Colin Firth in 'The King’s Speech'. Courtesy Alliance Films.
The King’s Speech – Chronicling the struggle and subsequent treatment that Queen Elizabeth’s father, King George VI, had with a speech impediment during his life before taking the throne, The King’s Speech takes a comical approach to the subject and delivers one of the biggest surprises of the year. Colin Firth delivers another Oscar-worthy performance as King George VI, but it’s Geoffrey Rush who steals the film with his portrayal of speech therapist Lionel Logue. **** out of 5 stars. Opening in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver.
The Tourist – Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp star in this incredibly terrible crime caper that tries too hard to be a romantic comedy and falls flat on its face in the process. Horrible script, bad timing, weak action, and absolutely no chemistry between Jolie and Depp makes this a solid contender as one of the worst movies of the year. Considering Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck is behind this is a shame, as his 2006 film The Lives of Others is a work of art and was on many “Best Of” lists. * out of 5 stars.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader – When The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe came out in 2005 I was excited to see it and instantly fell in love with it. Then in 2008 the bloated sequel Prince Caspian arrived and with a running time of well over two hours it fizzled on arrival. The many times I attempted to sit through it on DVD were excruciating and left me with no interest in this latest addition to the Narnia series, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. That said, it’s not a bad movie. But it’s not a very good either movie either, and is extremely boring to watch. I give it bonus points for clean 3-D, beautiful background scenery, and new cast member Will Poulter, but I wouldn’t recommend running out to see it. ** out of 5 stars.
Also opening this week is the 70mm print of 2001: A Space Odyssey at the TIFF Bell Lightbox and Black Swan opens in Vancouver and Montreal.
