Review of This Movie Is Broken (2010) by Marco P — 26 Feb 2011

For someone who's seen Broken Social Scene perform live twice, it is certainly a treat to see the entire live core-- complete with guests Emily Haines, Amy Millan, and Leslie Feist-- even if it's onscreen. While the Harbourfront gig wasn't necessarily the best one they had, it was the first time in a long time that everyone in the band (including Feist, Amy Millan, and Emily Haines) participated. That to me was the first draw of this film, good tunes from a truly great band.

The second was that this movie essentially is a love letter to Toronto. Critics have been middling about the interspersing of the gig at Toronto with the story of two lost-and-found lovers who attend the same gig. This I think was the director's device of putting the city of Toronto on the spotlight along with Canada's famed export.

Essentially, Toronto and BSS are symbiotic of each other. Torquil Campbell, lead singer of the band Stars, when asked to comment on BSS' debut album Feel Good Lost, said this: "this is the first time anyone's made Toronto sound beautiful." That's how I feel about seeing the movie, it made Toronto look beautiful.