Gala
A Little Chaos Gala/Closing Night Film Actor Alan Rickman’s stately period drama about the construction of the fountains and gardens at the Palace of Versailles couldn’t be more boring if it was actually about the intricacies of gardening. Instead, it’s an inert drama that doesn’t improve on the sight of the same actors digging for […]
TIFF 2014: The Forger Review
The Forger Gala John Travolta stars as an art forger and single dad about to embark on one last gig so he can spend some quality time with his dying son in this passable potboiler that’s more of a character study than a thriller or a heist film. Ray Cutter (Travolta) is a convicted felon […]
TIFF 2014: The Riot Club Review
The Riot Club Gala Hey, you know how there’s some sort of class warfare thing that they do in Britain? Well, so do the people behind The Riot Club and they sure are pissy about it. Perhaps I’m being unkind. It’s not a bad movie by any means. Just one that is very, very on […]
TIFF 2014: Black and White Review
Black and White Gala Kevin Costner reteams with filmmaker Mike Binder (The Upside of Anger, Reign Over Me) for an “inspired by true events” custody battle between members of an extended mixed race family. It’s every bit as manipulative as it sounds, but it works more often than it fails. Alcoholic lawyer Elliott (Costner) now […]
TIFF 2014: The Judge Review
The Judge Gala (Opening Night Film) It’s not that the Robert Downey Jr./Robert Duvall familial, courtroom face to face is patently unwatchable, but it feels as if it were created by robots in a laboratory that were programmed to exactly pin-point the kind of legal drama that would slay in the sticks. Hotshot big city […]
TIFF 2014: Samba Review
Samba Gala Samba is a beautifully crafted film that explores the illegal immigrant experience and its impact on human dignity through humour and heartbreak. Directors Eric Toledano and Olivier Nakache re-unite with actor Omar Sy following their critically acclaimed comedy-drama Les Intouchables. Here, the story focuses on a Senegalese man named Samba Cissé (Sy) who has sought refuge in […]
TIFF 2014: The Connection Review
The Connection Gala For those of you who ever saw The French Connection and wondered, “hey whatever happened to the French side of that connection?” then TIFF has a movie for you. The Connection (amusingly, the original title is La French) turns back the clock to a time when the country was one of the […]
The Dork Shelf Guide to TIFF 2014
All the latest news, reviews and interviews from TIFF 2014, right here.
TIFF 2014: Maps to the Stars Review
Maps to the Stars Gala From the cold, calculating, and cynical brain of David Cronenberg comes an unexpected Hollywood satire. At first, it’s jarring to see Cronenberg staging a gleefully foul mouthed and filthy comedy amidst a group of drugged up, self-obsessed, La-La-land phonies. The script from Bruce Wagner is not particularly funny, but an […]
TIFF 2014: Foxcatcher Review
Foxcatcher Gala Certain to get noticed for its trio of electrifying leading performances, this unnerving and stylish true life tragedy still feels a bit off thanks to director Bennett Miller (Moneyball, Capote) overcompensating where he doesn’t need to. Olympic gold medal wrestler Mark Schultz (Channing Tatum) has just come back from the 1984 Olympics and […]
TIFF 2014: Infinitely Polar Bear Review
Infinitely Polar Bear Gala Although somewhat awkwardly mounted by first time director Maya Forbes, her retelling of her own childhood with a bipolar father in late 70s Boston holds a wealth of empathy and emotion that more than makes up for any technical shortcomings. Not long after suffering a severe manic episode, Cameron (one of […]
TIFF Announces First of Many 2014 Selections
TIFF didn't announce an opening night film alongside today's announcements of Galas and Special Presentations for their 2014 festival this September, but they announced plenty to get people excited for the event.