Sundown, 2021. Written and directed by Michel Franco. Starring Tim Roth, Iazua Larios, and Charlotte Gainsbourg. SYNOPSIS: A wealthy man attempts to abandon his life while vacationing in Acapulco. It won’t surprise many to learn that the latest film from Mexican auteur Michel Franco (After Lucia, New Order) is an hypnotic and unpredictable experience. Re-teaming […]
Toronto International Film Festival 2021 Review – The Starling
The Starling, 2021. Directed by Theodore Melfi. Starring Melissa McCarthy, Chris O’Dowd, Timothy Olyphant, Skyler Gisondo, Daveed Diggs, Laura Harrier, Rosalind Chao, Loretta Devine, and Kevin Kline. SYNOPSIS: A woman adjusting to life after a loss contends with a feisty bird that’s taken over her garden – and a husband who’s struggling to find a […]
Toronto International Film Festival 2021 Review – The Rescue
The Rescue, 2021. Directed by E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. SYNOPSIS: A frantic search and rescue mission begins when a boys’ soccer team becomes trapped deep inside a system of caves in Thailand. Oscar-winning Free Solo filmmakers Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin could very well add more gold statues to their mantlepiece next […]
Toronto International Film Festival 2021 Review – The Devil’s Drivers
The Devil’s Drivers, 2021. Written and directed by Mohammed Abugeth and Daniel Carsenty. SYNOPSIS: Chased by the army, two Beduin smuggle Palestinian workers through the Negev desert. A portrait filmed over eight years about men living on the edge in one the most fragile regions of the world. Mohammed Abugeth and Daniel Carsenty’s upsetting, infuriating […]
Toronto International Film Festival 2021 Review – The Wheel
The Wheel, 2021. Directed by Steve Pink. Starring Amber Midthunder, Taylor Gray, Bethany Anne Lind, and Nelson Lee. SYNOPSIS: Walker and Albee were thrown together in a children’s group home and quickly became inseparable. When they married at the tender age of 16, Albee was rescued from her rough foster family. It’s now eight years […]
Toronto International Film Festival 2021 Review – The Middle Man
The Middle Man, 2021. Written and directed by Bent Hamer. Starring Pål Sverre Hagen, Tuva Novotny, Paul Gross, Nina Andresen Borud, Don McKellar, Rossif Sutherland, Nicolas Bro, Kenneth Welsh, Trond Fausa Aurvåg, Aksel Hennie, and Sheila McCarthy. SYNOPSIS: Frank Farrelli takes on the job of a middle man in the God-forsaken town of Karmack, USA, […]
Toronto International Film Festival 2021 Review – The Guilty
The Guilty, 2021. Directed by Antoine Fuqua. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Ethan Hawke, Riley Keough, Christina Vidal Mitchell, Eli Goree, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, David Castañeda, Paul Dano, and Peter Sarsgaard. SYNOPSIS: A demoted police officer assigned to a call dispatch desk is conflicted when he receives an emergency phone call from a kidnapped woman. Mere months […]
Toronto International Film Festival 2021 Review – Encounter
Encounter, 2021. Co-written and directed by Michael Pearce. Starring Riz Ahmed, Octavia Spencer, Rory Cochrane, Janina Gavankar, Lucian-River Chauhan, and Aditya Geddada. SYNOPSIS: Two brothers embark on a journey with their father, who is trying to protect them from an alien threat. Beast director Michael Pearce impressively scales-up for his sophomore feature, delivering another tricksy, […]
Toronto International Film Festival 2021 Review – Lo Invisible
Lo Invisible, 2021. Co-written and directed by Javier Andrade. Starring Anahi Hoeneisen, Matilde Lagos, Gerson Guerra, Juan Lorenzo Barragán, Paola Navarrete, and Cristina Marchán. SYNOPSIS: When Luisa returns from a psychiatric clinic after a bout of severe postpartum depression, she enters a new confinement in her dazzling home, surrounded by family members and a brigade […]
Toronto International Film Festival 2021 Review – Aloners
Aloners, 2021. Written and directed by Hong Sung-eun. Starring Gong Seung-yeon, Jung Da-eun, Seo Hyun-woo, and Park Jeong-hak. SYNOPSIS: A solitary woman re-evaluates her isolated existence after her neighbor dies alone in his apartment. People’s inability to connect with others face-to-face has been one of the most psychologically defeating aspects of the pandemic, causing isolation […]
