'A Complete Unknown' Offers the Same Old Side of Bob Dylan
Biopics, particularly music biopics, often follow a hollow recipe that, in recent years, has begun to sour, with a slew of derivative
Marko Djurdjić•Jan 2, 2025
music reviews Archive
Take That, Biopics! 'Better Man' Bests the Formula
What makes 'Better Man' a distinctive music biopic among the seemingly endless sea of the subgenre is not the fact that director Michael
Rachel Ho•Dec 25, 2024Martin Short Brought a Parade of Celebrity Cameos to 'Saturday Night Live'
With a little help from many celebrity friends, the brilliant Martin Short finally joined the Five-Timers Club and appeared in most of the
Vish Khanna•Dec 22, 2024'Nosferatu' Feeds Off of Its Predecessors
In singing the praises of F.W. Murnau's 1922 silent odyssey Nosferatu, Roger Ebert described the film as, "in awe of its material. It seems
Alisha Mughal•Dec 20, 2024Be Prepared, 'Mufasa: The Lion King' Circles Back to Its Classic Origins
From its opening tribute to the late James Earl Jones, Barry Jenkins's 'Mufasa: The Lion King' makes certain to pay care and respect to the
Nathan Abraha•Dec 20, 2024The Weather Station Is Shadowboxing Herself on "Body Moves"
On "Body Moves," Tamara Lindeman is shadowboxing, dodging the swings and fakeouts of a form in rebellion. The latest taste of the luminous
Kaelen Bell•Dec 16, 2024'The Brutalist' Builds Up and Tears Down the American Dream
The first thing that Hungarian-Jewish architect and Holocaust survivor László Tóth (Adrien Brody) sees upon emerging from the dark, cramped
Courtney Small•Dec 16, 2024Chris Rock Relived the Good Old Days on 'SNL' with Help from Adam Sandler
Chris Rock returned for a strong episode of Saturday Night Live, joined at one point by his 'SNL' castmate Adam Sandler, and Gracie Abrams
Vish Khanna•Dec 15, 2024The Tragically Hip and Feist's "'It's a Good Life If You Don't Weaken'" Carries the Spirit — If Not the Sound — of Gord Downie
The Tragically Hip have wisely not reunited since singer Gord Downie's tragic death in 2017, but they closest they came was doing a
Alex Hudson•Dec 13, 2024Montreal's Graham Steinman Communes with the Sublime on 'migration's only natural'
Being from the middle of nowhere doesn't necessarily mean you feel connected to nature in a way others don't. On the contrary, people like
Megan LaPierre•Dec 13, 2024Julien Baker & TORRES Make the Country Pivot Fresh Again on "Sugar in the Tank"
I don't know about you, but I'm a bit fatigued by the pivot to country. Country music's sounds and aesthetics have been infiltrating
Kaelen Bell•Dec 13, 2024'Kraven the Hunter' Is Cravin' to Be Put Out of Its Misery
Sony's Spider-Man Villain Spin-Off Universe (or as Sony likes to call it, "Sony's Spider-Man Universe") has been a disaster, a series of ba
Marko Djurdjić•Dec 13, 2024'Queer' Burrows into Carnal and Cerebral Pleasures
In the opening shots of Luca Guadagnino's 'Queer,' the camera observes numerous artifacts of the film's ensuing romance; two pairs of
Alexander Mooney•Dec 13, 2024Apocalyptic Musical 'The End' Should Start Important Conversations
Joshua Oppenheimer wanted to make a third film about the Indonesian genocide. In the first two, 'The Act of Killing' and 'The Look of
Nathan Chizen•Dec 12, 2024Angelina Jolie Brings Compassion and Profound Understanding to 'Maria'
'Maria' begins at the end, with the death of Maria Callas in her Paris apartment. The great soprano passed away in 1977, less than three
Rachel Ho•Dec 11, 2024Netflix's 'A Nonsense Christmas with Sabrina Carpenter' Offers Barely Enough Merriment
Sabrina Carpenter spent 2024 exceeding expectations in every way. At the beginning of the year, she was just another ex-Disney kid trying
Alex Hudson•Dec 11, 2024Menno Versteeg Has Plenty of Life to Live on 'Why We Run'
There's a play by Tom Stoppard called 'Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead.' It's been described variously as tragicomedy, surreal humour
Alisha Mughal•Dec 11, 2024'Somebody Somewhere' Season 3 Gives Hope for the Future
It's easily to fall into despair about the state of the world today, especially if you watch the news or, even worse, go on social media
Alex Hudson•Dec 10, 2024'Oh, Canada' Won't Make Hearts Glow, but Its Complexity Stretches Far and Wide
In Oh, Canada, Leonard Fife (Richard Gere) teaches a photography class to a small group of students. He writes "Reality vs. Fiction" across
Jordan Currie•Dec 10, 2024Paul Mescal Showed His Comedic Chops on 'SNL' — Isn't That Special?
Back from a few weeks off, Saturday Night Live' continued its strong season of writing, though some of the sketches prepared for Paul Mescal
Vish Khanna•Dec 8, 2024Sunshine Makers Ward Off the Cold with "There's a Light"
In early August, my partner and I were in Halifax, trying to find something to do on our final night there. After conceding to go back to
Sydney Brasil•Dec 6, 2024'The Sticky' Finds 'Fargo' in Small-Town Quebec
Among the many festive releases this holiday season, Prime Video has debuted its contender for viewership with 'The Sticky.' Created by
Holly Hunt•Dec 6, 2024'Unstoppable' Impeccably Follows the Sports Movie Playbook
Most sports dramas follow the same formula: an underdog to root for, setbacks, perseverance and triumphs. 'Unstoppable' falls in this tried
Marriska Fernandes•Dec 6, 2024Keira Knightley's Visceral Complexity Makes 'Black Doves' a Spy Classic
Keira Knightley knows her voice, the beasts unleashed and restrained by its pits and zeniths. This knowledge is nowhere more cunningly on
Alisha Mughal•Dec 5, 2024Yves Jarvis Makes the Moment Precious on "Gold Filigree"
Back in October, Yves Jarvis — the moniker of Montreal-by-way-of-Calgary musician Jean-Sébastien Yves Audet — made his debut release for
Megan LaPierre•Dec 4, 2024Yesterday’s Man Make Indie Rock Sound Classic on "Fleetwood mac"
Yesterday's Man describe their sound as "classic indie rock" — and Gal Av-Gay and Alie Lynch surely know a thing or two about classic indie
Alex Hudson•Dec 3, 2024'Get Away' Is a Bonkers Bloodbath
Throughout horror history characters make mistakes and pay dearly for them, like traveling and staying on a remote island or rural areas
Vanessa Maki•Dec 3, 2024'Play It Loud: How Toronto Got Soul' Traces the Roots of the Iconic Toronto Sound
Collecting tales of the impact and influence Jamaican musicians have had on the Toronto music scene like Thanos collects Infinity Stones
Courtney Small•Dec 2, 2024The Thrilling 'The Girl with the Needle' Jabs Holes in Expectations
Magnus von Horn's Palme d'Or-nominated 'The Girl with the Needle' is the darkly compelling tale of Karoline (Vic Carmen Sonne), a young
Lindsay Clarke•Dec 2, 2024'Gladiator II' Walks in the Same Sandals as the Original
I count myself among the defenders of Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon.' I respected the hell out of Scott's don't-give-a-fuck attitude — he made an
Rachel Ho•Dec 2, 2024Goodbye Never Felt So Good at Tokyo Police Club's Joyous Farewell to Toronto
In June, Exclaim! posted a feature with Tokyo Police Club. In that interview, bass player and lead vocalist Dave Monks and keyboardist
Marko Djurdjić•Nov 29, 2024'Flow' Ushers in the Next Wave of Animation
Northern Europe has been the spot for innovation in cinematic animation for some time. Estonia's Sander Joon delivered the dopest short
Nathan Chizen•Nov 29, 2024'The Heirloom' Relishes the Agony of Art
"We are not afraid of telling over and over again how a man comes to fall in love with a woman and be wedded by her, or else be fatally par
Alexa Margorian•Nov 28, 2024Scorsese's 'Beatles '64' Doc Twists and Shouts, but Doesn't Dig Deep
Beatles fans rejoice! 'Beatles '64' is a celebratory love letter to the fans who have adored the Fab Four for decades. Producer Martin
Barbara Goslawski •Nov 28, 2024Gleeful Chaos Fuelled the Kids in the Hall's 40th Reunion in Toronto
The Rivoli has hosted many now-famous artists in its 40-plus years in business, yet none are as closely associated with the Toronto venue a
Ian Gormely•Nov 27, 2024Caribou's Toronto Show Was as Healing as It Was Hype
Like any artist bravely hosting shows during Taylor Swift's two-week reign over Toronto in November, Caribou's doubleheader this weekend
Allie Gregory•Nov 25, 2024Kendrick Lamar Is in Rarefied Air on the Triumphant 'GNX'
Given the year Kendrick Lamar has had, a new album felt imminent. From starting his year with a show-stealing verse on Future's "Like That"
Wesley McLean•Nov 25, 2024There's Never Been a Music Documentary Like 'Pavements'
Music docs are inherently self-aggrandizing, and the idea of Pavement celebrating themselves with an official documentary contradicts the
Alex Hudson•Nov 22, 2024'Wicked' Leaves Other Musical Adaptations Seeing Green
Directed by Jon M. Chu, 'Wicked' — the movie adaptation of the musical based on the book of the same name, itself based on
Lindsay Clarke•Nov 21, 2024Sister Ray Is Both Flesh and Myth on "Animal Thing"
Perhaps the inevitable fate of using the titular character from a Velvet Underground song as your stage name, Sister Ray — the project of
Megan LaPierre•Nov 21, 2024'Never Look Away' Doesn't Look Hard Enough at Its Own Subject
Creating a documentary about a deceased subject is no simple feat, and when that subject was shrouded in so much mystery during their time
Jordan Currie•Nov 20, 2024'The Sex Lives of College Girls' Season 3 Could've Used a Gap Year
After a two-year wait, Mindy Kaling and Justin Noble's raunchy college sex-comedy 'The Sex Lives of College Girls' is back for its third
Karlie Rogers•Nov 20, 2024'The Line' Exposes the Toxic Side of Frat Life
The horrors of hazing at fraternities have been well-documented and condemned over the years. However, despite the depths of humiliation an
Courtney Small•Nov 19, 2024Modest Mouse Shared Some Good News in Toronto
Let's just get this out of the way right now: at their show last night at History, Modest Mouse played "Float On." It's usually a concert
Marko Djurdjić•Nov 18, 2024Father John Misty Is at a Crossroads on 'Mahashmashana'
For perhaps the first time in his decade-plus long career, Father John Misty is at a crossroads. Every album he's released has been
Oliver Crook•Nov 18, 2024Charli XCX Was So Julia and the Lonely Island Were Brat on 'SNL'
Pulling double duty, beloved pop superstar Charli XCX was a great host and fine musical guest on a well-written and cameo-rich
Alex Hudson and Vish Khanna•Nov 17, 2024The Eras Tour Is Bigger Than Taylor Swift
"Is this gonna work?" Taylor Swift asked this while soundlessly strumming an acoustic guitar, the crowd's tepid response indicating that
Alex Hudson and Megan LaPierre•Nov 15, 2024Brotherly Love Is a Balm in 'A Real Pain'
Everyone has someone in their life they oscillate wildly back and forth on whether they love or hate them. That person's their complete
Matthew Simpson •Nov 15, 2024Dorothea Paas's 'Think of Mist' Is a Swim Through Deeper Waters
Well-respected and sought after by her musical peers in Toronto, Dorothea Paas cashes in on 'Think of Mist,' her glistening sophomore solo
Vish Khanna•Nov 14, 2024Cadence Weapon Showed Vancouver the Value of Showing Up
Wrapping up his West Coast Canadian tour in support of his latest album 'ROLLERCOASTER' at the Fox Cabaret on Tuesday night, Cadence Weapon
Leslie Ken Chu•Nov 14, 2024