by Jacqueline Valencia On September 16, 2022, I met up with LA-based actress Verona Blue. I’ve known Verona for a long time since my later goth days in the clubs. Verona has been a local Toronto DJ, alternative model, animal rescuer, and always an up and coming actress. I hadn’t
by Jacqueline Valencia Director: Miles Warren Toxic masculinity hurts everyone. It carries itself through intergenerational trauma and can prevent tenderness and empathy in times of conflict. In Bruiser, Miles Warren explores the complexities of toxic masculinity in a nuanced coming of age story. Fourteen year old Darious (Jayln Hall) comes
by Jacqueline Valencia Directors: Sam Soko and Lauren DeFilippo The answer to ending poverty is to share and not to hoard the means by which everyone in the world can have their basic human needs met and rights protected. World poverty is very much tied into capitalist ventures and climate
by Jacqueline Valencia It’s Toronto Film Festival time and as accredited press, Critical Focus is ON IT. First thing’s first, I would like to acknowledge the work of a lot of film PR companies who have reached out with screeners for those of us who can not make it entirely
by Jacqueline Valencia I’ve been accused of loving Toronto too much. In these dire times, with the way the city is run, it’s hard to keep loving a city that will either drive you out or eat you up whole. Born and raised here (my parents decided to take my
by Jacqueline Valencia Audiences need more horror movies with clever stories. Horror movie lovers can be discerning and quite critical of what they will champion. I do love horror and I’ve loved it since I was a kid. Nothing better than having a pile of VHS tapes to babysit you
by Jacqueline Valencia Jessica (Tilda Swinton) is a Scottish orchid farmer living in Medellin, Colombia. One night she is suddenly awakened by an unsettling, “Bang!”. The camera sits still watching her pondering, maybe waiting for the sound to happen again. The rustle of leaves, her breath, even the buzz of
by Jacqueline Valencia First of all, I’d like to commend the Toronto Reel Asian Festival for making this festival accessible to all. It helps reviewers and audiences like me, to be part of a very important cultural event during a harrowing time. I would like to see accessibility this way
by Jacqueline Valencia Dominic and Daniel (both played by Felix-Antoine Duval) are twins who have been separated at birth. Their mother is a witch who lives in the woods with her much younger lover. Dominic was believed to be dead and his brother Daniel’s existence was only speculated. In a
by Jacqueline Valencia Earwig Directed by Lucile Hadžihalilović Sometime in the 1940s, a silent little girl named Mia lives in an dark apartment with a man called Aalbert who takes care to install teeth of ice in her mouth every day. This little ritual translates into other odd routines throughout
Critical Focus 