March 24 - 29, 2026
Join Canada Filmfest in celebrating the 20th Anniversary edition of #CanFilmFest at Scotiabank Theatre.
For complete program listing and for more information, checkthe Canfilmfest website at:
Capsule Reviews of Select Films:
JAMES (Canada 2026) ***
Directed by Max Train
JAMES (Winner of the Best Film, Oldenburg '24 // Nominated Best Debut, Raindance '25) is a Hoser-Noir comedy about an East Vancouver nihilist known as James, who finds new purpose after restoring a race bicycle salvaged from the trash. When a crooked dealer, aware of the bike's true value, steals it, Jame becomes trapped in a relentless pursuit, navigating Vancouver’s underbelly to reclaim his ride—or risk slipping back into the garbage heap of nihilism. Though the film bears similarities to stolen bike films like Vittorio De Sica’s BICYCLE THIEVES or the more recent SOULEYMAN’S STORY, in which the film’s protagonist spends more than half the movie’s time trying to get his bike back. The same can be said for the film JAMES, except that in the other two films, the bike is needed for the protagonist to earn a living. While the plot revolves around retrieving the stolen bike, the film gradually reveals that the journey is really about James trying to find meaning in his life. The arthouse black and white film, which requires some patience to sit through, shows that the bike represents his purpose, self-worth, and the search for identity, which were missing before the bike existed.
PLAN C (Canada 2025) **½
Directed by Scott Anthony Cabvalheiro
Siblings Clare and Danny find themselves fugitives after a bungled robbery, leading them on a perilous journey filled with high-speed pursuits, moral dilemmas, and shocking revelations in the crime thriller "Plan C.” Nothing really fresh about the story here. The goods are being given to the criminals so that they are after the brother/sister as well as the cops for the robbery. A bit of the plot is revealed as the film progresses so that the audience is in the dark for most of the time. The film contains lots of swearing, with almost all the characters speaking the same way, while angry most of the time. It is a fierce, angry, and nuanced film where there set sot be little hope in the world. Despite Claire’s love (she is nicknamed Claire-Bear by her brother) for Danny, they argue most of the time. The only good and hope comes at the very end of the film, a little too late for goodness in a story full of hate, anger, and spite.
