Supernatural-do you believe?

 

Title: Supernatural

Languages: English, Catalan, Spanish, French

Format: 4K

Running time: 84min

Year of completion:  2025

Production companies: Nanouk Films, Harald House, Massala

Production, Glia films

Director: Ventura Durall

https://www.instagram.com/taskovski_films/?hl=en#

 HOT DOCS FILM FESTIVAL 2025

Do you believe in the Supernatural, Magic, Spirits or Shaman? 

Well, Andre Malby, the healer with special supernatural powers, had a medical doctor son named Mathu who wasn't so sure and became estranged from his father.

A woman who believes Malby healed her wants Mathu to attend a sort of tribute gathering to show appreciation for Malby, who has already passed by this time, many years later.

Mathu does not want to travel to meet with the woman and ignores the request for a while before finally accepting the journey. How do you know what's a lie,  manipulation, suggestion, or a real healing process that is something science can't measure?

Mathu doesn't become a believer at the end of his voyage, but he does reconcile the resentment he felt towards his father over his lifetime.

This film wasn't what I had expected, but it was an interesting look at believers, faith, and skeptics who want scientific proof before they can believe.

 

Screened at the Hot Docs Film Festival.  No release date available at the time of this post.

Shamed- A Hot Docs Review

SHAMED

By MATT GALLAGHER

Running Time: 85 minutes

How do you know when a person goes from being someone who wants to right an injustice to vigilantism and breaking the law?

Jason Nassr, the youtube host of “Creeper Hunter” TV, from Windsor, Ontario turned into that guy.

Described as a narcissist in the film, he does not have any remorse for ruining the lives of the families of at least 5 men.

Jason would set out to lure men online with fake profiles of young girls or boys and then meet up with them in a gotcha style and then posting to his Youtube show to out the person, whether the person actually did anything or not, Jason put it out to the universe to destroy that mans life. Five of these men ended up dying of suicide because their lives were ruined.

Their families left seeking justice for the loss of their loved ones. Jason was charged in connection to these deaths for luring and provoking them.

When he was charged the videos were removed from his online channel but due to our lax court system he ended up getting a very light slap on the wrist. Jason always insisting that he did nothing wrong and they deserved it and he helped take them out of society and away from harming anyone even though none of them actually had any previous alleged allegations or charges.

Jason is an arrogant and rude and self righteous individual who thinks the court system fails and in his case I guess it did, it failed to give him a sentence that would affect his life the way he did to others. He is out of jail on home arrest while the men are dead and gone forever.

Where is the line drawn?

#Skoden-who and what? a Hot Docs Review

 #skoden

A film by Damien Eagle Bear,

World Premiere at Hot Docs

If you aren't from Turtle Island's Indigenous community you might not know what #skoden is.  It's slang for "let's go then".  This is the story of a hashtag and meme gone wrong.  

Early in the beginning of social media, a friend of Pernell Bad Arm posted a photo of Pernell with his arms up in a fighting pose.  It was posted with the hashtag #skoden, and for some reason, it went viral.  Pernell was a friendly man with addiction problems.  He had a case worker who cared about him and friends to hang out with, but he couldn't get over his addiction issues, which are influenced by the residential schools trauma.  

This documentary is told from an Indigenous perspective after Pernell's passing. With interviews with his caring case worker and one of his good friends.  They want to paint a picture of a man who was more than the indigenous stereotype of someone with an addiction problem.  He was a kind soul who was more than just a silly meme that didn't reflect who he was as a person.

This is a real look at the sad conditions men like him are in sometimes and how they survive.

It wants you to look past the addiction to the person and the reasons he became addicted.

Addiction is very sad to watch because there's only so much people can do to help, but they still need support and opportunities.

This is the kind of documentary that they should show in High Schools to teach people about compassion and to help not hurt this community.

Dennis Bad Arm and Mark Brave Rock

Ai Weiwei re imagines Puccini - Hot Docs Review

AI WEIWEI'S TURANDOT

Director Maxim Derevianko

Canadian Premiere at Hot Docs 2025, 

spotlighted in Big Ideas

Screening at TIFF Lightbox Sat May 3rd at 7:30pm

Screen Time: 77 Minutes

Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjpTTA4lfEo   

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aiweiweisturandotfilm

“Everything is Art. Everything is Politics.” ~Ai Weiwei

I'm the first to admit that I am not an opera fan and know nothing about it.  I also do not know much about AI Weiwei other than the fact that he is an iconic political artist.

When I began watching this film, I wasn't sure I would be interested in it, but after the initial Opera background info, I started to learn a whole lot of other things.  I knew about the Puccini Operas, but I do not understand them, so I never investigated further.  From this film, I learned that the Puccini Turandot Opera was a Chinese Opera even though Puccini was Italian, and the Opera was never finished.

AI Weiwei's re-imagined version was to debut at the Rome Opera House.

He enlisted his old friend and esteemed choreographer Chiang Ching, 

This production was a bit of a full circle moment for AI Weiwei, when he was a young man, he was an extra in the Turandot Opera in 1987 when his friend Chiang Ching was the choreographer.  He had a small part but learned a great deal from his experience. Bringing it back with his vision was going to be a massive undertaking.

His vision was to create a new kind of stage and innovate the costuming.  Change the choreography and even the music, had the musical director's vision.  They had 2 Music directors because of the timing of the production.

The Rome Opera invited him to direct his version in 2018. This was a massive undertaking, and unfortunately, in 2020, when the whole world shut down, so did this production.  It picked up 2 years later, but they lost the original music director and replaced by Ukranian maestro Oksana Lyniv. 

Added to the still lingering COVID-19 was the beginning of the Ukranian war.

There are many political references and influences from world events in this version of the Opera that make it much more modern and charged.

AI Weiwei is no stranger to challenges, and they forged on to their debut at the Opera House.

This documentary is visually appealing, and the background story is fascinating.  If you love Opera, then you will love it that much more.

I still don't fully understand it all, but I learned a lot more than I knew before watching it.

Another interesting fact is that Julian Lennon is one of the producers.