September
13
Toronto Wrap
With Cannes, Telluride and Toronto, behind us, New York Film Fest press screenings are now under way. Here’s a wrap-up of what I’ve seen and learned:
Ten Best Movies in Telluride/Toronto
1. Everlasting Moments: Jan Troell’s period masterpiece is likely to be the Swedish Oscar submission (IFC).
2. Slumdog Millionaire: Danny Boyle’s Toronto audience award winner is both a likely hit and awards contender (Warners/Fox Searchlight).
3. The Wrestler: Darren Aronofsky directed has-been actor Mickey Rourke as a down-on-his-luck wrestler to likely awards contention (Fox Searchlight).
4. The Hurt Locker: Kathryn Bigelow’s Iraq War thriller breaks out tough-guy Jeremy Renner (Summit, 2009).
5. Flame + Citron: Ole Christian Madsen’s riveting WW II thriller won’t be the Danish Oscar submission (IFC).
6. Every Little Step: Jim Stern’s moving Chorus Line doc plays like a reality TV show full of winners and losers as dancer/actor/singers put their talent on the line to gain a slot in the revival of the Broadway hoofer classic. It’s a likely awards contender for best doc (juggling distrib offers).
7. I’ve Loved You So Long: Philippe Claudel’s two hander about two sisters could earn French-speaking Brit Kristin Scott Thomas best actress kudos (SPC).
8. Burn After Reading: The Coens return to their darkly comic roots with a skilled acting ensemble led by Brad Pitt, George Clooney and Fran McDormand (Focus Features).
9. Happy-Go-Lucky: Mike Leigh and actress Sally Hawkins could follow Vera Drake into the awards derby (Miramax).
10. Kisses: Lance Daly’s Irish runaway movie starring unknowns turns from black-and-white into color (weighing distrib offers).
Next Best:
11. Adam Resurrected: Paul Schrader directs Jeff Goldblum in a bravura performance as a charismatic showman who survives the holocaust but loses his mind (seeking distrib).
12. Zack and Miri Make a Porno: Kevin Smith is back in raunchy, gut-splitting form with two strong actors, Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks (Weinstein Co./MGM).
13. Easy Virtue: Stephen Elliott (Patricia, Queen of the Desert) directs a witty culture-clash comedy well-delivered by Ben Barnes, Jennifer Biel, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Colin Firth (seeking distrib).
14. Is There Anybody There? John Crowley’s family comedy stars Michael Caine in a brilliant performance as a senior fighting senility (seeking distrib).
15. Brothers Bloom: Rian Johnson’s ambitious second feature, a con-man caper comedy, showcases Rachel Weisz’s skills as a charming light comedienne (Summit).
16. Me and Orson Welles: Richard Linklater’s 1937 picture of the Mercury Theatre features uncanny Welles impersonator Christian McKay, a glowing Claire Danes and teen throb Zac Efron (seeking distrib).
17. Public Enemy Number 1, a work in progress from France, hangs on the powerful incarnation of notorious real-life French gangster Jacques Mesrine by Vincent Cassel. Filmed over one year in two parts, this film may be combined with number two into a single movie by distrib Senator for its 2009 U.S. release.
18. Dean Spangler: Peter O’Toole and Sam Neill shine in this strange, slow-burn New Zealand fable about reincarnation (seeking U.S. distrib).
Best Cannes Leftovers at Telluride/Toronto:
1. Il Divo: Paolo Sorrentino’s exhilarating e-ride through 70s and 80s Italian politics, while accessible, is considered too arcane for stateside release (seeking distrib).
2. Hunger: UK director Steve McQueen directs Michael Fassbender in a breakout perf as Irish activist Bobby Sands (IFC).
3. Waltz with Bashir: Iraeli Ari Folman’s animated doc could be nominated in both animation and doc categories (SPC).
4. Wendy and Lucy: Kelly Reichardt directs Michele Williams in a heart-rending performance as vulnerable woman on the road who loses her dog. Williams could be a long shot for year-end kudos consideration (Oscilloscope).
5. The Good, The Bad and the Weird: Kim Jee-woon’s non-stop kimchi western could score with action fans (IFC).
6. Synecdoche, New York: Not surprisingly, first-time director Charlie Kaufman spins a tale you have never seen before, with a sprawling ensemble led by the depressed (natch) Philip Seymour Hoffman (SPC).
7. Che: Steven Soderbergh’s bio-epic wound up as two movies in Spanish instead of one movie in English, but it’s still a must-see for Benicio del Toro’s portrayal of the controversial revolutionary (IFC).
8. Adoration: Atom Egoyan’s explores a tangled web of family history and memory; it's not Canada's Oscar submission (SPC).
9. O’Horten: Bent Hamer paints a precisely rendered, poignant portrait of a retiring train engineer trying to imagine life without trains; it's Norway's Oscar submission (SPC).
Toronto Disappointments:
Rachel Getting Married: Jonathan Demme’s movie about a dysfunctional family wedding features great actors and musicians and dizzy camera moves: eventually all three get irritating (SPC).
Blindness: Fernando Meirelles locks the audience up in a nasty prison full of piss and poop and murder and mayhem and madness and doesn’t open the doors until the movie’s almost over (Miramax).
Flash of Genius: producer-turned-director Marc Abraham turns the story of a Detroit inventor (Greg Kinnear) who fights Ford and loses all into a straight, old-fashioned, dull tale (Universal).
The Duchess: this gorgeous bodice-ripper will be a test of both Keira Knightley’s stardom and femme audience demand for period romances. Problem is, it’s not fun (Paramount Vantage).
The Miracle of St. Anna: Spike Lee’s revisionist WW II drama makes good use of Derek Luke but runs 160 minutes and lacks focus (Disney).
Fifty Dead Men Walking: despite yeoman lifting by actors Jim Sturgess and Ben Kingsley, the Canadian pic offers an all-too familiar treatment of the Irish troubles (seeking U.S. distrib).
Strong Toronto Word-of-Mouth Launches:
Larry Charles and Bill Maher’s Religulous; Jean-Claude Van Damme’s JCVD; Guy Ritchie’s Rocknrolla; David Koepp’s Ghost Town; and Peter Sollet’s Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist.
Still in the Air:
All too predictably, many worthy movies went to Toronto with hopes of landing stateside distribution, but most went home empty-handed. Some--like Sidney Kimmel Entertainment’s Jennifer Aniston/Steve Zahn comedy Management, Gabor Csupo’s family film The Secret of Moonacre, Robert Kenner’s incendiary doc Food, Inc., Nik Fackler’s geriatric romance Lovely Still, Jerry Zaks’ Chess brothers music movie Who Do You Love and Jeffrey Levy-Hinte’s Soul Power--will either sell later or put together some sort of self-distribution.
UPDATE:
More wraps: B. Ruby Rich. The NYT's A.O. Scott sees a resurgence of realism. Richard Corliss's Toronto reviews. Variety's wraps from Peter Bart Dade Hayes and Todd McCarthy. More films are using foreign languages. Cinematical fest reviews. Tom Carson blogs Toronto at GQ. Jeffrey Wells' wrap. Movie City News Toronto Central.
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Oh, come now, "Blindness" was an absolutely enthralling film.
Posted by: John | September 14, 2008 at 01:23 AM