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Mass

#EDITORSNOTE: TEAM MR. WILL TOP TENS OF 2021

While it felt the latter part of 2021 was rather hectic on the release side for films, it certainly was a memorable, although sometimes chaotic year in Cinema. As we saw several films which should’ve surfaced in 2020, banked for our enjoyment on the big screen this year, it makes it even more challenging to narrow down our favourites. Truly, the Films that made the cut in 2021 truly were outstanding as they had to shine amongst a quality slate of releases.

Though it seems we’re making one step forward and two steps back in making it through this Pandemic, we were so happy to have been able to be back in theatres once again and enjoy a hybrid version of the Toronto International Film Festival. For that we are grateful and we look forward to sitting in a theatre once again, full capacity with popcorn and drink in-hand, even if not yet.

Team Mr. Will break down their favourite releases of 2021 for us and as always, it is an exciting and eclectic mix. Films like CODA, ROADRUNNER, NINE DAYS, C’MON C’MON and MASS might not be on all Critics’ Top Tens, but they fared well among the Team and found a home with us. If you’re still deciding what to see or are on the fence about, let us help you out!

So grateful for this amazing family of Writers and their esteemed opinions and hard work delivering for us year-round.



AMANDA GILMORE (@GilmoreAmanda)

I think Cinema is at its best when it entertains, increases empathy and enlighten us. The films in my Top Ten check those boxes for me. However, 2021 is filled with impactful Cinema and my list could easily be 20! Other films I love are Awards Season favourites King Richard, Belfast & Spencer. This list was made before viewing A Hero, Parallel Mothers & Cyrano.

The Worst Person in the World & Petite Maman would be below but they release in 2022. Keep an eye out for them!

Top Ten Narratives (in alphabetical order):

C’mon C’mon
CODA
Drive My Car
Judas & the Black Messiah
The Lost Daughter
Nine Days
Passing
The Power of the Dog
tick, tick… BOOM!
West Side Story

Fav Docs (in alphabetical order):
 Flee
Summer of Soul
Writing With Fire



NICHOLAS PORTEOUS (@noveltyhat)


1. NYC Epicenters
2. Life in a Day: 2020
3. The Last Duel
4. Dune
5. Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain
6. C’mon C’mon
7. Spencer
8. The Green Knight
9. Bo Burnham: Inside
10. Annette

In a near-tie for my favorite this year: two Documentaries attempting to process recent history. Life in a Day revisits the original 2010 experiment, sourcing thousands of hours of amateur footage from across the world shot on a single day in 2020 that might as well represent the era. Spike Lee‘s NYC Epicenters–a four part miniseries available on Crave–looks at every major New York disaster since 9/11 up to the present moment with absolutely crushing clarity. Sidenote: Netflix‘s ‘Turning Point‘ gives 9/11 some much-needed context as the inciting incident in a much broader tragedy for the people of Iraq and Afghanistan. Bo Burnham’s Inside grapples with our collective quarantine routine, and though I have misgivings about how accurate it is to Burnham‘s real experience of the pandemic–dropping it a bit further down the list–I cannot deny the singular power of his music to bring meaning to our perpetually sealed-off lives. In third–and the first narrative on the list–The Last Duel failed to connect with the Box Office but succeeded in keeping me locked at a 70° angle as I untangled the all-too-familiar cycle of assault, denial, and public scorn told from three distinct perspectives, brought together by a relentless, titular duel more explosive than anything Ridley Scott has ever yelled at a journalist. Dune could not be less connected to our present, so it was nice to become ensnared in its deadly world with the most well-integrated Visual Effects I’ve ever seen. Roadrunner and C’mon C’mon are both stories of Documentarians who live their work. For Joaquin Phoenix, it’s a spiritually healing act. For Anthony Bourdain, it’s a bit more complicated. Spencer synthesized Diana‘s tragedy into a devastating weekend of pheasant hunting, pea soup and Jazz. Sidenote: ‘Diana the Musical‘ is worth a Netflix skim for a horrific glimpse into yet another way of defining her story. The Green Knight revitalized title cards–along with reflections on destiny and death. And Annette finally put an end to our cultural obsession with selfish toxic male stars–j/k!


GEORGE KOZERA (@PartyG)

2021 was the year I capitulated, when it came to the Movies. I firmly believed that they HAD to be seen on a big screen to even be considered worthy candidates to make my personal “Best” list. To me, VOD always stood for movies that studios deemed unworthy of a theatrical release and streaming services were like HBO: good stuff but, like HBO movies, should not be considered Oscar-worthy. My feelings came crashing down when I saw my first movie in a darkened theatre when we were finally allowed to do so. It was the Documentary “Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain”. It was also the 107th movie I had watched this year. The final nail in the coffin was when I was given the choice to see “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” in the theatre or to stream it and I chose the latter.


Whittling down the 288 titles I watched in 2021 to my Top Ten was no easy task! And apologies to the movies I haven’t seen yet (The Lost Daughter, Drive My Car, A Hero, Parallel Mothers and The Green Knight) that could have made the list and those that I could not squeeze-in (Annette, Flee, Belfast, Being the Ricardos, Don’t Look Up, In the Heights and Passing).

  1. The Power of the Dog
  2. West Side Story
  3. Mass
  4. CODA
  5. tick…tick…Boom!
  6. (tie) Summer of Soul/Attica
  7. Nine Lives
  8. The Humans
  9. Dune
  10. The Worst Person in the World


JUSTIN WALDMAN (@DubsReviews)

What a mess 2021 has been, we thought we couldn’t possibly still be in this god damn pandemic anymore but here we are. Thankfully, even through the endless, and I mean ENDLESS delays we got some content this year that was absolutely incredible. Only one movie on this Top Ten list only played the festival circuit, and I cannot stress enough that it must be viewed when it comes out. Everything on this list deserves its placing, and if you haven’t seen some of these picks, please please please go and see it to warm your Cinephile heart. I present to you my top 10 of 2021. May 2022 bring forward some other excellent Cinema!

Alone With You Green Knight
I’m your Man
Language Lessons
Licorice Pizza
Mass
Red Rocket
Tick Tick Boom
Titane
Violet

Note: at the time of publication I have not seen Drive My Car, or Parallel Mothers.

Happy New Year everyone, and Bon Cinema!



DAVID BALDWIN (@DaveMABaldwin)

Were we wrong thinking 2021 would be better than 2020? While it was not nearly as much of a dumpster fire, there is still so much wrong and so few lessons learned. I loved being able to experience movies in a theatre again, yet am depressed at how few people turned up for anything that did not involve Marvel characters (though I did enjoy some of those ones too). Fingers crossed we can lose the increasingly annoying “Exclusively in Theatres” rhetoric at some point in 2022. All of that said, I was able to experience a whole world of titles at digital festivals and likely saw more movies this year alone than I have in previous years (or at least compared to all the years I have tracked on Letterboxd!). So it was not all doom and gloom.

Here is a look at my ranked Top 10 list of titles that had a profound effect on me, inspiring my creativity endlessly in a year where I felt so little, followed by alphabetical lists of 2020 films I could not see until 2021 and a few festival favourites waiting for proper release.

  1. Nine Days
  2. The Mitchells vs. The Machines
  3. Mass
  4. Titane
  5. Dune
  6. The Worst Person in the World
  7. Judas and the Black Messiah
  8. Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain
  9. Riders of Justice
  10. Licorice Pizza


2020 Favourites That Were Available This Year
Minari
Quo Vadis, Aida?
Saint Maud

Unreleased Festival Favourites
Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes
Catch the Fair One
The Fallout
Petite Maman
Sundown


MR. WILL (@mrwillw)

Three things we always look for in a great film. One, it has to take us on a real journey and there’s gotta be something at stake that’s meaningful. It doesn’t matter how big the stakes are. It is the Director and Actors’ jobs to make it feel like the journey they are going on matters. Two, we love it when an Actor transforms and we laud bravado in a performance. Three, we want to feel something when we walk away from a film. These Films meet all the criteria for me. Whether it be Kristen Stewart’s transcendent performance as Diana in Spencer which we’re still obsessed with, or what it means for a father to go for broke because he believes so much in his daughters in King Richard, or films like Zola and Red Rocket which pushed the envelope giving us a glimpse into the lives of Sex Workers, my eyes were opened and sometimes welled-up from some of the masterful work I saw in my Top Ten.

Don’t forget to check-out highlights from our 2021 Star Sightings in Toronto here!

1. Spencer
2. King Richard
3. Red Rocket
4. Blue Bayou
5. The Eyes of Tammy Faye
6. Zola
7. West Side Story
8. Dune
9. Coda
10. Licorice Pizza

To another amazing year in Film ahead! Thank you for continuing to join us!

Team Mr. Will

#GIVEAWAY: ENTER FOR A CHANCE TO WIN PASSES FOR TWO TO SEE “MASS”

MK2 | MILE END x Mr. Will are thrilled to give Readers a chance to win a Pass for Two to see acclaimed Drama MASS.

Cities are as follows:

Toronto Varsity
Vancouver International Village
Calgary Eau Claire
Montreal Forum
Edmonton City Centre
Ottawa Mayfair
Victoria Odeon
Halifax Scotiabank
Kanata Landmark
Whitby Landmark
Kelowna Grand 10
London Hyland

Synopsis:

Years after an unspeakable tragedy tore their lives apart, two sets of parents (Jason Isaacs and Martha Plimpton, Reed Birney and Ann Dowd) agree to talk privately in an attempt to move forward. In Fran Kranz’ writing and directing debut, he thoughtfully examines their journey of grief, anger and acceptance by coming face-to-face with the ones who have been left behind.

To enter for a chance to #win click “like” on this Post at MR. WILL ON FACEBOOK. Please indicate your City in the comments there. Re-Tweet this Contest Tweet below for an extra chance!



Note: Winners will only be notified on Facebook from the official MR. WILL WONG account. Do not accept friend requests from others requesting you to provide personal information.

Rules and regulations here.

MK2 | MILE END release MASS in theatres October 15, 2021.

(Photo/video credit: MK2 | MILE END)

#FIRSTLOOK: NEW TRAILER FOR “MASS”

Having won tons of accolades at Sundance, Fran Kranz‘s MASS soon will be in theatres. Here is your first look at its Trailer.

Synopsis:

Years after an unspeakable tragedy tore their lives apart, two sets of parents agree to talk privately in an attempt to move forward. In Fran Kranz’ writing and directing debut, he thoughtfully examines their journey of grief, anger and acceptance by coming face-to-face with the ones who have been left behind.

MK2 | Mile End release MASS October 15, 2021 in theatres.

(Photo/video credit: MK2|Mile End)

#SUNDANCE: “MASS”

Review by Amanda Gilmore for Mr. Will Wong

Years after a mass shooting at a high school, two sets of parents —Richard (Reed Birney), Linda (Ann Dowd), Jay (Jason Isaacs), and Gail (Martha Plimpton) — meet to discuss the tragedy. The interaction is going to be tense. Jay and Gail’s son was killed in the mass shooting by Richard and Linda’s son.

Writer-Director Fran Krantz’s debut Feature is a heartbreaking look at the aftermath of tragedy. He examines guilt, resentment and the power of forgiveness. Although Mass is set primarily in one room and has heavy dialogue throughout, it never gets boring thanks to the powerhouse Ensemble he’s assembled. 

Birney is mysterious as Richard, who often denies the role mental health played in his son’s actions. He shines in a scene where he explains that parents always see the best in their children. Dowd proves, once again, why she is one of the greatest working actresses today. She gets to the heart of being a mother: her unrelenting love for her son and guilt for not seeing what he was capable of doing. Isaacs is phenomenal as the grief-ridden, yet controlled Jay. He’s particularly poignant in a scene where Jay’s emotions get the better of him. And Plimpton is a force as Gail, who will do anything to hold onto her anger because she believes it’s the only way to hold on to her son.

From the moment they’re all in the room together, a feeling of discomfort sets-in. We are introduced first to Jay and Gail, whom visibly are consumed by their grief and anger. This is a contrast to Richard and Linda, whom appear to be racked with guilt. As time progresses, the dialogue becomes increasingly truthful, exposing their humanity within. It’s when they become honest that we learn about the healing power of communication. In a world where everyone wants to talk and no one wants to listen, Krantz places us in a room with no escape and makes us listen. In doing so, he shows us how open conversation and active listening can lead to catharsis and healing.

At the start of their interaction, it feels as though the conversation has been rehearsed. They’ve had years of imagining this moment. In these scenes, Krantz holds a steady camera and makes clean cuts between his characters. Eventually, the ugliness rears its head. This is when Krantz switches to a shaky hand-held camera with quick, choppy edits between close-ups of his characters. This dramatic change punctuates his characters’ inner emotions.

Overall, Mass is an emotionally hard-hitting Film filled with four riveting performances that will leave you shaken.

Mass screens at Sundance:

Live Premiere: January 30 at 3 PM (EST)

On-Demand (available for 24 hours): February 1 at 10 AM (EST)

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