The Midnight Madness programme kicks off with some swinging dicks this year. The festival announced today that Dicks: The Musical will open the 2023 Midnight Madness line-up. Directed by Borat’s Larry Charles, the A24-produced film gained some notice on social media earlier this week for an MPAA rating that advises “strong sexual content, abusive language, drug use and graphic nudity.”
Dicks: The Musical marks something of a turn for the Midnight Madness line-up, which has favoured lots of splat-n-chuckle horror in recent years. There’s plenty of that, though, with films like the summer camp slasher Hell of a Summer in the mix. Directed by Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard and Ghostbusters: Afterlife star Billy Bryk, the USA-Canada co-pro also stars Fed Hechinger, Abby Quin, Julia Lalonde, and D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai alongside the two directors.
“Sides will be split — both figuratively and literally (on screen) — as Midnight Madness return to the Royal Alexandra Theatre with another stimulating concoction of unpredictable shock and ‘y’arr!’ cinema,” said Midnight Madness programmer Peter Kuplowsky in a statement from the Festival. “Featuring two timely satiric provocations from Saudi Arabia (NAGA) and Serbia (Working Class Goes to Hell) — nations that are making their section debut —this year’s madness infectiously ignites with 11 o’clock numbers that go all the way to midnight courtesy of Larry Charles’ bonkers and bawdy Dicks: The Musical. A menagerie of tastes will be sated, so bottoms up!”
This year’s Midnight Madness also boasts a line-up with a notably global reach. Other world cinema offerings include Indian director Nikhil Nagesh’s KILL, with all caps for bloody emphasis, and Moritz Mohr’s German-South African co-pro Boy Kills World. The latter stars Bill Skarsgard as a boy on a revenge mission after his family is murdered. Sharlto Copley and Famke Janssen also star.
Arquette Leads Discovery Line-up
TIFF’s Discovery section, meanwhile, opens with a name familiar to most festivalgoers. The line-up announced its opening night selection for the programme as Gonzo Girl, the feature directorial debut of Academy Award winner Patricia Arquette (Boyhood). Based on the novel by Cheryl Della Pietra, itself inspired by the author’s time working for Hunter S. Thompson, the film tells a of an aspiring writer working as an assistant for the wacky author. The film stars Willem Dafoe, Camila Morrone, and James Urbaniak alongside Arquette. The film marks an impressive slate of 26 films that represent 25 countries.
TIFF programmer Dorota Lech called the line-up “a bold and exciting showcase of cinema and emerging talent from around the world. We are honoured to highlight new and distinctive voices from artists creating their first or second feature on our global stage.”
On the Canadian front, Discovery spotlights numerous Canuck talents. Among them is the drama Backspot, directed by D.W. Waterson. The film stars Devery Jacobs, Evan Rachel Wood, and Kudakwashe Rutendo in a cheerleading drama executive produced by Elliot Page. The line-up also looks to the North with the drama Tautuktavuk (What We See) from directors Carol Kunnuk and Lucy Tulugarjuk. Tautuktavuk stars the directors as sisters navigating the limitations of COVID-19 era lockdowns.
The line-up looks further into underrepresented communities with M.H. Murray’s I Don’t Know Who You Are. The drama examines the lived experience of a gay man in Toronto who seeks healthcare following an assault. Meanwhile, Seagrass, the feature directorial debut of actress Meredith Hama-Brown, delivers a drama about a Japanese-Canadian woman caring for her family. Finally, The Queen of My Dreams directed by Fawzia Mirza stars Amrit Kaur (Little Italy), Hamza Haq (Transplant), and Nimra Bucha (Polite Society). The Discovery line-up includes films from under-represented countries including Saudi Arabia, Cuba, Slovakia, and United Arab Emirates. TIFF previously announced titles for the Galas, Special Presentations, TIFF Docs, and Platform programmes. TIFF runs September 7 to 17.
The titles announces for Midnight Madness and Discovery are:
Midnight Madness
AGGRO DR1FT
Harmony Korine | USA
North American Premiere
Boy Kills World
Moritz Mohr | Germany/South Africa/USA
World Premiere
Dicks: The Musical
Larry Charles | USA
World Premiere – Opening Night
Hell of a Summer
Finn Wolfhard, Billy Bryk | USA/Canada
World Premiere
KILL
Nikhil Nagesh Bhat | India
World Premiere
NAGA
Meshal Aljaser | Saudi Arabia
World Premiere
Riddle of Fire
Weston Razooli | USA
North American Premiere – Closing Night
Sleep
Jason Yu | South Korea
North American Premiere
When Evil Lurks
Demián Rugna | Argentina
World Premiere
Working Class Goes to Hell
Mladen Đorđević | Serbia
World Premiere
DISCOVERY
Achilles
Farhad Delaram | Iran/Germany/France
World Premiere
After the Fire
Mehdi Fikri | France
World Premiere
A Match (Sthal)
Jayant Digambar Somalkar | India
World Premiere
Andragogy
Wregas Bhanuteja | Indonesia/Singapore
World Premiere
An Endless Sunday
Alain Parroni | Italy/Germany/Ireland
International Premiere
Arthur&Diana
Sara Summa | Germany
World Premiere
Backspot
D.W. Waterson | Canada
World Premiere
Frybread Face and Me
Billy Luther | USA
International Premiere
Gonzo Girl
Patricia Arquette | USA
World Premiere – Opening Night
Hajjan
Abu Bakr Shawky | Saudi Arabia/Egypt/Jordan
World Premiere
How to Have Sex
Molly Manning Walker | United Kingdom
North American Premiere
I Don’t Know Who You Are
M.H. Murray | Canada
World Premiere
La Suprema
Felipe Holguín Caro | Colombia
World Premiere
Mandoob
Ali Kalthami | Saudi Arabia
World Premiere
Mimang
Kim Taeyang | South Korea
World Premiere
Seagrass
Meredith Hama-Brown | Canada
World Premiere
Solitude
Ninna Pálmadóttir | Iceland/Slovakia/France
World Premiere
Tautuktavuk (What We See)
Carol Kunnuk, Lucy Tulugarjuk | Canada
World Premiere
The Teacher
Farah Nabulsi | United Kingdom/Palestine/Qatar
World Premiere
The Tundra Within Me (Eallugierdi)
Sara Margrethe Oskal | Norway
World Premiere
The Queen of My Dreams
Fawzia Mirza | Canada
World Premiere
Valentina or the Serenity (Valentina o la serenidad)
Ángeles Cruz | Mexico
World Premiere
Widow Clicquot
Thomas Napper | France
World Premiere
Wild Woman
Alán González | Cuba
World Premiere
Without Air
Katalin Moldovai | Hungary
World Premiere
Yellow Bus
Wendy Bednarz | United Arab Emirates
World Premiere
