on Saturday, you’re adorable. I liked your earrings, but most of all the smile on your face. It radiated all about, and made me smile in turn. Thanks for making a claustrophobe feel not so suffocated in the crushing mass of humans. —Some Sappy Syrup
Halifax Is Helpful
I love Halifax. It’s an amazing city. And people are so nice, they return bus passes… Today I somehow left my bus pass on the 89, the one destined to arrive at Lacewood at 4:30. And I know that someone is going to return it, right? Yeah? Because you’re all so beautiful, you’ll return it?…
Not even a “sorry”
“By the way, that product you’ve been working on for the last two weeks? we’ve decided to go with something else.”—Not very important
Where are all the good girls?
I have noticed over the past few months and years that all the good girls go for the douche bag guys in the world and just turn the other cheek to the guys that stick to the way they were taught. I was always taught to hold the door open not just for a lady…
Corporate Arseholes
Dear Managerial Team, You brought us into a meeting and were very cordial to us pre-meeting. You told us all about your five week paid vacations to international destinations. How swell! You guys talk about your personal lives with the regular employee! You’re great dudes. Then you proceeded to tell us that our hours were…
Responding to Darrell Dexter
[image-1] In this week’s Letters to the Editor section, premier Darrell Dexter says that in my coverage of his intervention on the Bridge Terminal issue I was “factually incorrect” and that I misrepresented his position. He references two blog posts I wrote, here and here. In the first blog post, I reported that in 1995,…
Thanks for walking by my gym and assuming WOMEN don’t box!
So I just had an incredible workout and you pass by while I’m leaving the main entrance of the gym. I’m sweaty and feel accomplished, and you buddy have the nerve to say – ‘You don’t box do you?’. Yeah I box, I’m a young woman who puts on her pink boxing gloves five days…
To the “skinhead” asshole
Fuck you, you’re heartless. You ARE going to die old & alone, because I don’t know of any other girl that would ever let themselves be treated like how you treated me. You are one of the most terrible & evil men I’ve ever met in my life, & probably ever will. You need some…
Great Bands, Free Tunez
Buncha new/free music today! First: Homo Duplex, the husband-wife-duo (comprised of the Maynards’ Kristina Parlee and Attack in Black’s Ron Bates) has another wee EP online for your listening pleasure here. They pull words out of hats and write songs about them! We’re really enjoying these three spacy, fuzzy songs during this busy work day…
CBC board approves Halifax plans
The CBC corporate board approved Tuesday a major reworking of its Halifax operation, the expansion of the TV building on Bell Road and the sale of the radio building on Sackville Street. As The Coast reported in May, the CBC and YMCA have been discussing a joint development of their adjacent properties, which would see…
Moncton and Halifax “rivalry” discussion on the CBC
I was on CBC’s Information Morning today, facing off against David Campbell of Moncton. The conversation is archived on CBC’s site, here.
Yves Rocher opens in Nova Scotia
The first local franchise of the French-based health and beauty company will open on September 23 at Mic Mac Mall. The local franchisee Lisa Singh presents the 825 square foot store called The Atelier of Botanical Beauty, located on the lower level of the mall near the Winners door entrance.
Fid Resto parties with the AFF
Yes, we know the Atlantic Film Festival is almost done, and we’re plenty sad about it. But when you come out of the Park Lane screening rooms in the next few days, consider our friends at Fid Resto (1569 Dresden Row, 422-9162) who are open until 10pm, offering some amazing meals right through to the…
Halifax Naturopathic Health Centre has its grand opening
They’re open now, but the Halifax Naturopathic Health Centre (6242 Almon Street, 407-0808) is celebrating the event on Thursday, September 30 with an open house from 5:30pm to 7:30pm. “Our clinic…was born out of the desire of several established naturopaths to come together to support each other and the community they serve,” says office manager…
AFF DAY 6: The Corridor/You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger/Daydream Nation
Director Evan Kelly confirmed what I’d suspected and mused on here at the Haliwood Insider AFF coverage, that they were indeed burning the midnight oil to get The Corridor ready for the premiere screening Wednesday night at Park Lane. The good news—for me, anyway—is that I was able to see a print complete with special…
Still thinking about Rhonda’s Party
With shorts, the filmmakers deliberately size down their films. They are not necessarily being downsized by someone or something else. From the Atlantic Shorts III program, which screened on the first Monday night of the festival, one film in particular demonstrated the big impression a small film can make. Rhonda’s Party, the seven-minute movie from…
To the guy on the 59 listening to Pantera…
You sat right next to me on the bus, you were wearing a hat, jeans, boots, an old beat up leather jacket & you’re really big & tall. You’re so hot & I can’t stop thinking about you! If I only knew your name! —The blonde in the leather jacket
Fiddler on the roof
Jacques makes my heart shake. —Just another one
Icing in the oreo cookie
You’re so sweet you make my teeth ache. You make me laugh and dance and want to sing (which is unfortunate because I don’t sing well!). You have made such a huge difference in my life. I know we aren’t in the same town and it’s a challenge, but I love every single second that…
Baked goods bliss :)
Just when I was teetering on the edge of workplace mayhem, you showed me such kindness in the form of baked goods! I love our talks, and hearing your wise words. Your kindness puts things in perspective, thank you for that! —Super Goodies
Still cross my mind…
Teeds, Years later I am thankful you taught me never to settle for something I didn’t really want. Even though I know your a cheating douche bag you still filled a void for many years and taught me lesson after lesson. I now am happy and am with the man of my dreams…thanks to you!…
Beatin’ up on Peter
Ok, WTF is the problem with people in the media beating up on Stoffer? The guy is doing what he was elected to do, represent his constituents wishes, regardless of his own personal views. The people that are pissed off in his constituency probably didn’t lift a finger to call and make it known that…
WTF is a “Trian” Station?
When they changed the bus routes at the start of the month I watched the “35-Express to Trian Station” roll into Lacewood and I snickered at the typo. After a couple of days of snickering at it, when I saw the “Trian Station Express” roll in again I took a pic and sent it to…
Bitching at Myself
I am sitting in a coffee shop with my coworkers and a drop dead gorgeous, classy, take home to your mom type girl walks in. I could not take my eyes off of her face… just stunning. She didn’t see me looking at her until she was finishing up fixing up her coffee and then…
You are one sorry cat-less bitch
I found your empty cat carrier this morning in Point Pleasant Park… What’s the matter??? You didn’t have the fucking balls to take the cat to the SPCA??? You thought it was a better idea to abandon little Fluffy in the park and maybe she would be adopted by the raccoons (yes, there are raccoons…
Swarmings? REALLY?
How is it that a bunch of teenagers are being permitted to wander the streets beating innocent people at will? Excuse me Mr. Policeman, will you get away from the Palace with that girl on your arm and go find these fuckers before I do? Because I really don’t give a shit how old these…
AFF Midnight Shows: Tis Better to Give’r…
If you’re looking for a reason to stay up late on a school night, you could definitely do worse than tomorrow’s midnight screening of Fubar II at the Oxford Theatre. Terry and Dean, the most lovable hosers since Bob and Doug McKenzie, are back in Michael Dowse’s sequel to his 2002 faux-documentary hit. The Deaner…
Pon de Replay this Sunday
I love this song and I don’t care what you think. And half this duo will be here on Sunday! (Hint, it’s not Rhianna. I knowwww.) But it’s Elephant Man and I’m not talking John Merrick, boyeeee. His show is called “Best of the Elephant Man” – so I assume it’s a greatest hits kinda-thing?…
HRP
On Sunday, there was a swarming. On Sunday, someone in my building called in a noise complaint. the police responded by spending 20 minutes hitting on the young students making the noise, and then driving them to a downtown bar in a police vehicle. Hope Sunday’s victim doesn’t mind. HRP need tail too. —HRP =…
Tired of breathing your lungs’ afterbirth.
People smoke, and that’s fine. Your choice. But STOP SMOKING at bus stops (where it is technically illegal) and in front of doors. I am allergic to cigarette smoke – it causes me to have coughing fits and headaches. I have just as much right to stand and wait for the bus as you do…
Chopped Liver, Please…
Just drove thru the Windsor/Lady Hammond/Bedford Hwy intersection. I was in the inside lane on Windsor, turning left toward Bedford. OMG – the filling in a sandwich!, NO place to go, cars coming up on both sides and behind me. It’s the most ignorantly planned, hazardous intersection I’ve ever seen! Called the police months ago,…
Hi H
Sunday. Sobey’s Queen Street, checkout aisle. You asked about the fennel. Your enthusiasm and curiosity is intriguing, plus you are beautiful. I think we live in the same neck of the woods. Maybe we’ll run into each other again. —L
Peace
This unattainable attitude that we will all hold hands, and whistle the same song worldwide is a fairy tale. We are teaching our children in our public schools to have empathy for our enemies situation. Yet,we are so advanced in our civilization, that this idea of empathy is way beyond our enemies understanding of what…
AFF DAY 5: Atlantic Shorts 3 and Submarino
I won’t go on too much about the Atlantic Shorts 3 programme as my esteemed colleague Hillary Titley already commented on it, suffice to say congrats to the group. I especially liked Four Sisters from Newfoundland—though in the interest of full disclosure, a dear friend wrote the screenplay. I also really appreciated Eva Madden-Hagen’s What…
Organic food and more
Behind the Quinpool Centre, located in an original barn behind the houses on Allan Street, Home Grown Organic Foods (6188 Allan Street, 492-1412) is a produce-lover’s treasure trove. Fresh organic foods, much of it sourced locally (the bananas come from away, of course) are the star here, including free range chicken, grass fed beef, cookies,…
Shorts and Art
So my date and I checked out the Atlantic Short III tonight. Handy program, it was. All the people we knew with films (or who worked on films) in the Fest were all corralled into one program. Way to go, guys! You made a movie. What to say about these films? I kept turning over…
Weekend Diary: Bad Vibrations and Evil Face-Dolls
I began the weekend watching a woman split a watermelon open with her thighs: hungry? Then there was some talk about Liberace. There was a very funny video where Liberace walked through his ostentatious house, playing piano on the carpet, in the bathtub, and in the closet, heh heh. “I bet Liberace and his driver…
Idiot spray painter strikes again
Some idiot has again defaced the sign advertising the Gottingen Terrace housing project on Gottingen Street, on the old Sobeys lot across from the library. In the spring, Mr. Idiot spray-painted “fuck gentrification” on the sign. Demonstrating how little money the people behind Gottingen Terrace have at their disposal, rather than replacing the sign, they…
Tierney Talk
After seeing it twice, I’m still beating the drum for Jacob Tierney’s Good Neighbours, a chilly noir set in referendum-era Montreal. Without the what’s-gonna-happen tension of the first viewing, I found the film much funnier than I did the first time, although still in a jet-black sort of way. But enough of what I think…
Dave Sim comes to Halifax
Kitchener, Ontario resident Dave Sim is the creator of Cerebus, the internationally acclaimed comic that ran for 300 issues from 1977 to 2004. It’s a massive achievement, by anyone’s standards, a 6,000 page work. He published it himself, under his Aardvark Vanaheim shingle. He wrote and drew the black and white comic on his own…
AFF DAY 5: Schedule changes
I wish I could give you some thoughts on the much-anticipated local creepfest The Corridor, but the media screening was cancelled on Friday because, apparently, the movie’s not ready yet. Imagine, if you will, the litres of coffee being consumed by director Evan Kelly and his cohorts as they desperately try and get the film…
Hami’s Cafe & Catering Open now
Shoptalk has learned there is a new place to eat in Dartmouth. Thanks to its helpful new website, Hami’s Cafe & Catering (79 Alderney Drive, 406-1777), we discovered that it’s a “labour of love” for owner Dan Hamilton, the Hami in the title. “Picture an old fashioned New York pizzeria with Dean Martin playing lightly…
Junk in my Trunk!
This is for each of the people who actually stopped, and got out of your cars or stopped me to let me know my trunk was open. Small thing, but big smell if the rain had got me! Good city, great people. I’ll never leave home again. —Blackbetty
Sometimes it’s the little things
Funny how sometimes little things can put a person in a good mood for days. Say, playing Dr. Frankenstein for ten hours with a soldering iron and the guts of a very dead blackberry for a total stranger only to have a private “IT`S ALIVE! IT`S ALIVE!” mad scientist moment in the office afterward. —I…
To the dude who screamed his car around Fenwick St. last night
I admittedly am at a loss as to why you decided to choose to wait until 4 in the morning to unnecessarily overrev your engine to produce ear-splitting noise. Maybe fear of the cops, maybe fear of actually being seen in public with your shitty over-modified Honda Civic. Whatever the case, just because it’s the…
Donation Fatigue
What is with all the charities asking for money? Today I was asked to donate money WHILE paying for groceries by the cashier, then again I was asked at the doorway of another grocery store, situated as she was it was impossible to avoid her, then again all the way up Barrington Street and Spring…
I DON’T TIP, SUCK ON THAT!
Dear servers and bartenders: I’m giving you a warning that when I come into your restaurant or bar, that you won’t be getting one red cent from me. Know why? Because tipping is one of the most ridiculous concepts I’ve ever encountered! You’re doing your job! I’m already paying out the ass for a meal,…
Hornets at Highfield
Fuck you and your aggressive, miserable existence. And fuck those new shitty garbage cans that lure you in so many numbers, that no one uses properly. Fuck you for swarming me. Every. Single. Fucking. Day. I know I’m not supposed to freak out and am supposed to remain calm, but when you have 8 little…
When i die…
I hope my closest friends wait a bit before bombarding my facebook wall with RIP’s and song lyrics. And I really hope that past classmates that didn’t know me don’t also jump on the bandwagon. The dead cannot access the internet. —Logged Off
Low behavior at the lib
To the dude in the SMU library who thought he was in my way. I was in a terrible mood and not paying attention to my surroundings. My face definitely read “pissed-off bitch”. You apologized to me with a big smile and for some reason this didn’t register with me until I had already walked…
Kudos…
…to the two gentlemen who stopped in Sobey’s parking lot on Thursday afternoon and offered my daughter and I a drive with the coffee table we were trying to carry home… Not sure we would have made it there without you! Thanks for making my day 🙂 More proof that this town is the BEST!!!!…
School Fundraisers
It’s a glorious Saturday morning in suburbia and I’ve already had 2 knocks at the door asking for money for school trips and soccer trips. Do I look like your parents, am I a loan sharking organization, a bank perhaps? School is supposed to provide an education not turn out a bunch of Artful Dodgers,…
Adults are Bigger but We’re Better
5 years old: ask an adult if you can use a pair of scissors and they say “why don’t I do it for you” 10 years old: tell a teacher you didn’t do you homework and they say “this is a warning, do it next time” , but you never do 😉 14 years old:…
I Lost
To the person that wrote “I Lost” in the condensation on the window on the 10 Westphal this morning(friday), thanks. You just ruined my life. I have gone years without thinking of the game. I thought I was rid of it (well, not thought because then I would have thought about the game). I was…
Stop capitalizing “Dal” as “DAL”
It’s not a fucking acronym!!! —T.P. Winklebottom
Lost green rocking chair
This is to the sorry soul who stole mothers rocking chair off our Halifax front porch: She is not happy and is threatening to work some potent voodoo on the ass in the seat without her permission. Do yourself a favor, think about it for a minute and then return the chair nicely before she…
Is Chivalry Really Dead?
To all the new and old bus users of the number 18: You should all learn to read the yellow triangle stickers on the bus windows that say “please yield seats to the elderly”. I am so sick and tired of watching an elderly person slowly get on the bus and look around to see…
Pieces of Earl
So Earl has come and gone long ago. Why do we still see tree limbs left at roadside and driveways all over the city? There are some even still stacked up around retail areas and intersections. I get the impression that homeowners are waiting for the City to pick them up and maybe the City…
PMO SUX
So in Afghanistan, people risked their lives by going to the polls to vote for the next government. They have some serious things to worry about too: Taliban, potential religious and civil wars, crushing poverty, occupation by foreign forces, drug czars, drugs, potential flashpoint for world conflict, and the list goes on. Risking their very…
The Canal Street Madam/In A Better World
The doc I saw on Saturday evening was probably the best argument for decriminalizing prostitution I’ve ever seen. Director Cameron Yates’s The Canal Street Madam tells the story of Jeanette Maier, who was convicted of running a bordello in New Orleans in 2002. She’s the second of three generations of “working women,” who, in the…
Dal forum hears scathing critique of higher education
CBC Radio forum in Halifax hears scathing criticisms of cash-strapped universities.
Play It Again (And Again, And Again)
Caught the Atlantic Shorts program yesterday, a five-film selection that included Tarek Abouamin’s Gawab, a thoughtful, introspective piece that examines how family connections and cultural environment can pull at different ends of the rope when it comes to an immigrant’s sense of identity. I found it even better the second time than the first (the…
The Lonliness of the On-Set Photographer
One of the joys of the Atlantic Film Festival beyond the huge program of movies is the opportunity to revel in some of the more specific enterprises of the filmmaking process. The ins and outs of international, multi-platform co-production? Strategic Partners got you covered. Choosing the perfect song (or have the perfect song) for a…
Smiling Bus Girl
To the girl that was on the route #80 leaving the Sackville terminal Thursday, Sept 16th at noon: I got on the next stop, with a green backpack. I was feeling terribly rushed today, because I was sick and on my way to work. You smiled as I walked closer to you, and I smiled…
We’ll miss you Costas!!
I just found out Costas Halavrezos is leaving CBC radio! I’ve listened for years. We’ll miss you Costas – you were a highlight of my day! —Faithful listener
No hot water
It was really nice today when I went to do the dishes and there was no hot water and that I had not been informed that it was going to be off, at least I didn’t try to have a shower cause that just makes for a bad day. Then I decided to ask the…
Stupid laptops
I went to buy a laptop for school and paid well over $1000 dollars plus a $300 dollar warranty to find out that it only covers the hardware and not the software. My internet will not connect properly and it will cost almost another $175 to fix, and it is BS. —Not a happy camper
Dartmouth Douchebag Teenagers
Why do teenagers in Dartmouth find it necessary to shout “Faggots!” and “Fuck!” from car windows at pedestrians? Are Dartmouth teenagers unaware of what the word “Faggot” means? They must not because they shout it at me (a woman) and my husband while we walk down the street holding hands. —Baffled
Conspiracies
9/11 conspiracy theories, and the blind fools that promote them. —A Nationalist
Your throw ups make me do just that…
To the smug fucks who decided it would be ‘dope’ to tag the top Museum of Natural History – open your fucking eyes. If you had any respect for real artists and graffiti culture, or awareness of anything outside of your narrow-minded, probably pot and booze clouded little domains, you would see that it’s not…
Our charis won’t hold the weight of your jackasses
To the assholes who stole the chairs right off our porch – I know you are probably a bunch of wasted university kids who needed chairs to prop up your rad beer pong table or whatever, but stealing from somebody’s home is cowardly. This is a great neighborhood with families and kids too, and I’m…
Shorts and Suspense
This probably comes too late for anyone planning out their Saturday at AFF, but I thought it was worth chipping in a word for the Atlantic Shorts 1 program, on at 2PM at Park Lane today. Out of Trip, Being Parkour, The Chewing Gum Man, GAWAB and Winter Wave Riders, I’m most interested in the…
Atlantic Gala Shorts and Uncle Boonmee
Anyone planning on checking out the Atlantic Shorts Gala on Tuesday (7pm, Oxford) will have a pretty fine time. I checked out the line-up of local short films at a screening Friday morning, and was impressed by the sterling line-up. Aside from Shaun Majumder’s Mind The Gap, ably reviewed in The Coast, I also was…
Steve Streatch discusses traditional farming methods
[image-1] Last week Halifax city council updated its various bylaws related to fire regulation. There wasn’t much too controversial there, but the conversation went off in some odd directions. For instance, councillor Steve Streatch had some problems with the part of the fire code outlawing the burning of tires and petroleum products in open air…
CBC loses one of its best
Costas Halavrezos retires as Maritime Noon host
City employees to be paid to “volunteer” at Canada Games
City employees will be paid to “volunteer” at the 2011 Canada Games, which will be hosted in Halifax in February. As explained in an email sent Monday from acting CAO Wayne Anstey to staff, the city will match any leave or vacation time employees use to volunteer at the Games with an equal amount, up…
AFF Gala (or as Gavin Crawford put it, GAY-la) Screening and Party.
Well, I liked Score: A Hockey Musical more than my esteemed colleague Matt Semansky did in his review in the paper this week. I found it sweet and a bit silly and, well, perverse. I mean, who is the audience for this? Have Don Cherry fans been crying out long and hard for that Rock…
Full Atlantic Film Festival events guide
To get all the 2010 film fest events in one place, just click here. That list includes parties and whatnot, plus a bunch of Team Coast film screening picks. If you’re interested in the exhaustive, somewhat exhausting, schedule of movie screening times, check out the film fest’s box office here. Related Stories
TIFF DAY 07: Raining, pouring, going home
An improbably PG rock movie, Janie Jones stars Abigail Breslin in the title role as the long-lost daughter of Ethan Brand (Alessandro Nivola, who does great rock star). When her crackhead mother (Elisabeth Shue) abandons her in Little Rock, Ethan’s stuck with a vibe-harshing 13-year-old on tour. Then his band is dropped by its label,…
Back to School Rules with Bad Vibrations and Friends
PIZZA IS NOT FOR SCHOOL adam o’reillywe quite like this poster, it’s like 3-D FRIDAY NIGHT IS LOOKING STACKED. Bad Vibrations, Duzheknew, Quivers, MicroorgansSeahorseFRIDAY September 17$710:30pm *Note – I said this show was on Saturday in the paper. I LIED.
He’s Got a TV Eye
Listen up, nerds. Did you watch Double Complete Rainbow more than five times? Do you routinely giggle at the Grape Crushing Lady? Do you find yourself awake late at night, hunched over your kitchen table half-drunk, watching Best Cry Ever , your face frozen in a rictus of fascination and fear? If you answered yes…
Mystery Inc.
Bitchers and Lovers: For the love all that is warm and fuzzy, please DO NOT send submissions that identify the person, business, or organization you are Bitching about. It doesn’t matter if you feel justified in doing so, or if they are a private citizen that is somewhat known – Halifamous or otherwise – if…
Rudd’s route
Xavier Rudd’s voice crackles over his cell from Chicago. Xav—as his press people know him—sounds slightly bored, monotone, not entirely unexpected now that he’s in the midst of a nine-week world tour. His schedule will take him on an erratic zig-zag through developed nations in this order: the US, Atlantic Canada (including Halifax), Australia, Portugal,…
Festival hijinx
The red carpet rolls out on top of Citadel Hill tonight for the Atlantic Film Festival’s opening gala, which seems like a safe place to party until it’s time to figure out how to get tipsily home—and off the Hill. Tuck and roll to one of these spots, or you can even follow the road…
Movies on music
Each year, while the red carpets are being vacuumed and reels dusted off in preparation for Atlantic Film Festival events downtown, Dalhousie Art Gallery hosts an early-evening series of free screenings for cinephiles on a budget. This year, in honour of the Festival’s 30th anniversary, they’re doing something a little different; a series of music…
Not just The Once
“To be able to play at a film festival is perfect,” says The Once’s instrumentalist and singer Phil Churchill. “It’s the exact mix of the two things we love most in the world.” Those “two things” are music and performing—the balance that composes the Newfoundland folk trio, who met at a theatre company in the…
The Way We Filmed
A man puts on an over-sized dry suit, demonstrating its watertightness in front of a crowd of dozens. Waving the old Canadian flag in one hand and a British Union Jack in the other, he climbs up a rickety wooden contraption built over the Halifax Harbour and jumps into the water. He back strokes around…
Brooding for Elliott
“Well, this European tour was pretty special,” emails Mark Sasso, lead vocalist in Toronto’s alt-country trio, listing off an extensive number of festivals and shows. At the time of the email, Elliott Brood members Sasso, Casey Laforet and Stephen Pitkin are enjoying a rare day off in Amsterdam before flying to this side of the…
Native green
Driving north from Halifax you’ve probably seen the 40-foot statue of Glooscap. Maybe you’ve seen it and thought, “At last, Tim Hortons, next exit.” In the statue’s shadow, on the outskirts of Truro, not far from the 102, across the road from an RV sales centre amid a business park, lies the Glooscap Heritage Centre.…
Bylaw busting
Secondhand is not sleight of hand, or a scam, says Charlene Croft. “I’ve always bought, sold and traded stuff to supplement income,” offers the co-owner and operator of Book of Joe, a vendor at Harbourview Weekend Market (in the former Value Village location on Canal Street, Dartmouth). Book of Joe sells secondhand books, vinyl records,…
30 by 30
How to buy AFF tickets Tickets are available at the AFF box office, located in Park Lane Mall, and at all TicketPro outlets (422-6965), including Video Difference (24 hours a day!), or online at ticketpro.ca and atlanticfilm.com. Regular screening tickets are $12; gala and special presentations are $17. For packages and special events, check out…
AFF director spotlight: Chaz Thorne
Whirligig Friday, September 17, Oxford Theatre, 7pm This is Chaz Thorne’s first film since he was the toast of AFF in 2007. That year he had two major features screened: his directorial debut, the mortician comedy Just Buried, starring Jay Baruchel and Rose Byrne, and the racially charged boxing drama Poor Boy’s Game, which he…
Go Local: Quinpool
One of the city’s main links between downtown and the suburbs, complete with gas stations and a McD’s drive-thru, it’s very commuter. But it’s a whole lot of community, too, serving as the west end’s Main Street. You can find all kinds of local restaurants—anchored by mainstays Athens and Freeman’s Little New York—and happening boutiques…
AFF writer spotlight: Josh MacDonald
Faith, Fraud & Minimum Wage Tuesday September 21, Park Lane 8, 9:20pm The Corridor Wednesday, September 22, Park Lane 8, 7pm The inexplicable attracts Josh MacDonald. Prior to picking up the phone, he was sitting in on a post-production session with Evan Kelly and Jake Owens, respectively the director and visual effects supervisor on The…
Don’t ask yourself: Should I Be Doing This?
Actor Ryan Doucette’s new show Should I Be Doing This? uses humour to look at those universal moments when we all question our next step. It explores the idea of bringing the everyday into profundity as well as the pleasures and awkwardness of first experiences. The first step is always the hardest, and it brings with it…
AFF newcomer spotlight: Laura Dawe
Light is the Day Friday, September 24, Park Lane 7, 9:25pm If the apocalypse hits and do-it-yourself film production turns out to be a critical survival skill, Laura Dawe will make out fine. Having put herself through an unorthodox filmmaking boot camp, the 27-year-old Halifax artist and filmmaker knows about working with minimal resources. Dawe’s…
Channelling TV Carnage
Jean Claude Van Damme is defending himself on trial, thrusting his crotch out at an absurd angle to a bewildered courtroom. Former NDP leader Ed Broadbent stars in an election commercial where he raps his platform against a Day-Glo orange backdrop. Rosie O’Donnell plays a developmentally disabled person with baffling, offensive vigour. All of the…
Resident Evil: Afterlife will never die
No one’s put a bullet through the skull of this video game-based zombie movie series, so it’s back to deliver another round of mindless action and gore. Milla Jovovich, the poor woman’s Angelina Jolie, reprises her role as a superheroine out to punish the company responsible for turning most of humanity into undead flesh eaters.…
Mo’ Better blues
“For most of human history, the two birds More and Better roosted on the same branch,” writes journalist Bill McKibben in his 2007 book Deep Economy. “You could toss one stone and hope to hit them both.” McKibben’s birds are a clever way of illustrating that, in the past, when the economy produced more, life…
Free Will Astrology
VIRGO(August 23-September 22) “Nothing is more conducive to peace of mind than not having any opinions at all.” German aphorist Georg Christoph Lichtenberg said that and now I’m offering it for you to use. Are you game? Try this experiment: For seven days, divest yourself of your opinions. And I mean all of them: opinions…
Creating the Best Movie Never
“Everything is better with Ewoks.” That’s how artist Karen van Niekerk sums up her artwork (pictured above) for Best Movie Never, an exhibition of art for the Atlantic Film Festival’s Frame X Frame that asked artists to create posters for the best movie never made. “I knew straight away I wanted to do something with…
Peeking Behind the Scenes
Nine local, national and international photographers answered the call for behind the scenes photography on film sets, composing ViewPoint Gallery’s current print and digital slide exhibition that coincides with the Atlantic Film Festival. Curated by Hannah Minzloff, the exhibiting artists include Holly Crooks, Jenny Blackmore, Andrew de Freitas, Etienne Desrosiers, Elias Djemil, Aaron Henderson, Christopher…
The Disappearance of Alice Creed intrigues
The control and precision with which two criminals, played by Eddie Marsan and Martin Compston, prepare a scruffy apartment for their capture of Alice Creed (Gemma Arterton) is in direct proportion to the inevitable unravelling of their Swiss-watch plan. But just because an audience can sense what is to come, that doesn’t mean that the…
Starry heights
“The discovery of a wine is of greater moment than the discovery of a constellation,” said Benjamin Franklin, stating, “the universe is too full of stars.” Franklin—who also once wrote a how-to guide to making wine in the 1743 edition of his Poor Richard’s Almanac—would be impressed, then, by the discoveries that await starry-eyed wine…
Flipped needs to pick a side
Two 13-year-olds feel the first stirrings of love for each other in Flipped, directed by Rob Reiner. Bryce (Callan McAuliffe) and Becky (Madeline Carroll) narrate the film Rashomon-style, but the he-said/she-said kills the tempo, with scenes doubling back to replay from the other’s perspective. It feels like one step forward, two steps back with this…
Tampon play for straight men
Q I’m sorry about sending this letter to you via snail mail. I don’t want to send an email because I’d rather not have a record of this living forever on some server somewhere. About six months ago, after watching my girlfriend insert a tampon, I asked if I could do it for her next…
Travelling for food
Culinary tourism. Not a phrase you hear everyday. But for three days next week, Halifax is set to become a mecca for all things culinary tourism. The inaugural One World, One Table – Culinary Tourism Summit begins Sunday with over 150 food- industry folk dropping in from across the globe—here to learn how culinary tourism…
Brooklyn Warehouse is Three!
Got no plans for Sunday? Why not stop in at the Brooklyn Warehouse (2795 Windsor Street, 446-8181) to help them salute their third year in business? They’re promising Surf and Turf, tasty treats and delicious McAuslan Draught. The event happens from 7pm-11pm.
I love your smile
Some day’s I have a harder time smiling then others. I just wanted to thank all the people in this city who smile at strangers, who compliment strangers, who make small talk with strangers about whatever is on your mind, because that person is sometimes me, and minutes before that I was sad but you…
Simple Kudos to a Nice Guy!
Maybe you were just doing your job, but I think we clicked. Who knew that a simple debate over which rain coat I should buy could turn into a great conversation? You were not only super helpful, but funny, interesting, and cute – you even got my random sarcastic jokes that most people never seem…
Thank you Minister of Justice
Thanks for the extra 30 officers you’re planning to give to our Jail. It would have been really nice if you hired them last January when the competition was originally posted and they were needed. Instead you let all of your management and trainers go on vacation for the Summer and left the officers you…
Need Money For Those Teeth?
My car door hit yours during Hurricane Earl’s PRIME HURRICANE WINDS. Don’t you understand that I didn’t mean to hit your car? Was there no where else to park in the entire vacant lot besides directly next to me? I don’t think it’s fun to damage vehicles and call insurance companies. And $800 you want?…
Teenage Dream
Every time the radio comes on, everytime the television turns on, that’s all I hear. —Can’t get away, kill me please.
Hack Job
To the sick employee: please go home. The office is noisy enough for those of us who sit in the pods. To add to it you’re coughing up a lung and it’s non-stop coughing (you could at least shut your door). You really should be at home. Please, really, the office will survive with you…
Don’t Make Me Get Up On The High Horse I Earned Shoveling Shit In Stables
To all the knaves trying to get in my knickers: just stop. I’m through with those who aren’t even in my league behaving like spoiled princes. And for that matter: Ladies of Halifax who bend over backwards fawning over and servicing these men, know that they’re imbibing a false sense of entitlement and you’re doing…
MLA’s Pension Perks
According to the taxpayers association; for every $1 an MLA contributes to their plan Joe Public has to rape his/her wallet/purse for $22, is this highway fucking robbery or what? Considering the caliber of the people taking up space at the Legislature, well not now as they’re still on summer break, do we think this…
Fuck you wasps, hornets, and the HRM!
What the fuck is with the amount of wasps and hornets in this city? Every garbage bin around Halifax and Dartmouth is littered (ha!) with them! Really HRM? Can you not do anything about this? Really? Ever heard of RAID? No? Srsly? Cool. —Pities the workers who empty the garbages
Mills reopens
Shoptalk reported that a fire had closed Mills (5486 Spring Garden Road, 429-6111) as well as new boutqiue <b.Twisted Muse upstairs. Well, we’ve now heard that Mills intends on reopening the beauty department on Thursday (tomorrow) and apparel on Friday. No info yet on Twisted Muse.
BC Winemaker at Bishop’s Cellar
Join winemaker Grant Stanley of British Columbia vineyards Quail’s Gate tomorrow (Thursday, September 16) from 6-8pm at Bishop’s Cellar (1477 Lower Water Street, 490-2675) to taste and discuss a number of his wines. A free tasting, you can enjoy Stanley’s Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and a few other special wines not currently available in…
