April 04, 2025

WIFF’S WEEKEND WATCH LIST — 4/4

Check out our recommendations of what to watch this weekend.

if you want are loving parker posey on the white lotus

the doors

Vincent Georgie: The buzzy series’ wild 3^rd season has offered a veritable buffet of fun performances. Many are rejoicing over the hysterically neurotic comedic stylings of Parker Posey. A fixture of the 90s American indie scene, take a look at her highly original work as a Jackie-0 obsessed young woman. The dark comedic tone here should appeal to Posey’s fans.

Synopsis: After a psychedelic experience in the California desert, Jim Morrison (Val Kilmer), lead singer of The Doors, and his bandmates begin performing in Los Angeles and quickly become a sensation. However, when Jim begins ditching his musical responsibilities and his girlfriend, Pamela (Meg Ryan), in favor of his dangerous addictions and the affections of the seductive, occult-obsessed Patricia (Kathleen Quinlan), the band starts to worry about their leader.

Available on Apple TV and Amazon Prime.

if you want a good popcorn movie

nobody wants to talk about jacob appelbaum

Vincent Georgie: This is a great choice for a suspenseful, entertaining Friday night watch. It never bores and certainly earns the chills that it provides. A fun one.

Synopsis: A look at Jacob Appelbaum’s online privacy advocacy, allegations of sexual misconduct against him, his role exposing government surveillance programs, and the impact on his career as a former WikiLeaks associate.

Available on CBC Gem.

if you want an oldie but a goodie

hunting daze

Vincent Georgie: An Oscar-winning turn by Paul Newman, an ever-appealing Tom Cruise, a sharp script, and Martin Scorsese brilliantly directing a film everyone has forgotten he directed, this title is a great choice if you want to revisit an old friend of a film.

Synopsis: Nina, a young woman with an unpredictable character, joins a band of hunters in an isolated chalet. The arrival of a mysterious stranger disrupts her new place in their male microsociety.

Available on Apple TV, Tubi, and Amazon Prime.

DOUBLE FEATURE

canadian films on the world’s stage

Vincent Georgie: With a love of Canada particularly on our collective minds, let’s look at two films that shone very brightly not just at home but all over the world. The first film by the illustrious Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan received the Grand Prix at Cannes and went on to receive 2 Oscar nominations for Egoyan later that year. It’s one of the greatest Canadian films ever made. The second film is the exciting, innovative, high-energy masterwork in the prodigiously talented Xavier Dolan’s filmography. It took the Jury Prize at Cannes that year, in addition to heaps of awards around the world. Both of these films represent universally acknowledged Canadian excellence.

my brilliant career

Growing up in the Australian outback, creative and headstrong Sybylla Melvyn (Judy Davis) dreams of becoming a famous writer despite long odds and the objections of her family. Forced by money problems to move in with her rich grandmother (Aileen Britton), she soon makes the acquaintance of a handsome landowner, Harry (Sam Neill), and wins him over despite their class differences. When Harry proposes, Sybylla must choose between romantic love an the brilliant career she craves.

Available on Apple TV and The Criterion Channel.

a passage to india

Based on the renowned E.M. Forster novel, this expansive period drama centers on the changing dynamic between British colonials and native locals in India during the 1920s. When an outing to explore scenic caves ends in English tourist Adela Quested (Judy Davis) accusing Indian doctor Aziz Ahmed (Victor Banerjee) of rape, the incident results in a major court case, one that reinforces tensions between the British Empire and the growing movement towards Indian independence.