Double Feature: While We’re Young (2014) and Take This Waltz (2011)

Towards the end of Noah Baumbach’s latest film, While We’re Young, protagonist Josh (Ben Stiller) laments the feeling of being a “child imitating an adult.” It’s a familiar, facile observation. It’s the kind of thing that people say when their life is absent real concerns – about money, illness or the like – and they’re…

My Winnipeg (2007)

“Even people who have never encountered snow can imagine what it’s like to walk through it. You leave footprints – declivities. When you step on fresh snow, you pack it down. You pack it down onto the sidewalk and when all the loose snow later blows away, it actually leaves a positive record of that…

Stories We Tell

Stories We Tell (2013)

A few minutes into Stories We Tell, Sarah Polley’s documentary about her family history, I decided I wasn’t going to like the movie. I have a natural disinclination towards documentaries built on recollections. Stylistically they’re built on talking heads, recreations and snippets of stock footage – a far cry from the cinematic creativity behind most…