Entertainment / TIFF 2013 Wraps UP!

TIFF 2013 Wraps UP!

Entertainment Sep 17, 2013

by Matthew Currie

Well, that’s all folks. Another Toronto International Film Festival has come and gone. Movies were screened, celebs were sighted, buzz was generated. All that’s left is the post-mortem. Who got a head start in the Oscar race? Which high-profile flicks tanked? Most importantly, how did the South Asian flicks fare?

It sometimes seemed as though the gods themselves were conspiring against the South Asian contingent at this year’s fest, as no less than four screenings of Indian films were halted due to projector malfunctions. Luckily, that’s just about the only major critique of this crop.

At the head of the pack is The Lunchbox, starring Irrfan Khan as a retiring number-cruncher who strikes up a bittersweet, pen-pal romance with an equally lonely young housewife (radiant newcomer Nimrat Kaur).

Director Ritesh Batra’s debut feature delivers laughs and melancholic pangs in equal measures for an incredibly rich, satisfying film-going experience. Look for this one to be India’s Oscar submission.

Other highlights included Canadian Richie Mehta’s Siddharth, a melancholic, deeply affecting drama about one impoverished father’s seemingly hopeless (but nonetheless inspirational) search for his kidnapped son amidst the bustling masses of Mumbai.

Pan Nalin’s Faith Connections marked a fine documentary debut for the Samsara director, who harnessed his penchant for arresting visuals to delve into the infamous Kumbh Mela pilgrimage via a handful of intriguing personal stories (a yogi baba raising a baby, for instance).

Shuddh Desi Romance proved to be an infectiously feel-good romp that played into many classic Bollywood rom-com tropes, while infusing them with a more naturalistic vibe and a fresh perspective on modern love and marriage. Relative newcomers Sushant Singh Rajput and Parineeti Chopra solidify their statuses as stars to watch.

Anup Singh’s debut film Qissa, meanwhile, took home the NETPAC award as the festival’s top Asian film. Also starring Irrfan Khan, it’s a complex historical drama about one Sikh man’s efforts to resettle his family and preserve their identity amidst the strife of partition.

Oscar Buzz

TIFF’s People’s Choice Award has always been a solid indicator of Oscar contender-status. This year, that honour went to U.K. director Steve McQueen’s star-studded drama 12 Years a Slave. Based on the memoir by Solomon Northrup, it’s the deeply affecting tale of a well-to-do African American man who is abducted and sold into slavery in the 19^th century, spending the next 12 years of his life enduring captivity.

Pundits are predicting possible statues for the director, his leading man (Serenity’s Chiwetel Ejiofor) and supporting players Michael Fassbender and the sweet, devastating Lupita Nyong’o.

August: Osage County, TV vet John Wells’ adaptation of Tracy Letts’ darkly comic family reunion play, hasn’t been quite so well received, despite a star-studded cast that includes the likes of Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, Sam Shepard, Ewan McGregor and Benedict Cumberbatch. But Best Actress predictions abound for stars Streep (of course) and Roberts as an estranged mother and daughter.

TIFF-goers got a chance to take in the late-James Gandolfini’s penultimate performance in Enough Said, the latest dramedy from Nicole Holofcener (Friends With Money). Playing the object of affection for a lonely divorcee (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), critics have singled out the former Sopranos star’s sweet, tender performance as one that might be worthy of some post-humous recognition.

Hidden Gems

Japanese import Why Don’t You Play in Hell won the Midnight Madness Audience award, and rightfully so. It’s a manic, gleefully gory, endlessly entertaining love letter to genre films and movie-making itself. But it’s the runner up that really impressed me.

Oculus, the sophomore feature from director Mike Flanagan is a thoroughly inventive mind-bender about a brother and sister doing battle with an antique mirror that alters human perception. By the time its stunning conclusion rolls around, Flanagan has you questioning the reality of absolutely everything happening onscreen.

Disappointments

WikiLeaks biopic The Fifth Estate was one of the most highly anticipated efforts of this year’s fest, but, aside from some impressed nods to Benedict Cumberbatch’s take on founder Julian Assange, it’s received mostly lukewarm reviews. It’s especially disappointing from a director like Bill Condon, who’s been responsible for several superb, unconventional biopics, including Oscar winner Gods and Monsters.

Top Pick

Normally, I like to go off the board and spotlight a low-profile gem for this one, but there’s just no arguing with 12 Years a Slave. It’s an astonishingly potent film, stunningly directed and expertly acted. Director McQueen gazes, unflinchingly as its protagonist’s freedom, dignity and identity are ripped away from him.

It’s a graphic, often difficult-to-watch film that had some viewers leaving halfway through and others breaking down into tears during the powerful conclusion. It’s not just a great film, it’s an important one.

_{Image Courtesy: Tiff.net}

Matthew Currie

Author

A long-standing entertainment journalist, Currie is a graduate of the Professional Writing program at Toronto’s York University. He has spent the past number of years working as a freelancer for ANOKHI and for diverse publications such as Sharp, TV Week, CAA’s Westworld and BC Business. Currie ...

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