Cinema Usher is a new Scout column dedicated to detailing some of the best films playing in theatres with the when, where and why you should give a damn. Presented by Ken Tsui..

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DE PALMA

The Vancity Theatre, 1181 Seymour St. | July 12 & 14 | DETAILS
After four decades as Hollywood’s Freudian Id, film director Brian De Palma’s ambitious filmography is being revisited in Noah Baumbach (director of ‘Frances Ha’ and ‘Squid & the Whale’) and Jake Paltrow’s breezy documentary, ‘De Palma.’ Dripping in a trifecta of schlock, sex and grit, the iconic American director’s divisive films range from cult classics like ‘Carrie,’ ‘Scarface,’ ‘Mission: Impossible’ and ‘The Untouchables’ to guilty pleasures like ‘Mission to Mars,’ ‘Femme Fatale’ and ‘Snake Eyes’. Breathing new life into a Hollywood outlier’s ambitious oeuvre, the documentary is a candid primer for the uninitiated and a playful companion for those familiar with all 29 of his films. ‘De Palma’ plays at The Vancouver Film Centre concurrently with a truncated retrospective series featuring some of his best films.

SLEEPING GIANT

Black Dog Video, 3451 Cambie Street & 1470 Commercial Drive | Out July 12th | DETAILS
When it comes to movies, English-speaking Canada has a reputation for being the bumbling sidekick to Quebec’s effortless art-house cool, but Andrew Cividino’s ‘Sleeping Giant’ gives those of us who don’t speak French something to be proud of. Cividino’s debut film earnestly follows three boys summering in Thunder Bay. Their hormonal hi-jinx quickly devolve into atmospheric dread as complicated envy, peer pressure and confusion bubble up to the surface. With a naturalistic dialogue that borders on eavesdropping and an astute perspective of the teenage psyche, the movie transcends the overpopulated “coming-of- age” genre. Last year, ‘Sleeping Giant’ premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and scored a top prize at the Vancouver International Film Festival before touring across the country as part of the Toronto International Film Festival’s Canada Top Ten showcase. The film finally touches down on the shelves of Black Dog Video on July 12th.

A TOUCH OF ZEN

The Cinematheque, 1311 Howe Street | July 14-18, 29-31, August 1. | DETAILS
What do Quentin Tarantino, Wu-Tang Clan and ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ have in common? All three were shaped by ‘A Touch of Zen,’ a classic martial arts movie of the highest order. When a precocious slacker encounters a beautiful princess on the run, they join forces to face a deadly, blade-wielding army in an attempt to protect her family. Directed by the grandmaster of martial arts movies, King Hu, ‘A Touch of Zen’ sent Chinese cinema into a new artistic stratosphere and remains one of the country’s beloved achievements. Blending high-flying kicks, Buddhist philosophies and one bad-ass swordswoman, the bamboo forest showdown alone is worth the price of admission. Catch it in its restored glory along with Hu’s ‘Dragon Inn’ at the Cinematheque.