February 23 - 29
- Sunday
- Monday
- Tuesday
- Wednesday
- Thursday
- Friday
- Saturday
-
CINEMA
COMMUNITY -
THEATRE
March 1 - 7
- Sunday
- Monday
- Tuesday
- Wednesday
- Thursday
- Friday
- Saturday
- CINEMA
- CINEMA
It’s share sale time again!
Until the end of February, taxpayers in Nova Scotia can receive a 35% Equity Tax Credit on share purchases. Your share makes you a voting member of the Acadia Cinema Co-op, the non-profit organization which oversees the operations of the Whittle Theatre. Become a shareholder today and help support the future of the Theatre!
CLICK HERE TO OPEN AND DOWNLOAD THE SHARE SALE FORM
ALL UPCOMING EVENTS
-
Cost: $10
The origin story of the smash hit "Who Let the Dogs Out" goes back further than anyone could have imagined; steeped in legal battles, female empowerment and artist integrity, which all beckons the question: will we ever know who let the dogs out?
Q&A following the screening with the film's producer, Aly Kelly. -
Cost: Free
Join the Be Like Chong Foundation is proud to present a Evening for Community Wellness with Strong Valley and the East Coast Cannabis Substitution Project. There will be an open forum to discuss your personal experience relating to cannabis and health.
Contact: belikechong@outlok.com | 782-232-9333
-
THEATRE
BLT Rat-a-Tat (SOLD OUT)
Saturday February 29, 7:00p–9:00p
Presented by Donna Holmes
▶ Show DetailsCost: $10
Tickets: At the Door or by contacting Donna at donnaholmes712@gmail.com
Broken Leg Theatre Rat-a-Tat is now SOLD OUT, however, we are accepting names for the wait list. If you would like to be added to the wait list please email donnaholmes712@gmail.com. Thank you!!!
On leap day come enjoy our amazing local artists performing comedy sketches, TAP dance routines, monologues, drum performances, ghost stories, and more!!!
Broken Leg Theatre is a variety show that often features The Dead Sheep Scrolls, DanceConXion, Djugdjug Ensemble, Valley Ghost Walks, and so many other incredible performance artists, three times a year. Every show is simply amazing!! Don't miss it!
If you'd like to be involved in Broken Leg theatre (on the stage or behind the scenes), or if you would like to reserve a ticket, please contact Donna Holmes at donnaholmes712@gmail.com or check out our Facebook page at https://facebook.com/brokenlegtheatre. :O)Contact: donnaholmes712@gmail.com
-
Cost: $10
One of the most irreverent cinematic spins on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, the latest from writer-director Sameh Zoabi, who wrote the screenplay for The Idol, follows a fledgling soap-opera scenarist charged with concocting plot twists to suit viewers on both sides.
A slacker sliding into middle age with little to show for it, Salam (Kais Nashif, Paradise Now) lands a production-assistant gig on Tel Aviv on Fire, a popular Palestinian evening soap for which his uncle is show-runner. A banal, offhand remark made during a shoot puts Salam in hot water with the show’s head writer but curries favour with its star (Lubna Azabal; Incendies, Paradise Now), a French diva who barely speaks Arabic. It is only Salam’s first day and he already gets promoted.
Yet just as Salam’s prospects rise, he has a fateful encounter with Assi (Yaniv Biton), an Israeli military officer at the Ramallah checkpoint. During his interrogation of Salam—who must cross daily to get between home and his place of work—Assi sees an opportunity to influence Tel Aviv on Fire, which, in his mind, is far too unflattering to its Israeli characters. Salam has just begun life as a writer, and he is already forced to compromise his integrity—while the entire country watches flabbergasted.
Zoabi’s ingenious satire exudes a deadpan audacity that is hard to resist, while Nashef’s outwardly unflappable middleman grounds this battle of ideologies in comic pragmatism. Films like this might not bring peace to the Middle East but making everyone laugh at the same thing feels like a step in the right direction.
"Genial mirth and the nightmarish gloom of the Middle East do not sound like natural companions, but the droll and delightful Tel Aviv on Fire has made the impossible possible." (Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times)
"This saga, for all its twists and turns, comes to a relatively neat end. Those living in the real world aren't so lucky. In the meantime, Zoabi seems to say, we can at least laugh about it." (Nora McGreevy, The Boston Globe)
"Director Sameh Zoabi relies on the old adage that we have more in common than not, but it's a lesson that bears repeating—particularly when laughs come into it." (David Lewis, San Francisco Chronicle)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
One of the most irreverent cinematic spins on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, the latest from writer-director Sameh Zoabi, who wrote the screenplay for The Idol, follows a fledgling soap-opera scenarist charged with concocting plot twists to suit viewers on both sides.
A slacker sliding into middle age with little to show for it, Salam (Kais Nashif, Paradise Now) lands a production-assistant gig on Tel Aviv on Fire, a popular Palestinian evening soap for which his uncle is show-runner. A banal, offhand remark made during a shoot puts Salam in hot water with the show’s head writer but curries favour with its star (Lubna Azabal; Incendies, Paradise Now), a French diva who barely speaks Arabic. It is only Salam’s first day and he already gets promoted.
Yet just as Salam’s prospects rise, he has a fateful encounter with Assi (Yaniv Biton), an Israeli military officer at the Ramallah checkpoint. During his interrogation of Salam—who must cross daily to get between home and his place of work—Assi sees an opportunity to influence Tel Aviv on Fire, which, in his mind, is far too unflattering to its Israeli characters. Salam has just begun life as a writer, and he is already forced to compromise his integrity—while the entire country watches flabbergasted.
Zoabi’s ingenious satire exudes a deadpan audacity that is hard to resist, while Nashef’s outwardly unflappable middleman grounds this battle of ideologies in comic pragmatism. Films like this might not bring peace to the Middle East but making everyone laugh at the same thing feels like a step in the right direction.
"Genial mirth and the nightmarish gloom of the Middle East do not sound like natural companions, but the droll and delightful Tel Aviv on Fire has made the impossible possible." (Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times)
"This saga, for all its twists and turns, comes to a relatively neat end. Those living in the real world aren't so lucky. In the meantime, Zoabi seems to say, we can at least laugh about it." (Nora McGreevy, The Boston Globe)
"Director Sameh Zoabi relies on the old adage that we have more in common than not, but it's a lesson that bears repeating—particularly when laughs come into it." (David Lewis, San Francisco Chronicle)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
CINEMA
Night of Adventure Presents Crossing Labrador by Canoe Documentary
Monday March 2, 7:30p–10:00p
Presented by Greener Adventures
▶ Show DetailsCost: Adult = $15
Kid = $5Join us in Wolfville for the documentary of Boreal to Barrenlands - Crossing Labrador .
Boreal to Barrenlands - Crossing Labrador is an unprecedented canoe journey that takes four friends, 670 kms through Labrador’s interior to cross three-ecosystems, two heights of land, and one entire province in 35 days.
Labrador is arguably one of the most remote, rugged, buggiest, and unforgiving landscapes Canada has to offer and with our fair share of obstacles, Boreal to Barrenlands was the most physically and mentally demanding thing any of our team has ever faced. You are NOT going to want to miss this!
Contact: greeneradventures@gmail.com | 9026989364
-
Cost: $10
The iconic Merce Cunningham and the last generation of his dance company is stunningly profiled in Alla Kovgan's documentary, through recreations of his landmark works and archival footage of Cunningham, John Cage, Robert Rauschenberg, and more.
Even for those who know little about dance, Merce Cunningham is a recognizable name—an iconic figure in his field. His mid–20th century collaborations with composer John Cage (his lifelong partner) and visual artist Robert Rauschenberg were central to an era of transformation. Cunningham resisted "avant-garde" or any other label. "I don't describe it. I do it," he once said.
Now, with Cunningham, we have a chance to experience what he did. Filmmaker Alla Kovgan assembles the last generation of Cunningham dancers (led by Merce Cunningham Dance Company assistant director of choreography Jennifer Goggans) to present landmark works from the Cunningham repertoire. The film concentrates on the three decades from 1942 to 1972 when Cunningham was making his reputation. Gorgeously shot in 3D, Cunningham brings us closer to these works than any audience has ever been before. Taking an inventive approach with locations, the film places dancers in evocative backdrops such as a tunnel, a high-rise rooftop and a forest.
These current-day performances are interlaced with archival footage of Cunningham speaking and moving. We also hear illuminating interviews with Cage, Rauschenberg and members of the original Merce Cunningham Dance Company, who endured years of rejection and outrage before they slowly won over audiences.
"I never believed that idea that dancing was the greatest of the arts," said Cunningham. "But when it clicks, there's the rub. It becomes memorable. And one can be seduced all over again." Whether you come to Cunningham as a neophyte or an aficionado, you will leave with a rich experience of his art.
"Here's a dance documentary that splendidly flaunts its artistic point of view, and fittingly so." (Tomris Laffly, Variety)
"What Kovgan's utterly transporting film does, through a thoughtful and dynamic combination of curated material and new performances, is radiate the rapturous power of dance." (Sheri Linden, Hollywood Reporter)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
"Charlize Theron comes out blazing in Bombshell. But the first thing you notice about her deep-dive performance as former Fox News host Megyn Kelly is that you don’t see Theron at all. Through voice, posture, wardrobe, and the genius prosthetic makeup of Kazu Hiro, Theron is Kelly. It’s a marvel of transformation. And it would be little more than a dazzling distraction if Theron didn’t also bring complexity to this conservative-media star who found the guts to call out her boss, Fox News CEO Roger Ailes (a superb John Lithgow; Late Night, Beatriz at Dinner, Love is Strange), for sexually harassing female journalists.
Kelly didn’t get there first. That honor goes to her Fox colleague Gretchen Carlson—Nicole Kidman (Lion), showing righteous anger simmering beneath Carlson’s pristine blonde bob and so-called 'News Barbie' makeup. It was Carlson who sued Ailes, thereby helping to end the reign of the sleaze prophet of his time, a man who liked to bring female employees into his private office and ask them to twirl. 'Television is a visual medium,' he’d say with a leer.
Cheers, too, for Margot Robbie (I, Tonya; Suite Française) as Fox newbie Kayla Pospisil, a composite character who represents many of the women Ailes promised to 'help' as they navigated their careers. The scene in which he demands that this evangelical Fox fan-girl raise her skirt higher and higher is more shocking than a horror movie. And Robbie, standing in for so many people who felt that taking the abuse was the only way to keep a job, cuts to the core of why women are mad as hell and not going to take it anymore.
Bombshell portrays some women at the network as being (justifiably) afraid to rock the boat. Jess Carr (a sly Kate McKinnon), a lesbian producer, swallows her pride and her sense of identity in order to stay employed. And even Kelly is a touch slow to find her courage. In 2016, when the film begins, her star power is cemented during a presidential debate in which she throws shade at candidate Donald Trump for his debasement of women. It would take much longer for her to read the riot act to Ailes or to join the fight with Carlson, who’d been demoted at Fox for not playing Ailes’ game. Theron makes us feel the fear running through Kelly when she later throws softballs at Trump during a one-on-interview, a decision that doesn’t sit well with her husband, Doug (Mark Duplass, Safety Not Guaranteed), or her own sense of journalistic duty.
This headline-making story continues to be told from numerous vantage points. But Bombshell rightly gives women pride of place in the gladiatorial arena. After all, it wasn’t men who finally slayed the beast. Three extraordinary actors, directed with artful purpose by Jay Roach (Trumbo) from a slashing script by Charles Randolph (The Big Short), make Bombshell an explosive piece of entertainment that also means to make a difference." (Peter Travers, Rolling Stone)
"A superb drama about sexual harassment at Fox News." (Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle)
"Bombshell is a scalding and powerful movie about what selling, in America, has become. The film is about selling sex, selling a candidate, selling yourself, selling the truth. And about how at Fox News all those things come together." (Owen Gleiberman, Variety)
"Bombshell belongs to its three main female stars. It's their fierce, finely shaded performances that transcend the film's drab visual style and drier episodic moments—not just by speaking truth to power, but by confronting the audience's own ideas of who the right to do that belongs to." (Leah Greenblatt, Entertainment Weekly)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
"Charlize Theron comes out blazing in Bombshell. But the first thing you notice about her deep-dive performance as former Fox News host Megyn Kelly is that you don’t see Theron at all. Through voice, posture, wardrobe, and the genius prosthetic makeup of Kazu Hiro, Theron is Kelly. It’s a marvel of transformation. And it would be little more than a dazzling distraction if Theron didn’t also bring complexity to this conservative-media star who found the guts to call out her boss, Fox News CEO Roger Ailes (a superb John Lithgow; Late Night, Beatriz at Dinner, Love is Strange), for sexually harassing female journalists.
Kelly didn’t get there first. That honor goes to her Fox colleague Gretchen Carlson—Nicole Kidman (Lion), showing righteous anger simmering beneath Carlson’s pristine blonde bob and so-called 'News Barbie' makeup. It was Carlson who sued Ailes, thereby helping to end the reign of the sleaze prophet of his time, a man who liked to bring female employees into his private office and ask them to twirl. 'Television is a visual medium,' he’d say with a leer.
Cheers, too, for Margot Robbie (I, Tonya; Suite Française) as Fox newbie Kayla Pospisil, a composite character who represents many of the women Ailes promised to 'help' as they navigated their careers. The scene in which he demands that this evangelical Fox fan-girl raise her skirt higher and higher is more shocking than a horror movie. And Robbie, standing in for so many people who felt that taking the abuse was the only way to keep a job, cuts to the core of why women are mad as hell and not going to take it anymore.
Bombshell portrays some women at the network as being (justifiably) afraid to rock the boat. Jess Carr (a sly Kate McKinnon), a lesbian producer, swallows her pride and her sense of identity in order to stay employed. And even Kelly is a touch slow to find her courage. In 2016, when the film begins, her star power is cemented during a presidential debate in which she throws shade at candidate Donald Trump for his debasement of women. It would take much longer for her to read the riot act to Ailes or to join the fight with Carlson, who’d been demoted at Fox for not playing Ailes’ game. Theron makes us feel the fear running through Kelly when she later throws softballs at Trump during a one-on-interview, a decision that doesn’t sit well with her husband, Doug (Mark Duplass, Safety Not Guaranteed), or her own sense of journalistic duty.
This headline-making story continues to be told from numerous vantage points. But Bombshell rightly gives women pride of place in the gladiatorial arena. After all, it wasn’t men who finally slayed the beast. Three extraordinary actors, directed with artful purpose by Jay Roach (Trumbo) from a slashing script by Charles Randolph (The Big Short), make Bombshell an explosive piece of entertainment that also means to make a difference." (Peter Travers, Rolling Stone)
"A superb drama about sexual harassment at Fox News." (Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle)
"Bombshell is a scalding and powerful movie about what selling, in America, has become. The film is about selling sex, selling a candidate, selling yourself, selling the truth. And about how at Fox News all those things come together." (Owen Gleiberman, Variety)
"Bombshell belongs to its three main female stars. It's their fierce, finely shaded performances that transcend the film's drab visual style and drier episodic moments—not just by speaking truth to power, but by confronting the audience's own ideas of who the right to do that belongs to." (Leah Greenblatt, Entertainment Weekly)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
CINEMA
Dolor y gloria (Pain and Glory)
Wednesday March 11, 7:00p–8:53p
Presented by Fundy Cinema
▶ Show DetailsCost: $10
Pedro Almodóvar (Julieta, Broken Embraces, Volver) returns with this emotional and visually engaging story of an acclaimed filmmaker whose reflections on the past bring him closer to the truth of the present.
Salvador Mallo (Antonio Banderas) is a veteran Spanish filmmaker who suffers from both physical and mental ailments, as well as a creative drought. When the Madrid cinematheque invites Salvador to participate in a Q&A for a retrospective of his earlier work, he decides to reconnect with the film’s drug-addled star, Alberto Crespo (Asier Etxeandia), whom he has not spoken to in 30 years.
Upon their reunion, Salvador learns that Alberto is still abusing drugs in order to keep the creative juices flowing. On a whim, Salvador decides to try heroin for the first time. As he continues to chase the high, he sinks deeper into the past, reflecting on a series of firsts: his first taste of cinema, his first desire for men, his first partner, Alberto, and his first love—his mother, Jacinta (Penélope Cruz, Everybody Knows, Broken Embraces). Almodóvar seamlessly uses flashbacks to move us through past and present, boyhood and manhood, memories and visions, cinema and reality, as Salvador comes closer to his sense of identity. In keeping with his aesthetic, Almodóvar uses rich colours and slow, drawn-out sequences to pull us in and explore themes of intimacy, dysfunctional families, and sexual complexity.
The director’s most personal work to date, Pain and Glory competed for the Palme d’Or at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, where Banderas took home the award for Best Actor and Alberto Iglesias won for Best Soundtrack. This film is a must-see for this year’s awards season.
"A beautiful, full-hearted celebration of the craft of filmmaking." (Bradley Warren, The Playlist)
"This is an especially personal work, anchored by the director’s on-off muse Antonio Banderas in perhaps his greatest performance and sweeps through the Spanish maestro’s recurrent themes: high melodrama and kitsch comedy, piety and carnal lust, sex and death, human pain and transcendent glory." (Ed Frankl, The Film Stage)
"As ever, Almodóvar has made a film about pleasure, which is itself a pleasure: witty, intelligent and sensuous." (Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
"A tenderly retold tale about the healing bond between a lonely Australian boy and the orphaned pelicans he rescues and nurtures to adulthood, Shawn Seet’s Storm Boy—a new version of the classic 1976 film—capably weathers the decades, buoyed by a graceful Geoffrey Rush (Final Portrait, The Book Thief) performance.
Building in a multigenerational theme not found in the original production or the 1964 Colin Thiele novella, the updated story (penned by Justin Monjo) is seen through the eyes of Rush’s Michael Kingley, a retired executive increasingly haunted by images of his childhood, raised by his reclusive father (Jai Courtney) along the remote Coorong National Park coastline.
There, the young Michael (played by an equally impressive Finn Little), whose mom and sister died in a car accident, is taught some valuable life lessons through his particular connection to the pelican he names Mr. Percival, one of three whose own mother was shot by hunters.
Steeped in local lore provided by Trevor Jamieson’s Fingerbone Bill, an indigenous Ngarrindjeri with whom Michael also forms a connection, while also tapping several environmental and culturally relevant issues, director Seet’s gorgeously filmed production proves to resonate as much today as it did 40-plus years ago.
At once uplifting and melancholic, it’s the right Storm Boy for our turbulent times." (Michael Rechtshaffen, Los Angeles Times)
"Even those unfamiliar with the tale will find it charming and moving, and, as is so often the case with Australian films, the scenery can't be beat." (Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter)
"This version of Storm Boy, directed by excellent Aussie small-screen helmer Shawn Seet, has the emotional heft and visual splendor to win the hearts of domestic and international family audiences." (Richard Kuipers, Variety)
"It has the visual wonder and strangeness of a Carroll Ballard movie like The Black Stallion or Fly Away Home. And the skeptical-looking pelicans are surprisingly endearing." (M.V. Moorhead, Phoenix Magazine)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
"A tenderly retold tale about the healing bond between a lonely Australian boy and the orphaned pelicans he rescues and nurtures to adulthood, Shawn Seet’s Storm Boy—a new version of the classic 1976 film—capably weathers the decades, buoyed by a graceful Geoffrey Rush (Final Portrait, The Book Thief) performance.
Building in a multigenerational theme not found in the original production or the 1964 Colin Thiele novella, the updated story (penned by Justin Monjo) is seen through the eyes of Rush’s Michael Kingley, a retired executive increasingly haunted by images of his childhood, raised by his reclusive father (Jai Courtney) along the remote Coorong National Park coastline.
There, the young Michael (played by an equally impressive Finn Little), whose mom and sister died in a car accident, is taught some valuable life lessons through his particular connection to the pelican he names Mr. Percival, one of three whose own mother was shot by hunters.
Steeped in local lore provided by Trevor Jamieson’s Fingerbone Bill, an indigenous Ngarrindjeri with whom Michael also forms a connection, while also tapping several environmental and culturally relevant issues, director Seet’s gorgeously filmed production proves to resonate as much today as it did 40-plus years ago.
At once uplifting and melancholic, it’s the right Storm Boy for our turbulent times." (Michael Rechtshaffen, Los Angeles Times)
"Even those unfamiliar with the tale will find it charming and moving, and, as is so often the case with Australian films, the scenery can't be beat." (Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter)
"This version of Storm Boy, directed by excellent Aussie small-screen helmer Shawn Seet, has the emotional heft and visual splendor to win the hearts of domestic and international family audiences." (Richard Kuipers, Variety)
"It has the visual wonder and strangeness of a Carroll Ballard movie like The Black Stallion or Fly Away Home. And the skeptical-looking pelicans are surprisingly endearing." (M.V. Moorhead, Phoenix Magazine)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
CINEMA
Hansard by Simon Woods
Friday March 20, 7:00p–8:30p
Presented by Just Us! Coffee Roasters Co-op
▶ Show DetailsCost: $15 - tickets available at the door after 6pm March 20.
It’s a summer’s morning in 1988 and Tory politician Robin Hesketh has returned home to the idyllic Cotswold house he shares with his wife of 30 years, Diana. But all is not as blissful as it seems. Diana has a stinking hangover, a fox is destroying the garden, and secrets are being dug up all over the place. As the day draws on, what starts as gentle ribbing and the familiar rhythms of marital sparring quickly turns to blood-sport.
Contact: ntlive@justuscoffee.com
-
Cost: $10
Liam Neeson and Lesley Manville star as a long-standing couple facing a potentially life-changing cancer diagnosis, in this drama scripted by Northern Irish playwright Owen McCafferty.
Although his electrifying action roles made him a global icon, Liam Neeson (Kinsey) never stopped making the potent dramas that first brought him to notice. And though Lesley Manville (Mr. Turner, Another Year) won a whole new audience with her scissor-sharp performance in Phantom Thread, her work with Mike Leigh long ago proved the depth of her abilities on screen. Ordinary Love brings these two master actors together for the first time as their characters navigate one of the most high-stakes gambits imaginable: marriage. Joan (Manville) and Tom (Neeson) are a long-married couple, with their set habits, cozy bickering and assumption of a long walk together into the sunset. But when Joan discovers a lump in her breast, it soon becomes clear that cancer will radically change each of them and their relationship. As she enters the cold, uncertain process of medical treatment, their habits are ruptured and that cozy bickering explodes to reveal the long-buried truths of their marriage.
Working from Owen McCafferty's wise, observant screenplay, directors Lisa Barros D'Sa and Glenn Leyburn show the heartbreak that comes with what Joan and Tom must go through and they do so with clarity and tenderness. Manville's Joan is a mature woman who has made her accommodations with life but is unprepared to face this potentially terminal illness. Neeson plays Tom as a man more comfortable showing rather than speaking his love. Their big date during her treatment and one simple scene where Tom cuts Joan's hair, illuminate the depth of love that unites this couple, even as they face the ultimate test.
"As quiet and thoughtfully composed as a Dutch master's painting, Ordinary Love uses clean lines and well observed tiny details to build up a deeply moving, nuanced portrait of a marriage under strain after a cancer diagnosis." (Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter)
"An achingly intimate portrait of a marriage weathering a storm ... what shines is the combination of Owen McCafferty’s stingingly honest screenplay and the two lovely, emotionally textured central performances." (Wendy Ide, Screen International)
"Anchored by great performances from Liam Neeson and especially Lesley Manville, Ordinary Love is alive to the feelings and moments other hospital dramas overlook. Its accumulation of details forms a shattering whole." (Ian Freer, Empire)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
Liam Neeson and Lesley Manville star as a long-standing couple facing a potentially life-changing cancer diagnosis, in this drama scripted by Northern Irish playwright Owen McCafferty.
Although his electrifying action roles made him a global icon, Liam Neeson (Kinsey) never stopped making the potent dramas that first brought him to notice. And though Lesley Manville (Mr. Turner, Another Year) won a whole new audience with her scissor-sharp performance in Phantom Thread, her work with Mike Leigh long ago proved the depth of her abilities on screen. Ordinary Love brings these two master actors together for the first time as their characters navigate one of the most high-stakes gambits imaginable: marriage. Joan (Manville) and Tom (Neeson) are a long-married couple, with their set habits, cozy bickering and assumption of a long walk together into the sunset. But when Joan discovers a lump in her breast, it soon becomes clear that cancer will radically change each of them and their relationship. As she enters the cold, uncertain process of medical treatment, their habits are ruptured and that cozy bickering explodes to reveal the long-buried truths of their marriage.
Working from Owen McCafferty's wise, observant screenplay, directors Lisa Barros D'Sa and Glenn Leyburn show the heartbreak that comes with what Joan and Tom must go through and they do so with clarity and tenderness. Manville's Joan is a mature woman who has made her accommodations with life but is unprepared to face this potentially terminal illness. Neeson plays Tom as a man more comfortable showing rather than speaking his love. Their big date during her treatment and one simple scene where Tom cuts Joan's hair, illuminate the depth of love that unites this couple, even as they face the ultimate test.
"As quiet and thoughtfully composed as a Dutch master's painting, Ordinary Love uses clean lines and well observed tiny details to build up a deeply moving, nuanced portrait of a marriage under strain after a cancer diagnosis." (Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter)
"An achingly intimate portrait of a marriage weathering a storm ... what shines is the combination of Owen McCafferty’s stingingly honest screenplay and the two lovely, emotionally textured central performances." (Wendy Ide, Screen International)
"Anchored by great performances from Liam Neeson and especially Lesley Manville, Ordinary Love is alive to the feelings and moments other hospital dramas overlook. Its accumulation of details forms a shattering whole." (Ian Freer, Empire)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
Alonso Ruizpalacios’ original visual style in his inspiring feature debut Güeros signalled a fresh new voice in Mexican cinema. His follow-up, Museum, is an impressive and multi-layered art heist film. Loosely inspired by true events, Ruizpalacios blends themes of friendship, family and genre in an artfully complex and assured piece that is at once fun and profound.
Gael García Bernal (Neruda, Rosewater) is resplendent as Juan, a likeable guy in his thirties who lives at home while trying to finish up veterinary school. His family tolerates him, but it is clear that they have all given up—especially his father (Alfredo Castro; Neruda, No). Enlisting his best friend Benjamin (Leonardo Ortizgris), Juan hatches a plan to steal priceless Mayan artefacts from Mexico City’s National Museum of Anthropology.
Counting on Christmas Eve festivities to distract everyone, from their families to the museum guards, the two leave their homes in the suburbs and pull off a flawless robbery at the museum—unbelievable for a couple of amateurs. Their plan was only half-baked however, as neither had thought beyond the acquisition of the treasures. They soon discover the difficulties associated with unloading precious antiquities and embark on a road trip in search of a dodgy enough buyer.
Melding elements of comedy, drama and thriller, Museum’s textured approach explores many themes. Ruizpalacios uses a real-life caper to ruminate on art, its self-appointed keepers and the true ownership of priceless treasures.
"Ruizpalacios spins an irresistibly inventive and unusually intelligent tall tale from this kernel of truth. All the mischief, however, is precisely counterbalanced by a deep affection for his funny, flawed (largely fictional) characters and shot through with a surprisingly biting assessment of the compromised nature of the museum trade." (Jessica Kiang, Variety)
"Museo is in part a caper film, a heist film, and while it leans on such classics as Topkapi and Rififi the robbery has its own signature and is done in a visual style that’s hypnotic." (John Anderson, The Wall Street Journal)
"It’s an endlessly entertaining, challenging investigation of history that confirms Ruizpalacios’ status as the next big thing in Mexican cinema." (Bradley Warren, The Playlist)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
Alonso Ruizpalacios’ original visual style in his inspiring feature debut Güeros signalled a fresh new voice in Mexican cinema. His follow-up, Museum, is an impressive and multi-layered art heist film. Loosely inspired by true events, Ruizpalacios blends themes of friendship, family and genre in an artfully complex and assured piece that is at once fun and profound.
Gael García Bernal (Neruda, Rosewater) is resplendent as Juan, a likeable guy in his thirties who lives at home while trying to finish up veterinary school. His family tolerates him, but it is clear that they have all given up—especially his father (Alfredo Castro; Neruda, No). Enlisting his best friend Benjamin (Leonardo Ortizgris), Juan hatches a plan to steal priceless Mayan artefacts from Mexico City’s National Museum of Anthropology.
Counting on Christmas Eve festivities to distract everyone, from their families to the museum guards, the two leave their homes in the suburbs and pull off a flawless robbery at the museum—unbelievable for a couple of amateurs. Their plan was only half-baked however, as neither had thought beyond the acquisition of the treasures. They soon discover the difficulties associated with unloading precious antiquities and embark on a road trip in search of a dodgy enough buyer.
Melding elements of comedy, drama and thriller, Museum’s textured approach explores many themes. Ruizpalacios uses a real-life caper to ruminate on art, its self-appointed keepers and the true ownership of priceless treasures.
"Ruizpalacios spins an irresistibly inventive and unusually intelligent tall tale from this kernel of truth. All the mischief, however, is precisely counterbalanced by a deep affection for his funny, flawed (largely fictional) characters and shot through with a surprisingly biting assessment of the compromised nature of the museum trade." (Jessica Kiang, Variety)
"Museo is in part a caper film, a heist film, and while it leans on such classics as Topkapi and Rififi the robbery has its own signature and is done in a visual style that’s hypnotic." (John Anderson, The Wall Street Journal)
"It’s an endlessly entertaining, challenging investigation of history that confirms Ruizpalacios’ status as the next big thing in Mexican cinema." (Bradley Warren, The Playlist)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
Featuring brilliant performances from Bill Nighy and four-time Oscar nominee Annette Bening, this exquisite drama from writer-director William Nicholson will resonate with anyone who has ever navigated the choppy waters of long-term love.
Grace (Bening; The Seagull, Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool, 20th Century Women) and Edward (Nighy; Sometimes Always Never, The Bookshop, Their Finest) have been together for 33 years. To celebrate the occasion, they have invited their London-based son Jamie (Josh O'Connor; Florence Foster Jenkins) to visit them at their home on the Sussex coast, where the picturesque cliffs of Hope Gap look out onto the open sea. Communication between the couple is at a nadir, however, with Grace nagging Edward about his lack of enthusiasm and Edward, who has long felt inadequate in his marriage, responding by turning inward—and harbouring secrets. Edward is leaving Grace for another woman, a decision that will result in ongoing turmoil for everyone involved.
A veteran of literature, film and television, Nicholson received Oscar screenwriting nominations for Shadowlands and Gladiator but nothing in his august body of work quite prepares you for the wit and wisdom woven into each scene of Hope Gap: no one is entirely innocent and nothing, after three decades of coupledom, is simple.
The film's poignancy, of course, is dependent on its actors, and you could not ask for a more perfect pairing than Bening and Nighy, the former exhibiting an astonishing range of emotion and tactics, the latter tempering his trademark deadpan charisma in favour of a gravitas he has too rarely had the chance to exude.
"Nighy gives a master class in withdrawn, mumbling ineffectualness ... while Bening is superb as a retiree whose shock at her disengaged husband inspires a suite of conflicting emotions." (Tim Grierson, Screen Daily)
"A satisfying watch with a lovely cinematic ending though its apt to get dinged for being too stagebound." (Nathaniel Rogers, The Film Experience)
"Bening is the film's shining beacon but Hope Gap is good beyond her. Nicholson offers a tender perspective of something that feels true to life, tender and solid." (Andrew Kendall, Starbroek News)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
Featuring brilliant performances from Bill Nighy and four-time Oscar nominee Annette Bening, this exquisite drama from writer-director William Nicholson will resonate with anyone who has ever navigated the choppy waters of long-term love.
Grace (Bening; The Seagull, Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool, 20th Century Women) and Edward (Nighy; Sometimes Always Never, The Bookshop, Their Finest) have been together for 33 years. To celebrate the occasion, they have invited their London-based son Jamie (Josh O'Connor; Florence Foster Jenkins) to visit them at their home on the Sussex coast, where the picturesque cliffs of Hope Gap look out onto the open sea. Communication between the couple is at a nadir, however, with Grace nagging Edward about his lack of enthusiasm and Edward, who has long felt inadequate in his marriage, responding by turning inward—and harbouring secrets. Edward is leaving Grace for another woman, a decision that will result in ongoing turmoil for everyone involved.
A veteran of literature, film and television, Nicholson received Oscar screenwriting nominations for Shadowlands and Gladiator but nothing in his august body of work quite prepares you for the wit and wisdom woven into each scene of Hope Gap: no one is entirely innocent and nothing, after three decades of coupledom, is simple.
The film's poignancy, of course, is dependent on its actors, and you could not ask for a more perfect pairing than Bening and Nighy, the former exhibiting an astonishing range of emotion and tactics, the latter tempering his trademark deadpan charisma in favour of a gravitas he has too rarely had the chance to exude.
"Nighy gives a master class in withdrawn, mumbling ineffectualness ... while Bening is superb as a retiree whose shock at her disengaged husband inspires a suite of conflicting emotions." (Tim Grierson, Screen Daily)
"A satisfying watch with a lovely cinematic ending though its apt to get dinged for being too stagebound." (Nathaniel Rogers, The Film Experience)
"Bening is the film's shining beacon but Hope Gap is good beyond her. Nicholson offers a tender perspective of something that feels true to life, tender and solid." (Andrew Kendall, Starbroek News)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
Life on a military base can be uneventful, especially for the wives who are left behind when their partners are called to duty. Kate (Kristin Scott Thomas; The Party, Suite Française, My Old Lady) is one of these women, bearing the stress and monotony with grace and forebearance. As the long-standing chair of the Social Committee, Kate has a hard time stepping away when newcomer Lisa (Sharon Horgan) is appointed in her place. The two women have very different definitions of social activities: Kate wants the group to continue with her busy calendar of book clubs and community work, while Lisa prefers to find any excuse for a glass of wine. When the idea of starting a choir is first broached, the women theoretically find common ground—even if they do not see eye to eye on the approach. Nonetheless, as the group begins to practice, they soon discover that the joy of singing is infectious and the first military wives choir is born.
Discovering that they can rely on each other for more than beautiful harmonies, the members come together to confront the challenges of having a partner at war, to face the uncertainty of their fates and to acknowledge how much of their identity is wrapped up in their husbands.
Inspired by the international phenomenon of military wives choirs, Peter Cattaneo (The Full Monty) crafts an emotive and poignant story about a group of women who realize that their partners in Afghanistan are not the only ones whose circumstances can lead to unbreakable bonds of camaraderie, belonging and deep friendship.
"Eminently entertaining ... Sure, it shamelessly panders to our collective sense of duty to support the troops—and, of course, also support the families that support the troops... But gosh darn it, it's hard not to warm to a film that features an a cappella version of Yazoo's Only You, a near-derelict car that may or may not be called Shite Rider and Kristin Scott Thomas having a verbal catfight in a parking lot." (Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter)
"The 'feel good' element is how the women deal with their own personal issue and accept each others' foibles to work together in harmony, reaping mutual support and deep friendship." (Diana Cheng, Ripple Effects)
"Succeeds in striking a pleasant balance between the frankly inspiring and the refreshingly humble." (Elena Lazic, Cineuropa)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
Life on a military base can be uneventful, especially for the wives who are left behind when their partners are called to duty. Kate (Kristin Scott Thomas; The Party, Suite Française, My Old Lady) is one of these women, bearing the stress and monotony with grace and forebearance. As the long-standing chair of the Social Committee, Kate has a hard time stepping away when newcomer Lisa (Sharon Horgan) is appointed in her place. The two women have very different definitions of social activities: Kate wants the group to continue with her busy calendar of book clubs and community work, while Lisa prefers to find any excuse for a glass of wine. When the idea of starting a choir is first broached, the women theoretically find common ground—even if they do not see eye to eye on the approach. Nonetheless, as the group begins to practice, they soon discover that the joy of singing is infectious and the first military wives choir is born.
Discovering that they can rely on each other for more than beautiful harmonies, the members come together to confront the challenges of having a partner at war, to face the uncertainty of their fates and to acknowledge how much of their identity is wrapped up in their husbands.
Inspired by the international phenomenon of military wives choirs, Peter Cattaneo (The Full Monty) crafts an emotive and poignant story about a group of women who realize that their partners in Afghanistan are not the only ones whose circumstances can lead to unbreakable bonds of camaraderie, belonging and deep friendship.
"Eminently entertaining ... Sure, it shamelessly panders to our collective sense of duty to support the troops—and, of course, also support the families that support the troops... But gosh darn it, it's hard not to warm to a film that features an a cappella version of Yazoo's Only You, a near-derelict car that may or may not be called Shite Rider and Kristin Scott Thomas having a verbal catfight in a parking lot." (Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter)
"The 'feel good' element is how the women deal with their own personal issue and accept each others' foibles to work together in harmony, reaping mutual support and deep friendship." (Diana Cheng, Ripple Effects)
"Succeeds in striking a pleasant balance between the frankly inspiring and the refreshingly humble." (Elena Lazic, Cineuropa)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
THEATRE
Cyrano
Friday April 24, 7:00p–9:50p
Presented by Just Us! Coffee Roasters Co-op
▶ Show DetailsCost: $15 at the door from 6pm
Fierce with a pen and notorious in combat, Cyrano almost has it all - if only he could win the heart of his true love Roxane. There’s just one big problem: he has a nose as huge as his heart. Will a society engulfed by narcissism get the better of Cyrano - or can his mastery of language set Roxane’s world alight?
Contact: ntlive@justuscoffee.com
-
Cost: $10
The set-up is simple: lifelong friends Mike and Kyle are out for a bike ride through the mountains in the South of France when Mike confesses that he slept with Kyle's fiancé. In the hands of director Michael Angelo Covino (who also co-wrote and co-stars in the film), this confessional episode expands into an epic multi-year journey that navigates the ins and outs of a co-dependent friendship.
Traversing through family holidays, birthdays, ski trips and, of course, bike rides, The Climb takes what could be a knucklehead display of toxic masculinity and—through an intelligent, surprising, and self-aware use of slapstick and whip-smart dialogue—steers it through the lives of two people who cannot seem to tear themselves apart from each other—and the destructive behaviour they resort to in the process.
Eschewing many standard techniques of cinematic comedy, Covino relies on a series of beautifully choreographed single takes, one for each scene, allowing many of the most hilarious moments to come from the least expected places in the frame. This aesthetic, coupled with a clever structure (to reveal any more plot would ruin the layers of surprise), provide a breezy runway upon which Covino and his co-star Kyle Marvin foster a palpable, relatable honesty through their remarkable chemistry. With each comedic escalation, The Climb not only makes us cackle at the absurdity of its scenarios but also ponder complex questions about the nature of male friendships.
"In short, the driving factor of Covino’s relentlessly funny, affecting comedy is neither cinematographic ingenuity, nor its tongue-in-cheek facetiousness, though these elements surely help. No, what’s most persuasive about Kyle and Mike is, simply put, Kyle and Mike themselves." (Caroline Tsai, The Playlist)
"Beautifully written and performed by the director and real-life BFF Kyle Marvin, Covino’s film gets precisely the balance of dependency and denial that keeps a bad bromance afloat." (Guy Lodge, Variety)
"Covino’s brilliant comedy is original and smartly entertaining: a celebration of male friendship in all its ups and downs." (John Bleasdale, CineVue)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
Cost: $10
The set-up is simple: lifelong friends Mike and Kyle are out for a bike ride through the mountains in the South of France when Mike confesses that he slept with Kyle's fiancé. In the hands of director Michael Angelo Covino (who also co-wrote and co-stars in the film), this confessional episode expands into an epic multi-year journey that navigates the ins and outs of a co-dependent friendship.
Traversing through family holidays, birthdays, ski trips and, of course, bike rides, The Climb takes what could be a knucklehead display of toxic masculinity and—through an intelligent, surprising, and self-aware use of slapstick and whip-smart dialogue—steers it through the lives of two people who cannot seem to tear themselves apart from each other—and the destructive behaviour they resort to in the process.
Eschewing many standard techniques of cinematic comedy, Covino relies on a series of beautifully choreographed single takes, one for each scene, allowing many of the most hilarious moments to come from the least expected places in the frame. This aesthetic, coupled with a clever structure (to reveal any more plot would ruin the layers of surprise), provide a breezy runway upon which Covino and his co-star Kyle Marvin foster a palpable, relatable honesty through their remarkable chemistry. With each comedic escalation, The Climb not only makes us cackle at the absurdity of its scenarios but also ponder complex questions about the nature of male friendships.
"In short, the driving factor of Covino’s relentlessly funny, affecting comedy is neither cinematographic ingenuity, nor its tongue-in-cheek facetiousness, though these elements surely help. No, what’s most persuasive about Kyle and Mike is, simply put, Kyle and Mike themselves." (Caroline Tsai, The Playlist)
"Beautifully written and performed by the director and real-life BFF Kyle Marvin, Covino’s film gets precisely the balance of dependency and denial that keeps a bad bromance afloat." (Guy Lodge, Variety)
"Covino’s brilliant comedy is original and smartly entertaining: a celebration of male friendship in all its ups and downs." (John Bleasdale, CineVue)Contact: info@fundycinema.ca | (902) 542-1050
-
THEATRE
The Welkin by Lucy Kirkwood
Friday June 19, 7:00p–9:50p
Presented by Just Us! Coffee Roasters Co-op
▶ Show DetailsCost: $15 at the door starting from 6pm
As the country waits for Halley’s comet, a young woman is sentenced to hang for a heinous murder.
When she claims to be pregnant, a jury of 12 matrons are taken from their housework to decide whether she’s telling the truth, or simply trying to escape the noose. With only midwife Lizzy Luke prepared to defend the girl, and a mob baying for blood outside, the matrons wrestle with their new authority, and the devil in their midst.
Contact: ntlive@justuscoffee.com
