Carlton Cinemas to close down

The Carlton Cinemas - the downtown Toronto spot for many independent and limited release films - will close after a 28 year run at the corner of Yonge and Carlton. Management and staff were told of the news this past weekend by owner Cineplex Odeon who have decided to shut down the cinema rather than sign a new lease with the building's landlord. The last day will be December 6th.

I remember watching many a matinee at the Carlton while playing hooky from work or during those periods of time I was unemployed (perhaps a result of playing hooky to watch movies). The small and intimate theatres were also my cinema of choice for first dates.

Read the Globe and Mail story.

You're not gonna put Charlie Parker in with the Rock n Roll, would you?

A scene from one of my favourite movies.

Shining: A Romantic Comedy

Check out this re-cut of the trailer of the Shining. Funny stuff.

Easy Rider Motel to be Demolished

The Hillcrest Motel at 2143 Lakeshore Boulevard in Toronto, where the script for Easy Rider was written by Peter Fonda is to be demolished this month.

Easy Rider was released in 1969, and depicted two motorcyclists travelling across America’s south and south-west, discovering its people. The movie starred Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Jack Nicholson.

The final demolition date has not yet been set.

Story from Motorcycle News.

New Indiana Jones Film Premiering at Cannes

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Steven Spielberg's latest entry in the Indiana Jones series of films, is set to premiere at this year's Cannes Film Festival.

The prestigious festival, which runs from May 15th to 25th in the French Riviera will premiere the film on Sunday, May 18th.

The cast of the movie, including Harrison Ford and Shia LaBeouf, have been told to prepare for the red carpet the films’ premiere - even though the Cannes line up will not be announced until April.

Oscars Wrap up

Well, Oscar night has come and gone. Here are some quick comments and highlights:

Jon Stewart as host was pretty funny.

The flashback montages prepared were amusing and, for the most part, were done in good taste, especially the Jack Lemmon and Walter Mathau repartee about different types of directors.

Lifetime achievement recipient Robert F. Boyle is quite lucid for a 91 year-old

"Falling Down" from the film Once won best song. After getting cut off during co-winner Marketa Irglova's acceptance speech, she was allowed back after the commercial break to deliver a lovely and inspiring speech.

The Coen Brothers took home the Oscars for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Direction and Best Film.

'Juno' Wins Indie Spirit Top Honor

The film Juno won three major awards at The Spirit Awards, which celebrate the best of independent film.

The teen pregnancy film took home the honours for best independent film, best actress for Ellen Page and writer Diablo Cody won best first screenplay on Saturday, February 23.

Check out the Film Independent Spirit Awards website.

Falling Slowly

This morning I woke up to the song “Falling Slowly” from the film Once.

I didn't know anything about Once when I went to see it in the summer of 2007. I'd just returned to Toronto from living in the countryside of Japan, where I hadn't watched a single film in the year and a half I was there. It was the first matinée that was playing at the Cumberland Cinema in Yorkville the week I got home.

I remember smiling through out the whole film, even through the painfully awkward and melancholic scenes. The effect was immediate and it was all because of the beautiful music that the main character plays on his guitar as a busker. He meets this lovely girl who plays piano, but because of economics practices in the showroom of a local music store.

He offers to play a song for her and they improvise on an unfinished song he has written. The resulting scene is this stunningly beautiful and haunting song.