Quick Updates
Final Few Hours of From Parts Unknown #1
If you’re reading this as it hits your inbox, there’s just 17 hours left to back the campaign.
The pages I’ve been getting from Daniel for Issue #3 have been the best yet! I’d love for as many people as possible to see it - and it starts with Issue #1. As of writing this (which was on Monday, 4 days out from the end), we’re 10 backers and under $300 Canadian short from hitting both stretch goals.
I’m hoping we’ve already hit them by publication time, but if not, won’t you help us get everyone some cool freebies?!
Hamilton Comic-Con This Weekend!
If you happen to find yourself in Hamilton, Ontario this weekend - come see me at Table 52 in Artist Alley at Hamilton Comic Con!
I'll be tabling with my brother. If you read the launch post for From Parts Unknown, you know that he was a big influence on getting this whole project started.
It does mean a lot to me for him to be there while we wrap the campaign up. I won't have From Parts Unknown ready for that event, but I will have copies of everything else including Crazy Latte Thing Called Love, Unlimited Udo and Stay Cool.
I’m very lucky to have a corner table this go round, so I should be very easy to find us on your way to the Food Court! If you’re checking out the exhibits on the outer perimeter, be sure to swing by to see
at Table 10.The Instant Ink Podcast Debuts Friday
Speaking of
, he and I have a big project we’re launching together. A new podcast called the Instant Ink Comic Book Podcast.The first episode launches on September 20th at Noon.
This podcast is not just a chance for us just to talk with fellow indie creators to sell their books. There are already a few podcasts that do that very well.
We’re going a different route. Each episode, we create something live, during the podcast itself. (The podcast itself isn’t live, but the creation of the work is.)
We use some randomly generated prompts, unknown to anyone involved before recording, and create a one page comic live on the spot. We’ll brainstorm and write it together then Roberto draws and letters it to give us a completed work.
These have been a ton of fun to record and we have a few banked. They'll be coming out every Tuesday and Friday at Noon EST.
Please visit the YouTube page, like and subscribe.
We'll be putting social clips on Instagram too, so you can share with your friends.
If you're interested in being a guest, reach out and I’ll work with you to book some time! It’s not limited to comic book writers or artists, but anyone in a creative field that has something to say.
And now…
My Favourite Time of Year
I’ve been going to the Toronto International Film Festival for 20 years now. I can’t believe how time flies.
(I’m including the pandemic version of the festival, where they streamed the releases to watch at home.)
It started in my, often brought-up, film school days. Our Director, because he was a director instead of a Dean or President, used to get a ton of comps to screenings. He would offer them to anyone who was interested, so of course I took him up on it.
My first experience at TIFF was in what used to be called the Ryerson Theatre with a film called The Machinist at a Midnight Madness screening.
It starred an emaciated Christian Bale right before he would put on the Bat-suit. In fact, he didn't even make it to the screening because he was in the midst of shooting Batman Begins - another pivotal, and terribly underrated, film that brought me to where I am today.
It was thanks to this screening that I would find myself at TIFF every year. Not just the Midnight Madness screenings, but everything. I was seeing just how wide and expansive the world of film truly was.
We had good video stores (RIP Queen Video) that would broaden your horizons a bit if you let them, but it was nothing like going to TIFF. Even in class or those video stores, it was the same handful of films that everyone would recommend to watch. TIFF was the only true way to really see what was outside of the mainstream.
It takes some bravery to walk into a picture with little more than a screengrab and a fawning, and usually elusive, write-up from the programme director. You don’t know if you’re going to have a transcendent experience or squirm in your seat until the credits roll. Sometimes, you might not even make it that far.
To me, that's what's that's what TIFF is all about. When it comes to electronics, I'm a first adopter. I like to have the newest and coolest gadgets and I feel the same way about my films. Living in Toronto and being a film buff, it would be an absolute shame if I didn't go to TIFF every chance I had.
You’ve Changed, TIFF
That said, it’s been a lot harder to do. Not only do you have to get a membership if you plan on getting tickets at all, but memberships are tiered by how much you're willing to give.
There's also fewer of those deals that help me as a young, broke fan discover the festival and really fall in love with it. Some will say that started with the dawn of the Festival Tower. I don't know if it's just that or if it’s just what's been happening with everything.
Everything is more expensive. Everything's more exclusive. And yet everything still packed.
I don't go to as much as I used to because of this. I'm a lot more judicious and a lot less experimental than I used to be. I used to take the week off now to watch up to 20 movies during a festival. As many as I could possibly fit in a week based on the showtimes.
Now, unfortunately, I find myself being very, very selective. This makes it hurt even more when something I thought was going to be good doesn't play out that way. Those few screenings are precious.
The good news is: the balance of what I watched this year was actually great!
What I Watched This Year
Saturday, September 07
I, the Executioner
Detective Seo Do-cheol (Hwang Jung-min) returns in a gripping, high-octane sequel to Ryoo Seung-wan’s 2015 blockbuster Veteran. A fresh take on the crime action genre, I, The Executioner explores the dark side of justice and the dangers of populism.
My first film of this year’s edition of TIFF started with a sequel. I had seen Ryoo Seung-wan’s Veteran in 2015, also at TIFF, so I was excited to get to see the follow-up. I wish I could say the same for the crowd.
Given it was a Saturday night, I was really expecting a higher energy TIFF crowd for this. They were mostly sitting on their hands throughout.
Nonetheless, I, Executioner did not disappoint. The action and the twisting plot really paid off. You’re let into the mystery very early, but how it plays out still manages to keep you guessing until the end. I really enjoyed this one.
Just like Veteran, it bounces between humour and dark thriller with a little too much ease at times. In a similar way, the split-diopter shots were used liberally, which makes it really difficult to know where to focus.
Sunday, September 8
Relay
Lily James and Oscar winner Riz Ahmed star in this dazzlingly clever high-concept thriller directed by David Mackenzie (Hell or High Water) about a reclusive middleman for would-be whistleblowers seeking to settle with corporate malefactors.
I was not ready for Relay. It’s the best film I’ve seen at TIFF in years. I mean it.
It’s a thriller like they do not make any more. The paranoia. The twists and turns. Some of it might be a tad predictable, but it does its best to use your preconceived notions against you.
That’s exactly how Riz Ahmed’s character (which, his name is a spoiler in itself) gets away with as much as he does - along with those chasing him and his clients.
There are a couple of plot points that don't entirely feel earned. At least, at first. Looking back on it, you can see where the seeds were planted. I think watching Relay a second time might actually increase the enjoyment rather than exposing plot holes.
This is one where I’ll remember the feeling for years to come. The TIFF-style audience was back for this one too - laughing and cheering, albeit too eagerly sometimes.
I have so much to say about this movie, but I can’t without diving into spoilers. Just know that it’s worth your time - and it won’t feel like a lot of time either. The pace is relentless.
Monday, September 9
Else
Thibault Emin’s mesmerizing debut feature intimately depicts a body-horror romance in the wake of a strange epidemic that causes the infected to melt into their surroundings.
As much as I complained about not being able to get tickets to as many shows as I want, being a TIFF member, I do get the odd ticket thrown at me. This is really the only place where I experiment because I go into these movies completely blind.
That's what's happened with this film, Else.
I definitely wouldn't have picked it based on the description and screengrab, but being a midnight madness pick, I knew what I was in for to a degree.
The director came out before the movie for a quick introduction that became a long drawn-out introduction. Looking back at it, it was a good barometer for actually how the film went.
Every time it stumbled upon a good point or even a very touching moment, it didn't seem to know how to get out of its own way. I couldn't help but feel like it was just trying to hit some kind of runtime rather than actually make a point.
Not to mention it, it did have a feeling of being “too soon” given the much of it is about a pandemic and subsequent lockdown.
I don’t think the topic is untouchable. There’s lots to say about what we all experienced for years to come. The problem was that it didn't really have much to add.
Tuesday, September 10
Friendship
Channelling the cringe comedy of his hit sketch series I Think You Should Leave, Tim Robinson portrays a suburban dad obsessively pursuing camaraderie with his charming neighbour (Paul Rudd).
You really have to be a fan of Tim Robinson's kind of comedy to enjoy this movie. One moviegoer really wasn't a fan and wasn't shy about it at all. She walked right up to director Andrew DeYoung and very loudly said that film was “Awful. Truly awful.”
Many of us in the crowd thought it might be a work or she was a plant. I’m still not 100% sure it wasn’t, but it was a unique experience in my 20 years of coming to the festival.
I also happen to disagree with her opinion.
I very much enjoyed it and thought it was an interesting take on the Tim Robinson style of comedy. Everyone in this movie is playing it absolutely straight. (Except for maybe Tim Robinson, who is his usual self. Though arguably, he's always playing it straight.)
One scene in particular warrants avoiding spoilers as much as possible. The shock of it makes it an absolutely hilarious scene that’s a true, unexpected highlight.
The only knock I might have against it is that you can kind of see where it's going, even with how crazy and absurd it all gets. It’s still one of my favourites of TIFF this year.
Escape from the 21st Century
Three high-schoolers gain the ability to sneeze themselves 20 years into the future in this maximalist martial-arts time-travel caper from writer-director Yang Li (Lee’s Adventure).
Imagine Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World or Everything, Everywhere, All at Once with half the inventiveness and none of the heart. That's what you get with Escape from the 21st Century.
It almost doesn't know what it wants to do from scene to scene. Is it a love story? Is it a sci-fi movie? What am I watching?
I'm all for crazy, off-the-wall romps, but this one doesn't give you anything to tether to. It tries by having a romantic angle that weaves through it, but the love interest, Yang Yi, is nothing more than a trophy. She barely has any character either in the past or in the future.
There's a secondary love story that has a little more depth, but even then, the characters has such a turn that feels completely unwarranted and weird.
Not to mention this film has the most false endings I've seen in recent memory. Needless to say, I wasn't a huge fan of this one.
Friday, September 13
The Order
Featuring startling performances from Jude Law and Tye Sheridan, this riveting historical thriller from director Justin Kurzel (Nitram) follows the FBI’s investigation into a domestic terrorist group determined to impose their racist ideology onto mainstream society.
Usually I ignore the blurb from the programme director and all of its hyperbole, but this time it was spot on. Jude Law puts on a performance like nothing I’ve seen him in before - and I’m truly a fan of a lot of his work.
This is almost an old-school detective flick, but not entirely. It’s slower paced, but modern in the way it never stops too long before the next car chase or gunfight. It’s never in a hurry to reveal anything, while still giving you moments that you get to feel a step or two ahead of everyone involved.
If I have any complaints, I feel like a couple narrative arcs fall flat. Characters show up, not to be heard of again. Others have an abrupt change of fate. Perhaps that a symptom of being based on a true story.
Saturday, September 14
The Cut
Starring Orlando Bloom, John Turturro, and Caitríona Balfe, this visceral drama from director Sean Ellis follows a retired fighter obsessed with getting back in the ring — even if it costs him his life.
I love me a good boxing movie and The Cut is a good boxing movie. Not a great one, but at least it has a unique take on the genre by focusing nearly exclusively on the most dangerous part of professional fighting by far: the weight cut.
It does a little too much in showing the tragic backstory, hitting the same note so many times that it becomes tedious.
None of that takes away from the final act that subverts nearly every expectation you might have. Things go off the rails in so many unexpected ways that it stuck with me well after leaving the theatre - not all of it in a good way though.
Lets Stack ‘Em
When I used to have to do “stacked rankings” for my corporate job, I absolutely loathed them. You can’t compare employee A to employee B on the same criteria so easily. Everyone had their strengths and weaknesses, so it wasn’t so clear when everyone wasn’t doing the same job.
The same can be said for these films. Some were premieres with eager crowds, others were later in the week with a lethargic group. Some were hilarious comedies, others were gritty dramas.
But at the end of the day, they all played at TIFF and no one is losing their jobs over this. Let’s have some fun.
My Totally Subjective and Unqualified Stacked Ranking of My TIFF Films
Relay
Friendship
I, the Executioner
The Order
The Cut
Else
Escape from the 21st Century
There it is! I feel like if you read all those blurbs, this isn’t a surprise. The good news is, I’d say the top 5 were actually all excellent.
Only my last two had me squirming in my seat. It didn’t help that they were in the wee hours of the morning, but so was I, The Executioner, so that wasn’t a disqualifier on its own.
In Summary
With all the concerns I mentioned at the beginning of this post about how the festival has changed: a good year like this was what I needed to remind me why I come to TIFF every year. It’s hit or miss at the best of times, but there have been a few years where I just didn’t have much to get excited about.
That changed this year.
I hope, in vain, that they’ll do something about the prices or how they show the films. I’m more than happy to miss out on Q&As (or just be left with a YouTube recording after the fact) if it means I get to attend the films I want to see.
TIFF is fun because it’s the populist festival - and $40-$100 tickets for a two-hour movie shows that it’s morphing into something else entirely. There needs to be a refocus in getting the regular public into screenings too. It doesn’t mean you can’t have your red carpet galas but give the regular schmoes a chance to go to the Cineplex to join in on the buzz.
All said and done, I’ll be back again next year. Maybe to even fewer films. Maybe just one if they cut away all the deals. But I’ll be back as always.
Upcoming Posts
September 25
To The Hammer and Back Again
Tabling at Hamilton Comic-Con
October 2
Post-Mortem: From Parts Unknown
An in-depth look at the fourth Pesto Comics campaign
October 9
Don't Skimp on the Pulp
Why I admire the pulp era and launching Big Smoke Pulp Vol. 1
You Can Take the Kid Out of Film School...