Luke Sneyd

Luke Sneyd is a writer and musician. When he isn't doing film reviews for BiffBamPop, you can bet he's gaming, or following one of his many tech obsessions. The guitarist for Toronto electro-rockers Mountain Mama in the early 2000s, Luke went solo releasing All of Us Cities (2007) and Salvo (2009). His song "The Prisoner" earned him a finalist in the Great Canadian Band Challenge in 2007. He founded Charge of the Light Brigade in 2010, releasing The Defiant Ones the following year. As a writer, he's penned and produced several short films, and with Paul Thompson wrote a zombie TV-series called Grave New World. The unproduced pilot for GNW won first place from the Page International Screenwriting awards, as well as prizes from Slamdance and the Cloud Creek People's Pilot Competition. Then this other zombie show came along. You can find links to all Luke's projects at http://about.me/lukesneyd.

By Luke Sneyd April 12, 2014April 12, 2014

Sorcerer: A Forgotten Classic Blows Up Again?

There was no magic in the timing of William Friedkin’s 1977 release Sorcerer. An unusual thriller about four men transporting trucks full of nitroglycerin over treacherous jungle terrain to extinguish … Continue reading Sorcerer: A Forgotten Classic Blows Up Again?

By Luke Sneyd April 11, 2014April 11, 2014

I’ve already written two pieces on TIFF’s Paul Verhoeven retrospective (“Agent Provocateur: The Films of Paul Verhoeven” and “Comedy of Eros: Verhoven’s Lurid Pair”). I never figured I was a … Continue reading Starship Troopers, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bugs

By Luke Sneyd March 13, 2014March 13, 2014

Comedy of Eros: Verhoeven’s Lurid Pair

The cultural excavations of the 80s have reached near the bottom of that embarrassing crevasse (parachute pants! purple reigns!). It’s only logical then that our voracious fashion-media-money machine is spreading … Continue reading Comedy of Eros: Verhoeven’s Lurid Pair

By Luke Sneyd February 27, 2014February 27, 2014

The Cost of Courage: Human Rights Watch Festival 2014

Boy do we have it good. For sure, every place, every culture has its struggles, its persecuted communities, its tensions between wealth and poverty and how to mitigate the differences … Continue reading The Cost of Courage: Human Rights Watch Festival 2014

By Luke Sneyd February 26, 2014February 25, 2014

February Faves: Sneydman’s Favourite Musicians in Movies

You’re good at one thing, you can do anything, right? Plenty of musicians have figured they could transfer their talents from the concert stage to celluloid. It’s all about charisma, … Continue reading February Faves: Sneydman’s Favourite Musicians in Movies

By Luke Sneyd February 14, 2014February 14, 2014

So Justin Bieber’s partying with Brazilian call-girls and Lady Gaga sleeps with her bandmates. It’s all a bit… *yawn*, ya know? Each era has its debauched poster-children, from Pete Doherty … Continue reading What Blues Now? Ultra-Rare Stones Doc Screens at TIFF

By Luke Sneyd December 19, 2013

This Cartoon Is Trying To Break Your Heart: Grave of the Fireflies

A hard-hitting, harrowing and realistic portrayal of a young brother and sister suffering the ravages of Japan’s losing World War II ordeal. A film that Roger Ebert calls one of … Continue reading This Cartoon Is Trying To Break Your Heart: Grave of the Fireflies