Movies: Toronto International Film Festival (and any other Film Fest for that matter)

[BonMorrison]

Anyone else going to TIFF this year? I was up early and endured the horrible online waiting line and got most of the movies I wanted this year - 250 bucks well spent - eight movies on my schedule, the most I've ever had.

My sked (with links to their descriptions!):

9/8 - 12.12.12 - 8pm
9/9 - Metallica: Through the Never - 730pm
9/12 - REAL - 615pm
9/13 - Cold Eyes - 930pm
9/14 - All is By My Side - 3pm
9/14 - Labor Day - 6pm
9/14 - Blood Ties - 10pm
9/15 - Under the Skin - 3pm

For those who aren't going to TIFF, anyone going to any festivals in their area? Or have any stories from ones you've already been to?

Click to read more...

 

[hototogisu]

Montreal's "big" film festival is in October, the Festival Nouveau Cinema. It's nowhere near on the scale of TIFF or the other big ones, but usually they get some of the run-offs from TIFF and Cannes and the like (well the international ones, at least). Every year I keep a running "wish list" of what I hope to see there using the lineups from other festivals throughout the year, and I'm up to quite a few already. 99% of these are at TIFF so maybe it's a good thing for my wallet that I don't live there...

12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen)
Abuse of Weakness (Catherine Breillat)
All is By My Side (John Ridley)
As I Lay Dying (James Franco)
******** (Claire Denis)
Blue is the Warmest Color (Abdellatif Kechiche)
Borgman (Alex van Warmerdam)
Child of God (James Franco)
Child’s Pose (Calin Peter Netzer)
Closed Curtain (Jafar Panahi)
Dallas Buyers Club (Jean-Marc Vallee)
Devil’s Knot (Atom Egoyan)
Don Jon (Joseph Gordon-Levitt)
The Double (Richard Ayoade)
Enemy (Denis Villeneuve)
Fading Gigolo (John Turturro)
A Field in England (Ben Wheatley)
The Fifth Estate (Bill Condon)
Gravity (Alfonso Cuaron)
The Great Beauty (Paolo Sorrentino)
The Green Inferno (Eli Roth)
The Immigrant (James Gray)
Inside Llewyn Davis (Coen Brothers)
La Jalousie (Philippe Garrel)
Jodorowsky’s Dune (Frank Pavich)
Joe (David Gordon Green)
Like Father, Like Son (Hirokazu Kore-Eda)
The Missing Picture (Rithy Panh)
Nebraska (Alexander Payne)
Night Moves (Kelly Reichardt)
Norte, The End of History (Lav Diaz)
Omar (Hany Abu Assad)
Only Lovers Left Alive (Jim Jarmusch)
Paradise: Hope (Ulrich Seidl)
The Past (Asghar Farhadi)
Redemption (Miguel Gomes)
A Spell to Ward Off the Darkness (Ben Rivers & Ben Russell)
A Story of Children and Film (Mark Cousins)
Story of My Death (Albert Serra)
The Strange Colour of Your Body’s Tears (Helene Cattet & Bruno Forzani)
Stranger by the Lake (Alain Guiraudie)
Three Interpretation Exercises (Cristi Puiu)
Tom at the Farm (Xavier Dolan)
A Touch of Sin (Jia Zhangke)
La Ultima Pelicula (Raya Martin & Mark Peranson)
Visitors (Godfrey Reggio)
When Evening Falls on Bucharest or Metabolism (Corneliu Porumboiu)
Why Don’t You Play in Hell? (Sion Sono)
Young & Beautiful (Francois Ozon)
The Zero Theorem (Terry Gilliam)

 

[Jevo]

Sadly I don't live near any Film Festivals of note, if any at all. I have a dream to spend a couple of weeks in Cannes in May one year.

Based on your picks BonMorrison, you shouldn't by anyway be a fan of rock? To concert films and a Jimi Hendrix biopic.

 

[Muzzinga]

Anyone else going to TIFF this year? I was up early and endured the horrible online waiting line and got most of the movies I wanted this year - 250 bucks well spent - eight movies on my schedule, the most I've ever had.

My sked (with links to their descriptions!):

9/8 - 12.12.12 - 8pm
9/9 - Metallica: Through the Never - 730pm
9/12 - REAL - 615pm
9/13 - Cold Eyes - 930pm
9/14 - All is By My Side - 3pm
9/14 - Labor Day - 6pm
9/14 - Blood Ties - 10pm
9/15 - Under the Skin - 3pm

For those who aren't going to TIFF, anyone going to any festivals in their area? Or have any stories from ones you've already been to?

I will be waiting on you to confirm if Scar Jo gets nuddy

 

[BonMorrison]

Sadly I don't live near any Film Festivals of note, if any at all. I have a dream to spend a couple of weeks in Cannes in May one year.

Based on your picks BonMorrison, you shouldn't by anyway be a fan of rock? To concert films and a Jimi Hendrix biopic.

Haha I am a music fan, love documentaries - I even watched Never Say Never, the Bieber concert film.

 

[kihei]

TIFF can be both frustrating and a lot of fun. I saw Blue Is the Warmest Color last night, but I started the day without a ticket. Which means I had to cast my fortunes with something called a rush line. You line up with others hoping that sold-out movies will end up having a few empty seats, and that a few lucky people in the rush line will be let in. The movie started at 7:00 PM, and I really wanted to see it badly. So I got to Yonge Street in the vicinity of the twin theatres where it was to play around 8:40 AM. Yes, this was ****ing stupid. I walked around and of course nobody was anywhere near the front of the theatre. So I chided myself for being a moron and did some shopping for CDs which tells you how old I am and popped back in front of the theatre just before noon. Oh my god, five people were in the line-up already, so I settled in with books and snacks.

I read a lot of books, and I am a veteran of dozens upon dozens of rock concert ticket waits, so line ups don't bother me. The two girls in front of me drove in from Kentucky and Texas respectively. They'd never seen Toronto before, so we talked about the sights. A family consisting of a father, son and daughter showed up next, around 1:00 PM. A family? Huh? To see a three hour plus movie about a lesbian relationship with explicit sex? Turns out everybody else in the line-up was there to see the film that was going to be shown in the sister theatre at 6:30 PM, The Fifth Estate. I never realized before that there were people who thought the earth revolved around Benedict Cumberbatch, the star of the film and a celebrity who was expected to show up for the screening. By that time, there were about 80 people in the line up, and I was the only one waiting to see Blue. You might think I was embarrassed, but, no, quite the opposite, I was elated--how could I not get in. Plus, the company around me was fun. The girl from Kentucky actually knew the next girl that came in line who was from Belgium and flew over for four days. She, get this, recognized her from her Twitter account. First time that they had met in the flesh. Astounding.

Around 4:00 PM, a very nice lady tapped me on the arm and said she had a ticket to Blue to sell and a guy told her I undoubtedly would be interested. Exact same thing happened last year on opening day at the same theatre with Amour. Nothing beats a little luck. I could relax and leave the rush line, and, wonderful bonus, I was even able to catch the third and final set of Wawrinka's upset of Murray. Great day, plus the movie turned out to be the best that I have seen this year so far. Cumberbatch never appeared--turns out that he was scheduled to show up at a different screening.

 

[BonMorrison]

^That's an awesome story! I've never actually done the rush line but I'd imagine that bonding and making friends with the other people you're stuck with would be a whole alot of fun.

 

[kihei]

My TIFF Schedule

Seen

Blue Is the Warmest Color--Cannes winner
The Story of My Death--Albert Serra, an intriguing slow cinema director
Airship (short subjects by Kenneth Anger and others)
In conversation: Irrfan Khan--(an in-person chat with Khan (Life of Pi; The Warrior; In Treatment)
A Spell to Ward Off the Darkness---just looks really intriguing and has some interesting buzz
The Lunchbox---Irrfan Khan movie
October, November---directed by Gotz Spielmann, who also did Revanche, which I loved
Like Father, Like Son--Cannes runner-up, directed by Koreeda
Gravity---couldn't wait
Great Beauty--follow up to Il Divo
Girrafada---Palestinian film about a boy and a giraffe, an impulse pick
Gloria---stars Chilean actress Paulina García whom I have heard much about but have never seen

to follow in order:

Omar---directed by Hany Abu-Assad, who also made Paradise Now, an excellent film about suicide bombers
Tom at the Farm---our own Xavier Dolan, 'nuff said
A Touch of Sin---by Jia Zhangke (Still Life) and my favourite living director after Godard
The Celestial Wives of the Meadow Mari--another impulse pick--a doc on female sexuality in some small corner of Russia with gorgeous cinematography
Unforgiven---South Korean remake of the Eastwood film
A Field in England--by Ben Wheatley, who directed two crazy movies, Kill List and Sightseers, that I found engaging
REAL---Japanese science fiction
Cristo Rey--a rare film from the Caribbean
Stray Dog---directed by Tsai Ming-Liang (I Don't Want to Sleep Alone), who is among my favourite direcors
The Wind Rises---Hayao Miyazaki's last film (maybe)
When Evening Falls on Bucharest or Metabolism---director of Police, Adjective, which I loved

---might nab a couple of others depending upon how the chips fall. "The one that got away" so far is Koreeda's Like Father, Like Son.

 

[Epictetus]

12 Years a Slave (Steve McQueen) is earning a lot of praise.

 

[EvilCoop]

I heard that there was an interesting documentary about Pat Robertson's African diamond business ventures which debuted at TIFF, I'll be looking forward to seeing that.

 

[kihei]

Yesterday was my day for celebrity watching, something I don't usually do. But I had tickets to see a "conversation" with Irrfan Khan, one of my favourite actors and one of the actors whom I respect the most, and it was a wonderful experience. I learned more about acting in an hour and a half from this charming, intelligent, generous man than I could have imagined possible. He talked about the difference between acting in roles that drew on your personal experience and on roles that were completely foreign to you (he mentioned his character in In Treatment as an example of the latter). And he talked about the difference between Bollywood and non-Bollywood acting, that the former is easier because your goal is to entertain, not to go deep. He was given not one but two chances to dump on Bollywood actors and he strongly demurred on both occasions, talking about how well they knew their business. I was so glad I attended, though I can think of very few other actors that I would pay the bucks to see.

As I was leaving the CBC building the air was abuzz with the arrival of Idris Elba in a few minutes, so being a huge Luther fan, I decided that I would stay around for that. It was raining so I found a little cubbyhole in one of the outdoor corners of the building to take shelter in only to find that it was already inhabited by a woman furiously taking drags on a cigarette. She was one of the public relations people and surprisingly chatty. To a degree. I tried to find out who was "temperamental," but she just made polite noncommital sounds. She did say that the easiest celebrity that she worked with was Brad Pitt: "you couldn't ask for a better person to work with."

The Mandela entourage was beginning to arrive, so she finished her cigarette and we went our separate ways. Standing in the crowd waiting to see Elba was okay until the first celebrity arrived, somebody named Naomi, and people went crazy. I then began to feel a little ghoulish. At first I thought it was Naomi Watts, but it is was instead a pretty black woman in an exquisite black gown, who was polite but wanted to get out of there. Somebody said, "You are a great Moneypenny.," and I thought "oh, that Naomi." Elba finally arrived, and he looked like he was enjoying himself. A guy right in front of me said "Are you going to do Bond?" and Elba replied in that lovely East London accent, "I don't know." He gave the impression that it certainly wasn't the first time that he heard the idea, though. He good-naturedly posed for pictures and had no trouble making eye contact with his fans. I doubt I will repeat this experience, though I'm glad I got to hear that accent for real.

 

[BonMorrison]

Just got back from 12.12.12. My first movie of my schedule.

Very good documentary on the concert relief for Hurricane Sandy. Very emotional and very inspiring. Serves as a great reminder on just how powerful music is and why more people should be emotionally invested into it. My only gripe was that they inserted Kanye West in between legendary rock artists, which I don't mind, but my theater was full of people from the previous generation so they were openly displeased with it and refused to applause him after his performance (they applauded everyone else).

After the show, we got a nice surprise when George Strombo did a roundtable with Harvey Weinstein and co. Very cool.

 

[kihei]

"The one that got away" so far is Koreeda's Like Father, Like Son.

But not for long.

Another success rush line attempt nabbed me a ticket. And I even got to meet (very briefly) Koreeda who was walking by on his way to Bell Lightbox when the Japanese woman I was talking to recognized him. Beautiful movie.

 

[BonMorrison]

Awesome! I wanted to see that one but my schedule couldn't fit it. I feel like this thread is just going to be me and you going back and forth.

Got Metallica: Through the Never tomorrow. Excited.

 

[kihei]

Awesome! I wanted to see that one but my schedule couldn't fit it. I feel like this thread is just going to be me and you going back and forth.

Got Metallica: Through the Never tomorrow. Excited.

Hey, that's okay. We both seem to be having fun so far.

Met an Indian woman yesterday (not at The Lunchbox either), who flew in from Mumbai for two weeks to catch the festival. She's seeing more movies than I am.

Got what almost certainly are my last two purchases for the festival: A Field in England and Great Beauty. My dance card is now officially full.

Gravity today, followed by the US Open final. That sounds like a damn good day.



For anyone thinking of attending a movie at one of the Scotia Bank theatres, keep in mind, it is a complete zoo and plan accordingly. They are using 12 of their 14 theatres, which means thousands of people are trying to find their line ups, not to mention even more are looking for rush lines. Scotia staff and TIFF volunteers ae already frazzled beyond belief. Not for the faint of heart.

 

[MeowLeafs]

Anyone else going to TIFF this year? I was up early and endured the horrible online waiting line and got most of the movies I wanted this year - 250 bucks well spent - eight movies on my schedule, the most I've ever had.

My sked (with links to their descriptions!):

9/8 - 12.12.12 - 8pm
9/9 - Metallica: Through the Never - 730pm
9/12 - REAL - 615pm
9/13 - Cold Eyes - 930pm
9/14 - All is By My Side - 3pm
9/14 - Labor Day - 6pm
9/14 - Blood Ties - 10pm
9/15 - Under the Skin - 3pm

For those who aren't going to TIFF, anyone going to any festivals in their area? Or have any stories from ones you've already been to?

Wow, over $30 per movie? Didn’t know it was that expensive.

 

[BonMorrison]

Wow, over $30 per movie? Didn’t know it was that expensive.

Haha, nah - I was buying for more than one person for a lot of them too. Prices vary - the premiere/galas usually go for around 40 dollars while standard tickets are lower - around 20.

 

[BonMorrison]

Just got back from Metallica: Through the Never. Very disappointing.

They attempted to string a narrative together along with a live concert they did in Vancouver but unfortunately they did not flow at all. The concert footage itself was absolutely spectacular and shot beautifully - they hit all the right songs (although Seek and Destroy was a glaring omission) and played them impeccably. Unfortunately the half-assed narrative makes no sense and really drags the movie down from being something special.

 

[kihei]

Wonderful day. Both Gravity and The Great Beauty were terrific films. Gravity is going to be mammoth.

 

[kihei]

Saw one of my two "impulse" picks today, Gariffada (the other impulse pick being Celestial Wives of the Meadow Mari). It was conventional but good, with a little political subtext going for it.

Liked Gravity even more today than yesterday. It is just such a stunning use of the medium. I've seen four incredible movies so far, and I haven't a clue how I would rank them. At the moment:

Gravity
Like Father, Like Son
The Great Beauty
Blue Is the Warmest Color

 

[Say Hey Kid]

The Greatest Film Never Made

In 1974, cult director Alejandro Jodorowsky set out to make a film of the science fiction novel "Dune," with music by Pink Floyd, a cast that included Mick Jagger, and the goal of letting the audience experience an LSD hallucination without drugs.

The movie was never made. But "Jodorowsky's Dune," a documentary shown at the Toronto International Film Festival on Tuesday, argues the film is not only a lost masterpiece, but that it helped spawn the popular "Alien" movie franchise and left its mark on many science-fiction film classics. The idea for the documentary was sparked when Frank Pavich, an American filmmaker based in Geneva, saw a list that ranked the greatest movie projects never made. ...

After holing up in French castle to work on the script, Jodorowsky began recruiting a team of what he called "spiritual warriors". They included special effects expert Dan O'Bannon, who would go on to write "Alien" and "Total Recall," Swiss painter H.R. Giger, and French cartoonist Jean "Moebius" Giraud.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013...30911?feedType=RSS&feedName=entertainmentNews

Looking at the talent involved, I think this would have been the best sci-fi film ever.

 

[RandV]

Kind of sucks for Vancouver, what has always been the main venue, an old multiplex theatre on Granville street that I'm two blocks away from, closed down back in the Spring so now the movies are spread out all over the place. Not really a huge loss to me as the missus is the big film fest fan and I always get dragged along for the ride, occasionally getting spared when she picks something I really wouldn't enjoy and goes with a friend instead

 

[nameless1]

Kind of sucks for Vancouver, what has always been the main venue, an old multiplex theatre on Granville street that I'm two blocks away from, closed down back in the Spring so now the movies are spread out all over the place. Not really a huge loss to me as the missus is the big film fest fan and I always get dragged along for the ride, occasionally getting spared when she picks something I really wouldn't enjoy and goes with a friend instead

It is not too bad. Most of the theatres are still in Downtown, and they are all around where Granville 7 is.

 

[hototogisu]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013...30911?feedType=RSS&feedName=entertainmentNews

Looking at the talent involved, I think this would have been the best sci-fi film ever.

My friend and I used to always marvel over "what could have been" with the legends spun from Jodorowsky helming the Dune movie...Jodorowsky, Pink Floyd, Giger, Jagger...could have been the cult film to end them all.

Then again you could probably write a book about the movies Jodorowsky didn't make. King Shot, for example, had a lot of fantastical promise too:

King Shot is an unrealized film by Alejandro Jodorowsky. It was to have been co-produced by David Lynch and was scheduled for release in 2010. The cast included Nick Nolte, Asia Argento, Marilyn Manson, Udo Kier, and Santiago Segura. In a November 2009 interview with The Guardian, Jodorowsky revealed the project had been cancelled due to lack of funding.[1]

Jodorowsky described the film, which would have been his first since the 1990 film The Rainbow Thief, as a "metaphysical gangster movie." The story was set in a casino in the desert and involved gangsters, the discovery of a man as big as King Kong, and Marilyn Manson as a 300 year old pope.

So I'm excited for this documentary to revel in some more of the 'what could have been' fantasies.

Jodorowsky also has a new film of his own making the rounds (The Dance of Reality) so that's cool too.

 

[kihei]

---have had great interactions with people so far until today when I ran into a woman from Detroit. Waiting in line to go into the theatre to see Omar, it felt like 40 degrees celsius, with no cloud cover to be seen. She was standing there wearing a black fishnet hoodie that looked comically useless as a sun screen, but was very stylish, especially in concert with the rest of the upscale aging Annie Lennox look. According to her, practically looking down her nose, the only movies to be taken seriously had to make socially and politically responsible statements. What kind of socially and politically responsible statements did she have in mind? Ones that she already agreed with, it seemed. She couldn't bear the idea of going to Gravity or most other popular movies, though she thought Lincoln was okay. What about the movies coming out of Iran? Not to her taste, too bourgeois. Too bourgeois? Well, Kiarastami has abandoned his principles, she said, referring to a movie he made over a decade ago. Had she seen anything since? No. What about Panahi's This Is Not a Film? Nope, the film was shot in the director's apartment which she thought was too classy. I mean, she's wearing about $2500 dollars worth of clothes and I'll bet she lives hundreds of miles away from the nearest poverty line, but she can dismiss a director who is under house arrest because he lives in a nice apartment. She had a lot of opinions like that, all said with the utmost certainty. It turns out that she hadn't actually seen many of the movies that she discussed. Blamed it on Detroit.