After celebrating their thirtieth last year, the Victoria Film Festival is still going strong. Although this local event has changed somewhat over time, some choices are for the better, and others–it’s honestly hard to judge. Back when virtual reality was the hottest thing to change cinema, I noticed that after an attempt one year to showcase its potential, nothing has done ever since.
Although some trends are just that, I see a potential with this alternate movie telling format. And while it’s tough to create a choose-your-own-adventure style cinematic experience, that’s because the technology is not advanced enough, and storytellers have to get back to basics to learn what hyper-fiction is. I believe that until home entertainment fully adopts this medium, advancements will stall. But I digress.
This year, I offer my selection of the top ten films to check out. There’s three I’ve already looked at, and highly recommend. This includes movie review links and the interview with the filmmaker(s) where possible, as they made their debut earlier last year.
I offer this selection of films to check out if you are visiting the Garden City. Tickets can be purchased by clicking on the title and for those who just want to see this movie, please check with your local film festival or art house theatre to see if these works will play there too.
The Penguin Lessons
During a brief escape to Uruguay, Tom rescues a penguin from an oil slick to impress a woman he has just met. Tom tries to convince the penguin to return to the ocean, but the penguin has other ideas and insists on staying close to his rescuer. And so begins the relationship between Tom and the charmingly named Juan Salvador.
Red, White & Brass
The Chef and the Daruma
When Hidekazu Tojo opened his eponymous restaurant in Vancouver in 1988, he triggered a transformation in North America’s food culture, popularizing sushi with his infamous California roll. His hospitality blended culinary cultures that welcomed celebrities and locals alike. Still working and innovating in his 70s, Tojo reflects on his life and the pivotal moments from his childhood days in Kagoshima, Japan to Osaka’s top restaurants and eventual immigration to Canada in 1971.
The Worlds Divide
The film begins on a futuristic Earth that war and famine has consumed. Natomi tries to live a cautious life but when the dangers escalate, her father Terric makes a daring decision to put his children out of harm’s way. He transports them to a magical world called Esluna, and the world this young girl finds is not only fantastic but ruled with an iron fist!
Things quickly change when she finds herself in an adventure that can threaten two worlds. When Natomi’s father is considered a god, just how everything connects is special. And no prior knowledge is required to enjoy Jackson’s Tales of Esluana series. Each is self-contained, and this latest proves he’s got lots of stories to tell. Instead of old characters, we meet new ones, and just how it all connects is worth following!
Can I Get a Witness?
Ellie (Sandra Oh) is quickly approaching her 50th year as her teenage daughter Kiah (Keira Jang) starts a new job, using her artistic gifts as a documenter of personal dying ceremonies. Struggling with the emotional toll of her new duties, Kiah’s more experienced co-worker Daniel (Joel Oulette) helps her understand the purpose of their work with bureaucratic detachment.
So Surreal: Behind the Masks
In So Surreal: Behind the Masks, we follow co-director Neil Diamond (Reel Injun, not the musician) as he uncovers the mystery and history behind the collecting of these so-called art pieces. At the outset of the film, while in New York, Diamond reads about a 100+-year-old Yup’ik mask up for sale at the TEFAF Art Fair. Struck by the image of the mask and its place in the contemporary market, he sets out to find it. Once at the exhibition, he learns that the mask was once owned by Surrealist artist Enrico Donati. This serves as the catalyst for him to learn more about the relationship these masks have with the art world, their collectors (including the Surrealists), and how they were acquired—often under the guise of the Potlatch ban and the myth of the “vanishing Indian.”
(S)KiDS
The oppressive school principal tries to shake Scotty’s spirituous antics while the school’s drug dealer, Sammy, eyes Scotty as his latest target to bully. Amid the early troubles, Scotty finds sanctuary in Billy and Craig, two outcasts known as “skids.” The three become entwined through their love of music, shared experiences of neglect and abuse, and surging desire to expose the hypocrisy of the authority figures in their Lives.
A Samurai in Time
Vampire Zombies…from Space!
From the depths of space, Dracula has devised his most dastardly plan yet—turning the residents of one small American town into his personal army of vampire zombies! Now Mary is all grown up, and they are back, immune to the powers that chased them away years ago, and ready to unleash their evil plan on the somewhat unsuspecting, and somewhat we-always-knew-there-was-more-going-on town folk. A motley crew consisting of a grizzled detective, a skeptical rookie cop, a chain-smoking greaser, and Mary band together to save the world!
Night of the Zoopocalypse
