Colin Neale Movies
A trouble-prone teen navigates a treacherous world of witless gangsters and latex fetish wear in director/screenwriter Robert Cuffley's quirky comic noir. When Alberta (Leelee Sobieski)'s boyfriend is assaulted by thugs, the frightened teen flees to Vancouver in hopes of hiding out at the house of her good friend Celine (Tricia Helfer) - an aspiring dominatrix and wannabe actress currently planning her big move to Los Angeles. While Celine knows that helping out her old friend Alberta can only mean trouble, her kind heart eventually overpowers her better judgment. Celine soon remembers just why she was so hesitant to help her old friend, however, when Alberta ruins her best SS uniform. Later, Alberta tries to procure Celine a new SS outfit by posing as Celine and meeting her new client Paul (Jacob Tierney), only to find their kinky session rudely interrupted by the gangsters that were pursuing Paul in search of the $500,000 he was accused of stealing. If bickering henchmen siblings Aaron (Michael Eklund and Isaac (Michael Adamthwaite) could just stop arguing long enough to focus on the task at hand, perhaps they could finally track down the missing cash and avoid facing the wrath of their foreboding boss Rene (Lothaire Bluteau). ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leelee Sobieski, Tricia Helfer, (more)
This Canadian movie about a boy and his dog during the early 1920s is set in the countryside southeast of Montreal. Twelve-year-old Sam MacKenzie (Tod Fennell) is the son of an Arctic explorer who vanished in the tundra. His mother Althea (Bronwen Booth) has remarried, but Sam isn't as close to his stepfather, country doc Asa Robinson (Henry Czerny), as he is to the wolf-like dog Kayla. Sam builds a dog sled to enter a race with Kayla, but he soon is stunned to learn a request was made to have local authorities kill Kayla. Peter Behrens' screenplay is based on the novel by Elizabeth Van Steenwik. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tod Fennell, Henry Czerny, (more)
- 1995
- R
The often tragic lives of the residents of a Nova Scotia coal mining town are viewed through the eyes of a depressed young woman in this grim period drama. Set in the 1940s, the film begins with a brief, intentionally puzzling interlude before flashing back several years to focus on the story of Margaret MacNeil (Helena Bonham Carter). Margaret has suffered through the death of her father and her brother, both of whom perished while working as coal miners, and has subsequently developed a hatred for the mines that provide the town's primary source of economic support. When she finds herself attracted to charming stranger Neil (Clive Russell), she is thrilled to learn that he has no plans to work in the mines. When Margaret and Neil marry over the opposition of Margaret's stern mother (Kate Nelligan), financial troubles force him to go back on his word, with unfortunate results. Based on several short stories by Sheldon Currie, the film draws an unrelentingly bleak picture of its subject, concentrating on the numerous hardships, from black lung to deadly cave-ins, that haunt the coal-mining community, resulting in a gloomy and at times morbid drama. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Helena Bonham Carter, Clive Russell, (more)
- 1995
New Zealand author, economist, and former politician Marilyn Waring offers her opinion on just about everything in this Canadian documentary profile. Waring is a strong woman with a keen take on the state of the world. Highlights include her views on the subjective, arbitrary truth underlying notions of "civilized" society. Most recently, Waring has focused on taking an unflinching, highly critical view of a world banking system that bases itself on war-making efforts while putting down the role of women in the world. The filmmakers then show ample examples to support her viewpoints. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1995
This Canadian comedy-drama from Quebec centers upon the mid-life crisis of one middle-class man who falls in love with a stripper and abandons his family. He is Real, a high-school teacher with the regulation attractive wife, two cute kids, and a lovely home in the suburbs. He leads a dull, predictable life until he and his buddies head to the local strip joint and see the luscious Angie singing a gutsy rock & roll tune and doing her act in a see-through body suit,. Intrigued, he decides to hang around and have a drink with her. He then takes her to her apartment and they end up engaged in fast and furious illicit behavior. Unable to contain his little secret, he blurts out details of the affair to his librarian wife at her work-place. She does not take it gracefully and a terrible row ensues. Milque-toast Real's involvement with Angie brings him into a seamy world filled with drugs, crime and gangsters. Eventually, he becomes the emcee for Angie's club and more mayhem ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1993
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The Canadian documentary Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media presents a lengthy, detailed look at the political beliefs of celebrated intellectual Noam Chomsky. Casting only passing glances at Chomsky's groundbreaking work in the field of linguistics and his eventful life, filmmakers Mark Achbar and Peter Witonick instead focus on his activities as a political dissident and media critic. Particular attention is paid to his contention that the American mass media serves as a form of "thought control in a democratic society," with major news organizations systematically bending the truth to support the status quo. Chomsky defends this belief in numerous public appearances, lectures, and debates, siting as examples the widely divergent media treatment of genocidal activities in Cambodia and East Timor and the unquestioned acceptance of America's Gulf War policy. While opposing viewpoints and rebuttals are sometimes aired, the filmmakers quite clearly are in general agreement with Chomsky and even include humorous visual illustrations of his political theories, utilizing stock footage, on-screen diagrams, and the like. Despite its clear favoritism, the film nevertheless succeeds in making a thought-provoking case for these ideas and provides an intriguing glimpse into the life of a complex, driven thinker. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
This Canadian drama from director Cynthia Scott centers on eight elderly women strangers who find themselves depending on each other and becoming fast friends when they're suddenly stranded in the rural countryside. Traveling through a largely uninhabited area, the ladies' bus breaks down and, as they await help, they are forced to fend for themselves. Finding refuge in a rustic and empty farmhouse, the women begin talking and eventually share many of their life experiences and memories with each other, forming an indelible bond. In an attempt to create an air of reality and spontaneity, Scott used a nonprofessional cast and encouraged improvised dialogue. Strangers in Good Company was nominated for several honors at Canada's 1991 Genie Awards, ultimately winning the prize for Best Editing. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alice Diabo, Constance Garneau, (more)
- 1991
Rip Torn does a magnificent job as American poet Walt Whitman in the fanciful period piece Beautiful Dreamers. The scene is a hellish 19th century Canadian institution for the mentally retarded. Compassionate doctor Maurice Bucke (Colm Feore) defies his superiors by treating his patients as human beings rather than animals. He even begins conducting classes for his charges, teaching them basic cognitive and manual dexterity skills. When Whitman champions Bucke's cause, the doctor is ostracized by those who fear the poet's reputation as a "wild-eyed" radicial. Based on a true story, Beautiful Dreamers is more interesting for its intentions than its execution. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Colm Feore, Rip Torn, (more)
- 1991
- R
The great achievement of The Boys of St. Vincent is not that it deals with the controversial subject of pedophilia among Catholic clergy, but that it deals with that subject so honestly, without resorting to melodramatics. At the core of this powerful film lies Henry Czerny's searing performance as Brother Peter Lavin. Czerny deftly shows in the film's first half how Lavin used the double-edged sword of adult and religious authority to intimidate his charges. And in the second half, when Lavin is confronted with the monstrousness of his crimes, Czerny's ability to construct a plausible set of denials (if you had seen only this part of the film, you might be tempted to believe him) lifts the film above a simple case study. Lavin's character, a man who translated his own troubled childhood into pain and affliction for others, is one of the most fascinating psychological studies in contemporary film. Co-writer and director John N. Smith is also to be praised for tamping down the urge to embroider this story with unnecessary flourishes. ~ Tom Wiener, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henry Czerny, Johnny Morina, (more)
- 1990
Falling Over Backwards was filmed in Quebec through the good graces of the National Film Board of Canada. Saul Rubinek plays a high school teacher, currently in the doldrums over his divorce. Ignoring advice of Thomas Wolfe, Rubinek decides to "go home again" to forget his troubles. With his aged, infirm father in tow, the teacher rents a room in his old neighborhood. Romance blossoms between Rubinek and his landlady Julie St-Pierre. This low-key, rambling, intensely personal effort is virtually as textbook example of a "Canadian Indie". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Saul Rubinek, Paul Soles, (more)
- 1990
- PG13
This drama telling the exploits of seriously ill teens who are spending the summer at a camp for cancer victims makes an effort to bring a light touch to this otherwise gloomy subject. In the story, Ryan (Zachary Ansley), who has a brain tumor, is pretty certain he'll die before long. Before he does, he wants to have sex with a woman. Robert (Nicholas Shields), who has leukemia, isn't afraid to perform any stunt or get into any kind of adventure. Holly (Stacie Mistysyn) has lost a leg due to bone cancer, but is interested in helping Ryan fulfill his wish. One of the highlights of the movie is a theatrical in which the campers lampoon their doctors, parents, and one another. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Zachary Ansley, Stacie Mistysyn, (more)
