Movies
Film Rating: NR
The Cursed
In the late 1800s, a once-peaceful remote country village is under attack–but by who or what, no one knows. Villagers spread rumors of a cursed land, supernatural forces, and even demonic creatures, as the disappearances and killings continue. Pathologist John McBride arrives to investigate the danger, only to discover something
Tzouhalem
Tzouhalem, Chief of the Cowichan First Nation during the mid-1800’s, is arguably one of the most fascinating and polarizing figures in Canadian history. His story is a matter of historic record, yet is the subject of legend. There is a mountain, road, and other landmarks on Cowichan territory named after
Starlet
Writer-director Sean Baker (RED ROCKET, THE FLORIDA PROJECT, TANGERINE) joins us live (via Skype) for a double bill that includes a screening of his latest acclaimed feature, RED ROCKET, followed by his 2013 debut film, STARLET. (Besides being drawn from the same creative mind, the two films occupy the same cinematic universe… As Mr. Baker will
Benedetta
Inspired by a true story, “satiric provocateur” Paul Verhoeven‘s (BASIC INSTINCT, ELLE, SHOWGIRLS) BENEDETTA (loosely based on the 1986 non-fiction book ‘Immodest Acts: The Life of a Lesbian Nun in Renaissance Italy‘ by Judith C. Brown. The film takes place in a nunnery during the late 17th century in Pescia,
The Spine of Night
Journey beyond the cosmic dark to a lost age of steel and sorcery… In this ultra-violent, fantasy epic, ancient dark magic falls into sinister hands and unleashes ages of suffering onto mankind. A group of heroes from different eras and cultures must band together in order to defeat
Possession
Banned upon its original release in 1981, Andrzej Żuławski’s stunningly choreographed nightmare of a marriage unraveling is an experience unlike any other. Professional spy Mark (Sam Neill) returns to his West Berlin home to find his wife Anna (Isabelle Adjani, in a role that earned her Best Actress at Cannes)
Wife of a Spy
Master filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa (PULSE, CURE, TOKYO SONATA) won the Silver Lion (Best Director) at the Venice Film Festival for this riveting, gorgeously crafted, old-school Hitchockian thriller shot in stunning 8K. The year is 1940 in Kobe, on the eve of the outbreak of World War II. Local merchant and
The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
“She’s alive!” The Rio Theatre‘s seasonal deep dive into Halloween-y favourites continues on Saturday, October 25 with one of the all-time great monster movies, James Whale‘s iconic THE BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN. This 1935 sequel to Whale’s 1931 film FRANKENSTEIN (also screening October 25 as part of a Double Creature Feature)
The Mummy (1932)
A team of British archaeologists led by Sir Joseph Whemple (Arthur Byron) discover the mummified remains of the ancient Egyptian prince Imhotep (Boris Karloff), along with the legendary scroll of Thoth. When one of the archaeologists recites the scroll aloud, Imhotep returns to life, but escapes. Several years later,
VIFF 2021: Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror
Tracing folk horror’s dark, winding path from the influential likes of Witchfinder General and The Wicker Man to more recent fare like The Witch and Midsommar, Kier-La Janisse has fashioned an astonishingly ambitious deep dive into every recess of one of the genre cinema’s most parabolic, spiritually resonant, and culturally