There is a Canadian director no one has ever heard of who has made three of the most interesting and unexpected pictures in recent years. His name is Matt Johnson, and the films include Blackberry (2023), Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie (2025), and Tony, released this weekend.
Blackberry, a $5 million production co-written and directed by Johnson (who also stars in the film), captures a decade of technological transformation. Set over ten years, it follows the rise and fall of Research in Motion, the company that created the BlackBerry mobile device. The film is widely regarded as one of the best depictions of business dynamics ever put on screen.
Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie is an inventive time-travel comedy about two aspiring rockers who dream of playing at Toronto’s Rivoli club. Combining a 20-year-old web series with a decade-long TV show, the film stitches together footage across decades through a Back to the Future-inspired plot.
Tony, Johnson’s latest work, is an annunciation of his arrival as a major filmmaker. The movie reimagines the biopic genre, offering a vivid portrayal of Anthony Bourdain’s summer in 1975 on Cape Cod. Set over three months, it follows Bourdain at the end of his sophomore year at Vassar College, seeking a fellowship to write a novel.
The film depicts Bourdain’s brash confidence as he aims to merge George Orwell’s Down and Out in Paris and London with Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, boasting that he invented the idea on the spot. When the fellowship committee denies him the prize, he steals money from his father’s wallet and heads to Cape Cod, where a girl he has a crush on is said to be.
A drunken encounter leaves Bourdain beaten unconscious in Provincetown. After being robbed, he arrives at the home of Chef (played by Antonio Banderas), who takes him in and places him in a hammock. Desperate to distance himself from his New Jersey family and spend time with his crush, Bourdain asks for work.
Chef wakes him daily with sea water, mirroring the intense kitchen environment where Bourdain learns the trade under a team of foul-mouthed, drug-addled staff. The film’s authenticity draws on the reality that few spaces are as inherently dramatic as restaurant kitchens, where injuries and addiction are common.
As Johnson subtly portrays Bourdain’s journey, he evolves from a self-confident but troubled youth into someone who begins to take responsibility for his mistakes. Dominic Sessa, who previously starred in The Holdovers with Paul Giamatti, delivers a compelling performance that imbues Bourdain with sadness and hunger.
The movie does not reference Bourdain’s eventual suicide, which occurred 43 years after this summer. It is a quiet, keenly observed and almost perfectly realized portrayal of growing up.