The Best Toronto International Film Festival Movies & Shows of 2024

Following the summer lull after Cannes, the great race of international film festivals accelerates into full ignition at the end of August every year with the Venice Film Festival, an exotic (and wet) apéritif for what’s to follow. From there, the most important is the lauded Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), which furthers the cinephilic propulsion from Sep. 5 to Sep. 15. Afterward, there will be Fantastic Fest, the New York Film Festival, London, Chicago, Tokyo, Stockholm, and more.

For right now, though, TIFF is dominating the film market and cultural attention, and for good reason: many of what will become the best series and films of 2024 are being screened in Toronto. Here we’ve collected the most promising titles from the festival. While we’d point to some with more certainty than others (Anora, Cloud, Disclaimer, Faithless, Kill the Jockey, M – Son of the Century, The End, Presence, The Life of Chuck, The Listeners, We Live in Time), all of the following films should be on any movie lover’s radar. It should be noted that descriptions have been partially provided by the incredible programmers at TIFF, with their names noted parenthetically.

40 Acres

(Dir. R.T. Thorne, The Porter, The Lake)

“In a post-apocalyptic future where food is scarce, the last descendants of a Black family of farmers who settled in Canada after the American Civil War must protect their homestead from an organized militia hell-bent on taking their land. Writer-director R.T. Thorne infuses the dystopian narrative with contemporary relevance and an inescapable historical metaphor, placing Black and Indigenous characters at the center of a story about people defending their land from those who would kill them for it without a second thought.” (Norm Wilner) Learn more about 40 Acres and find screenings here.

Aberdeen

(Dir. Ryan Cooper, Eva Thomas)

“An idyllic childhood with her mooshum and kookum, or grandparents, in her community of Peguis First Nation dissipates as Aberdeen’s hard-partying and absentee parents distances her from that haven. Now an adult, sleeping on public benches, Winnipeg-based Aberdeen is in survival mode. The last remaining stable parts of her life begin slipping away — her reliable brother Boyd is ill and gives up Aberdeen’s grandkids to the foster care system. Then she loses her ID.

“Houseless, and without proper identification, she is rebuffed time and again as she seeks out services meant to help her. It’s only when she hitches a ride back to her home community that she’s treated like a valued person and can see the potential to stop generational trauma.” (Kelly Boutsalis) Learn more about Aberdeen and find screenings here.

Addition

(Dir. Marcelle Lunam, Habana Shakes)

“Numbers are everything to Grace Lisa Vandenburg. The life of Grace, a Melbourne-based mathematician, is largely governed by her arithmomania, an obsessive-compulsive need to count (three times to ensure accuracy) everything from the poppy seeds on her cake to the bristles on her toothbrush. In a chaotic, sometimes tragic, and constantly changing world, Grace’s preoccupation gives her a sense of order and control.

“Grace’s structured life takes an unexpected but not altogether unwelcome turn when she meets Seamus, a British immigrant captivated by Grace’s offbeat charm. As their relationship deepens, Grace grapples with revealing her compulsion. Adrift in this new reality, Grace must face the spectre of a long-buried childhood tragedy, forging a new path towards balance.” (Jason Ryle) Learn more about Addition and find screenings here.

All of You

(Dir. William Bridges, Soulmates, Black Mirror)

“Simon (Brett Goldstein) accompanies his best friend, Laura (Imogen Poots), as she takes a new test guaranteeing to match anyone with their soulmate. As Laura hurtles towards milestones with her new man, Simon begins to understand how deeply he cares about her, even if he’s not ready to accept it. Despite their feelings, Simon and Laura must navigate the path destiny has laid out for them, before it all becomes too much and their love spills over into their complicated lives.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about All of You and find screenings here.

An Unfinished Film

(Dir. Lou Ye, Spring Fever, Saturday Fiction)

“Filmmaker Xiaorui and his team discovering fascinating old footage from a project abandoned 10 years earlier. Nostalgia and the desire to bring completion to a project dear to him prompts Xiaorui to reunite his original crew to complete it. Their efforts, however, are disrupted by the onset of COVID-19 in Wuhan, forcing the group into lockdown. Blending fiction with real footage from social media, Lou Ye creates a unique documentary-style narrative that conveys the early days of the pandemic.” (Giovanna Fulvi) Learn more about An Unfinished Film and find screenings here.

Andrea Bocelli: Because I Believe

(Dir. Cosima Spender, Palio)

“Over the last 30 years, with a rare repertoire that encompasses pop, rock, and opera, Andrea Bocelli and his golden voice have touched the hearts of millions of listeners around the world. Using last year’s magisterial concert at the Baths of Caracalla as its anchor, Andrea Bocelli: Because I Believe is an intimate portrait of one of the world’s greatest living singers.

“This inspiring documentary tracks Bocelli’s path to success and ongoing dedication to his craft through interviews and archival performance footage, as well as informal gatherings, such as a diverting party where Bocelli’s friends and family reminisce over food and wine. When Bocelli sings, it is as though heaven has opened its gates, but watching Because I Believe reminds us that this remarkable artist is very much rooted in the earth.” Learn more about Andrea Bocelli: Because I Believe and find screenings here.

Anora

(Dir. Sean Baker, The Florida Project, Red Rocket)

“Sean Baker’s latest casts Mikey Madison as a sex worker named Anora, or Ani as she prefers to be called. She may live in a shabby Brooklyn apartment above the rattle of the subway, but every night, Ani glams up and puts on a flirty smile for the men at a local club. Between myriad lap dances, Ani finds herself talking to Vanya, a young Russian boy who joyfully throws around his parents’ money.

“His innocence charms Ani, and the two fall into a comfortable rhythm. She shows him a good time, and he opens the door to a charmed life she could only have imagined. They begin a whirlwind romance that’s soon threatened by Vanya’s powerful family. Ani finds herself gripping onto a fantasy by her long pink fingernails.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Anora and find screenings here.

Anywhere Anytime

(Dir. Milad Tangshir, Star Stuff)

“Issa (Ibrahima Sambou) is a young undocumented immigrant from Senegal living in Turin, Italy. He is doing his best to survive — and send money home — in a bustling city that in countless ways renders him invisible. Moreover, he’s living in a hostile landscape, in which people in his precarious position are at the whims of international politics and at the mercy of whomever they face. Fired by his previous employer, Issa finds work as a food-delivery rider, thanks to a kind friend (Moussa Dicko Diango).

“The arduous job requires the employee to provide their own means of transport, and soon Issa’s newly gained stability collapses when, during a drop-off, the bicycle he has just spent all his money on is stolen. Determined to overcome yet another challenge, Issa immediately embarks on an uphill odyssey through the city streets to recover his means of transport and survival.” (Dorota Lech) Learn more about Anywhere Anytime and find screenings here.

Babygirl

(Dir. Halina Reijn, Bodies Bodies Bodies)

“When Romy, the high-powered executive played by Nicole Kidman in Babygirl, starts cheating on her urbane theatre director husband (Antonio Banderas), it’s not because their sex life has diminished. As the opening scene explicitly demonstrates, there’s still significant heat between them. But when he goes to sleep, Romy sneaks out of the room to finish, alone, what she clearly couldn’t achieve with him.

“When Romy meets Samuel (Harris Dickinson), an impertinent intern at her company who can intuit more about her than she intends to share — and who’s happy to take control — it’s only a matter of time before they find themselves in a seedy hotel together. They wrestle, literally and figuratively, over a twisty power dynamic. Romy’s age and position give her an advantage, but as Samuel reminds her, he could ruin her life with one phone call.” (Anita Lee) Learn more about Babygirl and find screenings here.

Better Man

(Dir. Michael Gracey, The Greatest Showman)

“Let me entertain you!” Robbie Williams famously sang. From boy band euphoria to solo stadium tours, the UK pop star has lived large, loud, and right on the edge. No mere music biopic could do his highs and lows justice. And so Michael Gracey hit on an audacious, dazzling approach. Gather round and witness the life of Robbie Williams unfold in a rather unorthodox way, to say the least. Learn more about Better Man and find screenings here.

Bird

(Dir. Andrea Arnold, Fish Tank, American Honey)

“12-year-old Bailey (played by charismatic newcomer Nykiya Adams) lives with her father Bug (a devoted but emotionally chaotic Barry Keoghan) in a graffiti-strewn tenement. When Bug informs her that he’ll be marrying his new girlfriend soon, Bailey is furious and hurt, worried about what will become of her? Her mother lives with a violent, cruel man, and while Bug sports a ferocious love for his daughter, he can be oblivious to the needs of a fledgling teenage girl.

“As she often does, Bailey retreats to the open fields on the outskirts of her hometown to seek comfort. It is here she is most herself, with an uncanny ability to communicate with animals and experience nature in a profound way. It is on one of these walks that Bailey has a mysterious, yet deeply meaningful, encounter that helps her when she must force a confrontation with her mother’s vicious partner.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Bird and find screenings here.

Bonjour Tristesse

(Dir. Durga Chew-Bose)

“At the height of summer holiday, 18-year-old Cécile (Lily McInerny), the apple of everyone’s eye, is languishing at the French seaside with her devilishly handsome father Raymond (Claes Bang) and his bohemian lover Elsa (Naïlia Harzoune), whose age is not far from Cécile’s. Other than tending to a budding romance with a local boy (Aliocha Schneider), Cécile has all the time in the world to float and daydream, giving her a front row seat to Apéro-laden adult conversations free of morality.

“Building her sandcastle just as the tide rolls in, her postcard-perfect world is threatened when a visit from her late mother’s friend Anne (Chloë Sevigny) — a celebrated American-born, Paris-based fashion designer who fits the scene like a glove — casts a shadow over Cécile’s quotidian belle vie, despite her longing to connect. An adaptation of Françoise Sagan’s unforgettable coming-of-age novel of the same title (and remake of the classic Preminger film with Jean Seberg), this sun-dappled and passion-soaked debut feature by Montreal-based writer-cum-director Durga Chew-Bose heralds a singular artist.” (Dorota Lech) Learn more about Bonjour Tristesse and find screenings here.

Bring Them Down

(Dir. Christopher Andrews)

“Chronicling a feud between neighboring families in rural Ireland, Bring Them Down draws us to a world of desolate beauty and desperate men. Michael (Christopher Abbott) tends his family’s sheep business entirely on his own. His father (Colm Meaney) is disabled, and his mother died years ago in a car accident in which Michael was the driver. Michael has lived with guilt ever since — as well as a secret he hopes will never come to light. When Michael’s prized rams are found dead, old wounds are opened, and two families find themselves on a perilous collision course.” (Robyn Citizen) Learn more about Bring Them Down and find screenings here.

By the Stream

(Dir. Hong Sangsoo, Woman on the Beach, Walk Up)

“Bookending her days by contemplatively sitting by a stream, Jeonim (Kim Minhee) sketches in her notebook, where patterns inspired by nature serve her elaborate textile designs. An artist and lecturer at a woman’s university, she calls upon her uncle Chu Sieon (Kwon Haehyo), a once-famous actor-director, to come direct her department’s production for the school’s annual skit festival as a scandal has caused literal drama among the group and the dismissal of the original director.

“During the course of the rehearsals, and as the moon grows fuller and energies collide, students and teachers alike reach deep within themselves to explore their fragile, fallible selves. By the Stream is the latest feature by wildly prolific Korean auteur Hong Sangsoo. It’s a bittersweet tale of loneliness, connection, and artistic creation as solace. (Andréa Picard) Learn more about By the Stream and find screenings here.

Can I Get a Witness

(Dir. Ann Marie Fleming, Window Horses)

“Can I Get a Witness? tells the story of a mother and daughter in a near-future world where huge sacrifices are made to maintain life on Earth. With its resources swallowed by e-waste and overpopulation, the world is experiencing an anthropogenic collapse. To manage, technological advances are shunned. Nobody has electricity and only people with exceptions are permitted cars. Most importantly, there is also a collective agreement that nobody is allowed to live beyond the age of 50.

“Sandra Oh’s Ellie lives with her teenage daughter Kiah (Keira Jang), who is starting her first day as a Documenter, an important role in this new world order. She uses her artistic gifts — beautifully conjured in animations — to draw the dying ceremonies, since printing and photography have been banned. Kiah is paired with Daniel (Joel Oulette), the young man who performs the contractual elements of each person’s end-of-life ceremony. He matter-of-factly provides the packages a person can choose, sets them up when the time comes, and performs the burials. But his new coworker is having a hard time handling the emotional impacts of the job.” (Kelly Boutsalis) Learn more about Can I Get a Witness and find screenings here.

Caught by the Tides

(Dir. Jia Zhang-Ke, Mountains May Depart, A Touch of Sin)

“A mesmerizing work that spans 20 years yet challenges the idea of time, Jia Zhang-Ke’s latest masterpiece is a reimagining of his cinema, the rewriting of his career, and a lucid portrait of China’s recent history. A countercurrent film that sweeps away the dust settling on the images of memory, Caught by the Tides is a love letter to actress Zhao Tao, the very embodiment of Jia’s cinema. She has shaped it, and continues to define and inspire his films, with the beautiful power of her performances.” (Giovanna Fulvi) Learn more about Caught by the Tides and find screenings here.

Cloud

(Dir. Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Cure, Pulse, Charisma)

“This has been a prolific year for Kiyoshi Kurosawa, one of the great auteurs of Japanese cinema. After directing both a French-language remake of his 1998 film The Serpent’s Path and the mid-length mystery horror Chime, he has ventured into genre domain with the action-packed thriller, Cloud. The story centers on Ryosuke Yoshii (Masaki Suda), a factory worker in Tokyo who makes extra money reselling goods online under a pseudonym. However, Yoshii’s seemingly idyllic life is shattered by mysterious attacks from unknown assailants, dismantling his peace as he discovers multiple enemies targeting him.” (Giovanna Fulvi) Learn more about Cloud and find screenings here.

Conclave

(Dir. Edward Berger, All Quiet on the Western Front)

“When the Pope unexpectedly dies, Cardinals from all over the world rush to the Vatican, where they immediately sequester themselves. Digital devices are stashed, doors are locked, and windows are shuttered as they prepare for the election of a new leader — one who will not only provide spiritual guidance for the world’s Catholics, but set the tone for the future. Featuring scintillating performances from Oscar nominees Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, and John Lithgow, Conclave imagines a secret process that affects millions but is witnessed by few.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Conclave and find screenings here.

Dahomey

(Dir. Mati Diop, Atlantics)

“For centuries, the Kingdom of Dahomey, within the borders of modern-day Benin, was a central cultural meeting point in West Africa, a site of European colonial conquest and the transatlantic slave trade. In 1892, the French invaded and looted hundreds of treasures from the royal palace, alongside thousands of other works. Following years of appeals and reports, in 2021 an agreement was made for several of these artworks to be returned from France to Benin. French-Senegalese filmmaker Mati Diop was granted access to the multipartite process.

“Tracing the historic repatriation of 26 royal treasures from the Musée du quai Branly in Paris, through their crating, overseas shipping to Cotonou, condition assessment, and eventual unveiling, Diop reveals not only the material and logistical process with elegance and precision, but also summons the ghosts of displacement. Carried by the surreal, disembodied voice and restless spirit of a bronze itself (speaking in Fon) — as well as evocative music by Dean Blunt and Wally Badarou — the film provocatively gestures towards unresolved histories of colonial expansion and exploitation.” (Andréa Picard) Learn more about Dahomey and find screenings here.

Daniela Forever

(Dir. Nacho Vigalondo, Colossal)

“We meet Nick (Henry Golding) in Madrid, adrift in a deep-seated malaise over the sudden death of his lover Daniela (Beatrice Grannò). A concerned friend enrolls him in a clinical trial for a drug that imbues its participants with totally lucid dreams — in an effort to sublimate his woe — and the experiment goes awry when Nick fails to adhere to the prescription.

“With his newfound ability to control his dreams, he sets out to rebuild his relationship with Daniela in an idealized fantasy of his own design. The verisimilitude of this realm enriches with each slumber, and Daniela begins to exhibit a gradual, disquieting autonomy that raises thorny ethical implications.” (Peter Kuplowsky) Learn more about Daniela Forever and find screenings here.

Dead Talents Society

(Dir. John Hsu, Detention)

“In the spirit of Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice, but set in a community of East Asian frighteners, Dead Talents Society invites you to peer beyond the veil into the secret netherworld of professional spectres as they compete in terrorizing the living to ensure their liminal lifestyle. You see, souls have a finite shelf life after death, and must regularly spook up the mortal realm as a curse or urban legend in order to secure a “haunter’s license,” a renewable reprieve from total oblivion. While such macabre machinations are no sweat for those who lived boldly in life, for the meeker variety of newly dead, it promises a second death sentence.

“A shy, recently deceased teen learns that she has only 30 days left to scare someone. At the behest of a starry-eyed “ghost” talent agent sympathetic to her desperation to be seen, the rookie falls in with a troupe of misfit haunters, led by a phantom diva determined to revitalize her own fading career. Together, they scheme for screams, and with so much hysterical showmanship and winning sincerity, their blood-curdling feats will not only split an audience’s sides, but also inspire a happy tear or two.” (Peter Kuplowsky) Learn more about Dead Talents Society and find screenings here.

Disclaimer

(Dir. Alfonso Cuarón, Gravity)

“In Disclaimer, celebrated journalist Catherine Ravenscroft (Cate Blanchett) has made a career out of exposing the transgressions of others. One day, she receives a mysterious book in the mail. Reading it, she soon realizes the novel’s protagonist is based on her younger self, and the plot reveals her deepest, darkest secret.

“Who sent it? What do they want? And how will Catherine protect her husband Robert (Sacha Baron Cohen), her son Nicholas (Kodi Smit-McPhee), and her own reputation if others connect the novel to her past? These are the questions Alfonso Cuarón explores in his seven-part psychological thriller adapted from Renée Knight’s 2015 novel of the same name. (Geoff Macnaughton) Learn more about Disclaimer and find screenings here.

Do I Know You From Somewhere

(Dir. Arianna Martinez)

A committed couple finds their life slipping away, not because they’ve done anything in particular, but because their history is unwriting itself. Sort of. The debut feature from Fredericton filmmaker Arianna Martinez is easier to experience than describe. It’s a multiverse picture without a single visual effect, unless you count the actors. Several years after their meet-cute — at a wedding, of course — Olive (Caroline Bell) and Benny (Ian Ottis Goff) are spending an entirely ordinary day at their lake house. Until, that is, things start to shift, little by little.” (Norma Wilner) Learn more about Do I Know You From Somewhere and find screenings here.

Eden

(Dir. Ron Howard, A Beautiful Mind)

“Dr. Friedrich Ritter (Jude Law) and his partner Dora Strauch (Vanessa Kirby) flee their native Germany in 1929, repudiating the bourgeois values they believe are corroding mankind’s true nature. On the isle of Floreana, Friedrich can focus on writing his manifesto, while Dora resolves to cure her multiple sclerosis through meditation.

“Their hard-won solitude, however, is interrupted by Margaret (Sydney Sweeney) and Heinz Wittmer (Daniel Brühl), and Eloise Bosquet de Wagner Wehrhorn (Ana de Armas) and her posse. Between inclement weather, unruly wildlife, and a total lack of amenities, all three groups find life on Floreana arduous. But nothing will test their mettle more than the challenge of coexisting with desperate neighbors capable of theft, deception, and worse.” Learn more about Eden and find screenings here.

Else

(Dir. Thibault Emin)

“Introverted and uncomfortable in his own skin, Anx (Matthieu Sampeur) does not consider himself an obvious partner for Cass (Édith Proust), the feisty whirlwind of confidence he finds himself waking up alongside after a presumed one-night stand. And yet a romance begins to bloom. However, the nascent relationship is threatened when a strange disease begins to spread throughout the world, gradually causing the infected to merge with whatever they touch.” (Peter Kuplowsky) Learn more about Else and find screenings here.

Emilia Pérez

(Dir. Jacques Audiard, A Prophet)

Exhilarating and piercingly resonant, the latest from director Jacques Audiard audaciously merges pop opera, narco thriller, and gender affirmation drama. Emilia Pérez is a rollercoaster in which crime, redemption, and karma collide, featuring fearless performances from Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez, Adriana Paz, and the amazing Karla Sofía Gascón, an ensemble that collectively received the Best Actress award at the Cannes Film Festival this year.

“Rita Moro Castro (Saldaña) is a Mexico City defense attorney whose brilliant strategies have kept many murderous but wildly affluent clients out of jail. Her reputation draws the attention of Manitas Del Monte (Gascón), a notorious kingpin, who is secretly transitioning. He hires Rita to arrange an itinerary of under-the-table procedures with the world’s best surgeons, while making a plan for the wife (Gomez) and kids he’s leaving behind.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Emilia Pérez and find screenings here.

Escape from the 21st Century

(Dir. Yang Li, Nuts)

“Once upon the year 1999, on a planet very much like our own — only 3,000 light years away — three teenagers find themselves plunging into chemical waste that imbues them with a unique ability: when they sneeze, their consciousness travels 20 years into the future. With their sinuses now propelling them to and fro in time, they are burdened with two precepts: the future sucks, and they have power to change it. Escape from the 21st Century is a transcendent treatise on the power of friendship, the elasticity of fate, and the dream of building a better world.” (Peter Kuplowsky) Learn more about Escape from the 21st Century and find screenings here.

Faithless

(Dir. Tomas Alfredson, Let the Right One In)

Adapted as a limited series from Ingmar Bergman’s old script, Faithless brings us into the world of Marianne (Frida Gustavsson, Vikings: Valhalla), a young actress in a happy marriage to Markus (August Wittgenstein, The Crown). When Markus’ best friend David (Gustav Lindh, Queen of Hearts) spends a summer visiting, an attraction blooms between Marianne and David, triggering a decades-long emotional fallout. Given the breathing room of an episodic treatment, Faithless expands on the lifelong stakes of the affair.

“40 years later, David and Marianne — still grappling with the consequences of their passion — reunite. Here, David is played by veteran Danish actor Jesper Christensen (Casino Royale) while Swedish actress Lena Endre plays Marianne as she did in the original film.” (Geoff Macnaughton) Learn more about Faithless and find screenings here.

Families Like Ours

(Dir. Thomas Vinterberg, The Celebration, Another Round)

“What if your country were evacuated? How would you function as a refugee, separated from your friends and family? These are the questions Oscar-nominated director Thomas Vinterberg and co-writer Bo Hr. Hansen pose in Families Like Ours, a sweeping series set in a near-future Denmark where the government evacuates all citizens in response to national flooding.

“At the center of the series is Laura (Amaryllis August), a high school student in love with Elias (Albert Rudbeck Lindhardt), both in their graduating year. Laura and her supportive family — successful architect father Jacob (Nikolaj Lie Kaas), stepmother Amalie (Helene Reingaard Neumann), journalist mother Fanny (Paprika Steen), uncle Nikolaj (Esben Smed), and his husband Henrik (Magnus Millang) — must navigate the impacts of the evacuation.” (Geoff Macnaughton) Learn more about Families Like Ours and find screenings here.

Freedom Way

(Dir. Afolabi Olalekan)

Software developers Themba (Jesse Suntele) and Tayo (Mike Afolarin) have finally launched their latest venture, Easy Go — a new rideshare app to connect Lagos State’s busy commercial motorcyclists (“Okada riders”) with customers in their area. Riding high on capital investments and credible government assurances, the young South African and Nigerian duo can finally envision the fruits of their labour. But after a night of celebrating, the business partners confront a pernicious roadblock familiar to all Nigerian youth — the police. This routine extortion, however, will turn out to be the least of their concerns.” (Nataleah Hunter-Young) Learn more about Freedom Way and find screenings here.

Friendship

(Dir. Andrew DeYoung, Our Flag Means Death)

“When an errant delivery pulls suburban dad Craig Waterman (Tim Robinson) into the orbit of his mysterious and charismatic new neighbor, Austin Carmichael (Paul Rudd), a sweet bromance seems to blossom over an innocent evening of urban exploration, punk rock, and a mutual appreciation for paleolithic antiquities. But what should have been the start of a beautiful friendship is soon waylaid as Craig’s obsessive personality begins to alienate his new pal, subsequently inducing a spiral that threatens to upend Craig’s entire life.” (Peter Kuplowsky) Learn more about Friendship and find screenings here.

From Ground Zero

(Dir. Rashid Masharawi, Leila’s Birthday)

In November 2023, Gaza-born Palestinian director Rashid Masharawi founded the Masharawi Fund for films and filmmakers in Gaza. From Ground Zero, their first project, sought to provide internally displaced artists — survivors of Israel’s nearly year-long assault, which has resulted in apocalyptic humanitarian conditions, destruction, mass killing, starvation, disease, and irreparable trauma for the people of Gaza — with a ‘canvas for the expression of personal stories.’

“The resulting collection features 22 three-to six-minute short films. Genre and narrative approaches vary widely, including documentary, hybrid forms, narrative drama, stop-motion animation, essay, and experimental video art.” (Nataleah Hunter-Young) Learn more about From Ground Zero and find screenings here.

Grand Tour

(Dir. Miguel Gomes, Arabian Nights)

“The film’s titular expedition begins in 1917 in the Burmese capital of Rangoon, where downbeat British diplomat Edward (Gonçalo Waddington) is due to meet his fiancée Molly (Crista Alfaiate), arriving after a protracted, long-distance betrothal. Instead, he panics and flees, hopping a ship to Singapore and setting off a series of Asian peregrinations, each increasingly laden with doubt, hangovers, and existential anguish. Meanwhile, the more sanguine Molly responds to her sudden abandonment with good faith, humour, and Katharine Hepburn–like brio, determined to track down and marry her bashful beau. (Andréa Picard) Learn more about Grand Tour and find screenings here.

Happyend

(Dir. Neo Sora, Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus)

“This beautifully crafted fiction feature debut from director Neo Sora transports us to a near-future Tokyo, a city on high alert for cataclysmic earthquakes and moving dangerously close to applying total surveillance to its public spaces. Focusing on a handful of rebellious adolescents struggling to find their path in a corrupt modern world, Happyend is an ode to youth’s stubborn insistence of dreaming of a better future.” (Giovanna Fulvi) Learn more about Happyend and find screenings here.

Harbin

(Dir. Woo Min-ho, Inside Men)

“Starring Hyun Bin, Jeon Yeo-been, and Park Jeong-min, Harbin depicts the complexities of heroism in a time of merciless subjugation. In 1905, Japan forced Korea to sign the Eulsa Treaty, stripping the nation of its diplomatic rights and reducing the entire peninsula to a Japanese colony. By 1909, when Harbin begins, Korea’s small but tenacious Righteous Army militia is deep into a campaign of armed resistance against the Japanese.

“After emerging as the sole survivor of an especially bloody skirmish, Ahn Jung-geun (Hyun) heads an operation to assassinate Itō Hirobumi, the first Japanese Resident-General of Korea and a key symbol of violent colonial oppression. The operation will require Ahn and his cohort to travel clandestinely into Russia, gathering resources and allies while concocting elaborate decoys. With terrifying risks at every turn, murderous security forces on their tail, and the entire plan under constant threat of collapse, the question arises: how many Koreans must die for the sake of their country’s independence?” Learn more about Harbin and find screenings here.

Hard Truths

(Dir. Mike Leigh, Naked, Life Is Sweet)

“Reuniting with Oscar-nominated Secrets & Lies star Marianne Jean-Baptiste and returning to contemporary London for a story inverse to his 2008 Festival favorite Happy-Go-Lucky, the latest from seven-time Oscar-nominated auteur Mike Leigh is bracingly tough, darkly funny, and pierced with insight. Shifting between various members of an extended Black family in London, Hard Truths is a psychologically rich ensemble film as only Leigh can cultivate.” (Robyn Citizen) Learn more about Hard Truths and find screenings here.

Heretic

(Dir. Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, 65, Haunt)

“Deliciously dark and frequently hilarious, this chamber horror from writer-director duo Scott Beck and Bryan Woods (the celebrated writers behind A Quiet Place) considers how an innocent chat about theology can go terribly awry. Starring Hugh Grant in a brilliantly against-type performance, Heretic is a fiendishly irreverent tale of battling convictions.

“Sister Paxton and Sister Barnes are cheerfully going about their mission to spread good news about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Working down a list of doors to knock on, they arrive at the quiet suburban house of Mr. Reed (Grant), who seems not only polite and hospitable but also genuinely fascinated by the history and teachings of Mormonism. In fact, Mr. Reed is quite knowledgeable about all the world’s major religions and is eager to discuss them with the women. Perhaps too eager.” (Robyn Citizen) Learn more about Heretic and find screenings here.

Hold Your Breath

(Dir. Karrie Crouse & Will Joines, Westworld)

“While Hold Your Breath is more ghost story than horror, it benefits from Sarah Paulson’s particular talent for the unsettling. In dust bowl Oklahoma of the 1930s, a mother nears the breaking point as she tries to protect her daughters from deadly windstorms and the impact of her own harrowing past. When the older girl tells the legend of the Grey Man to the younger one, the story slips under the skin of the whole family.” (Cameron Bailey) Learn more about Hold Your Breath and find screenings here.

I, The Executioner

(Dir. Ryoo Seung-wan, Smugglers)

Acclaimed action-film genius Ryoo Seung-wan brings us the highly anticipated sequel to his 2015 blockbuster, Veteran. A gripping, entertaining detective thriller, I, The Executioner balances high-octane fight scenes and chases with a nuanced exploration of the corrosive impact of “fake news” and populist violence on society.

“Returning detective Seo Do-cheol (Hwang Jung-min) now faces the challenges of fatherhood while grappling with the impact of his brutal job on his family. Joining him is rookie officer Park Sun-woo (Jung Hae-in), an ambitious young agent enamored with the dark side of police work and the intoxicating power it has lent him. They team up to hunt a serial killer targeting criminals who have managed to escape justice.” (Giovanna Fulvi) Learn more about I, the Executioner and find screenings here.

Ick

(Dir. Joseph Kahn, Bodied)

“What if an invading alien entity was met not with panic and fear, but cavalier indifference? In the small American town of Eastbrook, nearly two decades after a viscous vine-like growth — colloquially referred to as “the Ick” — began encroaching on every nook and cranny, a nonplussed populus have found their lives seemingly unaffected by the creeping anomaly. The exceptions to this oblivious conformity are Hank Wallace (Brandon Routh), a former high-school football prospect turned hapless science teacher, and his perceptive student Grace (Malina Weissman).” (Peter Kuplowsky) Learn more about Ick and find screenings here.

It Doesn’t Get Any Better Than This

(Dir. Nick Toti and Rachel Kempf)

“Nick Toti and Rachel Kempf live and breathe horror movies. So when the couple begin to observe that the dilapidated duplex they just bought exhibits all the telltale signs of having a haunted history, they can barely believe their luck. Even eerier, their Missouri manor begins to attract enigmatic, entranced strangers who creepily convene on the front lawn in increasing numbers with every passing day. Things only get weirder and scarier from there.

“What sets this found-footage horror apart from other indies of its ilk is its remarkable verisimilitude. Utilizing two decades of archival footage that detail Nick and Rachel’s real-life relationship, the divide between documentary and nightmare blurs throughout as the encroaching supernatural phenomena is contrasted with the genuine vulnerability of its subjects.” (Peter Kuplowsky) Learn more about It Doesn’t Get Any Better Than This and find screenings here.

K-Pops

(Dir. Anderson .Paak)

“Anderson .Paak is best known for his brilliant music career, but this first feature film opens up a vibrant new avenue for him as an artist. In K-Pops, .Paak directs and acts opposite his real-life son Soul Rasheed for a family project inspired by his own personal history and parental connection to Korea. BJ (.Paak) is a washed-up drummer with a love for music that’s both naive and obsessive.

“When his friend pushes him to travel to South Korea and work on a pop idol show, he meets Tae Young (Rasheed), a young performer in competition to be the nation’s next music star. Soon, BJ is introduced to Tae Young’s mother, Yeji (Jee Young Han), a woman he had a brief relationship with more than a decade ago. Tae Young is the son he never knew existed. It’s a charming coming-of-age comedy where the parent has as much growing up to do as the child.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about K-Pops and find screenings here.

Kill the Jockey

(Dir. Luis Ortega, Narcos: Mexico)

“Remo Manfredini (Nahuel Pérez Biscayart) is a legendary jockey, but his self-destructive behavior is beginning to outshine his talent and threaten his relationship with his girlfriend Abril. On the day of the most important race of his career, that will clear him of his debts from his mobster boss Sirena, he has a severe accident, disappears from the hospital and wanders the streets of Buenos Aires. Free from his identity, he starts to discover who he is truly meant to be. But Sirena wants him found, dead or alive.” Learn more about Kill the Jockey and find showtimes here.

Love in the Big City

(Dir. E.oni)

“Jae-hee (Kim Go-eun) was never like the others and, in a collective, uniform culture like South Korea’s, embracing her individuality has triggered endless gossip. One day, she meets Heung-soo (Steve Sanghyun Noh), another misfit lost in the big city. But unlike Jae-hee, Heung-soo hopes to hide his true identity. When Jae-hee finds out his secret by chance, the two form an unlikely relationship. Misunderstood by many, the young adults navigate growing pains in search of love and self in Seoul.” (Giovanna Fulvi) Learn more about Love in the Big City and find screenings here.

M – Son of the Century

(Dir. Joe Wright, Atonement, The Darkest Hour)

“Under the shadow of the recent rise of right-wing, populist governments and authoritarian leaders, acclaimed director Joe Wright has adapted Antonio Scurati’s novel M. Son of the Century into a series of the same name, which, like the original work, draws a clear line between today’s political climate and the fascist strongman who started it all — Benito Mussolini.

“Mussolini, played brilliantly by an unrecognizable Luca Marinelli, narrates his own story, often breaking the fourth wall and speaking directly to the audience. At the end of the First World War, his newspaper Il Popolo d’Italia established, Mussolini is now looking to fuel his political agenda by capitalizing on disillusioned veterans, who expected to come home as heroes, but were instead treated as outsiders. These men, desperate to be heard and understood, turned to Mussolini and formed a dangerous group of ultranationalists, which would become the National Fascist Party.” (Geoff Macnaughton) Learn more about M – Son of the Century and find screenings here.

Meet the Barbarians

(Dir. Julie Delpy, Two Days in Paris)

“Paimpont sits nestled in Brittany, content with its centuries-old heritage, its crêpes, and its flattering self-image. The town council is delighted they’ll soon be welcoming refugees from Ukraine. But it turns out that too many in France have already taken in Ukrainian refugees, so the van that pulls into Paimpont one day delivers a refugee family from Syria instead. Awkward.

“As the extended Fayad family finds its footing in a village very much set in its ways, both townspeople and newcomers must rethink their preconceptions. Will the local businessman (Laurent Lafitte) hold onto his xenophobic views? Can the Fayads bridge the gulf between their lives in wartorn Syria and their current disappointments in Paimpont? Will the town’s crusading progressive (Delpy) herself descend into petty barbarism? Julie Delpy’s new film is a classic comedy of integration.” Learn more about Meet the Barbarians and find screenings here.

Megalopolis

(Dir. Francis Ford Coppola, The Godfather, Tetro)

“This long-gestating passion project from legendary Oscar-winning writer-director Francis Ford Coppola features Oscar nominee Adam Driver as a visionary architect whose utopian ambitions clash with the more earthbound demands of a modern city. Pivoting between political drama, philosophical science fiction, and star-crossed romance, Megalopolis considers the limits of genius and the fragility of empires.

“Wracked with grief over the death of his wife, Cesar Catilina (Driver) pours all his energy into his startling new invention, megalon, a building material that is infinitely malleable and miraculously strong — and may just imbue its creator with the power to control time and space.” (Cameron Bailey) Learn more about Megalopolis and find screenings here.

Millers in Marriage

(Dir. Edward Burns, Beneath the Blue Suburban Skies)

An ensemble drama with a stunning cast and a bold approach to storytelling, Millers in Marriage takes a sobering look at the vagaries of long-term love while championing the possibilities for personal change. Eve (Gretchen Mol) was a rocker in her early 20s but gave it up to be a full-time mom, while her husband, Scott (Patrick Wilson), poured his energy into his own music… while frequently pouring himself too many drinks. Now an empty-nester, Eve wonders if it’s possible to return to her art.

“She’s certainly encouraged by a hunky music critic (Benjamin Bratt) whose interest seems more than professional. Eve’s sister, Maggie (Julianna Margulies), is losing patience with her husband, Nick (Campbell Scott). Both are novelists, but while Maggie feels productive, Nick seems resigned to perpetual writer’s block. Meanwhile, Eve and Maggie’s brother, Andy (Burns), is starting a new relationship with Renee (Minnie Driver), though he might not be finished with Tina (Morena Baccarin), who left him after 15 years only to come back after hearing of his new romance.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Millers in Marriage and find screenings here.

Misericordia

(Dir. Alain Guiraudie, Stranger by the Lake)

“An immediate and uncanny paranoia attends the return of Jérémie (a suitably inscrutable Félix Kysyl) to his rural hometown of Saint-Martial in southwestern France. The visit is precipitated by the death of his former boss, the town’s master baker, with whom he was presumably in love. Appealing yet mysterious, Jérémie’s sensual presence is immediately and progressively destabilizing to all around him, as he prolongs his stay with the widow Martine (Catherine Frot).

“Misericordia swerves into noir territory with absurdist undertones, and an ensuing investigation spirals around a loner neighbor, ineffectual gendarmes, and a nosy country priest — seemingly the only inhabitants in this dewy, mountainous village perpetually bathed in twilight.” (Andréa Picard)

Learn more about Misericordia and find screenings here.

Mr. K

(Dir. Tallulah H. Schwab, Confetti Harvest)

Mr. K playfully evokes Franz Kafka’s tales of hapless characters finding themselves in increasingly strange, bewildering, and sinister circumstances. And, as is the case in those literary counterparts, the predicament unfolding on screen serves as a potent allegory about conditions facing people living in less outlandish scenarios. The ordeal for Mr. K’s misfortunate protagonist — a traveling magician played by Crispin Glover in one of the richest performances in his long and continually surprising career — begins when he checks into a once-stately hotel.

“The following morning, Mr. K is understandably confused by his inability to find the exit. Then again, the magician doesn’t have much time to search for it due to the demands imposed on him by the hotel’s other inhabitants, a colourful gallery that includes a rather intimidating troupe of musicians, a bustling crew of kitchen workers, and a very classy elderly guest played by the great Fionnula Flanagan.” (Jason Anderson) Learn more about Mr. K and find screenings here.

My Father’s Daughter

(Dir. Egil Pedersen)

“Raised by her single mother in the coastal Sámi village of Unjárga in the far north of Norway, Elvira has never known her father. Misled to believe she was conceived in Copenhagen, the teenager holds on to a childhood fantasy that her father is the Danish acting legend Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, the star of the hit series Game of Thrones. When her mother announces that her new girlfriend is moving in, a frustrated Elvira holds firm to her belief that her half-Danish ancestry will soon mean an escape from small-town life and all its trappings.” (Jason Ryle) Learn more about My Father’s Daughter and find screenings here.

Nightbitch

(Dir. Marielle Heller, Can You Ever Forgive Me)

“A profoundly original exploration of motherhood and identity, Nightbitch is destined to be one of the most talked-about films of the year. Amy Adams plays Mother, a former city-dwelling artist and curator who chooses to stay home (now a suburban home) with her toddler son as her husband travels frequently for business. She loves her son deeply, but that does not prevent her from feeling isolated and exhausted. How did her life become a numbing grind of diaper changes and cutting bananas into little pieces?

“Soon, Mother begins to see and hear things in the night that beckon to her; something primal and feral rises up within her, allowing her to unleash — and return to — her inner power and identity. Scoot McNairy plays Mother’s Husband, a relatable, sensitive man struggling with his own challenges around parenthood. But make no mistake, this is Adams’ film. It is her fearless, unself-conscious, and fiercely intelligent performance that makes Nightbitch such a memorable experience.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Nightbitch and find screenings here.

No Other Land

(Dir. Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor)

“Basel Adra has been documenting the expulsion and decimation of his community in the small mountain village of Masafer Yatta in the southern West Bank since childhood. Adra’s early memories as a child are plagued with images of Israeli soldiers raiding his home, witnessing his father Nasser, a Palestinian activist, being arrested, and the ongoing Israeli military occupation and settler aggression. By picking up his camera, Adra continually speaks truth to power as he tirelessly documents his reality: impending forced removals, bulldozers destroying homes, and the violence that inevitably follows.” Thom Powers Learn more about No Other Land and find screenings here.

Nutcrackers

(Dir. David Gordon Green, George Washington, Pineapple Express)

“Hotshot Chicago real estate developer Michael (Ben Stiller) never had time for family. His sister once said he was incapable of love. But when Michael’s sister and her husband have a terrible accident, their house, farm, and four boys become Michael’s responsibility. He drives out to his sister’s small Ohio town thinking all he needs to do is sign some papers and get back to the city, but it’s not nearly that simple. Until the family services worker (Linda Cardellini) can find the boys a home, their only guardian is Uncle Mike.” Learn more about Nutcrackers and find screenings here.

Oh, Canada

(Dir. Paul Schrader, First Reformed, American Gigolo)

“Richard Gere, reuniting with Schrader 44 years after American Gigolo, plays Leonard Fife, who left the US for Canada as a young man during the Vietnam War draft. Fife became an acclaimed documentary filmmaker in Montreal. Now, riddled with illness and palliative medicine, he allows former film students, led by Malcolm (Michael Imperioli), to interview him. Uma Thurman, playing Fife’s watchful wife Emma, stands guard to protect her husband’s legacy. But as Fife’s memories pour out to the camera and come to life in flashbacks, the great man’s official story fractures.” Learn more about Oh, Canada and find screenings here.

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

(Dir. Rungano Nyoni, I Am Not a Witch)

“Here lies Shula’s uncle Fred — dead in the middle of an empty road. It’s late, but Shula knows her family will expect her to wait with his body, no matter how much she might resent it. Bemba funerals are for the living, and the family will have questions. With the days-long ceremony beginning immediately, the blithe and unperturbed Shula attempts to opt out of the haunted proceedings. But in this household, mourning is not optional. In the long-awaited follow-up to her widely acclaimed debut, visionary Zambian Welsh auteur Rungano Nyoni returns to the Festival with a fearless parable about the toll family secrets take on their keepers.” (Nataleah Hunter-Young) Learn more about On Becoming a Guinea Fowl and find screenings here.

On Swift Horses

(Dir. Daniel Minahan, Fellow Travelers, Game of Thrones)

“It’s the 1950s. Newlyweds Muriel (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Lee (Will Poulter) leave their Kansas home for a new life in San Diego, with steady jobs and a house they can start a family in. Lee’s brother Julius (Jacob Elordi), meanwhile, returns from the Korean War without any long-term plans.

“A deft hand at poker, he winds up in Las Vegas, where he does pit surveillance at a casino and befriends Henry (Diego Calva), a handsome Chicano who, like Julius, loves a good gamble. The thrill spreads to Muriel, who secretly begins playing the horses — and winning. What’s more, Muriel and Julius find themselves on parallel journeys involving clandestine transgressions that could place them in greater danger than either bargained for.” (Robyn Citizen) Learn more about On Swift Horses and find screenings here.

Paul Anka: His Way

(Dir. John Maggio, The Perfect Weapon)

“Born in Ottawa, the son of Syrian/Lebanese immigrants, Anka exhibited musical talent early on. In an act of bravado and ambition, he borrowed money at 16 to head to New York City, and soon after exploded onto the charts with his first hit “Diana,” which was followed by more record-breaking titles. What set Anka apart from other teen idols of the day was his ability to write his own songs. While he toured the world and performed for millions, he simultaneously wrote for such luminaries as Frank Sinatra, Buddy Holly, Michael Jackson, Céline Dion, and, later, even Toronto’s own Drake.

“Besides its remarkable volume of archival footage, the singular feature here is Anka’s candour. The singer freely reveals previously unheard stories about everything from his business success to his mistakes (although he clearly never made the same one twice), the pressures of fame on his first marriage, and numerous ribald recollections around his working relationships with other musical icons.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Paul Anka: His Way and find screenings here.

Piece by Piece

(Dir. Morgan Neville, 20 Feet from Stardom)

“Charting Pharrell Williams’ vibrant career with a conventional documentary would have never been satisfying enough. Fittingly, Piece by Piece tells his story entirely with LEGO, for a bright, bouncy, and energetic treatment that captures the multi-hyphenate musician’s unyielding creative spirit. The film takes us through Pharrell’s spirited upbringing in Virginia, his first job at a record label, the start of production duo the Neptunes with Chad Hugo, the formation of the band N.E.R.D., and beyond.

“With Piece by Piece, Oscar-winning documentarian Morgan Neville adds another feather to an already prolific directing career. Here, he represents Pharrell’s signature beats as little LEGO sculptures. They pop and come to life as his songs develop before exploding into hits familiar as Pharrell tracks as well as some not necessarily attributed to him. Brimming with charm and visual panache, Piece by Piece is a sensory delight.” (Cameron Bailey) Learn more about Piece by Piece and find screenings here.

Pimpinero: Blood and Oil

(Dir. Andrés Baiz, Griselda, Narcos)

“Set in the early 2010s, this gripping thriller takes place in the treacherous desert bordering Colombia and Venezuela, where gasoline smugglers known as pimpineros risk their lives transporting illegal fuel from one country to another. Colombian music icon Juanes plays Moisés, the eldest of three brothers plying this perilous trade and the linchpin of the operation, while Alberto Guerra delivers a compelling performance as Ulises, a man paralyzed by conflicting decisions and haunted by fear and grief.” (Diana Cadavid) Learn more about Pimpinero: Blood and Oil and find screenings here.

Presence

(Dir. Steven Soderbergh, Traffic, Schizopolis, Ocean’s 11)

“Written by superstar screenwriter David Koepp (Jurassic Park), Presence shakes the ghost story to life by embracing death. Told from the point of view of a housebound spirit, the film makes a spectre of the spectator, granting us singular access to a family passing through troubled times. Rebekah (Lucy Liu) and Chris (Chris Sullivan) move into a new house with their kids, Tyler and Chloe, but their occupancy fails to infuse the home with warmth. Rather, a litany of problems are revealed. All the while, the ghost bears witness and strategizes methods of hair-raising intervention, prompting Chris to summon a spiritualist.” (Robyn Citizen) Learn more about Presence and find screenings here.

Queer

(Dir. Luca Guadagnino, Call Me by Your Name, Challengers)

“Adapting the classic William S. Burroughs novel, Queer stars Daniel Craig, Jason Schwartzman, and Lesley Manville in a drug-soaked odyssey bathed in desire. Lee (Craig) mingles with the expatriate set in postwar Mexico City, wandering its streets, frequenting its gay bars, and ingesting whatever illicit substances are available. He is a consummate raconteur who has no trouble finding an audience, but he is also a desperately lonely, middle-aged addict with a fondness for guns and a handsome young bi-curious Oklahoman named Allerton (Drew Starkey).” (Anita Lee) Learn more about Queer and find screenings here.

Relay

(Dir. David Mackenzie, Hell or High Water, Young Adam)

“Relay is a cat-and-mouse game for an age of hyper-surveillance when it’s never been harder to leave no trace. Ash (Riz Ahmed) brokers deals between parties who never learn what he looks like, sounds like, or where he’s located. A brilliant manipulator of technologies old and new, Ash’s primary method of communication is a telephone relay service where operators are legally bound to withhold the identities of their users.

“Ash’s latest client is Sarah Grant (Lily James), a former bio-tech company staffer who’s been on the run since stealing documents that, if made public, would be scandalous for her employer. Sarah now wants to return the documents in exchange for whatever remuneration she can get. The case should be business as usual for Ash, but the henchmen hired to follow Sarah are ruthless and dogged in a movie that would make Alfred Hitchcock proud.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Relay and find screenings here.

Riff Raff

(Dir. Dito Montiel, Man Down)

“With an all-star ensemble cast that includes Ed Harris, Gabrielle Union, Jennifer Coolidge, Bill Murray, Pete Davidson, Lewis Pullman, and more, Riff Raff is a pitch-black comedy about all the silly little things we do for family. Such as, you know, murder. One-time criminal Vince turned his life around when he fell in love with Sandy. Nearly 20 years later, the still-happy couple are looking forward to spending a quiet New Year’s Eve in their country home with their good-natured son, DJ. Vince’s other son, Rocco, shows up unannounced with his pregnant girlfriend, Marina, and Vince’s first wife, Ruth, in tow. It is not a happy reunion. Ruth is rude, lewd, and randy, while Rocco — who never divested himself of the family business — is clearly hiding something sinister.

“Hot on Rocco’s tail is Lefty (Bill Murray), an aging mafioso with a score to settle regarding his own son. When Lefty catches up with Vince’s teeming clan, it seems likely that blood ties will yield blood spilled. Riff Raff is gloriously irreverent, taking a deadpan approach to both humor and violence, while inserting some hilarious surprises along the way. Every member of the film’s dream cast has fun with even the most grotesque moments, but special mention goes to Murray, who should be on everyone’s A-list for heavies, and Coolidge, whose singular way with words makes beautiful music of Ruth’s filthiest dialogue.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Riff Raff and find screenings here.

Rumours

(Dir. Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, and Galen Johnson)

In this wildly entertaining satire, the leaders of the G7 nations — the US, Canada, Germany, Japan, Italy, France, and the UK — stumble into a surreal scene and are left to their own (inept) devices to get themselves out. Rumours is ribald, playful, and an expansion of the Maddin-Johnson-Johnson oeuvre. The trademark oddities, like a glowing brain and bog people, are there; there’s a brief foray into black and white; and it was partly filmed in Winnipeg. Co-produced by Ari Aster among others, the film stars Cate Blanchett, Roy Dupuis, Charles Dance, and many others.” (Kelly Boutsalis) Learn more about Rumours and find screenings here.

Saturday Night

(Dir. Jason Reitman, Juno, Up in the Air)

“Saturday Night dives headfirst into the frenzied hour-and-a-half before a clutch of unknown, untrained, unruly young comedians took over network television and transformed the culture. The new movie takes place in the 90 minutes leading up to the first live episode of Saturday Night Live nearly 50 years ago. Fuelled by the same anarchic energy that drove the show to air, director Jason Reitman orchestrates this tour de force as a glorious circus of talent, ambition, and appetite for risk, with the clock ticking down to showtime.” (Cameron Bailey) Learn more about Saturday Night and find screenings here.

Seeds

(Dir. Kaniehtiio Horn)

“A campy revenge thriller, Kaniehtiio Horn’s feature directorial debut takes viewers on a ride unlike any other. In Seeds, Horn plays Ziggy, a Toronto-based bike courier and budding influencer. Just as she lands a new client, a seed and fertilizer company called Nature’s Oath, and starts making content for them, she’s called back to her community to house sit for her aunt. Ziggy’s cousin imparts a few nuggets of wisdom: to be wary of the seed company, and that creepy things happen around their aunt’s house. As a shadowy figure follows her, Ziggy must protect herself and her aunt’s cache of seeds.” (Kelly Boutsalis) Learn more about Seeds and find screenings here.

Sharp Corner

(Dir. Jason Buxton, Blackbird)

“On the night they move from the city into a sprawling suburban home, parents Josh (Ben Foster) and Rachel (Cobie Smulders) are jolted by a car crashing into the tree on their front lawn, killing the driver and injuring his passengers. And once Josh discovers the accident is part of a regular occurrence due to the design of the road, he becomes obsessed with being ready to save the next victims… to the exclusion of everything else. Foster holds us in a state of queasy apprehension as Josh’s impulsive, sanctimonious dedication to learning CPR and policing the street start to form a pattern of privileged overconfidence — or maybe it’s deluded competence.” (Norm Wilner) Learn more about Sharp Corner and find screenings here.

Shell

(Dir. Max Minghella, Teen Spirit)

“If you could restore youthful beauty and guarantee longevity by committing to a few days of mysterious treatments, would you? Would you trust your life and health to science and technology that might be more hype than healthy? Samantha (Elisabeth Moss) is thinking it over. She’s a slightly unkempt, earnest, talented actress who can’t seem to nail the jobs she wants, and both her confidence and bank account are shrinking. She also looks slightly older than her competition, so at the prompting of her agent and the numerous neon billboards touting its miraculous outcomes, Samantha commits to a treatment from Shell.

“It’s a success and the result is a glowing, more invigorated Samantha with a new lease on life. Enter Zoe Shannon (Kate Hudson) the glamorous CEO of Shell, the living embodiment of her products. Zoe offers to take Samantha on as a protégé and soon the actress’s star starts to rise. But Samantha also starts to get suspicious about missing friend Chloe (Kaia Gerber), some unusual symptoms she started exhibiting, and what might truly be going on in the laboratories of Shell.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Shell and find screenings here.

Sketch

(Dir. Seth Worley)

“In this big-hearted, audaciously entertaining movie, a young girl’s active imagination and unprocessed grief collide, unleashing a horde of goofy, made-up monsters on an unsuspecting neighborhood. Mourning the loss of her mother, young Amber has her imaginative sketchbook dropped into a magical pond, with all its strange drawings coming to life, ready to wreak havoc, leaving plumes of crayon dust in their wake. Fighting off giant eyeballs with spider legs will require courage and some creative thinking, but the real solution to quelling all this chaos lies in Amber’s mind.

“Sketch promises to be an incredibly fun, modern twist on classics like The Goonies and E.T., with a wonderful family group at its core (played by the great Tony Hale, D’Arcy Carden, Bianca Belle, and Kue Lawrence.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about Sketch and find screenings here.

The Assessment

(Dir. Fleur Fortuné)

“In the future depicted in The Assessment, everyone gets to live a calm life but the government maintains a strict control of resources. As part of that, and to ensure the world doesn’t become overpopulated, it decides who can and can’t have children. Mia (Elizabeth Olsen) and Aaryan (Himesh Patel) are nervous about their application to become parents, but they have everything going for them. The two are assigned an assessor named Virginia (Alicia Vikander), who comes to evaluate them in their home over seven days. As the tests become increasingly abstract and confounding, the right answers seem less obvious and the assessment foments a rift between the couple.” (Robyn Citizen) Learn more about The Assessment and find screenings here.

The Bibi Files

(Dir. Alexis Bloom, Divide and Conquer: The Story of Roger Ailes)

“For the past eight years, Israel’s prime minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu has been under investigation by Israeli authorities for corruption charges. His efforts to avoid a legal reckoning have rocked the stability of his country and shaken global affairs. The Bibi Files is an urgent journalistic exposé, based on never-before-seen leaked footage and new interviews with key Israeli figures, including former prime minister Ehud Olmert, Netanyahu’s former spokesman Nir Hefetz, former Shin Bet leader Ami Ayalon, and investigative journalist Raviv Drucker.

“The film details the corruption cases that resulted in Netanyahu being indicted for charges of breach of trust, bribery, and fraud in 2019. The cases also implicate his wife Sara and son Yair. Those cases have dragged through the court system without resolution. In the past, Israeli leaders indicted for corruption have resigned, but Netanyahu retained power by forging alliances with staunch right-wingers who now serve as cabinet ministers. Filmmaker Alexis Bloom and producer Alex Gibney bring the film to TIFF as a work-in-progress in search of distribution.” (Thom Powers) Learn more about The Bibi Files and find screenings here.

The Brutalist

(Dir. Brady Corbet, Vox Lux)

“The Brutalist is a bold American epic starring Adrien Brody as a Jewish Hungarian architect who flees Europe at the end of the Second World War to rebuild his life in an unfamiliar land. László Toth arrives in America with barely anything to his name, eagerly hoping to soon be joined by his wife Erzsébet (Felicity Jones). Settling in Philadelphia, he has a not-so-gracious run-in with Harrison Lee Van Buren (Guy Pearce), a wealthy businessman. This leads to a more complex undertaking, as Van Buren and his son (Joe Alwyn) enlist László’s brilliance for a monumental new project.” (Jane Schoettle Learn more about The Brutalist and find screenings here.

The Cut

(Dir. Sean Ellis, Metro Manila, Cashback)

“It looks like a sports movie, but this intensely visceral drama digs deep into the ways we punish the body to relieve a soul in torment. Featuring powerful performances from Orlando Bloom, John Turturro, and Caitríona Balfe, The Cut follows a retired fighter obsessed with getting back in the ring, even if it costs him his life. The protagonist is known only as The Boxer. And boxing is virtually all he lives for. 10 years ago, a nasty cut took The Boxer out of commission. Ever since, he and his wife and trainer Caitlin (Balfe) have run a successful gym. It should be enough, but when another boxer unexpectedly dies before a title fight, The Boxer puts himself forward as a replacement and the event’s shady promotor decides to make him the new contender — everyone loves a comeback.

“The only problem is that, to qualify, The Boxer needs to drop a precipitous number of pounds in just six days. Enter Boz (Turturro), a brash trainer infamous for using every possible technique, legal or not. Many scenes are brutal, yet you cannot look away. Written by Justin Bull and Mark Lane, The Cut is about wounds that will not heal. The harder The Boxer trains, the more painful childhood memories come surging back to haunt him.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about The Cut and find screenings here.

The Damned

(Dir. Roberto Minervini, The Other Side, Stop the Pounding Heart)

“The Damned embeds itself within a troupe of volunteer Union soldiers dispatched by the US Army to the western territories during the winter of 1862. A pivotal year for the gold rush as well as the ongoing Civil War, these uncharted borderlands were rife with historical significance, promise, and unseen menace. Shot in the wilds of Montana with a small ensemble of non-professional actors — many cast from within the vicinity — whose extemporized dialogue largely stems from personal experience, The Damned portrays war as a profoundly intimate and disorienting journey.” (Andréa Picard) Learn more about The Damned and find screenings here.

The End

(Dir. Joshua Oppenheimer, The Act of Killing)

Best known for his groundbreaking documentaries about mass killings in Indonesia, Joshua Oppenheimer makes his fiction feature debut with The End. It’s a story about what seems to be the last remaining human family on earth, as they hide in an ornate bunker built deep inside a salt mine after environmental collapse has destroyed society. Oh, and it’s also a sombre musical. George MacKay, Michael Shannon, and Tilda Swinton star as the wealthy family hiding from the apocalypse, and Moses Ingram plays a woman seeking refuge who disrupts the family’s delicate dynamic.

“The End is markedly different from other end-of-days stories. Not only does it offer characters who are haunted by the guilt of their role in it, but it also shows how easy it is to become part of a cloistered family if we’re too afraid to confront the real world. In between their weighty conversations, the mother, father, son, and woman all sing. And much like in Oppenheimer’s previous work, music is used here as a way to ward off the horror of these characters’ pasts while perpetuating the denial they continue to live in.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about The End and find screenings here.

The Friend

(Dir. Scott McGehee and David Siegel, What Maisie Knew)

“Bill Murray and Naomi Watts get top billing, but it’s impossible to deny the star power of Bing, the Great Dane who nearly steals the show in The Friend. Iris has had a long, complex friendship with Walter, an irresistible charmer, a brilliant author, a lover of many women, and a master at letting down loved ones. When he dies suddenly, Iris is left to deal with all he left behind — three ex-wives with unfinished business, his interrupted literary legacy, and his beloved beast Apollo (Bing).” Learn more about The Friend and find screenings here.

The Last Showgirl

(Dir. Gia Coppola, Palo Alto)

“A captivating and affecting lead performance by Pamela Anderson drives the unique new Las Vegas movie, The Last Showgirl. Shelley (Anderson) has been a Las Vegas showgirl for over 30 years, the feather and crystal–adorned centerpiece of Sin City’s last remaining traditional floor show. The stage and the women she shares it with are her loving, bickering, sequin-clad family. When the stage manager Eddie (Dave Bautista) announces the show will close permanently in two weeks, Shelley and her co-workers must make decisions for their future. But the future looks different when you are 50 rather than 20, and your sole job skill is dancing.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about The Last Showgirl and find screenings here.

The Life of Chuck

(Dir. Mike Flanagan, Doctor Sleep, Midnight Mass)

“With The Life of Chuck, Mike Flanagan takes a detour from the macabre to explore one of Stephen King’s alternate sensibilities in an adaptation that carries the spirit of his most optimistic work. The world feels like it’s ending and everybody’s saying goodbye to Chuck. Wherever Marty (Chiwetel Ejiofor) goes, he can’t get away from Charles Krantz (Tom Hiddleston). His face is showing up on billboards, window signs — even TV commercials. What’s so special about this seemingly ordinary accountant and why does he warrant such a sendoff?

“Their connection includes Marty’s ex-wife (Karen Gillan), her co-worker, his neighbour, and just about everyone else they know. Chuck’s life story soon begins to unravel in front of us, going back to a childhood with grandfather Albie (Mark Hamill), who teaches him about accounting and passes on a love for dancing, all the while keeping him from a prophetic secret in the attic. The Life of Chuck starts grand and ends intimate, like a setting sun. It’s a Stand By Me for the multiple lives within each of us, and finds warmth in melancholy.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about The Life of Chuck and find screenings here.

The Listeners

(Dir. Janicza Bravo, Lemon, Zola)

“Claire (Rebecca Hall) is perfectly contented, if sometimes slightly underwhelmed, by the tranquil life she leads. As an English teacher with a loving husband and daughter, Claire’s life holds few surprises. When she suddenly begins hearing a low, persistent humming sound — which, it appears, no one else around her can hear or account for — Claire is suddenly knocked off-balance. In her search for answers, Claire comes to learn that her student Kyle (Ollie West) can also hear the sound. They embark on a tentative, faltering journey together, leading them towards a neighborhood support group led by a mysterious but compelling couple.” (Geoff Macnaughton) Learn more about The Listeners and find screenings here.

The Luckiest Man in America

(Dir. Samir Oliveros, Bad Lucky Goat)

“Featuring performances from Paul Walter Hauser, Walton Goggins, and David Strathairn, The Luckiest Man in America illuminates a forgotten turning point in television history, when a network executive took a gamble and inadvertently made an obsessive eccentric into a folk hero. Michael Larson is a former ice cream truck driver from Ohio who only made it into auditions for Press Your Luck because he stole someone else’s appointment. The show’s casting director thinks Michael is a creep, but co-creator Bill Carruthers likes Michael’s chutzpah and sees him as a Middle-American everyman the audience can cheer for — the dark horse is in.

“Turns out, Michael can’t lose. In fact, he quickly breaks the show’s record — before breaking its savings account. Is Michael cheating? Or does he understand something about Press Your Luck that no one has seen before? With his unruly mane and beard, and his thrift-store blazer and khaki shorts, Hauser’s Michael is the embodiment of nerdy desperation, a man who’s banked everything on the chance to win the American Dream as millions watch.” (Robyn Citizen) Learn more about The Luckiest Man in America and find screenings here.

The Order

(Dir. Justin Kurzel, Nitram)

“Featuring startling performances from Jude Law, Tye Sheridan, and Nicholas Hoult, this riveting historical thriller recreates one of the largest manhunts in FBI history. Based on Kevin Flynn and Gary Gerhardt’s nonfiction bestseller The Silent Brotherhood, The Order depicts a domestic terrorist group determined to promote their racist ideology — and the lawmen who will go to any lengths to stop them. FBI Agent Husk and an eager young small-town deputy investigate crimes that may be connected to a neo-Nazi terrorist group in a film which features what many are calling Jude Law’s best performance to date.” Robyn Citizen Learn more about The Order and find screenings here.

The Penguin Lessons

(Dir. Peter Cattaneo, The Full Monty)

“Propelled by the deliciously dry wit of Oscar nominee Steve Coogan, this poignant dramedy follows an Englishman’s personal and political awakening during a period of crisis in Argentina. Inspired by true events, The Penguin Lessons takes to heart the notion that saving someone’s life begins a new responsibility. In this case, that someone is a surprisingly wise, utterly adorable penguin.” Learn more about The Penguin Lessons and find screenings here.

The Piano Lesson

(Dir. Malcolm Washington)

“The Charles family of Pittsburgh has a precious heirloom that sits quietly in the middle of their home: a piano. In its wooden frame are carefully chiseled carvings of the faces of their great-grandparents during a time when they were enslaved. It’s 1936, and Boy Willie (John David Washington) wants to sell the piano to buy the land his ancestors were enslaved upon. His sister Berniece (Danielle Deadwyler) is fiercely protective of it, even though she never plays it. Their uncle Doaker (Samuel L. Jackson) tries to keep the peace as The Piano Lesson finds levity in this sibling confrontation before the family is troubled by a more serious shadow that hangs over their heads.” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about The Piano Lesson and find screenings here.

The Return

(Dir. Uberto Pasolini, Still Life)

“This slow-burning adaptation of Homer’s Odyssey reunites The English Patient stars Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche for a film grounded in a classical style that captures the steeliness of the Greek epic. The Return picks up as Odysseus washes onto the shores of Ithaca more than 20 years since he left his kingdom to fight in the Trojan War and, in all that time, his wife and queen Penelope (Binoche) and son, Telemachus (Charlie Plummer), have lost faith that their father will return. Of course, Penelope’s notorious test for suitors will eventually come to play in this gritty take on the classic tale.” Learn more about The Return and find screenings here.

The Room Next Door

(Dir. Pedro Almodóvar, All About My Mother, Talk to Her)

“The Room Next Door might be renowned Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar’s first English-language feature, but he has left none of his signature hallmarks behind. Ingrid (Julianne Moore) is a bestselling author so famously afraid of death she has written a book about it. When she learns that Martha (Tilda Swinton) — a former war correspondent — is ill, she visits her, reigniting a friendship from years past, when both were journalists. The rekindled closeness between the women means Ingrid is drawn into her treatments as stories are told, secrets are revealed, and regret, redemption, and mortality are discussed over tea.” (Anita Lee) Learn more about The Room Next Door and find screenings here.

The Shrouds

(Dir. David Cronenberg, The Fly, Naked Lunch)

The Shrouds is the saddest movie David Cronenberg has ever made. It’s steeped in grief; the loss of the filmmaker’s wife Carolyn in 2017 is the engine that drives every scene, and his decision to style and groom star Vincent Cassel as his own doppelgänger brings the point home all the more powerfully. Cassel plays Karsh, a technological entrepreneur still grieving the death of his wife Becca (Diane Kruger) four years earlier. He has thrown himself into his work, devising technologically augmented burial shrouds that let loved ones watch their lost family members decompose.

“But when his wife’s plot is among several desecrated in an apparent act of vandalism, Karsh slips into a full-on crisis that expands to involve Becca’s lookalike sister, Terry (also Kruger), her ex-husband Maury (Guy Pearce), and, eventually, Soo-Min (Sandrine Holt), the enigmatic wife of a dying Hungarian tycoon who wants to open one of Karsh’s cemeteries in Budapest.” (Norm Wilner) Learn more about The Shrouds and find screenings here.

The Wild Robot

(Dir. Chris Sanders, Lilo & Stitch)

Based on Peter Brown’s bestselling children’s books, this adventure from DreamWorks Animation follows a robot (voiced by Lupita Nyong’o) who finds herself stranded on an island populated exclusively by beasts. The problem? The robot was created to help humans. Also featuring the voices of Pedro Pascal, Catherine O’Hara, Stephanie Hsu, and Bill Nighy, The Wild Robot is an epic tale of survival, in which animals and machines must question their programming and embrace their hidden strengths.” Learn more about The Wild Robot and find screenings here.

Universal Language

(Dir. Matthew Rankin, The Twentieth Century)

“Winner of the inaugural Directors’ Fortnight audience award at Cannes this year, Matthew Rankin’s film is a gentle sort of comedy, settling us down in a reimagined Canada where Persian and French are the two official languages… and loneliness is the common currency. In Winnipeg, children set themselves on eccentric quests, occasionally disrupting a tour group led by the flustered Massoud as he does his best to explain the city’s curious landmarks. Meanwhile, in Montreal, government wonk Matthew (played by Rankin himself) quits a job he hates and catches the first bus home to Manitoba to see his mother, only to find his family is not what he thought it was.” (Norm Wilner) Learn more about Universal Language and find screenings here.

Unstoppable

(Dir. William Goldenberg)

“Stories like Anthony Robles’ are the stuff of inspirational fiction, except this one actually happened. Though born without a right leg and growing up in a volatile household, Robles never let go of his dream. He set out to develop the strength and skills that college wrestling demands. He aimed to earn a place on a US Division 1 team despite being its only disabled athlete. And he competed to win. Starring Jharrel Jerome as Robles in another outstanding performance, Unstoppable is both an irresistible sports drama and a family story full of heart.”

The film also stars Michael Peña and Don Cheadle, and is the feature directorial debut from William Goldenberg, a film editor most famous for his work with Michael Mann (Heat, The Insider, Ali, Miami Vice) and Ben Affleck (Argo, Gone Baby Gone, Air). Goldenberg has also edited The Long Kiss Goodnight, Pleasantville, National Treasure, The Imitation Game, and many other films, and has an intuitive understanding of film’s emotional language, so Unstoppable should be a good one. Learn more about Unstoppable and find screenings here.

We Live in Time

(Dir. John Crowley, Brooklyn)

“Featuring gorgeously detailed performances from Oscar nominees Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield, this inventively structured romance explores the question of how to make the most of our time in this world. Since their first encounter, Almut and Tobias have rarely had a dull moment. A meet-cute car accident, giving birth in the unlikeliest of locations, a world-class gastronomical competition… their time together seems fated to brim with striking events.

“We Live in Time alternates between three distinct chronologies, allowing us to experience this couple’s story in a way that heightens our understanding of how memory collides with present experience and how meaning is made through accumulation. As the film begins, Almut is given a sobering medical diagnosis and options for treatment that may or may not prove effective. What if the time spent in treatment wastes time that could be spent living life to the fullest?” (Jane Schoettle) Learn more about We Live in Time and find screenings here.

Went Up the Hill

(Dir. Samuel Van Grinsven, Sequin in a Blue Room)

“Jack (Dacre Montgomery) travels to a remote region of New Zealand to attend the wake of his estranged mother Elizabeth, a troubled architect who abandoned him as a child. Jack claims he was invited to the funeral by his mother’s widow, Jill (Vicky Krieps), who has no recollection of contacting him. Out of a sense of obligation to her late wife, Jill invites Jack to stay at their house until the funeral, intrigued, as he is, for them to learn more about each other.

“As Jack grapples with his complex emotions about his mother and the boyfriend he has left behind, his encounters with Jill begin as terse and sometimes tense affairs. Their lives are soon upended further when Elizabeth’s spectral presence makes itself known, inhabiting each of their bodies in turn but leaving no memories of what was said — or done — during the possessions.” (Jason Ryle) Learn more about Went Up the Hill and find screenings here.

Will & Harper

(Dir. Josh Greenbaum, Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar)

“This heartfelt documentary follows Saturday Night Live alumni Will Ferrell and Harper Steele as they traverse the US by car following Steele’s announcement of her transition. Both a portrait of enduring friendship and a field report on contemporary attitudes toward the trans community, Will & Harper reinvents the road movie for an age of change and empowerment. Ferrell and Steele met in 1995 on their first day at work at SNL, where they discovered an instant comedic kinship. Their personal bond deepened in the decades that followed.

“When Steele came out as trans, she feared the news could alienate those in her orbit. Ferrell declared his unconditional support, yet worried he might inadvertently say or do something offensive. The duo decide that a road trip could be a great way of reinforcing their friendship and surveying what it means to be transgender in today’s sharply divided culture.” Learn more about Will & Harper and find screenings here.

William Tell

(Dir. Nick Hamm, The Journey, Driven)

“Who says they don’t make them like they used to? Full of bravery, honour, and some dazzling battles, this big-screen version of the legendary hero’s tale is pure pleasure to watch. In 1307, a cruel Austrian Hapsburg king (Sir Ben Kingsley) occupies the bordering Swiss cantons. His tax collectors oppress and violate the citizens, driving one farmer to thoughts of murderous revenge. Fleeing across a vast landscape, this farmer finds only one man who will come to his aid: William Tell (Claes Bang).

“Tell has returned home weary after fighting with the Knights Templar in the Holy Land. Now seeking only a quiet life with the wife he met there (Golshifteh Farahani), he’s nevertheless bound by his principles. When pushed beyond his limits by the villainy of the Hapsburg court, Tell picks up his weapons and rides into battle. The visuals are rich, the pacing urgent, and the first-rate cast, which includes Rafe Spall and Jonathan Pryce, truly sink their teeth into the material. And that famous moment when Tell is forced to shoot an apple off his son’s head with a crossbow is everything you want it to be.” Learn more about William Tell and find screenings here.

Without Blood

(Dir. Angelina Jolie, Unbroken, By the Sea)

“As a director, Angelina Jolie has made a decisive turn from her glamorous on-screen image, crafting thoughtful dramas that illuminate the horrors war visits on individuals. In the Land of Blood and Honey (2011) and First They Killed My Father (2017) sharpen that focus further to war’s impact on women and girls in Bosnia and Cambodia, respectively. Without Blood sees Jolie returning to that neglected theme in the cinema of war. This time she directs another global screen icon, Salma Hayek Pinault.

“Years after a war crime, Nina (Hayek Pinault) engages Tito (Demián Bichir), a lottery seller, in what seems like casual conversation at his kiosk. But the encounter is anything but chance. It soon dawns on him. “I know who you are,” Tito says, “and I know why you’ve come.“ As their conversation continues, it becomes clear that revenge casts a long shadow, and takes many forms. Shot at Rome’s fabled Cinecittà studios, this is an intimate chamber piece about how war seeps inside each person it touches long after the weapons fall silent.” (Cameron Bailey) Learn more about Without Blood and find screenings here.

Young Werther

(Dir. José Avelino Gilles Corbett Lourenço)

“Wit and unrequited love are at the core of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s 18th-century novella The Sorrows of Young Werther, and those elements are updated and adapted beautifully in this snappy, humorous reimagining, set in modern-day Toronto. Werther, played by Douglas Booth, is making a brief pit stop to retrieve a statue before departing on a European adventure with his best friend, but a chance encounter with Charlotte (Alison Pill) puts those plans on hold until he can win her over. He falls more in love with her as they spend time together.

“A small snag to their union, however, is that Charlotte is engaged to successful lawyer Albert (Patrick J. Adams). With delightful performances from Booth, Pill, and the rest of the cast, Young Werther succeeds in the difficult task of preserving the pertinence of Goethe’s dark and philosophical work in a bright and fun romantic comedy for a modern audience.” (Kelly Boutsalis) Learn more about Young Werther and find screenings here.