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That Shelf’s Top Picks for TIFF 2026

by Pat Mullen | August 28, 2026

Our top picks for the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival include Elsinore, Wild Horse Nine, and Ladies and Gentlemen, Brian Mulroney.

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CONTEST ALERT! "Your best friendship is worth fighting for. " We're giving away passes to the VANCOUVER preview screening of Universal Pictures' upcoming title, FORGOTTEN ISLAND, a new original film from DreamWorks Animation (How to Train Your Dragon, Shrek, Puss in Boots). The film opens in theatres on September 25, but Universal is hosting an exclusive advance screening in Vancouver on Wednesday, September 23. To enter, just: 🫶 Like this post. 🫶 Follow That Shelf 🫶 Tag your best friend (the one who you'd like to go to the Vancouver screening with)! Grammy- and Academy Award®-winning supernova H.E.R. and Liza Soberano (Lisa Frankenstein, Alone/Together) star as best friends and high school graduates Jo and Raissa, who are about to embark on separate life paths. While celebrating their last night together, they stumble upon a mysterious portal that transports them to the fantastical island of Nakali, packed with creatures they grew up hearing stories about in their Filipino families. When they discover that the memories of their entire friendship are the price for returning home, Jo and Raissa will race to find a way to leave the island before they forget each other forever. Forgotten Island opens in theatres September 25. The contest closes Sunday at 12 noon PT. One entry per person. Canada only. Winners will be contacted by DMs. #contest #vancouver #advancescreening
10 hours ago
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1/9

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ANOTHER CHANCE TO WIN! ENTER FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN RUN-OF-ENGAGEMENT TICKETS TO SEE #ResidentEvil. To enter: 🔴 Follow us. 🔴 Like this post. 🔴 Tag the friend you'd bring to see RESIDENT EVIL. You'll be entered to win passes to see the film during its theatrical engagement beginning September 18! From the mind of visionary filmmaker Zach Cregger (Weapons, Barbarian) comes a thrilling — and terrifying — reinvention of the Resident Evil franchise. In an all-new story, Resident Evil follows Bryan (Austin Abrams), a medical courier who unwittingly finds himself in an action-packed, non-stop race for survival as one fateful, horrifying night collapses around him in chaos. @ResidentEvil opens exclusively in movie theatres on September 18, 2026. Giveaway closes on Sunday, September 20. Open to Canadian residents only. Winners will be notified by DM. One entry per account, please. @SonyPicturesCanada @thetarogroup
4 days ago
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We're almost at the halfway point of #TIFF26 already (we can't believe it either) and we're already hit some incredible cinematic highs and some equally incredible lows... Here is a second batch of quotes from our critics on some of the films they've seen: The Debut (@mullenpat) Elsinore (@emmathedame) Love of Your Life (@rachel_is_here) Faith (@rachel_is_here) IDDA (@haileypassmore) Ancestors (@mullenpat) Krux (@rachel_is_here) L'AUTRE (@smallmind1978) Smudge the Blades (@mullenpat) Nobody's Violence (@smallmind1978) The Betrayers (@rachel_is_here) Nosotros (@smallmind1978) Read the full reviews at the link in our bio! What's topped your list at the fest so far?
5 days ago
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Love these faux playbills from the premiere of #TheDebut at #TIFF26. What’s the coolest piece of film marketing you’ve encountered?
5 days ago
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@tiff_net outdid themselves with this afternoon’s In Conversation with…Andrew Scott. Standing ovations, laughs and cheers galore. From Moriarty to Hot Priest to Tom Ripley and more, the chat covered his career highlights (with shout outs to Pride, All of Us Strangers, Wake Up Dead Man, and Blue Moon), to what it feels like to break the internet every 6 months (see the viral clip from his new series It Gets Worse), to taking on one of his most personal projects yet with #Elsinore. Stay tuned for our review of that last, which screens at #TIFF26 tomorrow. It is already generating some Oscar buzz for Scott. Other things we found out: His favourite Meryl Streep role: Postcards from the Edge. Runner up: Adaptation. Shakespeare roles he’d love to tackle: Iago or Benedick. (He’s excited for the Broadway transfer of @twhiddleston and @wellhayley’s Much Ado About Nothing, btw)
6 days ago
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5/9

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No big deal. Just hanging out with @airbudofficial at #TIFF26.
6 days ago
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@taron.egerton and filmmaker Jonathan Schey answer questions after the world premiere of Everybody Wants to F*ck me at #TIFF26. The film: “Egerton gives a gleefully committed performance as a man determined to be viewed by potential paramours as the ideal catch in director Jonathan Schey’s darkly comic appraisal of modern dating and how some men signal virtues they don’t possess.” Via @tiff_net Stay tuned for our review! Head to the link in our bio for all our TIFF coverage. 🎥 @rachel_is_here
1 week ago
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CONTEST: ENTER FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN PASSES TO THE ADVANCE SCREENING OF RESIDENT EVIL That Shelf, @SonyPicturesCanada, and @thetarogroup want to send you and a friend to see #ResidentEvil on September 16, 2026, in Toronto, Vancouver, or Montreal (in FR or EN) before it hits theatres! From the mind of visionary filmmaker Zach Cregger (Weapons, Barbarian) comes a thrilling — and terrifying — reinvention of the Resident Evil franchise. In an all-new story, Resident Evil follows Bryan (Austin Abrams), a medical courier who unwittingly finds himself in an action-packed, non-stop race for survival as one fateful, horrifying night collapses around him in chaos. Here's how to enter: 🦠 Follow us 🦠 Like this post 🦠 Tell us which city's screening you'd like to attend, and 🦠 Tag a friend RESIDENT EVIL opens exclusively in movie theatres on September 18, 2026 Giveaway closes at 8pm ET on September 14. Open to Canadian residents only. Winners will be contacted via DM.
1 week ago
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Day One of #TIFF26 kicked off yesterday in grand fashion, with a fabulous array of films to take in. That Shelf posted our fair share of reviews from @TIFF_NET before the day was done, including: Wild Horse Nine (by @rachel_is_here) All of a Sudden (by @smallmind1978) Coward (by @mullenpat) Fjord (by @robatss) How We Stand (by @imagery13) Hombre al agua (by Lyle Kruger) In the Heart of the South (by @mullenpat) The Unknown (by @smallmind1978) Stay tuned for our batch from Day 2! Which films are you looking forward to today? Read them all and more at the link in our bio.
1 week ago
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The Surgeon

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music

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podcasts

Contra Zoom Pod Episode 344: Interview With Matthew Rankin of Ladies and Gentlemen, Brian Mulroney