Article by Gabe Zia
So it's nearing the time in the year when the Canadian equivalent of Cannes and Sundance happens, and that film festival is the Toronto International Film Festival, or TIFF if you prefer. Like last year, I'm going to be doing some coverage of some of the films there, and probably see some really good movies. However, before I know exactly what films I'm going to see, these are some of the films that were just announced a few days ago that I'm looking forward to.
10. The Martian
Ridley Scott has put together a huge film, The Martian has a lot going for it. It's got a massive cast, easily one of the most impressive casts I've seen in a movie recently. It has a really interesting premise, it's like Castaway only on another planet. And I've heard the book that this movie is based on is fantastic. I'm planning to get a copy of the book and read it before this movie comes out, because rarely can I ever talk about the books in a movie review.
9. The Lobster
Every year, there's always that one movie that makes you go "huh?", and this year that movie is The Lobster. Here's the premise. Colin Farrell plays this guy in a dystoptian future, who decides to go to this really expensive seeming hotel. Initially, the charge for the hotel is free. However, once you stay at this hotel, you have 45 days to find a "mate" I guess. If you don't, you're turned into an animal of the hotels choosing and released into the wild. Again, really bizarre.
8. Freeheld
I always like a good biopic, and I like topical films, so I'm really glad Freeheld exists and is coming out. This movie is based on the true story of Laurel Hester, who was a New Jersey cop, but was then diagnosed with lung cancer. And essentially what happened was that if a married cop dies, then a pension goes to the wife or husband of said cop. However, the same thing didn't apply to same-sex couples, which is essentially what this movie is about.
7. Black Mass
Johnny Depp is back in a dramatic role, and although it still involves a lot of makeup, at least it's not a weird quirky role like everything else he's done. Black Mass stars Johnny Depp as Whitey Bulger, one of US histories most notorious gangsters. What makes his story so interesting is that when other mobs started invading his turf, he became an FBI informant as a means to use the government to take down his competitors. All in all, not exactly the worst strategy.
6. Demolition
Demolition comes from Jean-Marc Vallée, the director of Wild and Dallas Buyers Club. Demolition follows a guy, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, who is in shambles after the death of his wife. So instead of going to therapy, spending time with other people in his life, drinking, or anything any other movie character would do, he decides to go all Fight Club and cause random acts of destruction. I'm assuming these aren't the kind of acts of destruction that cause random deaths, but who knows.
5. Trumbo
Trumbo follows the famous Hollywood screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, in this biopic telling both the story of him as a writer for Hollywood, and the story of how he was famously blacklisted for aligning with the American Communist party. All this could be interesting enough to carry a film on it's own, but what's really caught my eye is the fact that this movie stars Bryan Cranston in a major leading role, which means he could be nominated for an oscar for this movie.
4. Eye in the Sky
I first heard of Eye in the Sky a long time ago, while looking at Aaron Pauls upcoming films. Similarly to Ethan Hawkes "Good Kill", Eye in the Sky follows the topic of unmanned drones being used in warfare, and the ethics of this. What makes Eye in the Sky different from Good Kill is that the premise of the movie is that a civilian girl enters the killzone of the drone, and that's the premise. Simple premises in movies are so rare these days, I'm so glad Eye in the Sky exists to give us exactly that.
3. Legend
Two Tom Hardy's for the price of one, that should be the add campaign for Legend. This movie follows the story of the Kray twins in London during the 50s and 60s. What makes this interesting is how vastly different Reggie and Ronnie Kray were, with Reggie Kray being intelligent and calm, running things with his mind. Ronnie Kray was apparently a violent schizophrenic, although a 50s diagnosis of schizophrenia is likely pretty different than now.
2. The Program
I'm honestly surprised it took this long for someone to make a Lance Armstrong movie. Ben Foster stars in the role that I'm sure will land him an oscar nomination as the infamous Lance Armstrong, who famously used performance enhancing drugs during all of his tour de France races, which he always won. The film tells the story of both him as a racer and the journalist who aided in exposing him. The reason I want to see The Program so badly is due to how good Ben Fosters performance seems like it will be.
1. Sicario
I've talked about this before in the past. In my opinion, Denis Villeneuve is the single most important director working today. Between Incendies, Enemy, and Prisoners, the man has made masterpiece after masterpiece, and Sicario looks consistent with that. Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin, and Benicio Del Toro star in this accidentally topical film about the cartel. However, from the trailer, and knowing Villeneuve, I can bet this movie will be much more than simply that. I have high hopes for this movie, and it's my most anticipated film of TIFF 2015.
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