Film critic | Peter Howell Night Vision

"The Hunt" alarmingly mirrors current politics and panics

Starring Betty Gilpin, Hilary Swank, Ike Barinholtz, Emma Roberts, Wayne Duvall, Amy Madigan and Reed Birney. Written by Nick Cuse and Da...

"Sorry We Missed You" a bleak depiction of life in the fast-delivery lane

Starring Kris Hitchen, Debbie Honeywood, Rhys Stone, Katie Proctor and Ross Brewster. Written by Paul Laverty. Directed by Ken Loach. Ope...

"Portrait of a Lady on Fire" sets the female gaze ablaze

Starring Noémie Merlant, Adèle Haenel, Valeria Golino and Luana Bajrami. Written and directed by Céline Sciamma. Now playing at TIFF Bell...

Movies my dad would have loved

My dear ol’ dad, John Peter Howell, used to tell me about an unwritten rule in the Royal Air Force, where he served as an aircraft mechan...

"Parasite" is a savage, surprising class satire that pricks the conscience

Starring Song Kang-ho, Choi Woo-shik, Lee Sun-kyun, Park So-dam, Cho Yeo-jeong, Lee Jung-eun, Chang Hyae-jin, Jung Hyeon-jun and Jung Zis...

Time to find the winter boots -- again!

How is it possible that it has been nearly a year since we made the annual trek to Park City, Utah, in order to attend my favourite film ...

Seeing Allred my festival fave

Without a doubt, my favourite film at the festival this year was Seeing Allred, a fast-paced doc about U.S. women’s rights attorney Glori...

Sunny days at Sundance 2018

Park City, Utah -- I beg to differ with the cranky movie industry folks who left L.A.'s palm trees and their own well-lined palms to enjo...

'We are all connected,' climate panel told

Park City, Utah — Introducing the New Climate panel convened for Sundance 2018, festival director John Cooper joked that the organization...

This is Home: A Refugee Story

Park City, Utah — The Sundance program log line for This is Home: A Refugee Story, in the World Documentary Competition at this year’s fe...

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Movies I can't live without

Toronto Star movie critic Peter Howell has written a book about his 25 favourite movies, with highly personal reviews from Apocalypse Now to The Wizard of Oz.

Here's a sample of his review of 2001: A Space Odyssey, his all-time favourite film:

"It was billed as The Ultimate Trip and the hyperbole was justified, then as now.

Stanley Kubrick's space opus still seems like the future, 52 years after its release and 19 years after its significant title year. It never gets old and I never tire of seeing it, even after 50-plus viewings..."