Sharing the Blogging Love (TIFF Edition)

In Toronto the film equivalent of Christmas kicks off tomorrow with the launch of the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival. This year I will be doing something a little different for my TIFF coverage. In the past, due to my TIFF schedules, I have posted my reviews a few days after the festival ends. Starting tomorrow I will be conducting my TIFF coverage with the introduction of the daily TIFF Picks feature. Each day I will highlight two or three less publicized films to keep an eye out for. As of Saturday I will be featuring a new TIFF review each day. Since it is impossible for to see every film at TIFF, here are some other sites that will be covering the festival as well:

Row Three

Black Sheep Reviews

Criticize This!

Toronto Film Scene

Mamo

The Matinee

Movie Moxie

Toronto Screen Shots

Eternal Sunshine of the Logical Mind

Just Atad

TheSubstream.com

Okinawa Assault

Toronto J-Film Pow Wow

The Final Girl Project

Twitch

So consider yourself covered for the next week when it comes to all things TIFF.

The TIFF Rules

A few months ago, when I was covering Hot Docs, I shared five tips for surviving film festivals/movie marathons. Today I want talk about the TIFF rules. I do not mean the rules in regards to how you order TIFF tickets, or the line-up policies for star-studded films at Roy Thomson hall or the Visa Screening Room. I am talking about the five rules that each person attending TIFF has for how they will experience the festival. There are no right or wrong rules, as these rules are unique to each individual person. For some people the rules may consist of only watching Midnight Madness genre films, or only films which feature big name Hollywood starts, etc. The only common aspect to each person’s rule is that at some point at least one rule will get broken. Here are the five rules I have when attending TIFF:

1) No September films: TIFF is notorious for playing a few films (e.g. The Informant!, Never Let Me Go, Buried, and Easy A) that will be released worldwide while the festival is still going on. I generally try to avoid any TIFF film that opens in the month of September as I figure that I can see the same film for far cheaper in regular theatres. Unfortunately this rule inadvertently got broken this year as I got tickets to Gus Van Sant’s Restless not realizing that its release date was the second Friday of TIFF. The funny thing is, breaking rule number one was a result of rule number two.

2) Keep my films close, and my theatre locations closer: There was a time when I use to get a thrill out of running halfway across town to catch a film at TIFF. However, the older I get the less appealing this becomes. I noticed in the last few years I have starting picking films that either play in the same location or at least in near by locations. For example, since I am already seeing Herzog’s Into the Abyss at the Ryerson theatre I opt to see Restless immediately after instead of trying to make it to the TIFF Lightbox theatre in a in a mere five minutes.

3) Allow a few “demon” picks: Sometimes when attending the festival when friends are too, it is a good idea to catch a few films together. Even if this means seeing some films that you initially had no desire to see. For example, in the past I have attended TIFF with my good friend Colleen (a.k.a. demon). While a few of her picks have been less than stellar, both Tuck Everlasting and Colin Firth’s Trauma painfully come to mind, she has pulled out numerous winners that I would have missed otherwise. Some of these films include: In America, The Magdalene Sisters, and A Film with Me in It.

4) At least one Canadian film: I usually aim to see one film from every category (e.g. Special Presentations, Midnight Madness, Discovery, Contemporary World Cinema, etc.), but I make a special point to squeeze in a few Canadian films. Regardless of whether they come from big name Canadian directors, like Cronenberg, or an up and coming Canadian director in the Visions category, I do not feel right attend a festival as big as TIFF and not supporting my country’s homegrown talent. So whether I am seeing 8 films or 32 films, I make sure to incorporate at least one Canadian feature or short.

5) Randomness is good: Every year I pick one or two films at random. I do not even read what the program book has to say on the particular film until my picks are in. I like the idea of going into a film completely blind and possibly discovering something truly magically. This year’s random pick is 11 Flowers, hopefully it will bring the same level of joy that previous random selections (e.g. Kontroll, The Art of the Steal, The Spanish film November, and Treeless Mountain) have brought me.

My 2011 TIFF Schedule

[Updated September 2, 2011]

Yes I know Thursdays are usually the “Which is Better?” debate day, but that feature will up tomorrow. Instead I want to talk a little about TIFF as the film festival officially starts one week today! This will be my 10th TIFF experience in the past 11 years. While I will be seeing far less films than usual, I am very appreciative that I have been able to have the festival experience at all. I know that we here in Toronto are spoiled when it comes to movie festivals. It seems that there are different film festivals happening every week in the city. Regardless, TIFF is something I think every movie lover should experience at least once. Even if you only see one film, it is still worth the experience. Below are the films I will be seeing at this year’s festival:


Into the Abyss – Werner Herzog
According to the TIFF programme book: “Crime stories can often fall into a predictable pattern of whodunit, but trust Werner Herzog to bring his own unique approach to the genre. He focuses on a triple homicide case in Conroe, Texas, that occurred ten years ago. Epitomizing the word “senseless,” the apparent motive behind the murders was to steal a car for a joyride... In a departure from films like Cave of Forgotten Dreams or Grizzly Man, Herzog refrains from his distinctive and familiar voice-over commentary, but his presence is felt through his questions. In addition to interviewing Perry and Burkett, he talks to their relatives, the victims’ families, law enforcement officials and others. Exploring an American gothic landscape, he takes us from luxury homes to impoverished trailers to prison cells.”

Restless – Gus Van Sant
According to the TIFF programme book: ”A delicate love story about two outsiders drawn to each other by a fascination with death, Restless finds the director in a ruminative mood. Enoch is a somewhat formal, withdrawn teenager who crashes other people’s funerals. In his fantasy life he plays games with an imaginary friend, a Japanese kamikaze pilot from the Second World War, but what has prompted his obsession with death lies in the details of his own personal life. One day, he meets another funeral crasher, the pixieish Annabel, and as their tentative relationship progresses, she draws the young man out of his shell. Wayward, beautiful and ultimately fragile, Annabel has her own secret, which adds an intense poignancy to their imagined future together.”

The Artist – Michel Hazanavicius
According to the TIFF programme book: “A love letter to 1920s Hollywood, Michel Hazanavicius’ The Artist resurrects silent cinema as a powerful and complex storytelling medium. Shot entirely in black and white, without dialogue and in a traditional 1.33 aspect ratio, the film remains faithful to the period it represents, avoiding the trap of pastiche through a sincere appreciation of the cinematic possibilities offered by classic silent film.”

A Monster in Paris - Bibo Bergeron
According to the TIFF programme book: “Paris, 1910. The streets of the city are flooded. The Eiffel Tower looms over a temporary lake and certain streets sport makeshift bridges so Parisians can go about their daily routines. But spirits are high for the citizens of this romantic city, including those of Emile (Jay Harrington), a lovelorn cinema projectionist, and his madcap friend Raoul (Adam Goldberg), a delivery man by day and inventor by night... Marvelously animated, A Monster in Paris boasts the vocal talents of top-notch comedians and singers.”

Breathing - Karl Markovics
According to the TIFF programme book: “If done right, restraint can be an art unto itself, and actor-turned-director Karl Markovics has it down pat. While his protagonist Roman (Thomas Schubert) all but holds his breath waiting to be released from jail, Markovics holds back on details from Roman’s past that would bog down the viewer with emotional involvement. He simply allows fragments of information to come trickling out, made all the more significant for being withheld.”

Keyhole - Guy Maddin
According to the TIFF programme book: “Homer’s Odyssey has inspired many an artist, and Maddin pays homage to the epic poem in his own iconoclastic manner. But it’s the gangster and melodrama genres, as well as Maddin’s cinematic influences (particularly Buñuel and von Sternberg), that inform the film’s rich style. With all of this in mind, Maddin crafts a startling and original film that echoes the past yet is undeniably, refreshingly his own.”

11 Flowers - Wang Xiaoshuai
According to the TIFF programme book:"It’s 1975, southwest China, a decade after the start of the Cultural Revolution that turned the country upside down. Wang Han, an eleven-year-old boy, lives with his parents and younger sister in a large community courtyard... One day while playing by the river, Han encounters a bleeding man, who runs away with the boy’s new shirt. Chasing the man into the woods, Han suddenly finds himself face to face with an accused murderer."

Lipstikka - Jonathan Sagall
According to the TIFF programme book: ”Memory is a mutable thing. If two people share an experience and then years later finally speak of it again, whose version of events is the truest? This question is only one of many that writer/director Jonathan Sagall grapples with in Lipstikka, a beautifully attenuated drama about love, sex, memory and the tangled bonds of female friendship.”


The full list of films playing at TIFF this year can be found at the festival's website.

My 2010 TIFF Schedule

My 2010 TIFF Schedule

The 2010 Toronto International Film Festival (a.k.a. TIFF) official kicks off tomorrow! The following is the list of films I will be seeing during the course of the festival. I will have full reviews for all the films below after the festival is over. Keep an eye on my twitter page for TIFF updates during the week.

Click on the titles for the plot synopsis

Friday
Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen directed by Andrew Lau
A Married Couple directed by the late Allen King

Saturday
Trust starring Clive Owen, Catherine Keener, and Viola Davis; directed by David Schwimmer (yes, Ross from Friends)
Viva Riva! directed by Djo Tunda Wa Munga
Autumn directed by Aamir Bashir

Sunday
Cirkus Columbia directed by Danis Tanovic (No Man’s Land)
A Useful Life directed by Federico Veiroj
The Illusionist directed by Sylvain Chomet (Les Triplettes de Belleville)
The First Grader starring Naomie Harris

Monday
Super starring Rainn Wilson, Ellen Page, Kevin Bacon, Nathan Fillion, Liv Tyler
The Trip starring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon; directed by Michael Winterbottom
Vanishing on 7th Street starring Hayden Christensen, Thandie Newton, John Leguizamo; directed by Brad Anderson (Session 9)

Tuesday
Beautiful Boy starring Maria Bello and Michael Sheen
Tracker starring Ray Winstone, Temura Morrison
Machete Maidens Unleashed! featuring Roger Corman, John Landis, Weng Weng,etc.

Wednesday
The Debt starring Helen Mirren, Tom Wilkinson and Sam Worthington; directed by John Madden
Balada Triste (The Last Circus) directed by Álex de la Iglesia
I Saw the Devil starring Lee Byung-hun; directed by Kim Jee-woon

Thursday
Blue Valentine starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams
Half of Oscar directed by Manuel Martín Cuenca
A Screaming Man directed by Mahamat-Saleh Haroun

Friday
The High Cost of Living starring Zach Braff
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame starring Andy Lau
Even The Rain starring Gael García Bernal
Bunraku starring Josh Hartnett, Woody Harrelson, Ron Perlman, Kevin McKidd and Demi Moore

Countdown to TIFF: 2009 in Review

TIFF 2009

A few people refer to last year’s TIFF as "the year Oprah invaded Toronto". While the big O was the focal point for a lot of the press, she could not take the shine away from usual level of top notch films we have come to expect from the Toronto International Film festival. Although I saw several good films, 2009 ended up being a rather “Whale Rider” heavy year for me.

Total Number of Films Watched: 27

My Top 5:

Micmacs
A Serious Man
Ajami
Precious: Based on the novel “Push” by Sapphire
The Art of the Steal

Honourable Mention: The Loved Ones, Cleanflix, Year of the Carnivor, The Ape, If I Knew What You Said, Good Hair, The Road
 The Disappointments: The Men Who Stare at Goats, The Warrior and the Wolf, Vengeance, Like You Know it All

The Whale Riders (aka. I regret passing on these films): A Single Man, Lebanon, Mr. Nobody, Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, The White Ribbon, A Prophet, The Disappearance of Alice Creed, Mao’s Last Dancer, Enter the Void, The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers, Lebanon, Mother, Harry Brown, The Private Lives of Pippa Lee

Memorable Moment: The question and answer sessions that Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Terry Gilliam held after the screening of their respective films Mimacs and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. Jeunet and Gilliam are directors whom often incorporate fantastical elements in their films. So it was a pleasure to listen to each of them explain their creative process. Especially in regards to how they come up with such imaginative tales.

Random Star Sightings: Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Michael Cera, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Lee Daniels, Sook-yin Lee, Terry Gilliam

**Tune in tomorrow to see my 2010 TIFF Schedule!**

Countdown to TIFF: 2008 in Review

TIFF 2008

After taking a break from TIFF in 2007, due to circumstances beyond my control, I made my triumphant return in 2008 with a strong selection of films. Many people question how come the Oscar winning film The Hurt Locker did not make my best of the year list for 2009. The truth is that I originally saw The Hurt Locker back in 2008 and, while I did enjoy it, there were so many other films that stood out at TIFF that year. So I never fell in love with Locker way others did.

Total Number of Films Watched: 32

My Top 5:

The Wrestler
More Than A Game
Slumdog Millionaire
Witch Hunt
Genova

Honourable Mention: The Hurt Locker, JCVD, Pontypool, The Brothers Bloom, Treeless Mountain, A Film with Me In It, Ashes of Time Redux, Lost Song, Fifty Dead Men Walking

The Disappointments: The Sky Crawler, Edison & Leo, Dead Girl, Last Stop 174, A Year Ago in Winter, What Doesn’t Kill You

The Whale Riders (aka. I regret passing on these films): Wendy and Lucy, It Might Get Loud, Medicine for Melancholy, Hunger, I’ve Loved You So Long, Waltz with Bashir

Memorable Moment: Being in the last box and still getting 90% of my first choices. For those who have never experienced TIFF before there are a number of ways you can get tickets. Individual tickets are sold on the TIFF website as well as box offices downtown. TIFF also offers various packages that are designed to please a diverse range of filmgoers. To give everyone who purchases a package a fair shot at tickets to the films they really want to see, TIFF incorporates a lottery system policy in which all the submitted ticket requests are place in boxes based on when they are handed in. At the end of the selection week a box number (e.g. Box 17 out of 49) is picked at random and that is considered the starting box. The TIFF staff works their way around the numerous boxes, assigning the request tickets base on availablity, until they get back to the starting box. Obviously everyone hopes that there box is the first one picked; or at least near the first box to guarantee that the get all of their first choices. In 2008, after years of avoiding it, I ended up in the last box of the selection pool. I was sure that I would have to reselect the majority of films, as many other festival goers have had to do in the past. Yet it turned out that I received tickets for pretty much everything I wanted to see. The only ones I did not get tickets for were a few of the big budget film, such as Kevin Smith’s Zack and Miri Make a Porno, that were not “must sees” to begin with.

Random Star Sightings: Kathryn Bigelow, Jeremy Renner, Guy Ritchie, Colin Firth, Catherine Keener, Dev Patel, Frida Pinto, Danny Boyle, Lebron James, Darren Aronofsky, Wong Kai Wai, Bruce McDonald

Countdown to TIFF: 2006 in Review

TIFF 2006

For me 2006 was all about the directors and a character named Borat. I not only got to see the latest films from directors such as Pedro Almodóvar, Darren Aronosky, Ken Loach, Tarsem Singh, Guillermo del Toro and Alejandro González Iñárritu ; but I also was fortunate enough to see one of my favourite independent directors, Hal Hartley, present his film Fay Grimm and conduct a question and answer session after the screen. The only thing that overshadowed the outstanding directors at the festival that year was Borat, a man who tops my list of the most memorable moments I have ever experienced at TIFF...but more on that later.

Total Number of Films Watched: 30

My Top 5:

The Lives of Others
Volver
The Wind that Shakes the Barley
Pan’s Labyrinth
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Honourable Mention: Babel, The Last King of Scotland, The Fall, Fay Grim, Waiter, Bunny Chow, Death of a President, Day Night Day Night, Private Property

The Disappointments: The Fountain, Bamako, A Crime, Renaissance, Day on Fire, Cheech, One to Another, I am the Other Woman, Kabul Express.

The Whale Riders (aka. I regret passing on these films): When the Levees Broke, Rescue Dawn, After the Wedding, The Host, Paris, je t’aime, Little Children, Black Book, Away From Her, Dixie Chicks: Shut up and Sing

Memorable Moment: Borat’s Midnight Madness screening which ended up being the most talked about topic of the entire festival. While I knew of The Ali G Show, I had never seen an episode so the character of Borat was rather foreign to me. My selection of the film was completely based on the trailer I saw online. The night of the world premier screening, there was a deafening buzz building in the line. People were walking up and down the ticket holders line trying to get us to sell our tickets. One person was offering up to a hundred dollars for each ticket he could get his hands on. He ended up spending four hundred dollars to get himself and his friends into the screening. While the quick money was tempting, I held onto my ticket merely to see what all the fuss was about. When Sacha Baron Cohen arrived in full Borat character, on a cart being pulled by peasant women, the crowd went bananas. After a funny introduction from Borat himself, everyone settled in to finally see the film. After fifteen minutes, during a few big laughs, the theatre projector broke down. While the staff worked on fixing the projector, Cohen jumped back on stage and did his Borat routine for the crowd; his improvisation was fantastic and get the crowd in a positive mood. After ten minutes or so documentary filmmaker Michael Moore pops up to the balcony section, where I was sitting, and attempts to fix the projector. Shortly after Ari Emanuel, the agent Jeremy Piven’s character on the show Entourage is based on, shows up to get the status on things. Realizing that a special part is needed for the projector, Moore decides to conduct an impromptu question and answer session with Larry Clark, the director of Borat. After about an hour a festival staff member announces that the screening would have to be postponed until the next night. The following evening the screening is even more backed than before, as it was in a larger theatre, as even Dustin Hoffman and a few other celebs came out for the chance to see the much talked about film.

Random Star Sightings: James McAvoy, Forest Whitaker, Dustin Hoffman, Jeff Goldblum, Casey Affleck, Kerry Washington, Sacha Baron Cohen, Parker Posey, Saffron Burrows, Zach Braff, Rachel Bilson, Hal Hartley, Guillermo del Toro, Adriadna Gil, Jacinda Barrett, Michael Moore, Darren Aronofsky

Countdown to TIFF: 2005 in Review

TIFF 2005

Since the 2004 festival was filled with personal sadness, I made sure that 2005 would be all about having fun. I saw great films that featured topics such as a man trying to escape his past, a woman seeking revenge, an Irish drag queen and a lobbyist who thanked people of smoking. In regards to that last one, it was a treat discovering a then unknown director by the name of Jason Reitman. Not only was his first feature, Thank You For Smoking, a homecoming of sorts for the Canadian director; but it also the start of a rather exceptional career for the young director. Reitman’s next two films, Juno and Up in the Air, both premiered at TIFF and went on to earn Academy Award nominations.


Total Number of Films Watched: 28

My Top 5:

A History of Violence
Sympathy for Lady Vengeance
The Squid and the Whale
Thank You for Smoking
Breakfast on Pluto

Honourable Mention: Capote, Dear Wendy, District 13, Lie With Me, The Matador, Runaway.

The Disappointments: Manderlay, Neverwas, Harsh Times, River Queen, Thumbsucker, The Duelist, Winter Passing.

The Whale Riders (aka. I regret passing on these films): Caché, Brokeback Mountain, Polanski’s Oliver Twist, Tsotsi, Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story, C.R.A.Z.Y, Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, The Proposition, Dave Chappelle’s Block Party

Memorable Moment: Standing in the Rush Line (i.e. the last minute tickets line) for the film Beowulf and Grendel which feature Gerard Butler and Sarah Polley. While waiting in the pouring rain I had to endure the ranting and ravings of eight women who were all part of the official Gerard Butler fan club. Many of the women had driven well over six hours just to get a chance to see Mr. Butler. One woman even had a homemade oriental fan with Butler’s face on both sides. The funny thing about this was that it was the year before 300 was released and he became an international star. Up to that point, his biggest films included the Tomb Raider sequel and Dear Frankie.

Random Star Sightings: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Nick Nolte, Aaron Eckhart, Gerard Butler, Catherine Keener, Keanu Reeves, Twilda Swinton, Cillian Murphy, Sarah Polley, Maria Bello, Laura Linney,Jeff Daniels, Eva Longoria, Noah Baumbach, Aaron Stanford, Robin Tunney, Alan Cumming, Atom Egoyan, Clement Virgo, Clifton Collins Jr., Thomas Vinterberg,

Countdown to TIFF: 2004 in Review

TIFF 2004

This was a rather tough year for me. Four days into the festival an uncle, whom I was very close to, passed away. This obviously made the festival less exciting for me as the fiction on screen could not mask the pain of real life. However, one of the bright spots of the festival was being able to see, what would become one of my favourite movies in recent years, Oldboy.


Total Number of Films Watched: 23

My Top 5:

Oldboy
The Sea Inside
5 X 2 – Five Times Two
Palindromes
Kontroll

Honourable Mention: Enduring Love, Primer, Siblings, Sucker Free City, Cronicas, Breaking News (mainly for the wonderful opening tracking shot)

The Disappointments: Phil the Alien, Seven Times Lucky, Arsene Lupin, Steamboy, Trauma

The Whale Riders (aka. I regret passing on these films): Sideways, Hotel Rwanda, Kung Fu Hustle, Nobody Knows, Millions, Tarnation, Kinsey, Double Dare

Memorable Moment: While seeing Javier Bardem, Todd Solondz, and Alejandro Amenábar was one of the highlights, the most memorable moment was watching The Machinist. I had the unfortunate luck of having to watch the film the morning after my uncle passed away. It was excruciating watching Christian Bale wither away on screen. I could not help but think of my uncles last days while watching the film. To this day I am still unable to watch The Machinist again due to the memories it evokes.

Random Star Sightings: Javier Bardem, Daniel Craig, Colin Firth, Todd Solondz, Alejandro Amenábar, Anthony Mackie, Ken Leung, Rhys Ifans, Don McKellar, François Ozon, Emily Mortimer

Countdown to TIFF: 2003 in Review

TIFF 2003

I learned a valuable lesson at the 2003 Toronto International Film Festival, in the end, everything about TIFF is based on luck. No matter how much research you do, you never truly know what you are going to get until you are in the theatre and the film is actually playing. I learned this as I sat through, what seemed like, all the bad French films that played that year. This is not to say that there were not several good French films available; it just happened that I somehow manage to pick everything but the good ones. 2003 was the weakest year for me in regards to the ratio of good films to bad ones that I watched.

Total Number of Films Watched: 31

My Top 5:

Dogville
Lost In Translation
The Station Agent
A Good Lawyer’s Wife
Elephant

Honourable Mention: 21 Grams, Sexual Dependency, November, Casa de los Babys, Code 46, The Time of the Wolf, Save the Green Planet, The Boys from County Claire

The Disappointments: In the Cut, Twentynine Palms, A Problem With Fear, Errance, Wonderland, Raja, Who Killed Bambi?

The Whale Riders (a.k.a. I regret passing on these films): The Barbarian Invasion, Zatoichi, The Fog of War, Bus 174, Shattered Glass, Good Bye, Lenin!, Coffee & Cigarettes, Les Triplettes de Belleville, Matchstick Men.

Memorable Moment: Getting to see both Dogville and Lost In Translation as they were high on my “must see” list.

Random Star Sightings: Gus Van Sant, Woody Harrelson, Jane Campion, John Sayles, Darryl Hannah, Marcia Gay Harden, Lili Taylor, Thomas Jane, Sang-Soo Im

Countdown to TIFF: 2002 in Review

TIFF 2002

2002 was the year that I started to infect my friends with the film festival bug. I was able to share my knowledge in regards to the selection process, theatre locations, type of food and drink to have, etc. While 2001 had it far share of great films, 2002 completely blew it out of the water. The amount of exceptional films was simply staggering. On a personal note, this was also the year when the term “The Whale Riders” officially became a part of the festival lexicon between my friend and I.

While skimming through the program book to make our selections, my friend and I came across a film entitled Whale Rider. The picture in the book was of a young girl on a whale, and the description of the plot did not really peak our interest by any means. Instead we opted for a quirky Canadian film, Le Marais (The Marsh), which was playing at the same time. Even as we watched the director and cast of Whale Rider stroll into the Cumberland, while we stood in line for Le Marais, we were confident that we had made the right choice. It was only after sitting through that “weird goat-boy movie” that we realized we had made a grave mistake. Whale Rider not only turned out to be a phenomenal film but it was also the toast of the festival that year winning the People’s Choice Award for favourite film. We will always regret that decision hence the birth of “The Whale Riders.”

Total Number of Films Watched: 28

My Top 5:

Sweet Sixteen
Punch-Drunk Love
Spirited Away
Better Luck Tomorrow
Bowling for Columbine

Honourable Mention: Talk to Her, Secretary, In America, Dirty Pretty Things, Rabbit-Proof Fence, Blue Car, Phone Booth, The Magdalene Sisters, Laurel Canyon, Sex is Comedy

The Disappointments: Ginostra, Le Marais (The Marsh), Tycoon, Le Neg, Tuck Everlasting

The Whale Riders (aka. I regret passing on these films): Whale Rider, City of God, Far From Heaven, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Frida, Real Women Have Curves, Personal Velocity, Irreversible, Gerry, 8 Mile.

Memorable Moment: It is a tie between seeing P.T. Anderson and Adam Sandler at the Punch-Drunk Love screening and taking in my very first Midnight Madness Screening. When Adam Sandler arrived at the Uptown theatre it was absolute chaos. The media and fans were all trying to get photos of Sandler and ask him questions. The festival volunteers had to form two human chains in order to get the ticket holders into the theatre safely. Fortunately I was at the front of the line so I did not have to endure the madness for too long. Plus I was able to snag front row seats inside the theatre. After seeing Punch-Drunk Love the night before, I had five films lined up for the final day of the festival. It was a long day but I ended it off with a Midnight Madness screening of, a then unknown director, Eli Roth’s film Cabin Fever. I had heard stories about the Midnight Madness screenings before but nothing prepared me for the sheer fun that the experience brought. Cabin Fever may not be a great film, but I definitely had a lot of fun watching it with the Midnight Madness crowd.

Random Star Sightings: P.T. Anderson, Adam Sandler, Francis Ford Coppola, Robert Duvall, Hayao Miyazaki, Roger Ebert, Joel Schumacher, Maggie Gyllenhaal, James Spader, Michael Moore, Sergi López, Niki Caro, Kesha Castle-Hughes, Peter Mullan, Lisa Cholodenko, Alessandro Nivola, Samatha Morton, Cliff Curtis, John Cho, Sung Kang, Justin Lin, Catherine Breillat, Chloë Sevigny, Vincent Gallo, David Strathairn, Agnes Bruckner, Philip Noyce

Countdown to TIFF: 2001 in Review

TIFF 2001

As the saying goes “you always remember your first time.” Having just graduated from university, with no job lined up, I decided to do what any unemployed movie lover would do...drop a bunch of money at the Toronto International Film Festival. Okay, it might not have been the most sensible move for a person as cash strapped as I was at the time. Yet I figured it was a once in a lifetime opportunity that I just could not pass up. It was a crazy move but ultimately one of the best decisions I have ever made.

As it was my first year at the festival, I leaned a little more towards the star driven films (a common rookie mistake!) As the festival went on it became clear that the smaller films were the ones that left a lasting impression.

Total Number of Films Watched: 25

My Top 5:

In the Bedroom

No Man’s Land

Monsoon Wedding

The Son’s Room
Waking Life

Honourable Mention: The Grey Zone, Atanarjuat (The Fast Runner), Vacuuming Completely Nude in Paradise

The Disappointments: The Piano Teacher, Training Day, Enigma

The Whale Riders (a.k.a. I regret passing on these films) : Y Tu Mamá También, Mulholland Drive, Amélie, The Devils Backbone, Lantana

Memorable Moment: September 11, 2001, the moment when the modern world stood still. This was my official “Hollywood Day” at the festival as I had several big budget studio films to see. When the first plane hit the tower I was in line to see John Dahl’s film Joyride. I was not aware of what was going on in the world until I made my way to the Uptown (a wonderful theatre in that is no longer around) for a noon screening of the Johnny Depp film From Hell. As I talked to more and more people in line, a large number of which were Americans, the sense of fear and uncertainty was everywhere. As reports of airports and train stations shutting down started to surface many festival goers had no idea how they were getting back home once the festival was over. Heck, we did not know if the festival was even going to continue. We were advised before the screening started that the festival would be shutting down for the remainder of the day immediately following the From Hell screening. As we sat in the theatre, one man who had a walkman was providing our row with news updates on the latest events. It was only later that night did the news channels report that the film festival would in fact resumed the following day but on a much more sombre note.

Random Star Sightings: I had purchased a festival day pass which meant my chances of seeing famous folk was slim at best. The stars only come out a night for screenings as they are being interviewed by the press all day. Regardless I still got to see the likes of Molly Parker, Atom Egoyan, Antoine Fuqua, Todd Field, Danis Tarnovic, and Tim Blake Nelson.

Countdown to TIFF Starts Monday!

Starting Monday I will be doing an eight-part feature on my experiences at the Toronto International Film Festival (a.k.a. TIFF) over the years. I will be highlighting the best and worst films I have seen, the films that got away, memorable moments, and even a few star sightings. At the end of the feature I will reveal the list of films that I shall be seeing at this year’s film festival.  Let the countdown to TIFF begin!