The 50th Toronto International Film Festival is underway. Armed with a press pass and a caffeine buzz, this writer is ready to absorb as many movies as possible and report back on which ones are worth watching. But before that, here’s five Canadian features that your Weekender is particularly excited about.
Blue Heron: The feature debut of short film master Sophy Romvari arrives hot off winning the top prize at the Locarno Film Festival. She brings her deft approach to deeply personal storytelling in this tale of a Hungarian family adjusting to their new life on Vancouver Island.
Dead Lover: Director Grace Glowicki stars as a lonely gravedigger who tries to resurrect the one man who can stand her stench (played by her co-writer and IRL husband Ben Petrie). Blending camp comedy and creature feature chills, it looks like an instant midnight classic.
Mile End Kicks: Chandler Levack follows up her critically acclaimed debut I Like Movies with a romcom set in the titular uber-hip Montréal neighbourhood. Euphoria standout Barbie Ferreira plays a young music critic trying to write her magnum opus and juggle two suitors.
Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie: BlackBerry director Matt Johnson cashed in his “one for me” chips for a feature-length send-off to his cult web/TV series — one of the funniest pieces of Cancon ever produced. Will Matt and Jay finally book a gig at the Rivoli?
Steal Away: The new film by Clement Virgo is a change of pace for the influential director, trading Toronto’s urban landscapes for an estate in the Belgian countryside. This allegorical fairytale tells the story of a secluded rich girl bonding with a refugee her family takes in.—QH