By David Baldwin
Although the team here at Next Best Picture was unable to acquire passes to the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) this year, we received an offer from David Baldwin of Geek Speak Magazine, The Movie Chasm and more to give us his personal recaps of the festival, the films he has seen and his overall general thoughts on how they may or may not factor into this year's Oscar race. Click below to read his personal journey through days 1 and 2 at TIFF.
Living in Canada, I had dreamt of attending the Toronto International Film Festival – or TIFF for short – since 1999. I was able to finally attend in 2010, and have been hooked ever since. It got significantly easier to attend after moving to the city and will make my goal of seeing over 30 films in 9 of the festival’s 11 days relatively achievable. If I can avoid falling asleep that is. In the first two days, I have watched six films. Three have absolutely no chance of even attempting to go for an Oscar, whereas the other three may factor in. The one film I knew I had to see going into the festival was Luca Guadagnino’s "Call Me By Your Name." It generated a lot of heat out of Sundance, and the hype has just continued to roll on ever since. Twitter lit up after the industry screening on Thursday morning, but I had to venture to the Bell Lightbox (TIFF’s year-round home base) on Friday morning at 9:30 AM to get my chance – and this was after getting home at 3 AM after a midnight movie! As you might expect, the film is every bit as good as you have heard. It is slow moving, but every frame is absolutely gorgeous. I immediately regretted not applying for a foreign student exchange to Italy the moment the credits started rolling. But not one moment goes wasted on this tale of young love, giving us a career best performance from Armie Hammer and a magnificent, extraordinary performance from the young Timothée Chalamet. If you have not heard of him yet, you will once they start announcing year-end Best Actor candidates. His work here is mesmerizing and almost other-worldly. You hang on each of his moments (Including one scene involving a peach) and feel every one of his emotions. I really enjoyed the film, but the standout moment comes from character actor Michael Stuhlbarg, who delivers an absolutely devastating monologue in the film’s final moments that will bring you to tears. It is one of the most memorable scenes of the year, and one that will surely catapult this film to the top of the list of Best Picture nominees. I just wish some of the musical choices were a little less clunky. Another Oscar contender I caught was Greta Gerwig’s directorial debut "Lady Bird." I enjoyed the film – mostly for another magnificent turn from Saoirse Ronan – but also because of Gerwig’s impeccable screenplay. It is nothing original, but it really digs down deep into the nuances of adolescence and that crucial year between high school and college where everything changes. It is frequently hilarious but also quite moving, especially in regards to the relationship between Ronan’s titular character and her mother played by TV regular Laurie Metcalf. There is an aura of authenticity between the pair that goes beyond simply acting. Also – bonus points for a small turn from Chalamet, who also shows up in the hotly buzzed "Hostiles" with Christian Bale which I get to see early next week. The last potential Oscar nominee is Morgan Spurlock’s "Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken!" where the Oscar-nominated filmmaker goes through the process of sourcing his own chickens and creating his own fast food restaurant. The film is entertaining (It is a Spurlock documentary after all), and it makes no qualms showcasing some of the darker and grosser elements of chicken farming – not to mention tearing down the myths of what constitutes a “free-range chicken”. It loses steam in the middle when it goes on a tangent regarding a lawsuit between chicken farmers and the Big Chicken corporations, and the ending lacks the punch of the first act. But with a rumored acquisition from YouTube Red, this doc may not be much of a factor. As for the rest of the titles I have seen so far, I liked the Northern Quebec zombie flick "Les Affamés," even if it was glacially paced; I thought the Netflix documentary "Gaga: Five Foot Two" was a fascinating, warts and all look at Lady Gaga behind-the-scenes but lacked a clear purpose and structure; and I was not too thrilled by the battle rap satire "Bodied," which opened the Midnight Madness programme on Thursday night. The first hour felt like a shotgun blast to the chest, but it slows down way too hard in its second half and limps to the finish. But I just might not be the target demo for a film that features a relatively uncut 40-minute rap battle finale. But that is just the start of this year’s crop of TIFF films. I will have more in the coming days and I am keeping my fingers crossed on seeing plenty more Oscar contenders. Stay tuned. You can follow David and hear more of his thoughts on the Oscars and Film on Twitter at @davemabaldwin
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BEST PICTURE Nomadland (39) - AFCC, AWFJ, BAFTA, BOFCA, BSFC, CCA, CFCA, CIC, DFCS, DFWFCA, GFCA, GG, GOTHAM, GWNYFCA, HFCS, IFCA, IFJA, IPA, KCFCC, LEJA, LFCC, LVFCS, MFCA, NDFS, NSFC, NTFCA, OFCS, PFCS, PGA, SEFCA, SFBAFCC, SFCS, StLFCA, TFCA, TIFF, VENICE, VFCC, WAFCA, WFCC Promising Young Woman (10) - AACTA, COFCA, HCA, KCFCC, MCFCA, NFCS, OAFFC, SCA, SDFCS, WFCC Minari (7) - AFCA, NCFCA, NYFCO, OFCC, OFTA, PCC, UFCA Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (3) - BFCC, CIC, PFCC The Trial Of The Chicago 7 (3) - DFCS, HFCS, SAG Da 5 Bloods (2) - CIC, NBR First Cow (2) - FFCC, NYFCC Judas And The Black Messiah (2) - AAFCA, BRA Another Round - EFA Bad Boys For Life - NAACP Dwelling In The Fuchun Mountains - ICS Rocks - BIFA Small Axe - LAFCA The United States vs. Billie Holiday - AARP BEST DIRECTOR Chloé Zhao (50) - AACTA, AFCC, AWFJ, BAFTA, BOFCA, BFCC, BSFC, CCA, CFCA, COFCA, DFCS, DFCS, DFWFCA, DGA, FFCC, GFCA, GG, GWNYFCA, HCA, HFCS, IFCA, IFJA, IPA, KCFCC, LAFCA, LEJA, LVFCS, MFCA, MSFCA, NCFCA, NDFS, NSFC, NTFCA, NYFCC, NYFCO, OAFFC, OFCC, OFCS, OFTA, PCC, PFCC, PFCS, SEFCA, SDFCS, SFBAFCC, SFCS, StLFCA, TFCA, VFCC, WAFCA Regina King (4) - AAFCA, BFCC, BRA, UFCA Spike Lee (3) - CIC, HFCS, NBR Lee Isaac Chung - AFCA Emerald Fennell - NFCS Darius Marder - SCA Steve McQueen - LFCC Andrew Patterson - GOTHAM Gina Prince-Bythewood - NAACP Kelly Reichardt - ICS Aaron Sorkin - AARP Thomas Vinterberg - EFA Remi Weekes - BIFA BEST ACTRESS Carey Mulligan (27) - AACTA, AFCA, AFCC, CCA, COFCA, DFCS, DFWFCA, GFCA, HCA, HFCS, KCFCC, LAFCA, LEJA, MCFCA, MFCA, NBR, NFCS, NTFCA, NYFCO, OAFFC, OFTA, PCC, PFCS, SCA, SDFCS, StLFCA, WFCC Frances McDormand (25) - AWFJ, BAFTA, BOFCA, CFCA, DFCS, FFCC, GWNYFCA, HFCS, IFCA, IFJA, IPA, LFCC, LVFCS, NCFCA, NDFS, NSFC, OFCC, OFCS, SEFCA, SFBAFCC, SFCS, TFCA, UFCA, VFCC, WAFCA Viola Davis (6) - BFCC, BRA, CIC, NAACP, PFCC, SAG Andra Day (2) - AAFCA, GG Sidney Flanigan (2) - BSFC, NYFCC Maria Bakalova - IPA Paula Beer - EFA Nicole Beharie - GOTHAM Sophia Loren - AARP Rosamund Pike - GG Wunmi Mosaku - BIFA Isabel Sandoval - ICS BEST ACTOR Chadwick Boseman (28) - AACTA, AAFCA, AWFJ, BFCC, BRA, CCA, CFCA, CIC, DFCS, DFWFCA, GG, IFCA, LAFCA, LEJA, LFCC, MFCA, MSFCA, NAACP, OFTA, PCC, PFCS, SAG, SEFCA, SFBAFCC, StLFCA, VFCC, WAFCA, WFCC Riz Ahmed (21) - AFCA, AFCC, COFCA, GFCA, GOTHAM, GWNYFCA, HFCS, IPA, KCFCC, LVFCS, NBR, NDFS, NFCS, NYFCO, OAFFC, OFCC, SCA, SDFCS, SFCS, TFCA, UFCA Delroy Lindo (11) - BOFCA, DFCS, HCA, HFCS, IFJA, MFCA, NCFCA, NSFC, NYFCC, OFCS, PFCC Anthony Hopkins (6) - AARP, BAFTA, BIFA, BSFC, FFCC, NFCS Sacha Baron Cohen (2) - GG, IPA Mads Mikkelsen - EFA Aditya Modak - ICS Steven Yeun - NTFCA BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS Youn Yuh-jung (34) - AFCA, AWFJ, BAFTA, BFCC, BSFC, COFCA, DFCS, GFCA, GWNYFCA, HCA, IFCA, KCFCC, LAFCA, LEJA, MCFCA, MFCA, NBR, NCFCA, NTFCA, NYFCO, OAFFC, OFCC, OFTA, PCC, PFCS, SAG, SCA, SEFCA, SDFCS, SFBAFCC, SFCS, StLFCA, VFCC, WAFCA Maria Bakalova (16) - AFCC, BOFCA, CCA, CFCA, CIC, FFCC, HFCS, IFJA, LFCC, MCFCA, NDFS, NSFC, NYFCC, OFCS, TFCA, UFCA Amanda Seyfried (4) - DFWFCA, IPA, LVFCS, PFCC Ellen Burstyn (2) - DFCS, NYFCO Dominque Fishback (2) - AAFCA, BRA Jodie Foster (2) - AARP, GG Kosar Ali - BIFA Sônia Braga - ICS Glenn Close - NFCS Olivia Colman - AACTA Olivia Cooke - HFCS Phylicia Rashad - NAACP BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR Daniel Kaluuya (20) - AAFCA, AFCA, BAFTA, BRA, CCA, DFCS, DFWFCA, GG, LEJA, LVFCS, MFCA, NFCS, OAFFC, OFTA, PCC, PFCS, SAG, SFCS, TFCA, VFCC Paul Raci (18) - AFCC, BOFCA, BSFC, CFCA, COFCA, FFCC, GFCA, GWNYFCA, HCA, HFCS, IFCA, NBR, NSFC, OFCC, SCA, SDFCS, SFBAFCC, StLFCA Leslie Odom Jr. (9) - AWFJ, BFCC, HFCS, IFJA, KCFCC, NYFCO, OFCS, UFCA, WAFCA Sacha Baron Cohen (7) - AACTA, DFCS, MCFCA, NCFCA, NDFS, NTFCA, SEFCA Chadwick Boseman (5) - CIC, IPA, NAACP, NYFCC, PFCC Francisco Barreiro - ICS Demián Bichir - AARP D’angelou Osei Kissiedu - BIFA Shaun Parkes - LFCC Glynn Turman - LAFCA BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY Nomadland (20) - AFCA, AWFJ, CCA, CFCA, COFCA, DFCS, GFCA, GWNYFCA, HFCS, IFJA, KCFCC, LFCC, NCFCA, OAFFC, OFCC, OFCS, OFTA, SEFCA, USC, WAFCA The Father (6) - BAFTA, BIFA, IPA, NFCS, SCA, SDFCS One Night In Miami (6) - AAFCA, HCA, LEJA, LVFCS, PCC, PFCS I'm Thinking Of Ending Things (5) - BOFCA, BSFC, FFCC, StLFCA, UFCA First Cow (4) - DFCS, ICS, PFCC, SFBAFCC Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (2) - BFCC, CIC Borat Subsequent Moviefilm - WGA News Of The World - NBR BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY Promising Young Woman (25) - AFCC, AWFJ, BAFTA, CCA, CIC, COFCA, DFWFCA, GFCA, HCA, HFCS, IPA, KCFCC, LAFCA, MFCA, NDFS, NFCS, NYFCO, OAFFC, OFCC, OFCS, OFTA, SFCS, StLFCA, WAFCA, WGA Minari (11) - AFCA, BFCC, DFCS, FFCC, LEJA, NBR, NCFCA, SDFCS, SEFCA, SFBAFCC, TFCA The Trial Of The Chicago 7 (10) - AACTA, AARP, CIC, DFCS, GG, HFCS, MCFCA, PFCS, UFCA, VFCC Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always (7) - CFCA, GWNYFCA, IFJA, NSFC, NYFCC, OAFFC, WFCC The Forty-Year-Old-Version (3) - BRA, GOTHAM, NAACP Another Round - EFA Bacurau - ICS Fourteen - GOTHAM Judas And The Black Messiah - LVFCS BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY Nomadland (35) - AFCA, AFCC, AWFJ, BAFTA, BOFCA, BSFC, CCA, CFCA, CIC, COFCA, DFWFCA, GFCA, GWNYFCA, HCA, HFCS, LEJA, LVFCS, MCFCA, MFCA, NBR, NCFCA, NDFS, NSFC, NYFCO, OAFFC, OFCS, OFTA, PFCC, PFCS, SDFCS, SEFCA, SFCS, StLFCA, UFCA, WAFCA Mank (4) - FFCC, IPA, OFCC, SCA Tenet (4) - BFCC, HFCS, NFCS, NTFCA Small Axe (2) - LAFCA, NYFCC Dwelling In The Fuchun Mountains - ICS First Cow - SFBAFCC Hidden Away - EFA I'm Thinking Of Ending Things - PCC Malcolm & Marie - BRA Saint Maud - BIFA The Vast Of Night - KCFCC BEST COSTUME DESIGN Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (9) - BAFTA, CCA, CDG, CIC, HFCS, LVFCS, OFTA, PFCS, SFCS Emma. (3) - CFCA, LEJA, SDFCS The Personal History Of David Copperfield (2) - HCA, IPA Hidden Away - EFA Jingle Jangle - BRA Misbehaviour - BIFA Mulan - CDG Promising Young Woman - CDG BEST FILM EDITING Nomadland (10) - AFCA, AWFJ, BOFCA, GWNYFCA, LEJA, NDFS, OFCS, SFBAFCC, SFCS, StLFCA The Trial Of The Chicago 7 (9) - CCA, CIC, COFCA, HCA, HFCS, IPA, MCFCA, PFCS, UFCA Sound Of Metal (5) - BAFTA, CCA, LVFCS, MFCA, OFTA The Father (2) - BIFA, LAFCA I'm Thinking Of Ending Things (2) - BSFC, CFCA The Invisible Man (2) - MCFCA, SDFCS Once More Unto The Breach - EFA Tenet - WAFCA The Wasteland - ICS BEST MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (6) - BAFTA, CCA, CIC, HCA, LEJA, MUAHS Birds Of Prey (2) - MUAHS, OFTA The Endless Trench - EFA Mank - HFCS Misbehaviour - BIFA Pinocchio - MUAHS BEST ORIGINAL SCORE Soul (33) - AFCA, AFCC, BAFTA, BOFCA, BRA, CCA, CFCA, CIC, COFCA, DFCS, FFCC, GFCA, GG, GWNYFCA, HCA, HFCS, HMMA, LAFCA, LEJA, LVFCS, MFCA, NCFCA, OFCC, OFCS, OFTA, PCC, PFCS, SCL, SFBAFCC, SFCS, StLFCA, UFCA, WAFCA Tenet (4) - HMMA, IFJA, MCFCA, SCA Mank (3) - DFWFCA, HFCS, NDFS David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet (2) - HMMA, IFMCA Minari (2) - BSFC, HMMA Berlin Alexanderplatz - EFA Blizzard Of Souls - SCL The Call Of The Wild - IFMCA Fukushima 50 - IFMCA The Invisible Man - HMMA The Midnight Sky - IPA News Of The World - HMMA Nomadland - IFCA The Personal History Of David Copperfield - IFMCA Preparations To Be Together For An Unknown Period Of Time - ICS Wolfwalkers - IFMCA Wonder Woman 1984 - IFMCA BEST ORIGINAL SONG One Night In Miami (12) - BRA, CCA, CIC, DFCS, GFCA, HFCS, HFCS, IFCA, LEJA, MCFCA, OFTA, PFCS The Life Ahead (3) - GG, HMMA, IPA Eurovision (2) - HCA, SCL Giving Voice - HMMA Judas And The Black Messiah - LVFCS The Outpost - HMMA Over The Moon - NDFS Trolls: World Tour - HMMA BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN Mank (22) - ADG, BAFTA, CCA, CFCA, CIC, FFCC, GFCA, HCA, HFCS, IPA, LAFCA, LVFCS, MCFCA, NDFS, NFCS, OFTA, PFCS, SDFCS, SDSA, SFCS, StLFCA, WAFCA Tenet (2) - ADG, SDSA Birds Of Prey - MFCA Da 5 Bloods - ADG First Cow - SFBAFCC His House - BIFA Jingle Jangle - BRA Ma Rainey's Black Bottom - LEJA The Personal History Of David Copperfield - EFA Promising Young Woman - SDSA A Portuguesa - ICS Soul - ADG BEST SOUND Sound Of Metal (8) - BAFTA, DFCS, HFCS, ICS, IPA, LEJA, MFCA, OFTA Little Girl - EFA The Reason I Jump - BIFA BEST VISUAL EFFECTS Tenet (13) - BAFTA, CCA, DFCS, HFCS, HFCS, IPA, MFCA, NCFCA, NFCS, PFCS, SDFCS, SFCS, StLFCA The Invisible Man (6) - CFCA, CIC, HCA, LEJA, LVFCS, OFTA Mank - VES The Midnight Sky - VES Mulan - VES The One And Only Ivan - VES The Platform - EFA Possessor - FFCC Project Power - VES Soul - VES BEST ANIMATED FEATURE Soul (37) - AAFCA, AFCC, AWFJ, BAFTA, BFCC, CCA, CIC, DFCS, DFCS, DFWFCA, FFCC, GFCA, GG, HFCS, IFCA, IFJA, LEJA, LVFCS, MSFCA, NAACP, NBR, NCFCA, NDFS, NFCS, NTFCA, NYFCO, OFCC, OFCS, OFTA, PCC, PFCC, PFCS, PGA, SEFCA, SFBAFCC, StLFCA, WAFCA Wolfwalkers (16) - AFCA, BOFCA, CFCA, COFCA, GWNYFCA, HCA, IPA, KCFCC, LAFCA, MFCA, NYFCC, OAFFC, SDFCS, SFCS, TFCA, UFCA Josep (2) - EFA, ICS The Wolf House - BSFC BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM Another Round (18) - AFCC, AWFJ, BAFTA, CFCA, EFA, GFCA, IFJA, KCFCC, LFCC, LVFCS, MCFCA, NCFCA, PFCS, SEFCA, SFBAFCC, StLFCA, UFCA, WAFCA Minari (14) - AFCA, CCA, COFCA, DFCS, DFWFCA, GG, GWNYFCA, NTFCA, NYFCO, OFCS, OFTA, PCC, SFCS, VFCC La Llorona (6) - BSFC, HCA, IPA, LEJA, NBR, WFCC Night Of The Kings (4) - AAFCA, BFCC, BRA, NAACP Bacurau (3) - BOFCA, NYFCC, TFCA Collective (2) - AARP, NSFC The Life Ahead (2) - HFCS, SDFCS And Then We Danced - NDFS A Sun - HFCS Beanpole - LAFCA His House - CIC Identifying Features - GOTHAM Jumbo - PFCC Los Fuertes - FFCC Martin Eden - OFCC BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE Time (14) - AFCC, BFCC, BRA, DFWFCA, GFCA, GOTHAM, GWNYFCA, LAFCA, NBR, NYFCC, OFTA, PFCC, SDFCS, SEFCA Collective (10) - BSFC, CEHA, EFA, IPA, LFCC, OAFFC, SFBAFCC, StLFCA, TFCA, VFCC Dick Johnson Is Dead (9) - CCA, CFCA, COFCA, DFCS, IFCA, IFJA, NCFCA, OFCS, UFCA Boys State (8) - AFCA, CIC, DFCS, LVFCS, OFCC, PCC, PFCS, WAFCA All In: The Fight For Democracy (5) - AAFCA, AWFJ, HCA, NDFS, NTFCA My Octopus Teacher (3) - BAFTA, HFCS, PGA The Dissident (2) - KCFCC, NFCS The Painter And The Thief (2) - AWFJ, BOFCA Beastie Boys Story - HFCS Class Action Park - HCA Crip Camp - IDA The History of the Seattle Mariners: Supercut Edition - SFCS Mucho Amor - LEJA John Lewis: Good Trouble - NAACP The Reason I Jump - BIFA A Secret Love - AARP The Social Dilemma - MCFCA Stuntwomen: The Untold Holywood Story -WFCC A Thousand Cuts - GOTHAM The Way I See It - NYFCO The Year Of The Discovery - ICS You Don't Nomi - FFCC AuthorsNicole Ackman Archives
April 2021
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