Every late summer, the impressive omnipresence of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on the city streets and in the media means I don’t need to give it much introduction here, except to say that the cultural behemoth makes the city quiver with excitement like little else does. And, that this year, TIFF brings with it some unexpected drama (entirely unrelated to celebrity visits): there is the controversial new online ticket ordering system, the potentially disruptive labour strike by TIFF film revisors, and TIFF’s new rebranding campaign, which proclaims – to the shock of some – that the festival is the place, “Where Popcorn meets Paté,” and “Where OMG Meets WTF.”
But as always, TIFF is about celebrating the best in new film, and there is no disappointment there. Here are a few film picks to get you started (while you figure out how to order tickets online):
Cloud Atlas: This much-anticipated film, based on the celebrated novel by David Mitchell, is a fantasy exploration of the way human connection transcends the past, present and future. The impressive cast includes Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Hugo Weaving, Jim Broadbent, James D’Arcy, Susan Sarandon and Hugh Grant.
Looper: This sci-fi gender-bender, which will be this year’s TIFF gala opener, features time machines, untraceable bullets and smart crime, as a hit man (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) works for mobsters in the year 2047; the film also features Bruce Willis and Emily Blunt.
Anna Karenina: Much has already been said about this picture’s stunning costume design and visual impact, but this beautifully executed version of Leo Tolstoy’s dark tale of aristocracy, love and betrayal also features a script by Tom Stoppard, who picked up an Oscar for Shakespeare in Love. The excellent cast includes: Keira Knightley, Jude Law, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Olivia Williams and Emily Watson.
The Sessions: A multiple Sundance 2012 winner, this is an honest and funny portrayal of physical intimacy from the perspective of a man (John Hawkes) paralyzed from the neck down, and whose yearning for touch leads him to hire a sex surrogate (Helen Hunt).
Amour: A winner at Cannes 2012, and a likely candidate for Best Foreign-Language Film at the next Academy Awards, Michael Haneke’s evocative drama portrays an elderly couple’s tragic journey as the wife suffers two strokes which rob her first of speech, and then mobility. That Amour has been called Heneke’s most passionate film to date says a lot.
To the Wonder: Terrence Malick’s new romantic drama, which in some ways echoes the haunting beauty of The Tree of Life, features Ben Affleck as tormented Neil, and Rachel McAdams as the childhood friend to whom he turns as his marriage silently disintegrates.
Midnight’s Children: Finally, we get Deepa Mehta’s long-awaited adaptation of Salman Rushdie’s celebrated novel.
Laurence Anyways: This is a sex-change drama by Montrealer Xavier Dolan, whose previous films were named to the Top 10 Canadian films.
Stories We Tell: Sarah Polley’s “genre-twisting” documentary is about the myth, inconsistency, and memory that make up a family narrative. Some have surmised that the on-screen family may be Polley’s own.
What: The Toronto International Film Festival
When: September 6-16, 2012
Tickets: Online