DIYAH PERA/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Peter Howell
The wacky spaceship X-Files crashes to Earth with a resounding
thud in its second movie incarnation. Let's hope those pesky aliens
give it a proper burial this time.
Wanted
Peter Howell
Russian director Timur Bekmambetov hasn't just made a thriller with Wanted, he's redefined the genre.
Peter Howell
Russian director Timur Bekmambetov hasn't just made a thriller with Wanted, he's redefined the genre.
Evgeni Koroliov: Bach Goldberg Variations
John Terauds
I laughed. I cried. Mostly, I listened, rapt, to German-based Russian pianist Koroliov as he unfurled the magical tapestry of the Goldberg Variations, written by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1742.
John Terauds
I laughed. I cried. Mostly, I listened, rapt, to German-based Russian pianist Koroliov as he unfurled the magical tapestry of the Goldberg Variations, written by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1742.
Hancock
Roused from his alcoholic stupor to stop a high-speed chase on a Los Angeles freeway, grumpy superhero John Hancock (Will Smith) causes nearly $10 million in property damage.
Roused from his alcoholic stupor to stop a high-speed chase on a Los Angeles freeway, grumpy superhero John Hancock (Will Smith) causes nearly $10 million in property damage.
Fred Claus
Fred Claus is a high-concept joke about what might happen if Santa Claus had a troublesome older brother named Fred who resented his younger sibling.
Fred Claus is a high-concept joke about what might happen if Santa Claus had a troublesome older brother named Fred who resented his younger sibling.
Genoveva
The more elements you see onstage, the greater the chances of finding something to like. Great opera productions satisfy on every level. But, more often, you have to compromise.
The more elements you see onstage, the greater the chances of finding something to like. Great opera productions satisfy on every level. But, more often, you have to compromise.
Tropic Thunder
Peter Howell
The high concept of this Hollywood parody is not exactly a triumph of originality: a group of prima-donna actors filming a Vietnam War epic in the jungles of Southeast Asia suddenly find themselves in a real war, courtesy of drug-smuggling ...
Peter Howell
The high concept of this Hollywood parody is not exactly a triumph of originality: a group of prima-donna actors filming a Vietnam War epic in the jungles of Southeast Asia suddenly find themselves in a real war, courtesy of drug-smuggling ...
Wall-E
Peter Howell
In the first half-hour, when barely a recognizable human word is heard, and the camera moves restlessly over a devastated earthly landscape circa 2700, you might think you're about to be schooled in an animated version of Al Gore's vision of the ...
Peter Howell
In the first half-hour, when barely a recognizable human word is heard, and the camera moves restlessly over a devastated earthly landscape circa 2700, you might think you're about to be schooled in an animated version of Al Gore's vision of the ...
A Mozart Gala
John Terauds
The Salzburg Festival celebrates its most famous native son, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, every year. But for the 250th anniversary of his birth in 2006, organizers pulled out all the stops, including hosting this fabulous all-Mozart opera gala ...
John Terauds
The Salzburg Festival celebrates its most famous native son, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, every year. But for the 250th anniversary of his birth in 2006, organizers pulled out all the stops, including hosting this fabulous all-Mozart opera gala ...
Black Christmas and Murder by Decree
Peter Howell
A little bit of Canada died along with Bob Clark last year, when an auto tragedy claimed the life of the filmmaker, 67, and his son Ariel, 22. Always "Bob" and never "Robert," Clark was one of Canada's most successful ...
Peter Howell
A little bit of Canada died along with Bob Clark last year, when an auto tragedy claimed the life of the filmmaker, 67, and his son Ariel, 22. Always "Bob" and never "Robert," Clark was one of Canada's most successful ...
Planet of the Apes 40th Anniversary Collection
Peter Howell
As a sci-fi franchise second only to Star Wars in impact and influence, the five Planet of the Apes features have been repackaged almost as often as George Lucas' cash cow. Past sets include a 2006 "ultimate" ...
Peter Howell
As a sci-fi franchise second only to Star Wars in impact and influence, the five Planet of the Apes features have been repackaged almost as often as George Lucas' cash cow. Past sets include a 2006 "ultimate" ...
The Rake's Progress
John Terauds
Igor Stravinsky's American opera opens with a crisp brass fanfare and a couple in passionate love under a southwestern sky.
John Terauds
Igor Stravinsky's American opera opens with a crisp brass fanfare and a couple in passionate love under a southwestern sky.
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Peter Howell
The rare sequel that outdoes its predecessor, Hellboy II foregoes the tedious creation story of the 2004 original and gives us your basic Tolkienesque war between the mortal world and fantasy freaks.
Peter Howell
The rare sequel that outdoes its predecessor, Hellboy II foregoes the tedious creation story of the 2004 original and gives us your basic Tolkienesque war between the mortal world and fantasy freaks.
Kung Fu Panda
Peter Howell
Neither as original as Ratatouille nor as funny as Shrek, Jack Black's star turn as a corpulent panda struggling to become a martial artist frequently manages to amuse, if not entirely to delight.
Peter Howell
Neither as original as Ratatouille nor as funny as Shrek, Jack Black's star turn as a corpulent panda struggling to become a martial artist frequently manages to amuse, if not entirely to delight.
Get Smart
Peter Howell
Advance intel for Get Smart had it that the spy spoof didn't just miss it by that much, but by a country mile.
Peter Howell
Advance intel for Get Smart had it that the spy spoof didn't just miss it by that much, but by a country mile.
Peter Grimes
John Terauds
By the start of Act 3, the audience at the Metropolitan Opera was already crazy with adoration for the powerful new production of British composer Benjamin Britten's most famous opera.
John Terauds
By the start of Act 3, the audience at the Metropolitan Opera was already crazy with adoration for the powerful new production of British composer Benjamin Britten's most famous opera.
The Incredible Hulk
Peter Howell
While superior to its cerebral 2003 predecessor – give me "Hulk, smash!" any day over "I Hulk, therefore I am" – the movie is at best a diversion rather than engrossing entertainment.
Peter Howell
While superior to its cerebral 2003 predecessor – give me "Hulk, smash!" any day over "I Hulk, therefore I am" – the movie is at best a diversion rather than engrossing entertainment.
Casino Royale
Peter Howell
Pop culture's peculiar alchemy often transforms trash into something valuable. In most cases, all you have to do is wait and allow time and irony to do their jobs. Such is the fate of the original Casino Royale, a 1967 travesty that might ...
Peter Howell
Pop culture's peculiar alchemy often transforms trash into something valuable. In most cases, all you have to do is wait and allow time and irony to do their jobs. Such is the fate of the original Casino Royale, a 1967 travesty that might ...
Doctor Atomic
John Terauds
Director Peter Sellars successfully walks the fine line between apocalypse and humanity in the staging. There are effective dance sequences throughout that work well with Adams's repetitive score.
John Terauds
Director Peter Sellars successfully walks the fine line between apocalypse and humanity in the staging. There are effective dance sequences throughout that work well with Adams's repetitive score.
Fugitive Pieces
Peter Howell
Survivor guilt and other restless spirits trouble Fugitive Pieces, Jeremy Podeswa's well acted but dramatically unyielding screen adaptation of poet/author Anne Michaels' award-winning 1997 Toronto novel.
Peter Howell
Survivor guilt and other restless spirits trouble Fugitive Pieces, Jeremy Podeswa's well acted but dramatically unyielding screen adaptation of poet/author Anne Michaels' award-winning 1997 Toronto novel.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Peter Howell
Some disappointment was inevitable with the fourth chapter of the Indiana Jones franchise, since the wait was so long and expectations were so high. But plot quibbles aside, it's still great to see a good ...
Peter Howell
Some disappointment was inevitable with the fourth chapter of the Indiana Jones franchise, since the wait was so long and expectations were so high. But plot quibbles aside, it's still great to see a good ...
The Happening
Peter Howell
Is M. Night Shyamalan even trying anymore? The once-promising horror auteur follows his dead-in-the-water Lady in the Water with an eco-terror thriller so laughably inane, it had theatre audiences howling at suicide scenes.
Peter Howell
Is M. Night Shyamalan even trying anymore? The once-promising horror auteur follows his dead-in-the-water Lady in the Water with an eco-terror thriller so laughably inane, it had theatre audiences howling at suicide scenes.
You Don't Mess With the Zohan
Peter Howell
You Don't Mess With the Zohan is possibly the nuttiest thing Sandler has ever done, but it's also funnier than most of his recent comedies.
Peter Howell
You Don't Mess With the Zohan is possibly the nuttiest thing Sandler has ever done, but it's also funnier than most of his recent comedies.
The Pyongyang Concert
John Terauds
I don't think I've ever seen an audience as unfriendly as the one gathered in the North Korean capital last February to hear the New York Philharmonic and its music director Lorin Maazel.
John Terauds
I don't think I've ever seen an audience as unfriendly as the one gathered in the North Korean capital last February to hear the New York Philharmonic and its music director Lorin Maazel.
Up the Yangtze
Peter Howell
While the film it almost too subtle – it could use more identification of its subject matter – its overall impact is immense and unforgettable.
Peter Howell
While the film it almost too subtle – it could use more identification of its subject matter – its overall impact is immense and unforgettable.
Iron Man
Peter Howell
The only thing wrong with Iron Man – and I can't believe I'm saying this – is that it's too short, even at 126 minutes. The action barely gets started. The same might be said of the extras on the DVD.
Peter Howell
The only thing wrong with Iron Man – and I can't believe I'm saying this – is that it's too short, even at 126 minutes. The action barely gets started. The same might be said of the extras on the DVD.
The First Emperor
John Terauds
It's been nearly two years since new Metropolitan Opera general manager Peter Gelb launched a new era with a big, splashy production of a big, splashy new opera by Tan Dun.
John Terauds
It's been nearly two years since new Metropolitan Opera general manager Peter Gelb launched a new era with a big, splashy production of a big, splashy new opera by Tan Dun.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (Collector's Edition)
Peter Howell
Forgetting Sarah Marshall finds comedy kingpin Judd Apatow back on form, after the recent disappointments of Drillbit Taylor and Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. But that's only if bawdy sex and winking putdowns ...
Peter Howell
Forgetting Sarah Marshall finds comedy kingpin Judd Apatow back on form, after the recent disappointments of Drillbit Taylor and Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. But that's only if bawdy sex and winking putdowns ...
Leatherheads
Peter Howell
Football is only nominally the focus of Leatherheads, a weak throwback to the screwball comedies of the '30s and '40s that sees George Clooney as Dodge Connelly, an aging jock in 1925 Duluth, Minn., who can't keep his hands off the pigskin.
Peter Howell
Football is only nominally the focus of Leatherheads, a weak throwback to the screwball comedies of the '30s and '40s that sees George Clooney as Dodge Connelly, an aging jock in 1925 Duluth, Minn., who can't keep his hands off the pigskin.
Sex and the City
Peter Howell
Sex and the City smartly picks up the threads the HBO television series left dangling when it signed off four years ago.
Peter Howell
Sex and the City smartly picks up the threads the HBO television series left dangling when it signed off four years ago.
The Godfather: The Coppola Restoration
Peter Howell
Even the cannoli get their own extra. That's how thorough The Godfather: The Coppola Restoration DVD set is.
Peter Howell
Even the cannoli get their own extra. That's how thorough The Godfather: The Coppola Restoration DVD set is.
88 Minutes
Peter Howell
A movie as astoundingly awful as this requires more than the critical drubbing and box-office punting it has already received. Truly creative atonement is called for. I'm thinking of a letter of apology from star Al Pacino.
Peter Howell
A movie as astoundingly awful as this requires more than the critical drubbing and box-office punting it has already received. Truly creative atonement is called for. I'm thinking of a letter of apology from star Al Pacino.
Greek
John Terauds
English composer Mark-Anthony Turnage was 28 when his stunning operatic adaptation of the Oedipus legend had its premiere at the Munich Biennale in 1988. The version we see here was adapted by directors Peter Maniura and Jonathan Moore for BBC Television ...
John Terauds
English composer Mark-Anthony Turnage was 28 when his stunning operatic adaptation of the Oedipus legend had its premiere at the Munich Biennale in 1988. The version we see here was adapted by directors Peter Maniura and Jonathan Moore for BBC Television ...
Puccini
John Terauds
If you are looking for a satisfying way to mark Giacomo Puccini's 150th birthday, look elsewhere.
John Terauds
If you are looking for a satisfying way to mark Giacomo Puccini's 150th birthday, look elsewhere.
The Love Guru
Peter Howell
Mike Myers' blend of salvation and slapshots was sent to the penalty box by moviegoers and critics alike this summer, making it one of the biggest flops of his career. It will likely fare better on DVD -- it's easier to skip the many dull ...
Peter Howell
Mike Myers' blend of salvation and slapshots was sent to the penalty box by moviegoers and critics alike this summer, making it one of the biggest flops of his career. It will likely fare better on DVD -- it's easier to skip the many dull ...
Forbidden Kingdom
Peter Howell
The long-awaited teaming of martial-arts superstars Jackie Chan and Jet Li may make purists flinch. But when the action is this much fun, who needs to quibble?
Peter Howell
The long-awaited teaming of martial-arts superstars Jackie Chan and Jet Li may make purists flinch. But when the action is this much fun, who needs to quibble?
Baby Mama
Peter Howell
Writer/director Michael McCullers, who like his stars hails from Saturday Night Live, has a flair for absurdity but no sense of pace.
Peter Howell
Writer/director Michael McCullers, who like his stars hails from Saturday Night Live, has a flair for absurdity but no sense of pace.
Last Days of Left Eye
Ashante Infantry
When Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, one-third of top-selling American girl group TLC, died in a car accident in 2002, it seemed like a predictable end for a star noted for erratic, substance-fuelled behaviour.
Ashante Infantry
When Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, one-third of top-selling American girl group TLC, died in a car accident in 2002, it seemed like a predictable end for a star noted for erratic, substance-fuelled behaviour.
The Nightmare Before Christmas Collector's Edition
Peter Howell
Funny how attitudes change. When Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas was originally released during the 1993 holiday season, it looked to be anything but a cheery perennial.
Peter Howell
Funny how attitudes change. When Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas was originally released during the 1993 holiday season, it looked to be anything but a cheery perennial.
Married Life
Peter Howell
Murder and adultery are by definition passionate things, steeped as they are in hot-blooded emotion. Yet darned if Married Life doesn't find a way to drain the fervour out of both.
Peter Howell
Murder and adultery are by definition passionate things, steeped as they are in hot-blooded emotion. Yet darned if Married Life doesn't find a way to drain the fervour out of both.
Entertainment Columnists
- Our dance show better than U.S. version
by Rob Salem - Interview: Behind Judy Collins' blue eyes
by Richard Ouzounian - Poets' suicidal journeys an inconsistent tale
by Richard Ouzounian - X Files: I Want To Believe
by Peter Howell - 10 best U.S. shows you're probably not watching
by Rob Salem - This is Awesome: Christine Bougie and Dafydd Hughes
by Ashante Infantry
More
Economic crisis no excuse to cut foreign aid: Geldof
Benefactor boosts beleaguered Ballet BC
Lawsuit alleges Tyler Perry copied script
Folk music legend Odetta dies
Roman Polanski says rights trampled in sex case
Our dance show better than U.S. version
Two Cineplex theatres plan to serve alcohol
Interview: Behind Judy Collins' blue eyes
Hot Box: TV worth talking about
I'm still here, says angry Swayze
Academy rejects some of its best
Britney Spears to play ACC
Doc looks at the race for a women's Viagra
Holy attractions
Canadian trio behind Spears tune Mmm Papi
