What to watch this weekend: Canadian horror for Friday the 13th – and the high and low bars for FUBAR on Netflix
On Friday the 13th comes the first episode of this new Canadian horror whodunit from the creators of the anthology series Slasher (Aaron Martin and Ian Carpenter). A group of true-crime influencers attend the opening weekend of a resort built on the site of a diabolic slaughter 30 years earlier, and you'll be unsurprised to learn that they start to be knocked off one at a time next. Paula Brancati – of Degrassi: The Next Generation and also one of many Slasher alums in the cast – stars as a scream queen aging out of 'crying and dying' roles, while Will & Grace's Eric McCormack hams it up as a TV chef who serves up vegan dishes shaped like severed body parts. Stage greats Yanna McIntosh and Gray Powell play a couple of RV-ing normies who get stranded at the motel during a hurricane. It's solid self-aware Canadian genre TV that doesn't pretend to be anything more that a bloody good time. Though it premieres Friday, new episodes stream Tuesdays.
ROMCON: Who the F**k is Jason Porter?, Prime Video
More Canadian horror streaming as of Friday the 13th: This two-part doc follows up on the true-crime tale of a Toronto-area romance scammer some may remember from a 2022 Toronto Life feature (by Jane Gerster, who makes an appearance). The man sometimes known as Jason Porter finally met his match in a real estate broker named Heather – who he moved in with during the pandemic, and who persisted until charges were laid once she figured out his scam. I admire the bravery of the many women who speak out on camera about their experience being love-bombed followed by a disturbing mix of gaslighting, fraud and theft. 'You don't want to be known as the woman who got fooled by a con man,' says one. Director Henry Roosevelt keeps things light-ish in this doc being sold as 'the dark side of dating in one of North America's largest cities,' but in the margins is sad commentary of how police can brush off 'domestic' crimes and the glacial pace of the Ontario criminal justice system.
Bottoms, Crave
When this subversive spin on the teen-sex comedy from Toronto-born filmmaker Emma Seligman was released in cinemas in 2023, The Globe and Mail's Barry Hertz described it as Fight Club meets But I'm a Cheerleader meets Wet Hot American Summer. After a run-in with the football team, lesbian virgin besties PJ (Rachel Sennott) and Josie (Ayo Edebiri) start a feminist self-defence club in order to attract their cheerleader crushes, and the proceedings only get more satirical and surreal from there. 'While Bottoms' final leg dips ever so slightly into genuine emotion – forgetting its detached, ironic cool – Seligman's concoction is delightfully strange and unabashedly, proudly queer,' wrote Hertz in his Critic's Pick review. The film lands on Crave on June 13.
FUBAR, Netflix
Arnold Schwarzenegger's action-comedy series is back for a second season, with creator Nick Santora having upped neither his action nor his comedy game since the show's first batch of episodes two years ago. The former Governator and Monica Barbaro (seen in the interim as Joan Baez in A Complete Unknown) return as father and daughter CIA operatives Luke and Emma Brunner – their cover blown and now living in an overcrowded house in an undisclosed location with family members, exes and fellow spies. Mostly shot in Ontario, FUBAR's cup runneth over with Canucks from Jay Baruchel to Enrico Colantoni, but only Burnaby, B.C.'s Carrie-Anne Moss, a new addition this season as a former East German spy, manages to elicit so much as a smile from a script crammed with leaden exposition and wan one-liners. So, why am I including it on the list this week, you may ask …
FUBAR, Netflix (and CBC Gem and Crave with Starz)
… because FUBAR the series is just the latest Hollywood product to unconscionably muddy the search results of an earlier, superior Canadian screen classic by using the same title (see: Paul Haggis's Crash versus David Cronenberg's; Aaron Sorkin's The Newsroom vs. Ken Finkleman's). It's my duty as a patriotic watcher then to remind viewers of Michael Dowse's cult 2002 mockumentary, FUBAR – in which Edmonton metalhead misadventurers Terry (David Lawrence ) and Dean (Paul Spence) have their beer-shotgunning bromance complicated by a diagnosis of testicular cancer. In 2023, Globe film critic Barry Hertz deemed it the eighth best comedy ever produced in this country: 'a high-beer mark of Canadian comedy, as committed to its central bit as it is sincere in its love for its 'just give'r' heroes.' The film is leaving Netflix on June 30, but both FUBAR and FUBAR 2 (2010) are also on CBC Gem and Crave with Starz. The short-lived TV series FUBAR Age of Computer (2017) is, alas, only available for rent or purchase at the moment as far as I can tell.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBC
2 minutes ago
- CBC
'It's very fun': DiverseCity Festival hosts 4th event in Summerside
Social Sharing Quincy Cumayas has been in Canada for a year, but she found herself centre stage at Sunday's DiverseCity festival event in Summerside, P.E.I., singing for the attendees. It was the 10-year-old's first time attending one of these events, but she has sung at other events in the past where she sang things like O Canada and the Filipino national anthem. The event brought a wide range of different cultures together at the Lefurgey Cultural Centre. "It's very fun actually. I can, like, meet other people, like, other cultures," said Cumayas, who started singing when she was just three years old. She said she liked the event and would come back to another. The event, put on by the Immigration and Refugee Services Association, is set up to help connect Islanders with newcomers, allowing both to learn more about their respective cultures. Longtime attendee Said Akbar Sadat has been coming to DiverseCity events since 2018. He's originally from Afghanistan, but came to the Island in 2007. He was at the festival serving up traditional Afghani food. "They love it, they said it's a unique food, Afghani food," said Sadat. He started preparing food at 4 a.m. and then drove to the event five hours later. Sadat said he enjoyed trying different foods, such as Filipino, Indian and Mexican options. Event co-ordinator Hai Nguyen, who is originally from Vietnam, said he enjoys seeing people from other backgrounds come together. "I feel so happy when I see them, you know, with different kind of languages," he said. Even if Nguyen can't understand the languages in the musical performances, he still enjoys it. "We have dancing, we have singing, and we have instruments ... but actually I really enjoy the melody," said Nguyen.
CTV News
31 minutes ago
- CTV News
Troubadour Festival Summer Concert Series shines through the rain
The second edition of this years Troubadour Festival Summer Concert Series was took over Meridian Place Saturday night. The local artist showcase began at 5:00 p.m. featuring Doofus, Sydney Riley, Dorene and The 99s who finished off the night. Halfway through the local showcase, the skies opened with rain, but it did not stop the artists from giving it their all on the stage. the skies opened up during the Troubadour Festival on July 26, 2025 Rain fell on the crowd during the Troubadour Festival Summer Concert Series in Barrie on July 26, 2025 (CTV NEWS/ Luke Simard) 'It was awesome to see everyone stick around until the very end it was amazing so happy we did this,' said Sydney Riley. Dorene kept the crowd together as the rain lightened. It was the groups first time playing as a duo and the pair said their gig was a success. 'This was our first time playing as a duo so that experience definitely solidified our belief in our abilities as a duo, so I think were definitely going to keep going,' said drummer Gray Laine. Dorene took the stage as the skies lightened after a heavy rainfall Dorene rocks the stage at the Troubadour Festival local artist showcase in Barrie (CTV NEWS/Luke Simard) The sun slowly peaked through the clouds as The 99s took the stage to finish the night off. Barrie native and vocalist Carleigh Aikins always appreciative of performing in her hometown. 'Its always amazing to return home and feel that everyone still supports me and supports what were doing and supports the arts here in our community,' said Aikins. With another successful summer concert series, executive director of Barrie Downtown BIA Craig Stevens said the local music scene is alive and well. The 99s headlined Troubadour Festival Summer Concert Series on July 26, 2025 in Barrie The 99s headlined Troubadour Festival Summer Concert Series on July 26, 2025 in Barrie (CTV NEWS/ Luke Simard) 'The local acts are just its amazing to see you don't realize the talent that you've got locally and it provides an opportunity to showcase it and have the community come out and support it,' said Stevens. With the performers inspired to keep going and improving their music careers thanks to the Troubadour Festival Summer Concert Series. 'So many local musicians came out just to see me so there was a lot more talent than anyone even knew so just keep on supporting local,' said Riley. With Aikins praising the Troubadour Festival and the opportunity it offers to artists and the community. 'The troubadour has so many iterations this is a really great version of it because the community gets to participate for free so that's wonderful and I hope it continues for many years to come,' said Aikins. The Troubadour Summer Concert Series will return to downtown Barrie on August 16 with multiple Juno Award winner Hawksley Workman. A local artist showcase will once again open the festival. Open Air Dunlop will feature an 'Eats on the Streets' festival throughout the day before the local opener showcase.
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Anishnaabe Days 2025: celebration of culture, community and connection
Naawi-Oodena was filled with people celebrating and paying tribute to Indigenous culture. Hosted by the Treaty 1 Development Corporation, the two-day festival brought together community members and visitors for a weekend of music, dance, art and storytelling. The event featured a traditional powwow, Anishinaabe Idol, an Indigenous market and children's activities — all with free admission. 'Four years ago, when the first one was coming up, our governing council said: 'There's no real big urban event for our membership.' And they said, let's start that happening,' said Cody Mercer, chief development officer, reflecting on the event's history. 'The first one was held at Assiniboine Downs and we had about 800 people attend. Today, about 3,000 to 3,500.' This year marks the first time the event was held at Naawi-Oodena. 'It's the largest urban, jointly held reserve in Canada. It gives our members a site to hold these events,' Mercer said. 'It's not just Treaty 1 holding events here. We have a lot of communities reach out and say, 'We need a site for our urban membership to do something,' and we say, 'Come on down, you're more than welcome.'' Naawi-Oodena is a 65-hectare urban reserve that previously housed the Kapyong Barracks military base. The site continues to host events for various Indigenous organizations, including upcoming gatherings for wildfire evacuees organized by the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs.
