Director Pascal Laugier of ‘Martyrs’

Paul:
JP:

Plot: A young woman’s quest for revenge against the people who kidnapped and tormented her as a child leads her and a friend, who is also a victim of child abuse, on a terrifying journey into a living hell of depravity.

Trailer: http://www.movie-list.com/trailers.php?id=martyrs

First movie was ‘Martyrs’, a France/Quebec co-production and it’s one that’s difficult to write about. It starts off as a Horror film in the ‘Haute Tension’ and ‘Calvert’ tradition, movies part of the new French Horror revolution, but along the way it becomes so much more then that. I don’t want to give anything away as there are several surprises and plot twists along the way which I guarantee you won’t see coming, and eventually the film becomes something else entirely, something that owes more to a film like 2001 then a Horror film. But as much as I loved it and thought it was a work of art and something that makes you feel and think and bring on many discussions about it, there aren’t many people I can recommend it to. It is brutal, unflinching, hard to watch and will probably really upset you. People at both screenings threw up and one guy during the Q and A told the Director he hated it and that he was a sick fuck for making it. I personally am glad I saw it, I haven’t stopped thinking about it and I’m glad I got to experience it. I will be watching with great curiousity the reviews as it’s guaranteed to create controversy.

The Ordeal

2nd movie yesterday was ‘Pride and Glory’ but before I get to that I need to talk about the ordeal it was getting there. After ‘Martyrs’ I put my ticket for the next film in my pocket and we headed to the location of the next film. 10 minutes into the walk I decide to check for my ticket and notice it’s gone. I looked everywhere to no avail. So we retraced our steps, looking everywhere in the hopes it will still be on the ground. As we’re walking I see up ahead a ticket on the ground! Wow, what are the odds? I pick it up, it’s a TIFF ticket and…Its for a different film! WTF! What are the odds of that? Very small I would imagine. So we keep walking and looking until we reach the movie theatre we’d left. I go in and check the lost and found, no luck. I ask to be escorted to the room we were in and again, no luck. Then I go to the box office and see if there’s anything they can do and there isn’t. I’m ready to leave when a woman asks me if I want to buy a ticket from her as she isn’t going. I don’t really want to pay for a ticket so I hesitate and she says ‘just 10.00′. I check my wallet and all I have is 8.00, she agres to it so I buy it. Now after all that we have very little time to get to our next film so we grab a cab and get there just as the line is entering. We manage, somehow, to get decent seats. By this point I’m exhausted and soaked and finally I can relax. Phew, the end.

Pride and Glory

Paul:
JP: *

Plot: A saga centered on a multi-generational family of New York City Police officers. The family’s moral codes are tested when Ray Tierney (Edward Norton), investigates a case that reveals an incendiary police corruption scandal involving his own brother-in-law (Colin Farrell). For Ray, the truth is revelatory, a Pandora’s Box that threatens to upend not only the Tierney legacy but the entire NYPD.

Trailer: http://www.movie-list.com/trailers.php?id=prideandglory

After the excellent Martyrs on Friday it was off to Pride and Glory, starring Colin Farrell and Edward Norton. I already posted about “the ordeal” it was getting there so I won’t go over that again. The movie was better then I expected, it’s very gritty and realistic. The Hollywood Reporter nailed it:

That sturdy Hollywood institution known as the corrupt cop picture has been stripped right down to the studs — both technically and emotionally — with “Pride and Glory,” a gritty, bare-knuckled take on a clan of New York’s finest who have definitely seen finer days.

Directed by Gavin O’Connor (”Miracle”) from a script he co-wrote with Joe Carnahan (”Narc”), the stark drama harkens back to Sidney Lumet classics like “Serpico” and “Prince of the City”-filmmaking that went after an unadorned, jagged realism, with acting to match.

Not much to add to that really. After this movie we headed to The Victory Cafe for a few pints, Mel’s for some yummy Smoked-Meat Poutine and finally, The Beguiling for some shopping. Then home to relax and get a decent night’s sleep.

* Due to lack of sleep, JP was dozing off during this, so his rating is conditional upon a second viewing.

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Paul:
JP:

Plot: Based on Martin McGartland’s shocking real life story, Martin is a young lad from west Belfast in the late 1980s who is recruited by the British Police to spy on the IRA. He works his way up the ranks as a volunteer for the IRA whilst feeding information to his British handler and saving lives in the process; until one day he is exposed, captured and tortured to within an inch of his life. He escaped dramatically by throwing himself from a tower block window and is still in hiding today.

3:17 pm

Staying up past midnight and drinking several beers makes getting up at 6:30am difficult. It wasn’t brutal but not very easy either.
First movie today was called ‘50 Dead Men Walking’. It’s based on a true story of an Irishman who was in the IRA and was feeding information to the British to save lives. It starred Jim Sturgess and Ben Kingsley. It was very good (and interestingly it mentions Bobby Sands who was the main character in ‘The Hunger’ that we saw earlier this week) and I recommend it. Not much to add really.

Synecdoche, New York

Paul:
JP:

Plot: A theater director (Hoffman) struggles with his work, and the women in his life, as he attempts to create a life-size replica of New York inside a warehouse as part of his new play.

The second film… fuck how do you spell it? Something like ‘Synechdeche’…let me check…it’s ‘Synecdoche, New York’, I was pretty close. Anyways, it’s the new Charlie Kaufman film and it’s his directorial debut. I didn’t much care for it. I think directing it himself was a mistake as it was an over-indulgent mess. I liked the first hour but it lost me in the second half — it went on way too long and it went up it’s own ass. The premise is cool but it needed a Director to reign it in and make it coherent. It’s too bad cause there are some funny parts and Philip Seymour Hoffman was great.

Gigantic

Paul:
JP:

Plot: A comedy centered around a mattress salesman and the young woman whom he meets at his store.

Next up was ‘Gigantic’ starring Paul Dano and Zooey Deschanel. A small film by a first time director that we almost loved. I say almost loved because we loved everything about the film except for one really out of place recurring thing that made no sense and was totally out place amongst the rest of the movie. It’s too bad cause if you take those scenes out it’s a great film. Despite that I still recommend it.

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Director Kathryn Bigelow with writer Mark Boal and lead actor Jeremy Renner from ‘The Hurt Locker’

Paul:
JP:

Plot: Iraq. Forced to play a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse in the chaos of war, an elite Army bomb squad unit must come together in a city where everyone is a potential enemy and every object could be a deadly bomb.

Trying to catch up and here so I will try and condense a few posts into one. So yesterday was Day 6, I think, it’s getting hard to keep track of what day it is and where you are going. So much running around and yesterday was so hectic I didn’t even have time to post except for that one posting the morning.

First movie of the day was Kathryn Bigelow’s ‘The Hurt Locker’. It’s about the U.S. military bomb squad while in Iraq. It was very good, even better then I expected. With some intense and exciting action scenes, great direction and a great cast, I have nothing to complain about this one. Shot digitally and financed by her self I hope a studio picks it up and that it does well.

Tale 52

Director Alexis Alexiou of ‘Tale 52′

Paul:
JP:

Plot: “Tale 52″ starts with silent pasta preparation, leading up to a dinner party. Although set in 2010, the women wear ridiculously heavy, late 1970s make-up. I guess nobody is safe from retro fads, least of all the people of the future. All of which is beside the point. Iasonas (Yorgos Kakanakis) goes through an ordeal so painful, so profound and so inexplicable you can’t help feeling for him. Not only does he suffer from hellish headaches, a rotting apartment and a cheating girlfriend. At the heart of his misery lies the suspicion that he is his own worst enemy. Either he’s going crazy, or something is seriously wrong with the world around him.

Trailer: http://www.movie-list.com/trailers.php?id=tale52

Second film was ‘Tale 52′, a Greek Lynchian mindfuck of a film kind of about a man going psychotic after the disappearance of his girlfriend. Sort of. It was too slow and long and would improve greatly with some editing, I’d take out a good 10 to 15 minutes. I dosed off for a few minutes during this one. It also boasts possibly the most walk-outs I’ve seen at a TIFF film yet. So, not recommended.

Slumdog Millionaire

Director Danny Boyle of ‘Slumdog Millionaire’
(As you can see, we had to sit pretty far away.)

Paul:
JP:

Plot: The story of how impoverished Indian teen Jamal Malik (Patel) became a contestant on the Hindi version of “Who Wants to be A Millionaire?” — an endeavor made without prize money in mind, rather, an effort to prove his love for his friend Latika (Pinto), who is an ardent fan of the show.

Next film was much anticipated by me, it’s the new Danny Boyle film, one of my favourite directors, and it’s called ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. It’s about an Indian boy who winds up on India’s Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and we see his life and how he got there. It’s funny, exciting, moving, interesting and with a great soundtrack and more — I loved it! The sold-out crowd absolutely loved it and I wouldn’t be surprised if it wins the People’s Choice award. It also has the potential to be a hit along the lines of ‘Bend it Like Beckham’. Highly recommended and I can’t wait to see it again!

On the way out we walked by Amanda Peet and headed home.

Phew. Now I can start posting about today.

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Paul:
JP:

Plot: A traveling art saleswoman tries to shake off a flaky motel manager who falls for her and won’t leave her alone.

11:30 am

Today was a bit rough getting out as we were out drinking last night for a friend’s birthday. Luckily we started with something light and funny: ‘Management’. A pretty good Romantic Comedy starring Steve Zahn and Jennifer Aniston. It’s different cause the lead is Zahn and not Aniston and it’s well written. Not something I’d tell you to run out and see but it’s worth seeing.

The Wreslter

Director Darren Aranofsky and the producer of ‘The Wrestler’

Paul:
JP:

Plot: The wrestler is the story of retired professional wrestler, Randy “The Ram” Robinson, making his way through the independent circuit, trying to get back in the game for one final showdown with his former rival.

2:00 pm

2nd movie today was the top winner at the Venice Film Festival, Darren Aranofsky’s ‘The Wrestler’. I was really looking forward to it as Aranofsky is one of my favourite directors and it did not disappoint. It was a much smaller, intimate film then I expected but that’s not a bad thing. Mickey Rourke was phenomenal, this performance will remind everyone just how good he is and I can see an Oscar Nomination for him for this film. It didn’t blow me away like I thought it would, not sure why, but it was still a great film and I look forward to seeing it again.

Nothing But the Truth

Director Rod Lurie of ‘Nothing but the Truth’

Paul:
JP:

Plot: In Washington, D.C., a female reporter faces a possible jail sentence for outing a CIA agent and refusing to reveal her source.

9:00 am

Getting too far behind!
Last movie yesterday was Rod Lurie’s ‘Nothing But The Truth’ and it was pretty good, this despite us having the worst audience we’ve ever had at TIFF — a whole row of shit-eaters behind us who wouldn’t shut the fuck up and a crazy woman next to me who kept exclaiming ‘Oh no!’ and ‘Aaaah’ and ‘Oh, it’s her’, etc. I wanted to punch her in the neck.
Like I said, even deapite those fuckers we still enjoyed it, its worth seeing.
Even better was the Q and A with Rod Lurie afterwards, that guy is crazy enthusiastic, funny, informative and a blast!

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Paul:
JP:

Plot: The last six weeks of the life of the Irish republican hunger striker Bobby Sands.

11:59 pm

Wow, what a way to start the day this morning, with ‘Hunger’, the story of Bobby Sands, a ’soldier’ in the IRA who went on a hunger strike in prison — quite the intense way to start the day! A fantastic film with a tour-de-force 15(ish) minute, one-take, dialogue scene between the lead character and priest, it blew me away. Like I said though, it was quite intense, in fact, a woman in the row ahead of us passed-out towards the end and another woman on the way out was being looked after.

This movie won the Camera D’Or at Cannes and I wouldn’t be surprised if it wins something here too.
Up next: Religulous!

Religulous

Larry Charles, director of Religulous

Paul:
JP:

Plot: Bill Maher’s take on the current state of world religion.

Trailer: http://www.movie-list.com/trailers.php?id=religulous

3:37 pm

2nd movie was Religulous and it was everything I hoped: Really funny, informative and asked all the right questions. I can’t wait to watch it again.

Deadgirl

Directors Marcel Sarmiento and Gadi Harel and actor Noah Segan

Paul:
JP:

Plot: Teenage skids JT (Noah Segan) and Rickie (Shiloh Fernandez) tool around drinking beers in an abandoned hospital, when they stumble upon a girl in the basement who’s chained to a gurney. While Rickie sensibly thinks they should get the fuck out of there, JT’s creepy suggestion is that they have a little “fun” with the incapacitated hot babe instead.
Things turn super creepy after JT realises that their captive is neither dead nor alive, and starts becoming increasingly obsessed with her, spending his nights in the dank basement and no longer turning up at school at all. Meanwhile, Rickie pines for his childhood crush JoAnn (now predictably a beautiful girl dating the school’s most popular jock) and tries to keep the “dead girl” situation from spiraling out of control as more and more people hear about the dirty secret in the basement.

11:00 pm

Last movie of the day was Deadgirl. We both liked it but there are very few people we know that we could actually recommend it to. It’s quite sick… like really, really sick. So if you like that kind of thing go see Deadgirl but don’t say we didn’t warn you.

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First movie of the day is at 9:30 and the subway doesn’t start running until 9:00 on Sundays which poses a problem. So after grabbing a bus and a long streetcar ride we finally get to Ryerson University, where the screening is, 35 minutes before it starts, and the line-up is crazy long. So instead of grabbing shitty seats together we decided to get good seats seperately.

The movie, by the way, is ‘Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist’. Man, I wish I had a coffee.

Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist

The back of JP’s head. Two rows ahead of Paul.

Paul:
JP:

Plot: High school student Nick O’Leary, member of the queercore band The Jerk Offs, meets college-bound Norah Silverberg and she asks him to be her boyfriend for five minutes to avoid an awkward situation. This begins the night of Nick, Norah and manhattan and it’s a night they’ll never forget.

Trailer: http://www.movie-list.com/trailers.php?id=nickandnorahsinfiniteplaylist

Notes:

• Well, Michael Cera is on a roll. Juno, Superbad and now this. Another great movie! Realistic and interesting characters, funny and witty dialogue, great soundtrack and great performances by all.
• A funny, somewhat unique take on the ‘teenage movie’. The structure is standard but it’s the characters that make it different — they feel real and not your Hollywood cliche’ed teenager.
• Kat Dennings is great and one to look out for. Michael Cera is fantastic as usual and Ari Graynor as the drunk comic relief was just right too.
• All the locations were real and they looked it. The band’s playing, and the crowds in the clubs were all authentic and true to the New York night scene.
• Recommended!

12:39 pm

Nick and Norah was great. Great cast, great soundtrack, funny and even moving at times, I really enjoyed it. Band of Horses, Shout Out Louds, We Are Scientists, Vampire Weekend and more on the soundtrack. Michael Cera is on a role with Juno, Superbad and now this. Recommended, go see it when it comes out!

Now, ‘Wendy and Lucy’ starring Michelle Williams.

Wendy and Lucy

Paul:
JP:

Plot: A woman’s life is derailed en route to a potentially lucrative summer job. When her car breaks down, and her dog is taken to the pound, the thin fabric of her financial situation comes apart, and she is led through a series of increasingly dire economic decisions.

Notes:

• Pretty dull. Not much plot at all and very little happens that is interesting. It’s as if they made a movie for the sake of making a movie. You really should have a good story and script first.
• Michelle Williams does a good job with what she has to work with, but except for a couple of scenes, she really doesn’t have much to do.
• If it wasn’t for the dog, I don’t think I would have made it through the entire film.
• I liked the character of the security guard and thought he was under-utilized.
• Many scenes looked as though they were going to move the plot forward and ultimately went nowhere.
• We also felt it wasn’t very well shot / directed.

2:51 pm

We’ve decided next year no films at Ryerson! It’s a pain in the ass to get to, the seats are cramped and it’s always too warm.
Last film was just O.K., it barely had a plot.
Now we are going to see ‘Is There Anybody There?’ starring Michael Caine. He was
out front getting his picture taken a few minutes ago, I look forward to seeing him for the Q and A.

Is There Anybody There?

Director John Crowley and Michael Caine

Paul:
JP:

Plot: Set in 1980s seaside England, this is the story of Edward, an unusual ten year old boy growing up in an old people’s home run by his parents. Whilst his mother struggles to keep the family business afloat, and his father copes with the onset of mid-life crisis, Edward is busy tape-recording the elderly residents to try and discover what happens when they die. Increasingly obsessed with ghosts and the afterlife, Edward’s is a rather lonely existence until he meets Clarence, the latest recruit to the home, a retired magician with a liberating streak of anarchy. Is There Anybody There? tells the surprising, touching story of this odd couple – a boy and an old man – facing life together, with Edward learning to live in the moment and Clarence coming to terms with the past.

Notes:

• Michael Caine! What more do you need?
• 3 for 3 for John Crowley (Intermission, Boy A, Is There Anybody There?). Another winner!
• A funny, interesting and moving film with an awesome performance by Caine and newcomer Bill Milner (Son of Rambow)… it’s always impressive when a child actor is really good and he was!

10:51 pm

Highlight of today was Michael Caine. He and John Crowley did a Q and A after Is There Anybody There? and he was so funny, charming and entertaining — He’s a class act!

Related posts:

1. TIFF09 – Day 3 Repost of tweets: Day 3 of #TIFF09 ! 1st film...

Up at 6:30am today, that’s definitely the worst part of the whole experience, though it was much easier to get up today then it will be later this week.

First movie is ‘Appaloosa’, a western directed by Ed Harris and starring him, Viggo Mortensen and Squinty McSquint, also known as Renee Zelweger. Looking forward to seeing it.

Appaloosa

Ed Harris Introducing ‘Appaloosa’

Trailer: http://www.movie-list.com/trailers.php?id=appaloosa

Notes:

• We loved it. It was exactly what a western should be; Great dialogue, funny (We laughed out loud several times), well shot (Sets and backgrounds were very well done — there’s always something happening in backgrounds; through windows; etc.) good shoot-outs and never boring.
• Mortensen and Harris were, as usual, fantastic, and had a great rapport. Jeremy Irons was also great.
• Were never fans of Renee “Squinty” Zellweger but she fit the role well.
• JP felt it might have been a tad long.

11:34 am

First off, Appaloosa was fantastic, I friggin’ loved it! More notes on it tonight.
Next up is Detroit Metal City. I don’t feel like typing up the premise but it promises to be a blast. You can easily look it up if you’re curious.
Gonna have some popcorn for lunch, it doesn’t get much more unhealthy then that but what’cha gonna do?
Nothing much of note has happened yet today outside of the films but it’s still early.

Detroit Metal City

Director of Detroit Metal City in the Centre

Paul:
JP:

Plot: Soichi Negishi moved to Tokyo to chase his dream of becoming a musician playing stylish, Swedish-style pop. Instead, he finds himself leading the death metal band Detroit Metal City, or DMC, as the costumed and grotesquely made-up “demon emperor” Johannes Krauser II. Although he hates the role and the things he has to do as a member of the band, he has a definite talent for it. Adapted from the hit Japanese comic book by Kiminori Wakasugi, the movie follows Negishi’s antics as he tries to reconcile the two very different sides of his life and find out what it really means to achieve his dream.

Notes:

• Way too cartoony, over-the-top and stupid. Might be a cultural thing, but this movie just wasn’t for us.
• Music was well made, though it’s odd that something that was made apparently made so kids could watch it (according to the director during the q&a) would be filled with songs with lyrics about raping and killing. Again, this must be a cultural thing.
• Unfortunately, the lead character was very punchable. It’s hard to root for the guy if you’d like to see him get pummeled.
• Gene Simmons was… whatever — could take him or leave him.

2:31 pm

Every year there’s a movie I’m not looking forward to seeing too much and it winds up being awesome, and there’s one I’m dying to see and I’m ultimately disappointed — Detroit Metal City falls in the 2nd category, I did not like it AT ALL. I almost went to sleep during it. It must be a cultural thing but it was way too over the top, stupid and cartoony for me.

Next movie is ‘Vinyan’ which is decribed as a ghost story and psychological thriller.

Vinyan

Director of Vinyan on the left

Paul:
JP:

Plot: A couple are looking for their child who was lost in the tsunami – their search takes them to the dangerous Thai-Burmese waters, and then into the jungle, where they face unknown but horrifying dangers.

Trailer: http://www.movie-list.com/trailers.php?id=vinyan

Notes:

• Insane sound-mix… There are moments when the ‘noise’ makes your ears bleed. Maybe it was the theater, but many people were covering their ears at the start, and especially at one moment near the end.
• Slowly paced, but not boring. Might have dragged slightly midway through.
• Well acted by Beart and Sewell.
• If the plot summary had not mentioned the Tsunami or ghosts, we wouldn’t have known about it. The beginning and end are both very vague. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it does question whether this was intentional or not.
• It was well shot. Camera work gets more elaborate (using handheld, wires, etc.) as the film progresses.
• JP liked it more than Paul, who thought it was a little too artsy-fartsy for it’s own good. It would have made a better short film, as he felt there wasn’t enough there for a feature film.

No related posts.

First movie of the fest is Guy Ritchie’s ‘RockNRolla’ and if it’s everything I hope it is it will be a great way to start the whole shebang! Laughs, action and tough guys beating and shooting the hell out of each other. Our thoughts about it afterwards!

11:34 am

First movie and there’s already an annoying guy behind me. Apparently he’s from Aint it Cool News and his name is Art Snob. Anyways, he’s a douche.

RocknRolla

Guy Ritchie introduces RocknRolla

Paul:
JP:

Plot: In London, a stolen painting pits some of the city’s scrappiest tough guys (Butler, Elba) against its more established underworld players (Wilkinson).

Trailer: http://www.movie-list.com/trailers.php?id=rocknrolla

Notes:

• The film is not as funny, or as violent as Ritchie’s past work. Although it’s tone is certainly less serious than Revolver. It did still have some laugh-out-loud moments.
• Although nice and loud, the sound at the Ryerson isn’t the greatest which made some of the thick accents hard to understand. Even viewers with great sound might have some trouble early in the movie until they get used to it.
• We enjoyed everyone in the cast, especially Gerard Butler.
• It took us a while to get ‘involved’ in the movie. Maybe because it didn’t ‘hook’ us.
• The script was original and unpredictable. Ended perfectly.

2:15 pm

2nd movie of the day is ‘JCVD’, a sort-of-mocumentary starring Jean-Claude Van Damme that has lots of buzz on it from Cannes. I don’t know what to expect except that apparently we will see Jean-Claude in a new light.

JCVD

Mabrouk El Mechri (in middle)

Paul:
JP:

Plot: Between his tax problems and his legal battle with his wife for the custody of his daughter, these are hard times for the action movie star who finds that even Steven Seagal has pinched a role from him! In JCVD, Jean-Claude Van Damme returns to the country of his birth to seek the peace and tranquility he can no longer enjoy in the United States.

Trailer: http://www.movie-list.com/trailers.php?id

Notes:

• Great… Incredible monologue by Van Damme — no spoilers, but… wow.
• Not sure if the flashback-style was necessary. It didn’t detract from the film necessarily, but the film could have been told chronologically.
• Nice to see Van Damme poke fun at himself and his career
• The opening scene — one long action cut, was very well done and hooks you into the movie.
• Had a few laugh-out-loud moments as well as some touching scenes.
• Great, original idea and premise. Not as much like Being John Malkovich as you might hear. But we can see why the connection would be made.
• Van Damme surprised us with his acting ability.

11:22 pm

End of day one.

No related posts.

Our main TIFF ‘08 section is up and includes a list of all the film’s playing, as well as trailers and our list of picks. It will be updated throughout the festival with new info and will link to all of our coverage.

http://www.movie-list.com/tiff08/

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