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HALIFAX ENTERTAINMENT FEB 5, 2012

ENTERTAINMENT

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FEB 3, 2012

ENTERTAINMENT

The Big Bang Theory: Roommates Without Benefits
Remember that episode of The Big Bang Theory when we learned why Leonard puts up with Sheldon? Because Sheldon not only saved Leonard's career, but his life? (At the expense of the elevator.) Read More.

Nova Voce
Nova Voce, the Provincial Men's Choir, is a fantastic choir in Nova Scotia. They perform around the province and if you have the opportunity, you must go see them. My Aunt Lynn is their very talented accompanist and also Gladys' sister. Read More.

One Hundred Dollars – Ties That Bind Video Premier
It’s no secret that I love the visceral country songs One Hundred Dollars delivers each and every time out. The band hits like a sledgehammer; sure any country purist will soak up the melodies, but Simone Schmidt refuses to settle for cheap cliches and tried a... Read More.

BENIGHTED- Asylum Cave
On Asylum Cave, France's much lauded Benighted are able to cater to vide range of extreme metal fans and especially those of the death metal variety. Make no mistake - this LP kicks ass but in the long run that might not be enough. Read More.

Staff Pick - Irma Voth by Miriam Toews
Dark family secrets brought Irma Voth, an eighteen year old, and her family from Canada to live in a Mennonite community in Chihuahua Mexico. They appear to live in another place and time, living simply and tending to cattle. Read More.

Henry's Horrible Monster
My wife insists we all have dinner as a family and I'm really glad she does. Otherwise I'd be staring at the computer screen with my eyes glazed over spooning food into my mouth absently. Instead we have great family dinners every night. And one of my favorite... Read More.

Sweet Home Alabama: Campy
My apologies for the late review, guys! Sometimes it's hard to get this one done over the weekend, and I was busy drying the tears from my eyes following the heartbreaking series finale of Chuck. Read More.

“Cream” by Claptone
Reminiscent of the super patient, minimal, and downright seductive bootlegs that Soul Clap was pushing out a couple years ago (see Extravaganza, Sex In the Kitchen, and Rock the Boat) this new release from the mysterious duo Claptone entitled "Cream" utilizes ... Read More.

Boxer The Horse – Rattle Your Cage
If you had taken a poll a few years ago, when PEI was spitting out awesome young bands like they were some new form of hybrid potato (a PEI/potato ref, unexpected right?), around which band would end up having the most interesting body of work over their caree... Read More.

Jonathan Torrens – The Bees Knees
Two years ago I spotted Jonathan Torrens at my favourite spot in Halifax. He was with a group of friends, sharing some apps and having a grand time. When the time came to leave, there was a bunch of food left on the table, and the people sitting next to them t... Read More.

The view from the back seat
Alicia Rius, a Spanish born photographer now living in Amsterdam, has produced a series of photographs on one of Contrarian’s favorite visual subjects: abandoned cars. What’s unusual is that all the photos were shot from inside the car, and from the vantage po... Read More.

5 Fiction Titles to Watch for in February
Already read all the new titles from our ones to watch for post last month? Wondering what the buzz is for this month? Here are 5 new novels that you should keep your eye out for in February. A Good American (M) by Alex George (February 7) Read More.

The Total Situation
My apologies for my uneven posting lately. I've have been crazy busy. Between 2 comic book projects, 2 current commissions and the whole stay at home dad thing, time is at a premium but I'm trying to get on top of it. I think I kind of have the hang of things.... Read More.

Polly Gaillard's Reframing: Motherhood, Memory and Loss
Photographs by Polly Gaillard that seem to capture those gorgeous or funny moments you think you'll remember about your children but probably will not. I love this kind of family photography -- not saccharine or posed. Read More.

Waye Mason Turns 40!
A Fundraiser for the Parker Street Food & Furniture Bank Read More.

Glee: I Wanna Rock Salt With You (All Night)
If the highest praise I can give Glee these days is "Well, I didn't hate that", then consider last night's Michael Jackson tribute episode a success. While much of it made me groan or cringe, there were quite a few songs I really enjoyed. Read More.

File Under Awesome:: Shivering Songs this weekend
Alright, Fredericton. You and I haven’t seen eye to eye much in the past, but I’m willing to forgive and forget what with you playing host to the 2nd edition of the Shivering Songs festival. Like most fantastic festivals, Shivering Songs isn’t about Redbull te... Read More.

George Elliot Clarke and El Jones at Halifax Public Libraries
African Heritage Month is here! It is a time for celebration and reflection. Halifax Public Libraries are very pleased to have wordsmiths George Elliot Clarke and El Jones appearing at our North Branch Library on Wednesday evening, February 2nd. Read More.

Screen Actor's Guild Awards
The Screen Actor's Guilld Awards were on last night, an awards show that I usually enjoy watching. The actors are all excited to get to hang out together, and I love the little "and I'm an actor" intros they do at the beginning. And of course, I love watching ... Read More.

Def Jef – Droppin’ Rhymes On Drums
I’ll freely admit to not knowing much about Etta James, outside of the fact that she seemed to be a pretty amazing woman. That said, I certainly had a song come to mind when I heard about her passing a couple weeks ago – it just so happens that the song which ... Read More.

The Bedford Brass Quintet
The Bedford Brass Quintet features five accomplished musicians who have played with many of Canada’s leading ensembles. Based in Bedford, we perform at concerts, weddings and special events across Nova Scotia. Planning a special event or fundraiser? The Bedf... Read More.

Mrs. Parliament’s Night Out – Neptune Theatre
We had the pleasure of checking out Norm Fosters latest production “Mrs. Parliament’s Night Out” at Neptune Theatre. Not knowing too much about the play we went with no expectations what so ever, but figured at the very least that Sheila McCarthy (from Little ... Read More.

Braids – Plath Heart
Just discovered this Canadian-born band called Braids, but I think they’ve been around for a year or so. They have an awesome sound that can be compared to Animal Collective. Check ‘em out! Read More.

Third Annual INTERNET OSCAR POOL!
It is that fabelled time of year, pals: INTERNET OSCAR POOL TIME! The rules are easy-peasy and you could win some cold-hard cash for your movie nerdery. As with last year, I’m going to do a 50/50. Read More.

Profile: Psychologist Joe O'Loughlin
Joe O'Loughlin (M) is a fictitious crime solving clinical psychologist created by Australian author Michael Robotham. The series began in 2005 with the novel The Suspect (M), which garnered much praise around the world. Read More.

Chuck: Goodbye, Friends
I'll just come out at say it: I loved the double-header series finale of Chuck. In fact, I'm not sure it's possible for me to be happier. Sure, I could probably nitpick if I wanted to. But that's the thing - I don't. Read More.

Nocturne
This new painting was inspired by the wonderful Nocturne Art at Night Festival that happens in Halifax, NS in October. After a fantastic night, wandering the streets of Halifax and taking in many of the exhibits, one of the highlights was the ferry ride back t... Read More.

Favorites-of ’12:: The Just Barelys Mad Bits
A few years ago, I tried to pressure The Just Barelys to put out a new record with an incessant amount of myspace queries (when that was actually still a thing) and blog posts. Jesus, if Twitter was half as popular as it is today or kickstarter existed, #justb... Read More.

MARK KNOPFLER WAS IN HALIFAX
OK, not really. I have to say, the resemblance seemed much greater and more hilarious when you were downing a Guinness on a Friday night. And Mark Knopfler has a weakness for rust-coloured suits which these local bandsters do not dare pull off, preferring to s... Read More.

Local short: GAME
Josh Mac­Donald’s newest project (and his direc­to­rial debut), GAME, a short film, now has a web­site with stills, cast and crew bios, and a blog. It also has a bad-ass tag line: HUNTING SEASON IS COMING SOON. Eeee. Read More.

Staff Pick - My Antonia by Willa Cather
Published in 1918 My Antonia (M) by Willa Cather is considered to be one of her best novels. If you, like me, grew up devouring books by Laura Ingalls Wilder (M), you will certainly appreciate My Antonia. Narrator, Jim Burden, travels to Black Hawk, Nebraska ... Read More.

One Day Left In Art Sale
So far, my current art sale has been a big success. And there are 24 hours left to buy stuff. Here are the deals: half off original art ( the prices listed are the reduced prices), Read More.

Group Show!
Check out the Reshelving website to see the works submitted for this show – it promises to be very diverse and very interesting! ERI 5: The Resistance to Change Eyelevel Gallery March 1st – March 31st, 2012 2159 Gottingen St. Read More.

Parks and Recreation: Bowled Over
One of the things I've always loved about Parks and Recreation is that Leslie Knope is so incredibly likable, yet totally wackadoodle and flawed as well. Amy Poehler just nails her personality, and over the years the show has really fine tuned who Leslie Knope... Read More.

Atrum adds another language to their arsenal. Plus: live at Wacken (video)
Extreme metallers (death / black / thrash respectively) Atrum quickly proved that they are a force to be reckoned with. Yet, in spite of critical acclaim and roaring approval from metal fans wide and far, they've remind relatively silent were no life dwells as... Read More.

What are we talking about, again?
For a while, I used to write posts for the Reader under the theme of "Six Degrees of the Library Collection". They were fun little posts that connected authors and titles found at the library, through commonalities and links between the books or the writers. I... Read More.

Sweet Home Alabama: Interview with Paige Duke
By now you probably know that I'm a big fan of CMT's show Sweet Home Alabama, and that last season I had the opportunity to chat with Tribble Reese a few times about the show. Read More.

Dear All and All
Dear fellow bloggers and commentors and lurkers and all and all, I am taking a blog break. I have to. I really want to get this book as good as I can before the first of March. I intended to start sending it out the first of February but due to the process I ... Read More.

love hurts - how online romance scams suck you in, and how to fight back
the new halifax magazine dropped through my mail box this morning. as i mentioned before, the cover story is aly thomson's piece on atlantic cirque celebrating its 10th anniversary with Decade, an amazing show running at the end of february. Read More.

Favorites-of ’12:: Kathleen Edwards Voyageur
Over time, pressure creates cracks in the foundation and fragments any stability of almost any structure, but when magical conditions are met, that same pressure can create diamonds. Read More.

The Situation Begins
I am incredible proud to announce the launch of the new comic The Situation, written by the illustrious Jeff VanderMeer and drawn by myself. A lot of work and love went into this so I hope you enjoy it. Read More.

Read Your Way Around the World - Sudan
Read Your Way Around the World invites you to Sudan. Sudan is a large and ethnically diverse country with Arabic as the dominant language and a long history of conflict and civil war. Read More.

Sweet Home Alabama: Paint the Country Red
My apologies for the late review of Friday's episode of Sweet Home Alabama. You'll just have to trust me when I say I had one hell of a weekend. (Not in a crazy party girl way, but in a weird, multiple mishaps way.) But I will hopefully be chatting with Paige ... Read More.

Southern Shores Remixes
I now pretty much nothing about Work Drugs, other than the assumption that mine would be more enjoyable if I had some. Same goes for Wintercoats – I know not of the musical variety, but am familiar with utilizing one to keep the cold at bay. But I know this: S... Read More.

Staff Pick- Chinaberry Sidewalks : a memoir by Rodney Crowell
Rodney Crowell is a singer songwriter from Houston. Early in his career he was championed by likes of Emmylou Harris, Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt. He later broke into the Nashville mainstream in1988, with a string five consecutive top ten country hits from ... Read More.

Buy One Get One Free
Only a few days left in my store sale! On top of half off original art and free prints with every purchase of original art I'm also offering two prints for the price of one for the remainder of the sale. Read More.

The Bachelor: Hook, Line and Sinker
Oh, The Bachelor. Is it possible that you're taking a page out of Sweet Home Alabama's book this week in going to Park City, Utah? It was awfully rural, and by Bachelor standards those dates were down-to-earth. Sure there was the occasional helicopter and fear... Read More.

Tuesday Challenge - structure, structure, structure
Yes, I'm getting my query package together. It is zooming right along. I have a plan and a girl with a plan is a good thing. Bu.......t! Part of doing this is to write several synopses and in doing that I stumbled upon - no, I didn't stumble upon it - a struct... Read More.

Backburner – Heatwave (Video)
Well, it took a while to get reved up, but I think it’s safe to say that winter is well and truly upon us. This isn’t a huge deal, as I know our readers are a hearty folk, certainly capable of withstanding some snow, slush & frigid temps with good humour. But ... Read More.

MOUTHEATER - Colonial
Moutheater's Colonial comes into my life with a little bit of everything. And that's good for a change. They sound to me as a well established band who are into differnt things and pretty good at mixing these influences into a coherent whole. Read More.

The Bachelor Comes to Canada
The breaking news yesterday was that The Bachelor is coming to Canada. In all fairness, the show technically did come to Canada before when Vancouverite Jillian Harris was the Bachelorette. Read More.

Author Reading: Under the Same Sky by Genevieve Graham
Local author Genevieve Graham has penned a fantastic debut novel, Under the Same Sky (M). A historical romance novel set in Colonial America and Scotland, it tells the heart wrenching story of lovers Maggie and Andrew. It is a wining combination of fast paced ... Read More.

Six Days Left! Stomp On Over!
Only six days left on my half price/free print sale on Etsy! Read More.

Chuck: Omigod there are only two episodes left!
Guys! I know I haven't written about Chuck very much this season - not since November, actually - but that's just because Friday night isn't exactly the most convenient viewing time for the show. Read More.

Who they are! What they want! How to Win them Over!
Who They Are? - agents, publishers, editors. What they want? - hm mm...I think they want to do well at their work, make names for their clients and find gems that others have overlooked. Maybe they just want to be left alone because they are far too busy alre... Read More.

Quick Hitters: C. Sterling No Matter
In the last few years, the number of acts presenting slight folk compositions bolstered by orchestral layers has grown to an all-time high. Pleasant and safe; while perfectly acceptable, aren’t really the descriptors you pine for when discovering a new band. Read More.

2011 Edgar Awards nominees
The Edgar Award nominees for 2011 have been announced. There are a number of categories each with five nominees. The winners will be announced in April. For now, to keep you busy until then, here is the shortlist for the Edgar Award - Best Novel. Read More.

The Artist: A Fun But Slight Throwback
The Artist is one of those films that can’t help not living up to its own avalanche of hype. Sure, it’s silent, mostly, and in black and white. Yes, it’s lively and at times kinda fun, in an in-joke, wink-and-nudge-way. Mostly, however, The Artist is a tepid r... Read More.

The Big bang Theory: On Again
Happy 100th, episode, The Big Bang Theory! To celebrate this milestone, the show decided to revisit the idea of Leonard and Penny as a couple. It turned out that most of what we saw was a fake-out, which is a decision I had mixed feelings about. Read More.

Construct
8×10″ stretched canvas. Acrylic. $25 I’ve known Construct since before he was Construct. I’ve known him since before he was a DJ or I was a live painter. I met him in the electronic music scene back in Halifax years ago. Seven years ago, I think. Read More.

The Devil Inside is a bad movie
It’s 2012, and if the first movie of the year is any indi­ca­tion, we are all doomed. It is hard to put into words just how bad The Devil Inside was. I saw it last Friday with a crowd of the usual suspects—gaggles of teenagers and uni­ver­sity stu­dents, cou­... Read More.

The Story Prize: the best of US short fiction
The Story Prize finalists for 2011 have been chosen. This award has been around since 2004 and is described as such: "an annual book award honoring the author of an outstanding collection of short fiction with a $20,000 cash award. Each of two runners-up will ... Read More.

Young artists at work!
I had the greatest morning yesterday! I spent it here in this grade four classroom. Dianne Levesque, their teacher, asked me if I would help the class with a painting they had to do. Every class in this school is creating a painting to sell at an auction. Read More.

Free Prints With Art Purchase!
My current sale is a big success! Thanks so much! There are seven days left in the sale and I've decided to give away one free print with every purchase of original art. Due to a snowstorm yesterday none of the original art has shipped yet so I'll be including... Read More.

Sandwich Artist
From top to bottom: a Mondrian sandwich, a Pollock one, O'Keefe, and Hirst. There are more at Low Commitment Projects. Via Max Clarke on facebook. Read More.

Raising Hope: Baby Genius
I know "The Chance family is stupid" isn't exactly a new storyline on Raising Hope, but last night's episode was one of my favorites so far this season. "Mrs. Smartypants" saw Jimmy, and then Burt and Virginia, attempt to get their GEDs after realizing that Ho... Read More.

Sex Motion Candy
This was a blacklight live painting I did at a rave at l’Espace Griffintown. I love painting events there. For this party, there were oversized inflatable crayons everywhere. Thousands of candies were thrown to the crowd, fitting with the theme. Note: There ... Read More.

In The Dead of Winter 2012
Winter. You may not like it, but you cannot escape it. Unless you live somewhere where they don’t have winter, then kudos, you have escaped winter! For the rest of us though, it’s best to find some way to enjoy these frigid months. Outdoor activities are fine ... Read More.

Stanzas in the Stacks
Ever wonder what it’s like to be in the library after it closes? Halifax Poet Laureate Tanya Davis did, and she approached the Spring Garden Road Library with a program idea that would settle her curiosity. The result is Stanzas in the Stacks: Poetry in the Li... Read More.

Prints And Original On Sale! Nine Days Only!
Starting today I'm having a huge sale at my Etsy shop. I've cut original art prices in half and reduced print prices by a third, all prints are now 10 dollars each plus shipping. My print sale in November and December really helped us get through those month... Read More.

You're doing it wrong - The ladies of the Bachelor
Hey Ladies This is one for the family photo album Enjoying your time on the Bachelor? Feeling good about skiing down the streets of San Fran in your bikinis? Still think that finding love on a reality show is a legitimate life choice? Let's chat for a second... Read More.

Glee: Yes/No? Definitely No.
Brace yourselves, for I'm about to rant. I was looking forward to this episode of Glee. Will proposing to Emma? I've been waiting for that since before the ink on his divorce to Terri was dry. I'd even seen some positive tweets about the episode from critics ... Read More.

News:: Postdata & Nick Everett @ The Carleton on Feb. 5th
That thurr is a pretty self explanatory headline, but this show is kind of a big deal so I am going to add a few extra details. Normally, Superbowl Sunday is filled with black, gold and yellow but since this year it might end up being the Nickelback of Superbo... Read More.

Staff Pick - The Astral by Kate Christensen
Harry Quirk in Kate Christensen's The Astral (M) finds himself stripped of everything at age 57 and forced into the position to either reclaim or to rebuild his life. Thirty years of marriage to Luz ends with her unfounded suspicion that Harry is having an aff... Read More.

Robot Museum Process Part One
I thought it'd be fun to to post all my progress on Robot Museum here on my blog, right up to it's publication. Yesterday I posted the main character to get things started and today I'll start with the earliest parts of actually making the story happen. Read More.

A Dangerous Method Is A Disappointment
David Cronenberg’s latest feature film A Dangerous Method is a curiously under-powered and reverential bio-pic that seems more Masterpiece Theatre than mainstream movie. A true story set at the dawn of psychoanalysis in Vienna when Sigmund Freud and his the... Read More.

The Bachelor: Death at a Rose Ceremony
Wow, what an episode right? On The Bachelor this week, Ben went on two one-on-one dates in San Francisco, one group date, AND had a surprise visit from the mystery gal we've all been waiting to see. Don't read on unless you a) Already saw the show, or B) Do th... Read More.

Old School Tuesdays:: Special Ed – Legal
I’ll happily cop to this post essentially being a re-up (except for the Come On Let’s Move It remix) of this rather enjoyable OSM from a couple years ago, but at this point I’ve done so many of these old school posts that repitition is inevitable. Plus it’s Sp... Read More.

Get in on the action with Plöw and In Siren
Stoner metallers Plöw (Denmark / Iceland) have been in these digi-pages before. What's to report this time around then?, you ask. Well, they've made their debut EP, Bicentennial Picnic, available for streaming and download in two different locations; bandcamp ... Read More.

Music is the universal language of mankind.
We’re back with another playlist! Enjoy it. 1. Carousel – Get Up 2. Yppah – ‘D Song’ 3. Mighty Mike – You Know Video Games (Two Door Cinema vs. Lana Del Ray) Read More.

Mighty Mayors
I admit that the idea for this post came from The Coast articles of January 5, 2012. The main theme of that week's The Coast was what would make a good mayor, including a piece on fictional mayors. I was reminded of a few books that I have read in which the ma... Read More.

Quentin The Transgenic Telekinetic Mechanic
I finally have a script for Robot Museum I'm thrilled about, thanks to all the creators who joined me in the International Komik Krit team. Since about Christmas I've been reworking the story and things have finally started to fall into place for this book. Read More.

Where I Am Today on my Journey
It is bright and sunny and, I imagine, cold. I have plenty of clients this week and a course to give at the university. In other words - a full slate. Today I'm meeting my editor to discuss next steps with the book. For all of you who thrill at the words 'my ... Read More.

Golden Globes Fashion: Let's Begin With The Bad
Is it just me, or was there less excitement about the Golden Globe Awards than usual this year? Sure, I was looking forward to watching the red carpet and seeing Ricky Gervais take a second stab at insulting as many people as possible, but I really didn't know... Read More.

The Pink House
24×30″ gallery-thick stretched canvas, commission. 2012 I did this as a commission for someone while I was in Halifax last week. I painted it from a photo. It’s apparently someone’s grandmother’s house, and she wanted the painting to remember the place. Read More.

Notes To Self – All of the Above
This one here seems like a good choice to close out what was a fairly wacky winter week – out here in Halifax at least. The guys from T.O. hip hop outfit Notes To Self sent us their new video a few days ago, and it is pretty much, to use their own description,... Read More.

Things You Never Thought You'd Be When You Grew up
Typographer, gravedigger, grifter .... may not be what most children will tell you they will be when they grow up. The subjects of the memoirs below managed to get there and those paths lead to some engaging stories. Read More.

Saturday Morning Webtoons
I'm very proud to be a part of this new weekly webcomic, even a small part. A group of amazingly talented people; J Torres, Andi Watson, Stephanie Buscema, Agnes Garbowska, Jack Briglio, Tracie Mauk, J Bone and Alex Szewczuk and myself are bringing you a weekl... Read More.

Up All Night: New Year, New You
Does anyone like New Year's Eve? At this point, surely it's widely acknowledged to be an overrated night of unfulfilled expectations, crowds of partying amateurs, ridiculously overpriced cover charges and DJs who won't take requests - and now, it's a crappy ce... Read More.

Quick Hitters:: Carly Maicher Hiding
There’s probably an endless number of reasons an email from Carly Maicher might sit untouched in your inbox for weeks or you might miss her record on the shelves of your local record shop. The Manitoba based songwriter writes and performs subtle, spare folk so... Read More.

Superstitious Feeling
Today's post is brought to you by the number 13. As in Friday the 13th, a special day for the more superstitious among us. I am crossing my fingers that writing this post doesn't bring me bad luck (knock on wood). Listed below are two novels and two short stor... Read More.

Revenge: An Indecent Proposal
The plot thickens! Last night's episode of Revenge was mighty juicy, what with Daniel's less-than-ideal motives for proposing to Emily, Emily's Cyrano de Bergerac tactics to guide "Amanda Clarke" through an interview with a corrupt author and the big revelatio... Read More.

CASIOKIDS - Aabenbaringen over aaskammen
Every couple of years or so, I catch myself absolutely hating on a genre of music. It’s so easy these days. We’re exposed to so much stuff at once that it seems we’ve all reverted to funny and jabbing genre names, whose ability to represent the music are moot ... Read More.

The Iron Lady: Streep Is Amazing, The Script Is Not
Meryl Streep’s astonishing performance in The Iron Lady is sure to gain her the usual torrent of acclaim. She’s more Thatcher than Margaret herself. Arch, sharply poised, and encased in a dollop of hair that looks like it could survive a nuclear attack unmu... Read More.

Canadian True Crime
True Crime is a genre that has been popular throughout the years that I have worked in libraries - and I am sure it always will be. Since the start of the New Year, there have been a lot of reports in the newspapers on crime and the problem it presents to soci... Read More.

Digital Inks, Vintage Robots And Crowd Sourced Editing
As is often the case with me an idea soon takes a funny twist and I'm off and running before I know what's going on. As Maddy Kettle nears completion I decided to pick up another story that I really want to tell, The Robot Museum. Read More.

Parenthood: P-p-p-poker Face
Last week's episode of Parenthood was, I thought, fantastic and an instant classic. But it was also a stand-alone that put almost all of the major story arcs on hold, so it made sense that this week's episode would pick those back up again. Read More.

Happy New Year!
It is hard to believe that 2012 is here. I took a break from painting in the month of December, I wanted to spend as much time as I could with my children for the holidays. Read More.

Win a pink 7″ from Weekend Dads
Sure, the headline sounds like the creepiest, sexual predator Craigslist ad possible, but Halifax/Moncton pop punkers Weekend Dads are making some ear pleasing noise these days and we are more than happy to help them get the word out. Read More.

MORAL WORTH HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ARTISTIC TALENT
I love, love, love how mature and smart Christina [Aguilera] is. I mean, I’ve always liked that about her, but I love it when people are able to be good about breakups and divorce for their kids. I cannot WAIT for her new album! (random internet comment) Dear... Read More.

Halifax, 1973: Vampire Experts Meet at Dal
My favourite thing I’ve stum­bled across at the archives in a long time. From the great paper The 4th Estate: Read More.

Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-fiction - 2011 shortlist
The Charles Taylor Prize commemorates Charles Taylor's pursuit of excellence in the field of literary non-fiction. The prize will be awarded to the author whose book best combines a superb command of the English language, an elegance of style, and a subtlety o... Read More.

Colour Interview with Daina Scarola
This is the 6th of a series of artist interviews based on the colours of the rainbow! It has been a fun and interesting project. What impact did each colour have on the individual's life. What is the strongest memory or association with it. We all have our own... Read More.

The Bachelor: California Whine Country
Have you ever noticed that on The Bachelor the dudes always want girls who are willing to move to their hometowns, yet so often on The Bachelorette the leading lady is willing to relocate to the hometown of her selected beau? Read More.

Tuesday Challenge - beyond concepts
A short challenge today - I'm over at the Burrowers going on about the Northern Gateway Pipe-line controversy. Do visit... This is a two-part exercise. The first is to sit quietly and calm your mind. When it is calmed down a bit from all its discurviness, I w... Read More.

Long Weekends Don’t Reach Out
When we last heard from Halifax’s Long Weekends, they were giving away a four-song EP that filtered their fun loving, hard driving garage hooks through a swampy filter with fantastic results. Since then, the trio has stormed the stages of Sappyfest and started... Read More.

Local web series: Flag on the Play
The internet’s pre­miere foot­ball vlog… fea­turing THE DARK ARTS. I don’t watch foot­ball, but I find this show helpful. I now know what teams wor­ship Cthulhu and which are made up entirely of wiz­ards. I sug­gest you take heed and listen to these guys. Read More.

Rise Again
A song by the late and dearly-missed Stan Rogers. As it filled the office today, I tried to take the message to heart. Rise again, rise again — though your heart it be broken And life about to end Read More.

Where Genesis Begins by Tom Dawe - Newfoundland and Labrador's Heritage and History Book Award winne
Poet Tom Dawe has won the 2011 Heritage and History Book award. This award is sponsored by The Historic Sites Associations of Newfoundland and Labrador. The prize is granted to a work of literature that exemplifies excellence in the interpretation of the histo... Read More.

Thimble Rock
A full page spread from Maddy Kettle, which I'm back penciling. I've pretty much mapped out the first story for Robot Museum too, so 2012 has already started off as a sprint. My idea for Robot Museum right now is self publish as a digital only book, for now. Read More.

The Joy of Books
Just watch: The Joy of Books, via Sara O'Leary and Nathalie Foy on facebook. Gorgeous. Someone commented "I want to like this more than once." Yes. Read More.

…in which McNutt shares his top albums of 2011
Yeah, yeah, I know…I crazy procrastinated on this one. I have my reasons: after a crazy busy fall—amped up day job, occasional freelance work, and a course where I wrote a 6,600-word paper on Kelly Clarkson’s “Since U Been Gone”—the last thing I felt like doi... Read More.

Saturday thoughts
I'm back at it. Well I have to be if I'm going to keep to my schedule. I want to finish my revision by the fifteenth. I've already set it up with the person who'd editing for me. She'll do a read of the whole thing without touching it - just as a reader this t... Read More.

Cover Time
Oh hey, music Monday! I posted the original of this song on one of my playlists a few months ago, but this cover is too awesome not to share. This video has been blowing up Facebook, so, if you haven’t seen it yet, enjoy. Read More.

Tiny Topics
Even the smallest of things have their stories, and more and more those stories are being told in book form. Science and technical histories are popular these days, and its not just the big things—planets, inventions, social movements—that make for essential r... Read More.

Some iPod Bots
After a bit of a hiatus I've started posted iPod sketches again. Such a fun, versatile tool for sketching. And as I'm writing The Robot Museum again right now it's pretty useful as well. Read More.

Can I drop by for a visit?
Toronto at the end of January. Is there a lovelier place to be? No. Not if you get to enjoy the warmth of the Ontario Library Association’s SuperConference. (What a corny line. Clearly, I’ll do anything for a segue.) Read More.

Books For Long Winter Days
Here is a list of my favourite books of 2011.These aren't necessarily books that came out in 2011; they are simply the ones I read this year that I enjoyed the most and have recommended to others. They're listed in no particular order. Read More.

Dance of the Dragonflies
This was a commission request from one of my collectors in Halifax. She commissioned me to redo Dance of the Giraffes a couple months back. This time she wanted the same but with dragonflies. It’s a 24×36″ piece. Read More.

2012 2012 Movie Picks
It’s a fresh new year with what seems like an equal amount of awe­some and ter­rible movies set to hit the big screen. Actu­ally, let’s be honest, it will prob­ably be more bad than good, but the excel­lent ones tend to make up for that. Read More.

Staff Pick - The King's Speech by Mark Logue
I wonder if I'm alone in reading The King's Speech (M) by Mark Logue before having seen the movie (M). This is one of those less common cases where the book follows the movie. Read More.

A Bat Leading The Way
A panel from Maddy Kettle which I am now returning to after about 2 weeks of working on The Robot Museum. I managed to get a lot of stuff finished for Robot Museum and I'm really, really happy with were it's heading Read More.

Remakes
Art students remake famous paintings with photography. Via A Cup of Jo. Read More.

Modern Family: Pony Boys
Any episode of Modern Family that focuses on Phil Dunphy is a good one in my book, so while I don't think "Lifetime Supply" was necessarily the best episode the show has ever done (they can't all be), it certainly delivered plenty of laughs. Read More.

I stare too much…
You can’t separate the artist from the art. I am my art… and my art says something about me that I haven’t really been able to put my finger on until now. I have decided to give up on seeking a relationship entirely. I have had too much attachment to it. There... Read More.

Cold Specks / Basket of Figs Holland Demo
Last month, newest Arts & Crafts signee Cold Specks cannon balled into the blog buzz pool and the splash created some 50-year storm, Point Break sized swells (“no way Cold Specks is bigger than Waimea, bro”). Read More.

In Memoriam - Josef Škvorecký
A superstar of Czechoslovakian and Canadian literature has passed away. Josef Škvorecký (M) has lost his fight with cancer at the age of 87. Josef was born in Czechoslovakia in 1924 and later emigrated to Canada in 1968, at the time of the Soviet invasion of ... Read More.

Airship Pilot's Son
I have an old pair of Russian goggles that my son has become obsessed with. I think they go well with those pyjamas. Just finished reading an amazing book, Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. I could not put it down for 2 days. Read More.

Parenthood: Hit the road, Zeek
Oh Parenthood, I missed you over the holidays. So much so that, when my DVR skipped a little during the early moments of this episode last night, I repeatedly cried out "No! But this is my FAVORITE show! It's my FAVORITE!" I tend to overreact when it comes to ... Read More.

Insecure Writers' Support Group and The Writers' Prayer
Don't you feel all fresh and vigorous after your holiday? You, you over there with kitty litter in your hair? You been sleeping off a thousand shortbread cookies and couldn't stumble to your bed? You watched Bad Santa and thought the main character had some re... Read More.

Shotgum Jimmie covers Apollo Ghosts
… and the world rejoices. Exaggeration? Yes, but honestly, if we were allowed to pick two bands to play the last show we’d ever attend, Shotgun Jimmie and Apollo Ghosts would be in the running. It’s so refreshing to find a talented band blessed with humi... Read More.

Music videos: Jeff Waters, Gang Related, Rosvo, Volture, Wormrot, Jeff Loomis
Rosvo - Seasick "Nevermind the nuclear meltdown, I want to dance in the streets of Tokyo as if it was all a dream... All a dream..." Read More.

5 Fiction Releases to Watch for in January
Not only is it a new year, but it's also a new month of course, and so time for the latest peek at some fiction titles to watch for. Here are five that you'll be hearing about in January. Read More.

The Bachelor: Gimme A Gimmick!
Good news, folks - I made a few New Years resolutions on January 1st, but none of them were to stop watching terrible TV with ironic distance and a strong sense of schadenfreude. So here I am again, reviewing the latest season of The Bachelor, for worse or for... Read More.

Tuesday Challenge - pushing through research
Researching the background of one's novel can be exhilarating by times, or it can be tedious. Sometimes I wonder when I am lost in some web library of information and misinformation on residential schools for Aboriginals in the south-western corner of Alberta,... Read More.

Reality, And How to Cope With It
My New Year’s Resolutions: 1. Paint 250+ works next year. 2. Travel outside of Canada. 3. Run away less. 4. Record stuff. 5. Be more comfortable with this. I have determined something after going out to paint an event tonight after taking a couple weeks ... Read More.

From the Author Stage - Ami McKay and Kelley Armstrong
We recently hosted authors Kelley Armstrong and Ami McKay for author readings at two of our branch libraries. Kelley read from her latest novel Spell Bound (M) to a packed audience at the Keshen Goodman Library in November. Read More.

Start The Year With A Robot!
Happy new year everyone! I hope the holidays were great for everyone and I hope this year is a wonderful one for you. Here's a drawing I did last year for a charity auction to help Japan recover fro the devastating earthquake. Here's hoping for a better year i... Read More.

Whatever Happened to A Very Young Dancer?
I vividly remember the first time I saw this book, A Very Young Dancer. It was a rainy October afternoon and I must have been about ten years old. I pulled it off the shelf in the Bookmobile, which was parked in its customary spot in the far corner of the Save... Read More.

Guest Blog: 24/7 Rangers vs. Flyers, Episode One
Couchtimers: So far, I have failed to convince Jill that a non-fiction series following hockey players belongs in the same gym bag as her beloved Friday Night Lights. Okay, so Gracie-Belle hasn’t made an appearance just yet – but the first episode of 24/7 did ... Read More.

Quick Hitters:: Moka Only – Martian Xmas 2011
The Holiday Season is hectic. You know this. I know this. And, thankfully, Moka Only knows this. That’s why, for many years running (7 perhaps? I’m not sure), the most prolific man in hip hop has created his annual Martian Xmas album to help us chillax to his ... Read More.

Alex was a punk rocker
I'll always be a punk rock fan. I grew up on the stuff. From the early days of the Dead Kennedys and The Clash, to my 90s staple NOFX, and three decades of Bad Religion (and counting). My music taste has evolved over the years, as most do. My iTunes features... Read More.

The TBR Challenge: Changing My Mind by Zadie Smith
I looked at the calendar the other day and had a mild moment of panic when I realized the date and my progress in the To Be Read book challenge for 2011. My last post was in September, I've been a little delinquent. Read More.

Three More Days Of Drawing
Well, with three more days of drawing before I leave for Christmas I've made it to page 35, which is pretty good. Read More.

Tuesday Challenge - the books we keep close
What books do you keep close to your writing? If you're like me you might have Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird, Stephen King's On Writing and about a dozen more writing books. You probably have a good dictionary, Fowler's Modern English Usage and Strunk & White's E... Read More.

Quick Hitters:: Jerry Leger The Good Old Days Are Back in Drag
I’ve been a fan of Jerry Leger for a while now, but even with the strength of his songs and the surprising depth of the characters he creates (considering his age), I’ve never thought his recording style fully matched his potential. The young songwriter is raw... Read More.

Read Your Way Around the World - North Pole
Read Your Way Around the World invites you to the North Pole - but good luck getting there! It's not impossible, of course, if you are in great physical condition, can endure cold weather camping, and have tens of thousands of dollars to spare. Read More.

Lost!
Here is the cloud exploring gang lost in a cave in Arizona. I just finished inking page 33 and I expect to get to 35 before we leave for Christmas. Not where I wanted to be but close enough, really. Read More.

…in which McNutt shares his top songs of 2011
It felt like beauty and the beat out there. On the one hand, music has rarely seemed dancier: the rise of dubstep, the electro stranglehold on the charts, a four-on-the-floor fetish the likes of which we haven’t seen since the heydays of disco. Read More.

Survivor: Where Does 'South Pacific' Fall?
There are several criterion to consider every time I rank another season of Survivor. Was the season overall exciting? Was there at least one big, surprising move? Were there blindsides? Were there cool challenges? Was the finale exciting? Read More.

“A truly hilarious book…”
And the really good news is that I was actually trying to be hilarious…Here’s the whole fabulous review of Betsy Wickwire’s Dirty Secret from www.canadiangiftguide.com. “Kudos to Canadian Vicki Grant for writing a truly hilarious book that’ll make you smile w... Read More.

Christopher Hitchens – 1949-2011. Thoughts on my hero and inspiration.
Today will be filled with memorials of Hitch, and likely more than a few cheers that the strongest opponent of religious tyranny has finally quit the fight. Read More.

Other 2011 Nova Scotian Favourites…
In my column today I was happy to name Hobo with a Shotgun, The Cor­ridor, and Deten­tion as three movies with local con­nec­tions that did phe­nom­e­nally in 2011. Read More.

Books Into Film: coming soon.
I knew that the holiday movie season would bring a bunch of blockbusters to the big screen, but when I did a little check in at IMDB.com this week to see about upcoming books-into-film releases, I was bowled over the with selection coming out in just the next ... Read More.

Blogging the old fashioned way...
Internet Café, after Jean Béraud. These images are SUCH fun. I LOVE them. All created by Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com Women of WiFi, after Caillebotte Room in New York with WiFi, after Edward Hopper Read More.

Gearing Up To slow Down
Just putting the last touches on a Maddy Kettle page before I take the rest of the day to work on business stuff. Which is a lot less fun than drawing or writing. Maddy is still going well and will still be done by Spring but I'm looking ahead to what I should... Read More.

Quick Hitters:: Chocolate Robots – P i Z z A f A c E
So another year is rapidly coming to a close, and once again the Ack and I find ourselves asking the same old question: “why won’t Justin Bieber ever reply to any of our many, many emails?”. I’m kidding there of course, we don’t like Justin Bieber (WE LOVE HIM... Read More.

In Memoriam - Russell Hoban, 1925-2011
Russell Hoban (M), the successful multifaceted author of adult fiction, science fiction, fantasy and children's books, has passed away at the age of 86. Read More.

Survivor: Holy Crap
No, literally. I've had it with all this holy crap. Stop making decisions based on what you think God wants, Survivor players! This is a game for strategy! I'm sick of seeing a bunch of people praying instead of actually thinking about how to win the game - I ... Read More.

Return to Fat Tuesday’s in Ottawa
This is what I painted the second time I painted at Fat Tuesday’s in Ottawa. The colours are different but equally warm in this piece as the last one. I have been doing plenty of 2×3 ft pieces lately. I remember when that was a “big” size to me… and now it is... Read More.

Literary Non-Fiction - The 2012 Charles Taylor Prize longlist
This year, for the first time, the Charles Taylor Foundation has announced its longlist. In previous years, this prestigious award for literary nonfiction had only announced its shortlist and winner. Their desire is to bring attention to a greater number of wo... Read More.

New Girl: Blue Christmas
Hey look, a Christmas episode that acknowledges one of its characters is Jewish! After watching the Glee Christmas special last night and wondering if the writers had simply forgotten that Rachel Berry is Jewish, it was nice to see New Girl remind everyone tha... Read More.

Quick Hitters:: Audrey and the Agents
Enough with all the Christmas songs! Is what I imagine some of you out there are likely saying by now. I myself am not mad at the Christmas songs really, I mean, I like to think of myself as a moderately festive person, but sure, I could see how people could f... Read More.

Accidental Adventures
The holidays are a time when every one seems busy, whether because of celebrations, or the hectic pace that comes through the end of the year's approach. During the holiday season, even more so than at other times of the year, I feel like I'm constantly planni... Read More.

Into The Cave
Sorry about the lack of posts! I've been so busy with the comic I barely have time to raise my head. And this is a particularly difficult sequence, Maddy, Harry and Silvio find themselves lost in a dark cave, with strange sounds all around them. Read More.

Tuesday Challenge
As the New Year approaches the mind goes to goals - to opportunities missed or challenges left undone. I will wait for the actual new year before challenging you to make a new list of goals but today's post will be a getting ready for the same. Read More.

Dexter: I Fell in to a Burning Ring of Fire
Incest again? Really? As if last week's mother-son sex scene on Boardwalk Empire wasn't enough, this week's episode of Dexter caused me actual physical discomfort as Deb's subconscious explored the possibility of romantic feelings for her adopted brother, all... Read More.

Rusty Warren!
I spotted this album in a small thrift store the other day. I was fascinated by the hairdo and snow or maybe glitter sprinkled on it. Had to take a picture to show you. Well, one thing led to another and when I got home, I looked up Rusty Warren. Who knew? Ta... Read More.

The Library's Buddhist Collection: New Books
Even if you're not interested in Buddhism, most Haligonians have heard of Shambhala, the school they run in the city's north end, and maybe even the organization's place in the publishing world (Shambhala published two of the books in my list, below). Read More.

Boardwalk Empire: And that's a wrap
Major spoiler alerts ahead for those of you who didn't yet see last night's Boardwalk Empire finale. You know, I spent almost all of season one of Boardwalk complaining about how bored I was with at least 2/3 of the show, and then when Jimmy betrayed Nucky in... Read More.

Time traveling with Milk Music, Dinosaur Jr., Cannibal Corpse and Stafrænn Hákon
The last 24 hours have been spent going back in musical time. It started with the surprisingly good and informative Cannibal Corpse documentary Centuries of Torment: The First 20 Years. This film is great. Not only is the Corpse's history, rise to fame and res... Read More.

Christmas e-Books Novels
Looking for some holiday themed fiction for your e-reader? Checkout these Christmas stories, all available from the Library's Digital Media Download service. A Cowboy Christmas by Janette Kenny "Reid Barclay doesn't have time for Christmas, not with trouble... Read More.

The Crooked House Paper Village
Here's a shot of the paper village we always put up around this time of year. Some of the houses -- the three-dimensional ones with pastel roofs -- I made a year or two ago using a Martha Stewart winter village kit. At some point, I used Country Home's plans t... Read More.

Parks and Recreation: Competitive Gift Giving
Leslie Knope is a special lady. We know it. Ron Effing Swanson knows it. And the rest of the parks department knows it too. The Parks and Recreation Christmas episode was equal parts funny and heartwarming, and it made for a great followup to the spoofy, sarca... Read More.

The sun will come out tomorrow..
And it did! I was having one of the worst nights last night, where I was drowning in my own trials and fears and I started writing about it. It was some heavy stuff. Raw, exposed emotion which in many ways makes me sound pretty pathetic right now. It's true, I... Read More.

Merry Christmas from Apollo Ghosts & The Honky Tonk Kid
Or, Merry Christmas from the best band in Canada right now. Yip, I said it. Vancouver’s Apollo Ghosts not only deliver a never ending supply of amazing (and free) jams, they put on the most enjoyable straight ahead live show in the business. No gimmicks, just ... Read More.

Writer's Workshop: Blast from the Past
Today's Writer's Workshop prompt at Mama Kat's is to look back on what we were blogging about last year at this time and see how it's changed. I'm going to do you one better. I'm going back into the old archives - yes, the Livejournal days - as well as my Dece... Read More.

Bedford Leisure Club Christmas concert
The Bedford Leisure Club cordially invites all to our annual Christmas concert. Friday, December 9 at 2 p.m. at the Bedford Lawn Bowling Club. Come hear our orchestra and women’s vocal ensemble in holiday classics…from the Nutcracker to the Chipmunks. Read More.

You better not shout, you better not cry…
December is a month for spending time with your family, reflecting on the year that has passed, drinking too much hot choco­late and engaging in the most brutal and taxing of all hol­iday tra­di­tions — shopping. Read More.

The Jolly Postman Literary Address Contest
It’s been an incredibly difficult week, so it’s time for some fun! Let the bells ring out and the banners fly! Voting is now open for The Jolly Postman Literary Address Contest! I found a great deal to like in each entry, so I’m glad that picking a winner is ... Read More.

Staff Pick - A Book of Secrets by Michael Holroyd
I first came across Michael Holroyd (M) a few years ago when I read his biography of Augustus John (M). Normally a Holroyd biography is quite an investment in reading time, but definitely worth the effort. Read More.

Balloon Down!
Another panel from Maddy Kettle, this one took a while. I am very, very honoured to be included in this piece from The Idler with a group of incredible artists. I answer a few questions about my influences and projects. Read More.

ANTM All-Stars: That's All She Wrote
It's official. I'm breaking up with America's Next Top Model. I've been contemplating doing this for seasons cycles, thanks to Tyra's crazy antics, disappointment over winners, and a general decreasing interest in the show. And after last night's ANTM All-Star... Read More.

“The ending is absolutely perfect…”
And, happily, it sounds like the rest of the book wasn’t so bad either. Here’s an excerpt from an Atlantic Books Today review of Betsy Wickwire’s Dirty Secret. “This book magnificently conveys the drama and emotional intensity that so often typify the teen ex... Read More.

Writer's Workshop: Blast from the Past
Today's Writer's Workshop prompt at Mama Kat's is to look back on what we were blogging about last year at this time and see how it's changed. I'm going to do you one better. I'm going back into the old archives - yes, the Livejournal days - as well as my Dece... Read More.

3 Neglected Literary Classics
The Guardian newspaper's website has a fun series of lists called "The Ten Best". Among the offerings are: ten best graphic novels, the ten best songs based on books, ten best fictional sleuths and ten best neglected literary classics. From this last list com... Read More.

Silvio Hanging Out
Here's a panel of Silvio making an escape. The book is going pretty smooth right now, I still have about 10 pages to finish before Christmas but I'll be happy with seven. I'm a little bit absent from my blog and online life in general, but lots of art is getti... Read More.

Raising Hope: Playing With Dolls
Just a short note on Raising Hope today: wasn't "The Men of New Natesville" delightful? It was weird, quirky, funny and surprising - all things I love to see on Raising Hope. I loved that we got to see a whole new side to a character who'd previously just been... Read More.

Insecure Writers' Support Group - A Call to Arms!
Hi, my name is Jan and I'm an insecure writer. To meet other members of our group go to Alex's site - he has the clubhouse. I just tried doing a riff off of the 12 step program. I'm a big believer in AA and think it is an effective program. Heck, I know it i... Read More.

Video:: Happy Birthday, Tom Waits
Sixty two years old. It’s crazy to think Tom Waits is that old or that young really. It’s crazy to think of him as more than a moment in time, like he should be measured in empirical units or unique increments of time. Thankfully, he’s still writing fantastic ... Read More.

“HOBO” ONE OF CANADA’S BEST
Jason Eisener‘s HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN has been named one of Cananda’s Top Ten Feature Films of 2011 by the Toronto Internation Film Festival! I was fairly certain that a very successful DVD & BluRay release would have been the cherry on top of this whole HOBO-e... Read More.

Profile: Joe Gunther
Meet Joe Gunther (M), the lead character in Archer Mayor's long running police procedural mystery series. The first title in the series is Open Season (M), published way back in 1988. Tag Man (M) published in 2011 is book number twenty-two. (Please note that O... Read More.

Almodovar's Disaster: The Skin I Live In
Spanish auteur Pedro Almodovar has delivered the first real dud of his mature career, The Skin I Live In. A stiff venture into stale genre filmmaking, this Mad Scientist-gone-wrong flick features recycled storylines from previous Almodovar films, and lots o... Read More.

Cards From Christmas Past!
I love creating cards. This is a sampling of some of the Christmas greetings I've done for the past 5 years. I want to do a couple this year-I hope I have time! It's getting to be that busy merry time of the year! Read More.

How I Met Your Mother: More like Symphony of Illumination
I went back and forth on how I feel about How I Met Your Mother all evening. At its best, "Symphony of Illusion" stayed true to Robin both in what had been set up about her character in the past and what we have slowly learned about her over the course of the ... Read More.

Tuesday Challenge - counting our blessings
For today's challenge I have dipped into Write for Your Lives by Joseph Sestito. Sestito is a Buddhist and writes about how Buddhist teachings can inspire creative writing. From the chapter called Using Your Precious Human Life to the Fullest he writes abou... Read More.

Celebrities with Celebrity Doppelgangers
It must be hard to be a celebrity. What with all the attention and fortune and whatnot. But it must be even harder to be a celebrity with a celebrity doppelganger. For years I have struggled with distinguishing a few sets of stars. Let’s start with the first.... Read More.

golden mornings
My Sunday commute! One of the perks of getting up early. Although one does not have to get up too early this time of year to see this:) Starts the day off right! Speaking of all right....I was featured on Etsy yesterday! That was a really nice surprise. Look f... Read More.

Ami McKay Reads Tonight at the Spring Garden Road Public Library
Please come out and join us tonight as we proudly host award winning author Ami McKay. All are Welcome. Spring Garden Rd. Memorial Public Library Tuesday, December 6/7:00 pm Special thanks to our co-sponsor, The Canada Council for the Arts. Read More.

Thanks For The Art Emerald!
I love getting fan art! I'm always surprised when it happens because the book isn't even out yet, but I guess it says something nice about the characters that I do get fan art. Read More.

The Amazing Race: Byebye, Frontrunners
WOW. Can you believe it? Not only did an Andy and Tommy win seem inevitable on this season of The Amazing Race, but I thought for sure that they'd be participating in the final leg. Read More.

Where am I and where am I going?
As this year winds down and I am sixteen days from turning 60 - yep you read that right - my mind turns to what I've accomplished and what paths I still want to explore. I have found one of the most brilliant uses of blogging is for me to state my goals. Read More.

Rockstar chasing Rockstar
Now that I am working and living with FM HI LOW in a place that looks like it belongs in Better Homes and Warehouses, I have been chilling out more. Being around a reggae/dub band will do that… even to a rockstar chasing rockstar like myself. Read More.

Private Eye Writers of America - 2011 Shamus Awards
The Shamus Awards are given annually by the Private Eye Writers of America, celebrating the year's best in Private Eye fiction. Here are this year's winners: Best Hardcover PI Novel No Mercy: a mystery (M) by Lori Armstrong "Well, technically there is Mer... Read More.

Melancholia: A Masterpiece
Lars Von Trier’s latest, Melancholia, has been overshadowed by some unfortunate comments he made at this year’s Cannes Festival. That’s too bad, because Melancholia ranks as one of his very best films, a deeply moving and brilliantly original blend of scie... Read More.

Hugo: A love letter to the early days of the movies.
Master Cineaste Martin Scorsese’s latest feature, Hugo, is a fascinating detour into family film territory. Leisurely paced, thoughtful and visually dazzling, it’s the kind of movie that makes for ideal holiday viewing. And while it might be a bit slow for ... Read More.

Reviews:: Gescha – Crayon Politics
This is kind of a (Car)melo-dramatic (topical, ’cause the NBA is back!) statement, but Gescha’s album Crayon Politics is the kind of album that validates my continued work on the hill. I’m late getting around to posting it, but I’m happy to help spread the wor... Read More.

Johnny Depp Goes Back To Gonzo in The Rum Diary
The Rum Diary is not a great film. It is, however, a delightful one that re-establishes a great writer/director -- Withnail’s Bruce Robinson -- under the guise of a Johnny Depp romp derived from an autobiographical Hunter S Thompson novel. Depp again plays ... Read More.

Down the Road Again: Surprisingly Sweet and Satisfying
Legendary Canadian Filmmaker Don Shebib has done the unthinkable: he’s made a sequel to his 1970 low-budget, ultra-realist Canuck cinema landmark, Goin’ Down the Road. And surprise, surprise. It’s a pretty darn great ride. Titled Down the Road Again, it tie... Read More.

Martin Scorsese's George Harrison: Living In the Material World
Martin Scorsese’s latest project is a 208-minute examination and celebration of Beatle George Harrison’s life and work for the pioneering TV channel HBO. Like his PBS opus on Bob Dylan entitled No Direction Home, George Harrison: Living In the Material Worl... Read More.

Herzog's Cave Of Forgotten Dreams One Of His Best
German filmmaker Werner Herzog has hit one out of the park with his latest documentary feature The Cave Of Forgotten Dreams. Investigating the Chauvet Caves in Southern France using non-professional 3-D video equipment operated by a miniscule crew, the dire... Read More.

Afghan Luke: Clattenburg catches the craziness of conflict
The Canadian film first out of the Festival gate is Afghan Luke, Mike Clattenburg’s surreal and intriguing take on the conflict in Afghanistan. Barrelling out of the Toronto and Atlantic Film Fests, Afghan Luke has piled up an unprecedented amount of buzz. ... Read More.

Digi Go The Movies
The biggest technological change since the introduction of sound in 1927 is happening in the movie business this late summer and early fall of 2011. And practically no-one outside the sector knows anything about it. Yes, the long-awaited changeover to di... Read More.

Another Earth: Another World Indeed
2011 Sundance Prize winner Another Earth has finally made it to metro at the end of a summer crowded with comic book movies, rom-coms and cartoon flicks. For audiences yearning for stronger stuff, Another Earth might fit the bill, unless you want to hold yo... Read More.

Beginners: A low-key essay on the nature of melancholy
Beginners is one of those rare films poorly served by its trailer. Written and directed by Mike Mills -- not the REM guitarist but rather the man who helmed the art-house hit Thumbsucker a few years ago. Beginners is made to look like a zany cross between Anni... Read More.

The Tree Of Life: A boys-own-view of growing up
Terrence Malick’s Cannes-winning new film The Tree Of Life can be described neatly as Stand By Me as directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, minus the plot, with codas from 2001 and 8&1/2. Gaining any other understanding from the film may be more difficult. It’s long... Read More.

The Bang Bang Club: The Cost of Capturing Images
The Bang Bang Club is one of those intermittently interesting but ultimately frustrating flicks that manages just to whet the cinematic appetite. That said, the portrayal of a clutch of photojournalists working in the midst of the final meltdown of South Af... Read More.

Midnight In Paris: Daring and Delicious
Woody Allen’s latest film Midnight In Paris has everyone talking about a late-career resurgence. The reality is that the New York-based writer and director has never gone away. And every once in a while -- in Vicki Christina Barcelona or Match Point -- h... Read More.

Super 8 Is Classic Sci-Fi
When jaded film critics start giving dismissive reviews to movies like J.J. Abram’s new Sci-Fi thriller Super 8, you know it’s time for those reviewers to find another line of work. That’s because Super 8 is one of those rare cinematic joys that crackles wi... Read More.

The Conspirator: Mary Surratt's Route to the Gallows
Bad timing might just be The Conspirator’s biggest challenge. The fascinating new feature from director Robert Redford has arrived in theatres just as the elimination of Osama Bin Ladin has been cheered throughout America. The Conspirator is about following... Read More.

HBO Revisits Reality.
HBO continues to produce some of the most provocative and interesting stuff for the small screen these days including the audacious Todd Haynes remake of Mildred Pierce and Tommy Lee Jones starring in and directing Cormac McCarthy’s play The Sunset Limited. ... Read More.

Of Gods And Men: Faith And Naivete
The award-winning and acclaimed French film by Xavier Beauvois, Of Gods And Men, has finally arrived on to a big screen in Halifax. A film that tells the true story of nine French Trappist Monks in troubled 1990s Algeria -- seven of whom were murdered by Is... Read More.

Source Code: A fascinating if frustrating sequence of events
Source Code is a fascinating if frustrating second film from Moon director Duncan Jones. Another sci-fi thriller, Source Code exchanges the deliberate pacing, minimalism and anachronistic use of models that helped distinguish Jones’ debut for a more upscal... Read More.

The Illusionist: An animated whimsy of Jacques Tati
The Illusionist is a sweet, sad bit of animated whimsy that channels the spirit of the late, great French physical comedian and filmmaker, Jacques Tati. Adapted from Tati’s own screenplay, by director Sylvain Chomet, the film’s main character is in fact an ... Read More.

Another Year: Another Great Mike Leigh Film
British realist filmmaker Mike Leigh’s latest, Another Year, has garnered scads of acclaim on the festival ciruit – and no wonder. It’s a great film, period. While some have carped that it doesn’t reach the heights previous Leigh achievements such as Secret... Read More.

Biutiful Isn't
I’ve seem all four of Mexican Auteur Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s films now, each one delivering less than the one before. His latest -- the baleful, overlong Biutiful -- is clearly the least of his efforts. That didn’t stop European Critics dumping all so... Read More.

Somewhere: Lost In Translation
Sophia Coppola’s early success with her first two films The Virgin Suicides and Lost In Translation is beginning to look like a fluke, because her latest feature, Somewhere, is a boring dud. A dud coming after the unpleasant surprise of her third film, Mari... Read More.

The Eagle: A Cracking Great Adventure
A costume drama that makes the world of Roman-era Britain seem unexpectedly close, The Eagle is a surprisingly brisk and and gripping slab of history on screen. The Eagle is a challenging project by any stretch of the imagination. Set in the early years of ... Read More.

Nowhere Boy Is Moving and Powerful
The bigscreen appearance, finally, of Sam Taylor-Wood’s John Lennon bio-pic in Halifax qualifies as the movie event of the winter. The film portrays the future Beatle from 1955-1960 when he rediscovered and reconciled with his mother Julia, only to tragical... Read More.

Kimball Co-Writer Profiled in NYT
Halifax filmmaker, Paranormal expert and prolific blogger Paul Kimball is extensively quoted in the January 5th issue of the New York Times Magazine in the article Cyberspace When You're Dead by Rob Walker. The article profiles Mac Tonnies, Kimball's friend... Read More.

Final Takes Film Retro at Dal Art Gallery
What can be gleaned from a survey of the last films by leading directors? That’s a question being asked this winter and spring at the Dalhousie Art Gallery, where the series “Last Takes-Final Films From Great Directors will unspool Wednesday Nights at 8pm f... Read More.

Dry Gulch Poetry: True Grit 2010
The Coen Brothers have their first bona-fide out-of-the-box mass audience hit with their remake of Henry Hathaway’s 1969 classic western, True Grit. The fact that the new film is not quite as good as the original -- or that Jeff Bridges’ marvelous performan... Read More.

The King's Speech: Can't Miss, Must See
The King’s Speech is already piling up enough hype to start setting some impossible expectations as the can’t-miss movie of Christmas 2010. Don’t let all that hot air dissuade you from catching this perfect collision of history and entertainment. It really ... Read More.

The Fighter A Great American Movie
One of the big Christmas releases of 2010 is The Fighter, a film that is destined to be considered as one of the great boxing movies of all time. A curious mix of indie brashness and old-style Hollywood storytelling, The Fighter recounts the true story of t... Read More.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage Of the Dawn Treader: Due For A Refit
The third installment in the Chronicles of Narnia series, The Voyage Of the Dawn Treader, has veteran director Michael Apted taking the helm. Alas, even the great filmmaker responsible for such memorable works as the 7-21-35 Up series and the recent ‘End-of... Read More.

Faith, Fraud and Minimum Wage – Held Over!
Holy Smokes! The Josh MacDonald-penned locally made Indie Movie Faith, Fraud And Minimum Wage is being held over for a second week at the Empire Bayer’s Lake Cinemas! Helmed by legendary My Bloody Valentine director George Mihalka, Faith, Fraud And Minimum ... Read More.

Lennon Times Two On PBS
John Lennon’s 70th birthday is being celebrated by a trio of films, two of which are being shown on American Public Television (PBS) this week at various times on their series Masterpiece Theatre and American Masters. Lennon Naked is a British TV movie wit... Read More.

Monsters: A Creature Feature Treat
First-time director Gareth Edwards has been getting a strange reaction to his ultra-low budget sci-fi creature relationship flick Monsters. Mostly, critics and audiences are perplexed by the listless sense of action and heavy atmosphere. When the gigantic s... Read More.

Maddison Avenue's New CD: Sweet Renegade
Halifax musician Keith Maddison isn’t afraid to think big, or to feel big emotions for that matter. The singer/songwriter/guitarist heads up the East Coast Americana R’n’B outfit Maddison Avenue, who will shortly release their blazing first full-length CD, ... Read More.

Conviction: A rhythm and uniqueness all its own.
The gripping true-to-life story told in Tony Goldwyn’s Convicted may seem like a downmarket, Boston-based version of Erin Brockovich, but it has a rhythm and uniqueness all its own. What initially appears to be a just a run-of-the-mill star vehicle for Hila... Read More.

Life During Wartime: A tight, disciplined essay into modern-day ethics.
Maverick American Indie filmmaker Todd Solondz’ latest, Life During Wartime, might just be his best film yet. Derided by blase critics, the 94-minute contemporary tale of families awash in guilt, desire and the quest for forgiveness is actually a tight, dis... Read More.

The Social Network: Must-See Film of the Fall
The Social Network is impossibly good. The only recent film that can compete with small-screen masterpieces like The Wire and Mad Men, it dares to look at contemporary life without rose-coloured glasses. The result is dazzling. Written by West Wing creator ... Read More.

Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky: Endlessly Fascinating
Coco Chanel And Igor Stravinsky is a fascinating but opaque examination of two extraordinary figures of the 20th Century as each brought their respective area of the arts kicking and screaming into Modernism. As biography, Jan Kounen’s film -- from screenwr... Read More.

Get Low: Only Mildly Satisfying
High profile vanity project Get Low is only a mildly satisfying distraction from Hollywood’s mainstream summertime piffle. Based on a true story about a Tennessee recluse who wants to have a funeral party while he’s still alive, Get Low is actor Robert Duva... Read More.

Blackbird Is Edgy, Illuminating
Scottish playwright Donald Harrower’s 2005 play, Blackbird, is one of those theatrical phenoms that has already travelled around the world (productions in NYC, Mexico City, Tokyo) in a mere five years. We can thank Halifax’s most consistently edgy dramatist... Read More.

Winter's Bone: Truly Chilling
This year’s Grand Jury Winner at Sundance, Winter’s Bone is one heck of a picture. Adapted from Daniel Woodrill’s 2006 novel of the same name and set and shot in his native wandering grounds, the Missouri Ozark Mountains, Winter’s Bone blends raw authenticity ... Read More.

Inception A Mind-Blowing Movie
Inception is sensational. Christopher Nolan’s Sci-Fi thriller is not only the film event of the summer, it might just be the best film of the year. With a stellar cast headed up by Leonardo DiCaprio and buttressed by Michael Caine, Cillian Murphy, Tom Beren... Read More.

Please Give: A Pointed, Compassionate Comedy
The most talented female comedy director writer/currently working, Nichole Holofcener, has just released one of her very best films in the urban contemporary drama of manners, Please Give. Sporting a stellar cast (Oliver Platt, Amanda Peet, Catherine Keener... Read More.

Splice: A Fabulous Mess Of A Sci-Fi Movie
Splice is a fabulous mess of a movie, with a dynamite mad scientist start devolving into a silly ‘couples therapy’ finish. Still, it’s loaded with enough wild and woolly ideas to please any sci-fi or techno geek. And while the cheap-nite audience I saw it w... Read More.

The Stones 'Exile' N.S. Connection
The media swirl around the re-release of the Rolling Stones classic 1972 album Exile On Main Street has revolved mostly around the 1o new tracks unearthed and polished up for one of the new editions of the landmark double disc. What’s been missed in all of ... Read More.

The Trotsky: An Insufferable Dud
Jacob Tierney’s The Trotsky has a genuinely funny premise and a terrific Canadian cast. So why is it such a bad film? Championed at Film Festivals across this land last fall, the intermittently humorous comedy charmed critics, film snobs, and most important... Read More.

Iron Man 2: Sizzling With Action, Fun
The critical chorus on Iron Man 2 has mostly been a wail of ‘it’s not as good as the first one’. It’s possible that most of those critics either don’t like movies or don’t like comics. Or both. Perhaps they should find some other form of employment because... Read More.

The Runaways: A Run Of The Mill Music Bio
The Runaways -- the movie of the story of the mid ‘70s all girl rock band of the same name -- is just about as bad as the band itself. I remember one rock critic describing their music as ‘bang-bang-plop’, virtually confirming the long-held fact that women ... Read More.

Cloudburst: A Knockout
The Plutonium Playhouse is the most exciting thing to happen on the Halifax Theatre scene in a decade. It’s first offering is a sprightly staging of filmmaker Thom Fitzgerald’s latest screenplay Cloudburst, which he plans to shoot this summer as a feature c... Read More.

Chloe: Atom Egoyan's Latest Film is Plodding And Pretentious
Canadian director Atom Egoyan’s latest movie, the contemporary domestic betrayal flick Chloe, is a plodding and pretentious affair that has little to show for all its upmarket gloss. With a cast headed by world-class stars Liam Neeson and Julianne Moore and... Read More.

The Ghost Writer: Polanski, Underpowered
Critics have been kind to legendary director Roman Polanski’s latest, The Ghost Writer, as he sits under house arrest awaiting extradition from Europe to the US to face charges dating back to the mid-70s. Polanski’s extraordinary situation -- detailed in th... Read More.

Alice In Wonderland: More Disney than Burton.
Tim Burton fans should be properly forewarned that his major studio take on Lewis Carroll’s Alice In Wonderland is more Disney than Burton. With a truly horrifying girl-power script by Linda Woolverton -- who penned Beauty And the Beast and The Lion King f... Read More.

The Crazies: A Vibrant Zombie Variant With a Tart Sting
Sahara director Breck Eisner has tackled a modern-day remake of one of horrormeister George Romero’s most neglected films, The Crazies. Built around a star-making performance by Deadwood actor Timothy Olyphant -- who was so effective in the terrific Canadia... Read More.

Shutter Island: Visual Poetry in a Twisting Plot
Paramount has fiddled with the release date for Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island for almost a season and a half, putting off this potentially difficult film’s launch for at least six months. Now it’s finally here and there’s no question it is essential cine... Read More.

Crazy Heart: Blazingly Great
Scott Cooper’s debut feature Crazy Heart has build up a fine surge of hype mostly due from the extraordinary performance of Jeff Bridges as a broken-down Texas-based country writer and performer named Bad Blake. The film is surprisingly straightforward and ... Read More.

Broken Embraces: Good But Not Great
Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar’s latest feature film, Broken Embraces, is regularly referred to as a letdown after his brilliant and vastly entertaining 2004 entry Volver. Sure, it has an overly dense plot that again returns to Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 ma... Read More.

Ursula Le Guin and the The Aeneid's Lavinia
Lavinia, By Ursula K. Le Guin Reviewed by Peter O’Brien Ursula K. Le Guin's career as a creator of alternative realities dates back four decades now. She is perhaps best known for the Earthsea series for young adults, but her oeuvre in adult scien... Read More.

A Single Man Is Utterly Ravishing
Fashion designer Tom Ford’s first feature film, A Single Man, is just about as ravishing a movie that’s ever hit the big screen. Adapted from Christopher Isherwood’s landmark 1964 novel of the same name set during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the film tells t... Read More.

The Book Of Eli: post-apocalypse-du-jour with a plot.
The Hughes Brothers (From Hell, Menace II Society, Dead Presidents) have entered the post-apocalypse-du-jour sweepstakes with the Denzel Washington vehicle, The Book Of Eli. Seemingly using some of the same locations and sets as the recent film version of C... Read More.

Daybreakers: Spawn of vampire sequels.
The Aussie Spierig Brothers have delivered a surprisingly solid blast of imaginative entertainment in their just-opened horror flick Daybreakers. While it’s a bit wobbly at times, like an overstuffed triple decker-sandwich -- Daybreakers is, after all, a Va... Read More.

Up In the Air, Down in the Gutter
Cynically calculated and yet virtually unwatchable, Up In the Air is one of those movies whose reputation gets inflated on the hothouse film festival circuit. As writer/director Jason Reitman’s follow-up to the quirky hit Juno, it reinforces the notion that... Read More.

Avatar: A Cinematic Trip
Sensory overload sci-fi epic. Landmark nerdland technical breakthrough. Masterful video-game-movie hybrid. Exhausting eco-fable wrought large. Rip-snorting revisionist actioner. James Cameron’s Avatar is all of these things, and more. Created with a new Fus... Read More.

Book Review: Of Canoes, Maritime History, and Friendship
It’s a little bit of adventure memoir, philosophical retrospective, chronicle of a friendship, historical reflection … and more. As a slim volume, Like an Ever Rolling Stream author Hugh W. McKervill packs this literary trip to the gunwales. A modest editio... Read More.

Me And Orson Welles: The Legend Still Dazzles
A must-see for anyone interested in the nuts and bolts of the performing arts, Me And Orson Welles might just pull in a few more members of the greater movie-going public due to teen heart-throb Zac Efron’s involvement. Considering the elf-like Efron mostly... Read More.

Book Review: An Echo in the Bone
Diana Gabaldon’s seventh and latest installment, An Echo in the Bone, has enough interrelated tales (five to be exact) to sustain fans through many cold winter nights. An Echo in the Bone is the continuing historical fiction saga of Clare Randall and Jami... Read More.

Book Excerpt: An Echo in the Bone, by Diana Gabaldon
The following is excerpted from the hardcover edition of An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon Copyright © 2009 by Diana Gabaldon. Excerpted by permission of Anchor Canada, a division of Random House of Canada Limited. All rights reserved. No part of this e... Read More.

The Road: A masterpiece of cinematic mood in search of a story
John Hillcoat’s long-awaited followup to his international breakthrough The Proposition is only a mild letdown. The Road -- adapted from Cormac MacCarthy’s acclaimed novel -- is full of haunting post apocalyptic landscapes and practically no plot. The resul... Read More.

Precious: Astonishing use of a forceful cinematic palette.
Calling Precious a ‘brave’ movie is selling it short. The word that more aptly describes it is ‘ferocious’. You could throw around other words too, like ‘groundbreaking’, ‘innovative’ and ‘original’. Whatever the case, Precious is one terrific flick. Ev... Read More.

It Might Get Loud: It Doesn't
The new electric guitarist feature documentary It Might Get Loud is getting a very strange pre-DVD release: a couple of latenight weekends only before a December 22nd street date. The film premiered at the 2008 Toronto Film Fest. It’s a strategy that would ... Read More.

The Box: Press the button, or not.
Richard Kelly has returned to wide release with his third film, a supernatural thriller called The Box, adapted from the classic Sci-Fi author Richard (I Am Legend) Matheson’s story ‘Button, Button’. Kelly, whose debut 2001 outing Donnie Darko has become th... Read More.

An Education: An Affair Turns The Corner
An Education is one of those must-see films that has gotten a tad inflated from expectations and hype that come with dazzling the denizens of the festival circuit. A product of the wonderful British novelist Nick Hornby - who wrote the script, but not the s... Read More.

Paranormal Activity: One supremely scary film.
Paranormal Activity is one supremely scary film. Reportedly made for ten grand by writer/director Oren Peli, the brilliant bargain basement supernatural nail-biter has already endured some really dumb comparisons to shaky-camster thrillers such as The Blair Wi... Read More.

Amelia: A Crash Landing
While the real Amelia Earhart disappeared in the South Pacific in 1937, a big screen counterpart is crash-landing in cinemas this weekend. Mira Nair directed Hillary Swank as the star of this bio-pic, filmed partly in Nova Scotia, but the talented but erra... Read More.

Where The Wild Things Are: A film that should dazzle audiences of all ages.
The long-awaited bigscreen version of Maurice Sendak’s beloved children’s book Where The Wild Things Are has finally arrived in theatres after years of development starts and stops, and even more trouble from the production end. Directed by the visionary Sp... Read More.

Zombieland: trashy jokes, crappy music and delightfully under-developed ideas.
Sure, Zombieland might be only a throwaway film that barely whets the hunger for the next installment in George Romero’s template-making Living Dead series. Seemingly built out of spare parts leftover from flicks such as Trainspotting and Shaun Of the Dead,... Read More.

Bright Star: Bright Indeed
Jane (Sweetie, The Piano) Campion’s new film Bright Star is a fluid and fascinating attempt to refashion the traditional costume drama bio-pic. Based on the three-year affair between British poet John Keats and clothes maker/designer Fanny Brawne, Bright St... Read More.

Trailer Park Boys: Countdown To Liquor Day – A Classic
Trailer Park Boys: Countdown To Liquor Day is supposed to be the swansong of the popular and influential Showcase TV series set right here on the East Coast. Half an hour in and the film seems like a shrug, with everyone involved having their minds on somet... Read More.

9: Indeed a 9
Shane Acker’s debut animated feature 9 is getting a rough ride from many critics who simply don’t recognize the filmmaker’s extraordinary achievement. The terse 79-minute computer-graphic film tells a post-apocalyptic story of a clutch of burlap-bag creatur... Read More.

Taking Woodstock: Catching the Counterculture
Ang Lee’s latest film, Taking Woodstock, is a slight but strikingly original take on the legendary three-day hippie musical festival held in 1969. Surprisingly funny and often very sweet, Taking Woodstock tells the tale of the delapidated Jewish family reso... Read More.

District 9: It makes Sci-Fi feel fresh again.
District 9 is one heck of a movie, a wicked Sci-Fi flick so full of ideas, humour and action that it makes the whole genre feel fresh again. Directed by Peter Jackson acolyte Neill Blomkamp, District 9 tells the tale of end-of-their rope crustacean-like ali... Read More.

Julie & Julia: A Double Dud
No reviewers seem willing to admit just how horrible Nora Ephron’s new movie is. Part bio-pic and part contemporary chick flic, Julie & Julia completely wastes the considerable talent of Meryl Streep and the extraordinary story of American TV chef Julia Chi... Read More.

The Hurt Locker: An Unreserved Masterpiece
The Hurt Locker might just be the one Iraq War movie that finally connects with audiences. It certainly is making a connection with critics. Especially this one. Directed by the legendary female action helmer Kathryn Bigelow - who made not one but two of he... Read More.

Moon: A Classic In Miniature
Duncan Jones’s feature debut, Moon, has been attracting glowing reviews and modestly growing audiences in the midst of all the summer blockbuster hoopla. The son of David Bowie, Jones has fashioned a fascinating chamber sci-fi flick that harkens back to the... Read More.

Public Enemies: Depp as Dillinger drowns in nostalgia
Michael Mann’s highly anticipated Johnny Depp 1930s gangster vehicle, Public Enemies, is a curious disappointment. Badly shot on hi-def video it runs 143 minutes - 43 minutes too long. Yet, any movie about the famous real-life bank robber John Dillinger ... Read More.

Away We Go: Doesn't Quite Get There
American Beauty director Sam Mendes has taken up with hipster writers Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida to create the shaggy and slightly unsatisfying road movie Away We Go. It starts promisingly. The sweet and sometimes silly stay-at-home thirtysomething couple... Read More.

Outlander: Out Of This World
Film Nova Scotia did everyone a big favour by screening the long-awaited locally made Viking/Sci-Fi flickt Outlander at the Oxford Theatre recently. Not only did they score a 35mm film print, they brought writer/director Howard McCain and two of his produce... Read More.

Easy Virtue: Easy On the Eyes
Easy Virtue is one 1920s-written drama that seems far more durable than it should. Based on Noel Coward’s play, it features a dissolute English aristocratic family on an estate it can’t afford and an American interloper who has married uncomfortably into the c... Read More.

Drag Me To Hell: Gross, Funny and Scary As Hell
Legendary Evil Dead director Sam Raimi has paused long enough from counting all the money he’s made from directing the three Spider Man movies to crank out a small-scale horror tale entitled Drag Me To Hell that returns him to his shock-a-rama roots. Script... Read More.

Terminator: Salvation provides plenty of pop with its apocalypse
Terminator: Salvation certainly doesn’t deserve the truckload of crappy reviews it’s piled up since it opened wide in the spring rush of popcorn movies. Two stars here, one star there. You’d think these were critiques of the last Alien Vs Predator installme... Read More.

Wendy And Lucy: An American Indie Classic
This week's installment in AFCOOP’s Monday Night Movies (May 4th) series is a must-see. American Indie writer/director Kelly Reichardt’s heartbreaking Wendy And Lucy rates as one of the truly great films of 2008. Seeing it on the big screen, then, becom... Read More.

Two Lovers: An Unexpected Pleasure
Two Lovers is an unexpected cinematic pleasure. The third collaboration between writer/director James Gray and actor Joaquin Phoenix (after We Own The Night and The Yards), it is a measured romance vividly anchored in the subculture of New York City’s modern d... Read More.

Memories of home
“Up Home” is a book with a story by Shauntay Grant and artwork by Susan Tooke that is published by Nimbus Publishing. The first thing that strikes you about the book “Up Home” is the beautiful patchwork image that adorns the cover. Symbolic of the stories an... Read More.

17 Again: a soggy premise gone effervescent
Everybody’s out to get Zac Efron this weekend, with a virtual torrent of rotten reviews for his leading man debut in the high-school body switch comedy 17 Again. Sure, it’s soggy premise has been done before (Like Father Like Son, Freaky Friday, Big and cou... Read More.

Stories of Afghanistan from those who know
When it comes to understanding the experience of war and conflict in Afghanistan from a distance, one of the only ways to get a grasp the every day challenges faced is from reading the stories of those who were personally involved. Outside the Wire explore... Read More.

Sunshine Cleaning: Class struggles
Sunshine Cleaning is one of those "quirky" indie comedies that has a surprising lack of quirk or comedy. A determined tale of lower-class sisters struggling through young adulthood in New Mexico cleaning up other people's messes - while creating their own. It ... Read More.

Adventureland: Amusement Park Life
Greg Mottola’s latest feature Adventureland is one of those heartbreakingly definitive films that absolutely nails a time of life that’s been badly served by North American popular culture. Following a trio of recent lower-middle-class university grads in 1... Read More.

Trelawny Of the Wells: A Must See
Dalhousie Theatre Productions’ staging of Sir Arthur Wing Pinero’s 1898 play Trelawny Of the Wells is just about the best thing I’ve ever seen by the regions’s largest post-secondary drama school. It’s a beautifully measured rendering of a classic by an unf... Read More.

Pontypool: a Canuck Zombie flick par excellence
Maverick Toronto director Bruce McDonald’s follow-up to his experimental, multi-screened Elaine Page vehicle The Tracey Fragments is a ferocious genre tour-de-force. Shot on a single location, Pontypool is a Canuck Zombie flick par excellence, channeling 1970s... Read More.

Stone Of Destiny: A rippingly great Boy’s Adventure Story
Sorry, but it’s simply not possible for someone with the last name Macdonald to give Stone Of Destiny a bad review. The true-to-life story of how a quartet of patriotic students took back Scotland's Coronation Stone from Britain’s Westminister Abbey on Chri... Read More.

Mac Maharaj: South African hero
Anyone interested in South African politics should read this book. This mammoth work of Padraig O’Malley’s provides a vivid account of the past 60 years of South Africa’s history, positioning it around the story of a man who is unflinchingly critical of himsel... Read More.

The Class: Grade A
The Cannes Palme D’Or-winning French flick The Class is one of those must-see films that seems a bit underwhelming at first. Filmed verite-style in the blah Parisian suburbs, it reverses the formula of the 1960s classic To Sir With Love by placing a white t... Read More.

All You Need is Hal Bruce
The tribute band industry began with Elvis impersonators in the 1970’s. When Elvis died the numbers blossomed. The Beatles were next and, today, Australian Pink Floyd is one of the biggest tribute shows on stage. So where does one guy get the brass ones to tak... Read More.

Coraline: Eye candy can't replace the jittery sense of magic.
Stop-motion animation master Henry Selick’s adaptation of graphic novelist Neil Gaiman’s Coraline has piled up many respectful reviews. In what seems to be a growing trend, those critics might not have stayed with the film through to its end. If they had, they... Read More.

Frost/Nixon: Regrets, I've Had A Few
Ron Howard’s latest film Frost/Nixon is the fourth major motion picture to treat the 37th President of the United States. While it is a sumptuously realized picture, with a terrific cast, the film simply cannot escape its origins from Peter Morgan’s slight st... Read More.

Revolutionary Road: Good, But The Thrill Is Gone
Theatre director and occasional filmmaker Sam Mendes (Jarhead, The Road To Perdition) has tackled a prestige novel for his latest cinematic adventure, Revolutionary Road. Adapted from Richard Yates’ acclaimed 1961 novel which is set in suburban 1955 Connect... Read More.

The Wrestler: Leap's Right Out of the Ring
Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler is a triumph. Sparked by an absolutely amazing performance from former has-been Mickey Rourke, the film is a wildly redemptive tour through the wreckage of 1980s culture. Using a surprisingly straightforward script by Robert ... Read More.

Gran Torino: Grand Indeed
American cinematic icon Clint Eastwood has delivered a sly elegy to his own looming screen persona with his latest movie, Gran Torino. Directing himself in declining inner-city Detroit with a gaggle of non-professional actors from the Hmong Community, the s... Read More.

Margaret Atwood's Debt Plan
Payback: Debt and the Shadow side of Wealth By Margaret Atwood Because it has appeared at the time of a global economic crisis stemming mainly from an overload of debt, Payback: Debt and the Shadow Side of Wealth has been hailed as timely. Given the... Read More.

Movie Review: The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button is a Tiresome Trip through Pop Culture
The curious thing about the Curious Case Of Benjamin Button is how many great reviews it has amassed in the run-up to its Christmas Day release. The 2-hour and 47 minute adaptation of a fanciful F. Scott Fitzgerald short story is a bloated mess. It begins p... Read More.

Glenn Gould's Obsessive Quest for the Perfect Piano
When I was about seven years old I played in the local Kiwanis music festival for the first time. I sat down at the piano to play the first notes of “Under the Haycock” and nothing happened. The action of the grand piano’s keys was so stiff my little fingers d... Read More.

Milk: Tastes Great
Gus Van Sant’s return to conventional filmmaking, the shockingly traditional bio-pic Milk, is just about what everyone says it is: a triumph of conventional movie-making and a welcome sellout to the mainstream. It sports some tremendous acting from Sean Penn -... Read More.

Synecdoche, New York: A Grey and Glacial Filmgoers' Challenge
Maverick film writer Charlie Kaufman - the script author of off-beat flicks like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Adaptation and Being John Malkovich - has delivered a surprisingly dour but imaginative directoral debut in the 125-minute curio Synecdoche,... Read More.

Twilight: a landmark post-modern women’s film
Twilight is a much-anticipated, vastly-hyped and surprisingly strong entry in the post-Buffy teenage vampire sweepstakes. Adapted from Stephenie Meyer’s gazillions-selling book, the film gains traction on its own from the sterling work of screenwriter Melis... Read More.

Quantum Of Solace Is No Quantam Leap
After Casino Royale singlehandedly revived and re-energized the James Bond franchise, it’s quite natural that the follow up Quantum Of Solace would feel a bit like a disappointment. Still, Daniel Craig is a formidable clench-jawed 007. And there’s enough bo... Read More.

The Man Who Made Vermeers
On May 29, 1945, Han van Meegeren was arrested in Amsterdam on the charge that during the Nazi occupation he sold a painting by Jan Vermeer to Herman Goering, the commander-in-chief of the Luftwaffe. This transaction amounted to trading with the enemy, and wa... Read More.

Marche on Sanjania
Wake up armchair travelers! There’s a new country to explore. Stephen Marche’s Shining at the Bottom of the Sea requires only that you get comfortable in your favorite reading chair, flip open the cover and let your eyes do the walking. Marche’s novel isn’t a ... Read More.

Changeling Is Clint Eastwood's Masterpiece
American filmmaking Icon Clint Eastwood has had a pretty good run in the last decade with flicks such as Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby and the Flags Of Our Fathers - Letters From Iwo Jima double header. So why are reviewers so tepid in their response to... Read More.

Book Review: Lightning and Blackberries
In the eighteenth century, life for teenage girls was much different than it is today. By the time they reached seventeen, young ladies were expected to think seriously of marriage to an approved suitor. Elizabeth Evans was different. She rebelled against her ... Read More.

W.: Oliver Stone's Fair and Engrossing Take on George Bush
Oliver Stone’s presidential bio-pic W. has surprised just about everybody with its gutsy and shockingly fair portrait of the two-term US Chief Executive from Texas. Shot through with Stone’s trademark aggressive filmmaking style - there’s lots of jumping ba... Read More.

HPX 3: Holy Frig
Halifax loves a good dance party. Last night at the Marquee was a beautiful cross-section of the local music scene, with everyone from headbangers to indie kids to dirty hippies showing up to check out Toronto experirockers Holy Fuck. While downstairs in Hell’... Read More.

Burn After Reading: A slightly under-cooked, very funny spy farce
Joel and Ethan Coen’s latest, Burn After Reading, has been hanging around theatres for almost a month now. A slightly under-cooked spy farce set in and around Washington DC, it’s a film that’s built up some surprising staying power. Dismissed by many as a m... Read More.

Nick & Nora’s Infinite Playlist: Que Cera, Cera
To call the new Michael Cera romantic comedy slight is putting it lightly. Nick And Nora’s Infinite Playlist attempts to make a leading man out of the young, po-faced Canadian actor who was so effective last year in Superbad. Director Peter Sollet, who has ... Read More.

Miracle At Saint Anna: Spike Lee's third cinematic masterpiece in a row
Spike Lee’s latest film, Miracle At Saint Anna, has accumulated some wildly divergent reviews. Some have acclaimed it as brilliant and insightful; others have denounced it as lumpy and uneven. Currently it’s got a 28 percent rating at Rotten Tomatoes, hardly a... Read More.

Nikolski, by Nicolas Dickner: A Review
My first thought when I finished Nikolski was that I would like to read it again. Not in a bad way as in, “Holy crow, I’m supposed to review this and I have nothing to say I better read it again” but in a good way as in, “I think I could take something differe... Read More.

Society of Wolves, a review of Wolf Totem by Jiang Rong
I have to admit up front that I am not familiar with Chinese, so I have not read Wolf Totem in its original language, thus leaving me, as a reviewer, at the mercy of the translator. Author Jiang Rong (whose real name is Lu Jiamin) is well served by translator ... Read More.

Lakeview Terrace: A Creepy Picture of Race Relations
Lakeview Terrace might initially seem like a standard studio assignment on first view. Surprisingly, it’s topped the box-office charts for its opening weekend. A creepy neighbour potboiler superbly realized by director - playwright Neil LaBute, it’s a perf... Read More.

Chronicler of the Winds
Henning Mankell is perhaps best known as the author of the Kurt Wallander series of crime stories. He has, though, an impressive volume of work outside of that genre, including the one discussed here. Chronicler of the Winds is written with both great inten... Read More.

Book Review: The Truth About Canada
As implied by the tabloid-style title, Mel Hurtig’s latest book is necessary reading, particularly for journalists, editorial writers, politicians, and CEOs. For all Canadians it provides a mass of data and sources to evaluate the misleading and often downrigh... Read More.

Hamlet 2: Maybe the best movie ever about the witless enthusiasm of theatre
Riotously funny, sharply satiric and tremendously acted, Hamlet 2 might just be the best movie about the witless enthusiasm of theatre ever made. Driven by a jaw-droppingly effective performance by Brit Actor Steeve Coogan, whose air-headed American attitud... Read More.

Consumption:
Consumption is a blog for writers, nerds and media whores. I write about anything that interestes me, which is pretty much everything. I've been a huge film buff since I was a kid, so I'll be submitting some film and music reviews and also some videos of loca... Go to Blog.

Blank Canvas
Blank Canvas is an art blog written and compiled by Meredith Dault. Go to Blog.

MELODY MAKERS
In this space: Music news, interviews with local artists, album and concert reviews ... and whatever else comes along. Contributor Kim Kinrade is a musician, novelist and blogger based in Dartmouth. Go to Blog.



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