Tag Archives: Toronto International Film Festival

PREVIEW: George Clooney in ‘The Descendants’

By Ray Bennett When Kaui Hart Hemmings’ novel “The Descendants”, about a family in Hawaii troubled by modern anguish and ancient concerns, was published in the UK, the Daily Mail’s response was typical. Her assured touch and fine grasp of … Continue reading

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The Toronto International Film Festival shows the way for Q1

By Ray Bennett As the cost of publicity and promotion has become ever more expensive, big studios and indies know that the hoopla that surrounds major events such as the Toronto International Film Festival can have a huge payoff.  The … Continue reading

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Roland Emmerich’s ‘Anonymous’

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – It’s curious that the lives of many creative men, e.g. Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg, are so uninteresting, and in the case of William Shakespeare there is also a distinct lack of information. So you … Continue reading

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Paddy Considine’s ‘Tyrannosaur’

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – Joseph is the kind of man you wish never to encounter in a pub. Played with savage intelligence by Peter Mullan in Paddy Considine’s gripping if hard to watch drama “Tyrannosaur”, Joe’s default setting is … Continue reading

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Michael Fassbender in ‘Shame’

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – If Turner Award-winning artist turned film director Steve McQueen focussed less on Michael Fassbender’s naked willy and more on character and plot then his second feature “Shame” might be much more interesting. The title is … Continue reading

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Michael Hazanavicius’s ‘The Artist’

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – The word irresistible is bandied around a lot in reviews but it is the only way to describe Michael Hazanavicius’s marvellous black-and-white silent movie “The Artist”. A treat for film lovers, it is set in … Continue reading

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: ‘The Forgiveness of Blood’

Joshua Marston’s “The Forgiveness of Blood” offers the Hatfields and the McCoys Albanian style taken seriously with a good deal of suspense. It screens tonight and Sunday at the Toronto International Film Festival, and at the BFI London Film Festival … Continue reading

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: Gus Van Sant’s ‘Restless’

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – “Restless” is a regrettably lame title for Gus Van Sant’s little film about a love affair that flourishes in the face of death, which against the odds is insightful, witty and charming. Annabel is beautiful … Continue reading

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TIFF: Sunshine, music and Liona Boyd at the CFC picnic

One of the treats at the Toronto International Film Festival is Norman Jewison’s annual picnic at the Canadian Film Centre and it was a pleasure there today to meet the London-born Canadian classical guitarist Liona Boyd. We have Notting Hill, … Continue reading

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TIFF FILM REVIEW: ‘Moneyball’ starring Brad Pitt

By Ray Bennett TORONTO – “Moneyball” is very much about baseball, a traditional sports yarn about trying to beat the odds, but it is much more about family, breaking with tradition and economics, and it allows Brad Pitt to show … Continue reading

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