Piers Handling was right. This was a great year for the Toronto International Film Festival. I didn’t quite see any masterpieces, but as regular readers can attest, I have an annoying habit of tempering my enthusiasm at festivals, withholding that full rave out of fear of coming on too strong. Which is to say, plenty…
There are lots of reasons why Best Popular Film is a dumb idea. The biggest may be that such an Oscar category would reinforce the fallacy that there’s a hard line separating art from entertainment. Popcorn movies can be thoughtful, finely crafted, even profound. And supposed “art movies” can be a blast. The…
Named for the landmark 1989 Parliamentary Act (but not based on a true events), The Children Act follows British High Court judge Fiona, played by Emma Thompson, who must rule on a case concerning the survival of a teenage boy. The boy (Dunkirk’s Fionn Whitehead), who is a Jehovah’s Witness, and just months short of…
There’s one truly great, chills-inducing scene in Bradley Cooper’s directorial debut, the latest Hollywood remake of A Star Is Born (Grade: B). It’s the moment when all the pent-up crowdpleasing catharsis the movie has been withholding under its ramshackle, dive-bar minimalism comes erupting out of it like a geyser of…
In the months to come, you’re going to be hearing a lot about Roma (Grade: A-). Alfonso Cuarón’s visually sumptuous, intimately epic (or is it epically intimate?) return to the Mexico City of his youth won the top prize at Venice a few days ago, just as the last movie from the director’s buddy and countryman,…
The last time Barry Jenkins had a movie playing in Toronto, the whole festival seemed to fall collectively under its spell—drawn as deeply to its hypnotic shades of blue as its main character, the agonizingly withdrawn Chiron, was drawn to the crashing waves of Miami. It was love at first sight for many of us (this…
There’s an escalator at the Scotiabank Theatre, the venue where just about all of the TIFF press and industry screenings are held, that’s notorious for breaking down. It goes several stories up at a steep angle, like the long slope of a particularly extreme rollercoaster, and its habit of grinding to a halt (of…
The best thing about the latest, 11th by a comprehensive count, and (let’s be honest here) probably not final Halloween movie is John Carpenter’s new score. The director-composer has returned to the franchise to offer a fresh arrangement of the iconic tinkle of piano he laid down for his 1978 slasher masterpiece, and…
What do we see when we look at Robert Redford? Now in his 80s, the actor has reached that moment of his career, familiar only to performers of a certain age and legacy, when his mere presence confers the weight of history. Redford’s never been much of a chameleon; even when he was young, it was usually just him up…
“This year, we have one of the strongest lineups we’ve ever had.” That’s what Piers Handling, retiring director and CEO of the Toronto International Film Festival, told those of us in the audience at last night’s opening-night screening at the almost cathedral-like Princess Of Wales Theatre. It’s the kind of thing…
Now that Rian Johnson’s disrupted the Force of Star Wars fans with his excellent The Last Jedi, the filmmaker is now preparing to piss off yet another fanbase: Agatha Christie loyalists. Deadline reports that Johnson has recruited Daniel Craig for a contemporary murder mystery entitled Knives Out. The original script…
Usually, you’re lucky if you look at a film festival lineup and see a handful of interesting movies in the mix. But this year’s Toronto International Film Fest is no ordinary beast.
Haifaa al-Mansour’s new film, Mary Shelley, tells the story of the world-famous novelist when she was know as Mary Godwin. Starring Elle Fanning as the titular author, the film begins when Godwin is just 18, and follows the events in her life that inspired her to write Frankenstein, jump-starting the science fiction…
Director Susanna White’s new film, Woman Walks Ahead, follows the relationship between famed warrior and holy man Sitting Bull (Michael Greyeyes) and his confidant and portrait painter Catherine Weldon (Jessica Chastain). Set in the late 19th century, Woman Walks Ahead uses the dispossession of the Lakota people’s…
Director Susanna White’s new film, Woman Walks Ahead, follows the relationship between famed warrior and holy man Sitting Bull (Michael Greyeyes) and his confidant and portrait painter Catherine Weldon (Jessica Chastain). Set in the late 19th century, Woman Walks Ahead uses the dispossession of the Lakota people’s…
Filmmaker Haifaa al-Mansour is Saudi Arabia’s first female director. Her feature film debut, 2012’s Wadjda, received critical acclaim and became the country’s first official Oscar submission (for Best Foreign Language Film) although it wasn’t nominated. Al-Mansour’s follow up is Mary Shelley, the story of the…
Disclaimer: This video was filmed in September 2017 before the rape allegations against David Blane came to light.
Filmmaker Haifaa al-Mansour is Saudi Arabia’s first female director. Her feature film debut, 2012’s Wadjda, received critical acclaim and became the country’s first official Oscar submission (for Best Foreign Language Film) although it wasn’t nominated. Now al-Mansour’s following up her debut with Mary Shelley, the…
Haifaa al-Mansour’s new film Mary Shelley tells the story of the world-famous novelist when she was know as Mary Godwin. Starring Elle Fanning as the eponymous author, the film begins when Godwin is just 18, and follows the events in her life that inspired her to write Frankenstein, including her relationship with…
Sean Menard calls his new documentary, The Carter Effect, a love letter to Toronto, one that examines how the culture in Canada’s biggest city was changed by the presence of the Toronto Raptors and NBA All-Star Vince Carter. In the video above, Menard tells us how he got de facto Toronto ambassador Drake to appear in…
