The onslaught of texts, emails and phone calls have begun. All with one, pressing question: what films should I watch at TIFF this year? Having attended the film festival for more than a decade, I’ve become somewhat of a resource for friends, family and movie-goers. With over 390 films from 70+ countries to choose from, deciding what films to watch can be a bit overwhelming. So, every year, I develop a list of favourites after I carefully read through all the film descriptions (yes, all). Alas, there’s no simple answer to the popular question – a plethora of caveats accompany all of my recos. That being said, here are the films that made it onto my list this year (in no particular order)…
And I couldn’t find trailers for these films, but they’re on my list too: The Tribe, Ruth & Alex, Rosewater, Mommy and The Voices.
My best advice: attend as many films as you can possibly squeeze in your schedule, watch a few movies from the Contemporary World Cinema programme (you may never get a chance to see some of these again) and be prepared for both disappointment and life-altering cinema (there are always highly-anticipated misses and underrated gems). Experience the festival with an open mind and let the talented casts take you on a new journey.
Hope to run into some of you at the screenings, wandering the streets of Toronto or at the parties!
2 Comments
JP
September 6, 2014 at 4:19 pmGreat picks! We checked out The Grump on Thursday night and loved it – then ended up meeting the director last night at the Ritz. Still have Nightcrawler and 6 others to check out – hope you’re enjoying your festival experience so far!
Solmaz
September 11, 2014 at 10:40 amThanks! I still haven’t seen The Grump 🙁 I’ve watched 7 so far – faves: Manglehorn and Foxcatcher. Love your site – hope you’re enjoying the festival too!