Toronto International Film Festival 2011

Don't have the time or space to review all the films I saw at TIFF, but here are some of the better ones. Overall, I would say that there weren't as many standout films for me as in some other years, but the festival is always enjoyable for the ambiance and the audiences.

Shame
Steve McQueen's unflinching drama examines the life of an outwardly successful man in New York City with a sex addiction. Brandon (Michael Fassbender) leads a seemingly normal (albeit lonely) life while hiding his sexual compulsions which include porn, prostitutes, anonymous hookups and excessive masturbation (in the men's room at work, for example). His descent is accelerated as his needy sister (Carey Mulligan) crashes at his sterile apartment and later, an attempt at a normal relationship with a co-worker fails (in his mind, anyway). Brave performances by Fassbender and Mulligan. A hard look at a type of addiction we don't see often portrayed in film.

Pina (documentary)
A visual feast, Pina captures stunning excerpts from some of choreographer Pina Bausch's original works--both in the theatre and in and around the German town that was home to her company, the Tanztheater Wuppertal. Featuring dancers of varying ages, who offer brief reflections on Bausch (who died prior to the filming and is seen only briefly), this dance (which I knew very little of going into the film) is like a whole new way of communication. A powerful and evocative soundtrack also adds to artistry of the film, a tribute to a unique artistic genius.

PINA - Dance, dance, otherwise we are lost - International Trailer from neueroadmovies on Vimeo.

Take This Waltz
In Sarah Polley's Take This Waltz, Michelle Williams plays a writer struggling with a seven year itch. OK, she's actually married five years to Seth Rogan, a cookbook author, and their relationship is amiable but lacking spark. Then along comes Daniel (Luke Kirby) with whom she shares mutual chemistry and attraction. Will she give in to desire or not? Film is also interesting for the matter-of-fact full-frontal female nude scene in the showers at the YMCA. Michelle Williams, Sarah Silverman and assorted middle aged ladies are shown completely naked for an extended scene.

Hysteria
A fun romantic comedy set in Victorian England and dealing with the invention of the vibrator. Hugh Dancy plays a modern-thinking doctor who finds himself fingering women to orgasm while working in the offices of a doctor (Jonathan Pryce) treating women for "hysteria" (what was then a catch-all phrase for assorted female maladies). The doctor's daughter is the emancipated Charlotte (Maggie Gyllenhaal), a social worker who believes in women's equality. Orgasmic equality is achieved when Dancy and his wealthy friend (played with hilarious dry wit by Rupert Everet) invent the vibrator and thus free women of the need of a man. Light, but fun, with some modern day parallels. Should be a hit with women (and anyone who loves them).



Friends With Kids
Jason (Adam Scott) and Julie (Jennifer Westfeldt, who also directed the film) are bffs. After their friends start having kids they decide to have their own, share parentage, and continue dating other people. Of course, trouble ensues as they struggle to separate their feelings for each other--are they friends or lovers? I really liked the relationship between the two--very much like a straight Will & Grace.

Jesus Christ Superstar (Stratford Festival, 2011)

Saw Stratford's much-lauded production of Jesus Christ Superstar and, while I can't give it an unqualified rave, I would say that it's a strong and satisfying production of the '70's rock musical, the score of which I love.

Paul Nolan's Jesus was well sung (loved his Gethsemane and his high-pitched rock wail), but he wasn't a very charismatic Jesus--someone who could lead and inspire a band of followers, much less a 'nation.' I wish Josh Young unleashed his voice more: rather than a conflicted Judas, he was a controlled Judas, moping around the perifery. He hit all the notes (and has an appealing voice and pretty face), but lacked edge. Likewise, Chilina Kennedy's Mary Magdalene was capably sung, but lacked yearning. Her pretty, doe-eyed expression made her seem more a fan girl than a devoted disciple.

The standout for me was Bruce Dow's Herod. He has only one scene, one song, but what he does with it. Both menacing and camp, he is funny and scary in his singing and acting. His Herod is a bully who enjoys mocking others. Meanwhile, his fey posse of sychophants prance around the stage beneath a Vegas-sized illuminated "H". Wonderfully over the top.

The industrial-looking set (with a catwalk running around 3 sides) reminded me a bit of Next to Normal, and I yearned for Kevin Adams-style lighting (the actual lighting was otherwise fine). The production works well when it's over the top (the Herod number or the title song, where Jesus is raised on a platform in front of a large illuminated cross) or anachronistic (the contemporary style choreography in the Simon Zealotes number was amusing) and I wouldn't mind seeing them do more of that in the transfer. It's a rock musical, and it does well with a lot of flash and jazz.

Josh Young (Judas) performs the title song, Jesus Christ Superstar:


Bruce Dow's delightfully decadent Herod:

On hiatus

I've wanted to update this blog for some time, but I clearly haven't. As such, I've decided to put the blog on hiatus. If you want to continue following me you can do so at: http://twitter.com/canmark. At some later date I will start blogging again.

Academy Awards

The Academy Award nominations were announced today. I think they were mostly fair. I would have liked to have seen Sharlto Copley (District 9) and Michael Stuhlbarg (A Serious Man) get best actor nominations, but whatever. I was happy that District 9 made the best picture cut (too bad Star Trek didn`t make it). Of the 10 best picture nominees I've seen six. The ones I haven't seen are: The Hurt Locker, Inglorious Basterds, The Blind Side, Up.

In the meantime, here are my Top Films of 2009:

Precious, Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire
Up in the Air
The Way We Get By (documentary)
Prom Night in Mississippi (documentary)
Star Trek
Avatar
District 9
Eyes Wide Open
The Top Twins: Untouchable Girls (documentary)
Defamation (documentary)

Honourable mention: Google Baby (documentary), An Education, A Serious Man, City of Life and Death (Nanjing! Nanjing!)

Worst movie: Bruno

Air New Zealand's cougars

Goodness, haven't blogged in yonks. Have lots to catch up on, but in the meantime here's the funny Air New Zealand Cougar ad. Yes, ladies, you know who you are. And you wear that label proudly. Go out there and snag some young men--and some great deals from Air New Zealand.



And let's not forget their Nothing to Hide campaign, with staff naked but for body pain. Here's the 'behind' the scenes video:

Roy Halladay

Reports are saying that Roy Halladay will not re-sign with the Blue Jays after his contract expires at the end of the 2010 season.

To paraphrase Hall and Oates:

He's gone
Oh I, oh I'd
Better learn how to face it
He's gone
Oh I, oh I'd
Pay the devil to replace him
He's gone
What went wrong?

Prom Night in Mississippi

Prom Night in Mississippi was one of my favorite films from the 2009 Hot Docs film festival, and I was thrilled to see it released theatrically in Toronto this weekend. I had tweeted about the film, posted about it on various Internet message boards, and also wanted plunk down my $10 at the theatre to further support the film. A fortuitous surprise was the that director and producer of the film, Paul Saltzman and Patricia Aquino, were available for a Q&A after the screening. They were in Toronto (along with actor Morgan Freeman) to promote the film.

I think I've blogged about it before, but I think the story the film tells is an important one. And it's one that's very fairly and touchingly told. For many years, the high school prom in Charleston, Mississippi had been segregated. There was the Black prom and the White prom despite the fact that the school was fully integrated (70% Black students, 30% white students).

Actor Morgan Freeman, who had lived in the town as a child, offered to pay for the prom if it would be integrated. We come to hear from the students themselves about their own feelings towards each other, and the attitudes that they were brought up with.

The Hot Docs audience loved the film, and the people in the small screening I attended also enjoyed it immensely. It's an important film for young people to see and the filmmakers are working to get the movie out to high schools and colleges. Where it has been shown, it has been wildly successful.

I'm blogging about this movie again because I really hope people will see this movie. It's heart-warming. The ingenuousness of the students is touching. And what they're doing--breaking a vicious cycle, a sad history of racism--is very powerful. So go see this movie--don't make me tell you again!

Carrie Fisher

Carrie Fisher is doing a one-woman show on Broadway called Wishful Drinking. It's about her life (daughter of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher, with a backstage pass to the Hollywood Life, who had battles with mental illness and addiction, and who played the iconic Princess Leia in the Star Wars movies) and is supposed to be a hoot.

I was just watching an interview with her on Broadwayworld.com and I liked this line she had while explaining how, back in the day, she was milling about in the bowels of Studio 54 with the likes of Halston, Liza, Truman Capote and Steve Rubell in the secret area for celebrity drug use. She says she was "A fly on a very ornate wall."

Here's more from Carrie Fisher (when she was doing this show in California):

Lone Scherfig

I've loved the work of Danish director Lone Scherfig since seeing Italian for Beginners several years ago. Since then I've gone to see her subsequent films when they played at the TIFF and she's always been there to introduce her films and do a Q&A. Italian for Beginners was a wonderful ensemble romantic comedy, set in Denmark, with a motley mix of characters who come together romantically at the end.

Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself, despite it's title, is a very pleasant film, set in Scotland, again about romantic yearning and a man who tries to kill himself and (comically) fails. Trailer.

Just Like Home was the next Scherfig film I saw. It's about the quirky inhabitants of a small Danish town. Some of the actors from Italian for Beginners appear in this cute film.

In her most recent film An Education she has harnessed her full talents in a film that will finally earn her recognition as a top-flight director. Based on Lynn Barber's autobiographical book, An Education is about Jenny, a very smart young woman who is swept off her feet by a suave older man (Peter Sarsgaard) who introduces her to a life of sophistication that she yearns to escape to. She foolishly abandons her previous plans of applying to Oxford and a life of rigorous (and dull) study with uncertain outcomes. Jazz clubs, fancy restaurants and trips to Paris seem so much more exciting to a young woman in 1960's England. But her education comes when she discovers that such a life has its price, esp. when it's built on a fraud. A wonderfully put together film, with terrific performances by the cast (led by the radiant and effervescent Carey Mulligan as Jenny), lovely period design and score (I have the soundtrack CD and am enjoying it much). The film has seen very positive reviews, and one anticipates a smattering of nominations come award season.

I'm quite happy that Lone Scherfig will finally get the recognition she deserves. Here's a video interview with her where she talks about directing An Education.

A Serious Man

A Serious Man is about Larry Gopnik, a genial man living in 1960's suburban Minnesota. Despite his well intentions and good nature, everything in his life seems to be going wrong. Larry's wife announces that she wants a divorce; she has taken up with a family friend. His children are indifferent to him and his feckless brother (and his cyst) has moved in. Larry is up for tenure at the college where he teaches physics, but the committee is receiving disturbing letters questioning his ethics and a failing student bribes him for a passing grade, then threatens to sue him for not accepting the bribe. He seeks answers to all the troubles in his life from a series of rabbis, who offer no help at all. Larry begins to have increasingly bizarre dreams (where he's either having sex with his comely female neighbor or being shot by his redneck male neighbor) as his life begins to spiral out of control.

Michael Stuhlbarg is amazing as Larry. "Likeable loser" isn't the right term for Larry, as, despite his constant petty and funny misfortunes, he's not a loser. Stuhlbarg plays him as a good, earnest, decent man. And you can't help but feel for this guy. He's faithful, loyal, honest, decent and really tries to be the best husband, father, neighbor, teacher, despite the lack of reciprocation from others. Absurd and yet rational, A Serious Man is a film I've come to like more after I've seen it than when I was actually watching it. I don't entirely understand it, but it's making me think a whole lot. (8/10)

Interested parties should read Jim Emerson's excellent analysis of the film, A Serious Man: Kafka in Minneapolis.