Marketed by production-company Walden Media as a reduced-scale Chronicles of Narnia, Bridge to Terabithia, based on the novels by Katherine Paterson, is certainly smaller, but the ambition is far more adult. Alienated farm-boy Jess (sensitively played by Josh Hutcherson) is an artist at heart but is bullied at school and under-appreciated by his large family, as his parents struggle to pay the bills. When the expressive and free-spirited Lesley (AnnaSophia Robb) enters his life, the two become friends and create their own fantasy world, dubbed Terabithia.

Directed by Ray Lawrence

Starring Gabriel Byrne and Laura Linney

Family drama comes under the spotlight in this Australian offering from Ray Lawrence, director of the internationally-acclaimed Lantana. In a return to similar thematic territory, Lawrence explores a tense family dynamic, in a story adapted from the Raymond Carver short story So Much Water So Close To Home. Stewart (Byrne) and Claire (Linney) are a New South Wales couple with a troubled past, whose lives are further complicated when Stuart and his buddies discover the body of a murdered Aboriginal girl, while fishing in a remote valley. Their decision to leave the body, and even postpone reporting the discovery to the authorities, exposes simmering social tensions within their isolated town of Jindabyne.

Labspace Studio is single-handedly changing the way artists and audiences interact. Maybe irreparably. On Saturday May 5, the studio hosted its debut show í¢â‚¬Å“The Lab Sessions 1.0: Nodes and Naught Codesí¢â‚¬  which brought together more than a dozen young and emerging artists, dancers, musicians, sculptors, and writers from the Toronto area. The show was the first in a series of í¢â‚¬Å“Interdisciplinary and Interactive Art Partiesí¢â‚¬  that combines the genres of house party, art gallery, and performance show in a free-flowing melíƒ ©e in which the artists performed their works amongst the partiers, infiltrating and surprising their audience like devious children at their parentsí¢â‚¬â„¢ dinner party.

Deerhunter

Fluorescent Grey

Kranky

Dntel

Dumb Luck

Sub Pop

When Dntelí¢â‚¬â„¢s Life Is Full of Possibilities came out in 2001, it blew my mind. Seriously, it was one of those albums I continuallyí¢â‚¬”and likely annoyinglyí¢â‚¬”pushed on friends for years, raving about clicks & cuts and electronic mastery. Now, six years later, Jimmy Tamborelloí¢â‚¬â„¢s Dntel is back with Dumb Luck, and it comes as a bit of a mixed blessing. Like Possibilities, the follow-up boasts a barrage of guest vocalists, including Conor Oberst, Jenny Lewis, Fog and Grizzly Bear. So many in fact that they leave little room for Tamborelloí¢â‚¬â„¢s previous play on ambient cut-and-paste structuresí¢â‚¬”something this record desperately needs. Instead, more traditional song structures dominate, as well as some rather cringe-worthy lyrics. To make matters worse, limp guitar lines also compete with Tamborelloí¢â‚¬â„¢s lush, electronic textures, taking away what he does best and making the record more of a lackluster indie affair than a memorable electronic one. Ií¢â‚¬â„¢m sad to say this, but no raving will be had this time around.

This year was the 20th Images Festival, and it seemed like something of a coming out party for this until-recently underground scene. With great venues stretching across Toronto and all kinds of mixed media and diverse programming, it seemed like a sure fire hit. Maybe I missed out on some of the more cutting edge programming (see Jesika Joyí¢â‚¬â„¢s article in this section on her video project, which screened at the Images Festival this year), or maybe it was just bad luck. Either way, I was treated to some pretty mediocre programming.

I have to admit that when I read the blurb for first time writer/director Paul Andrew Williamsí¢â‚¬â„¢s London To Brighton, I experienced a familiar sinking feeling.í‚   An í¢â‚¬Ëœindependent British gangster/thrillerí¢â‚¬â„¢ with an unknown cast and low budget immediately put me in mind of such recent cringeworthy Brit crime flicks as Crank, Revolver and Layer Cake only with lower production valuesí¢â‚¬ ¦ Thankfully though, London To Brighton is actually quite good. í‚  

In the baffling and often mind boggling, Suicide Club<!--[endif]-->, director Sion Sono, weaves an almost hallucinatory tale of an epidemic of rash suicides striking Tokyo. Young people throw themselves in front of trains, off buildings and out of windows, in an apparent new trend makes death í¢â‚¬Å“coolí¢â‚¬ . Detective Kuroda (Ryo Ishibashi) and his squad are called in to investigate, finding that a mysterious website and a rather odd teen pop group may have something to with all the suicides.

Welcome to this month's review section.í‚   We try and keep it as ecclectic and varied as possible, but always welcome suggestions, and of course, CD's to review.í‚   More reviews will be added throughout the month, so keep checking back.

RJD2

XL

Beggars Banquet

Ití¢â‚¬â„¢s been 3 years since RJD2 inspired us with tracks like í¢â‚¬Å“Ghostwriterí¢â‚¬ ; tracks that told a story without a word of narrative. In the interim, he released an album that was fairly forgettable. I was praying for a 3rd album that was a return to what I believe to be the best instrumentalist album since Jel first broke ground. From a purely instrumental perspective, this album is a step back backwards. RJD2 has always appeared as if he is a funk producer trapped in the hip hop era. The beats change up nicely, theyí¢â‚¬â„¢re blended well with the keys/samples that are layered over top, and they tell a story. That is about where the similarities with his past work end. I was expecting an RJ album, not RJ meets Air. Ití¢â‚¬â„¢s essentially a pop album with a really good producer behind it. Not that ití¢â‚¬â„¢s a bad album, but fans of what heí¢â‚¬â„¢s done are expecting something more along the lines of his original work when they see his name in bold.

Everyone likes a blockbuster from time to time. Check out the Flux issue's Reviews: Just Because You're Arty Part 1 and Part 2 below.

NOTES ON A SCANDAL (2006)

Richard Eyreí¢â‚¬â„¢s Notes On a Scandal, is the big-screen adaptation of Zoe Hellerí¢â‚¬â„¢s hit novel of the same name. It tells the story of Barbara Covett, a lonely and embittered teacher played with searing conviction by Dame Judi Dench, and her tumultuous relationship with the new teacher at her school, Cate Blanchettí¢â‚¬â„¢s Sheba Hart.