The 35th Toronto International Film Festival has come to an end, showcasing a slew of Hollywood's most anticipated fall films -- especially noteworthy after such a bleak summer -- and indie gems you'll have to hunt for over the next few years. 'The King's Speech,' 'Rabbit Hole,' and 'Black Swan' are just a few of the hot titles that drew buzz this year. We've already reported that 'The King's Speech' won the coveted People's Choice Award, but what about the rest?
First, attendees also got to vote on the best Midnight Madness flick and documentary. Jim Mickle's 'Stake Land' -- showcasing a post-apocalyptic America after a vampiric epidemic -- won the former, while Sturla Gunnarsson's environment-centric 'Force of Nature: The David Suzuki Movie' won the latter. Shawn Ku's 'Beautiful Boy' (a school shooting aftermath story starring Maria Bello and Michael Sheen) won the "Discovery" prize, while Pierre Thoretton's 'L'Amour Fou' (about Yves Saint Laurent) won the "Special Presentation's winner. And since this is a Canadian fest, maple leaf cinema earned some choice awards as well. Best Canadian Short went to Vincent Biron's 'Le Fleur de l'age,' Best Canadian First Feature went to Deborah Chow's 'The High Cost of Living,' and Best Canadian Feature Film went to Denis Villeneuve for 'Incendies.'
Are you struggling to keep them all straight? To suss out which one detailed a man with a stutter, which was a 'Groundhog Day' thriller, or which film Sarah Silverman is going nude for, hit the jump for a roundup of our features, interviews, and reviews from the stellar TIFF 2010 after the jump.
FEATURES
Where to Spot Celebrities at the Toronto Film Festival
2010 Toronto Film Festival Guide: 10 Movies We Can't Wait to See
Canadian Films to Watch for at TIFF
10 Must-See Toronto Fest Films That Probably Won't Escape Toronto
Toronto Film Festival Gifting Lounges Give Back This Year
'Waiting for Superman' the Ground-Shaker at TIFF
Girls on Film: TIFF's 'Trigger' is the 'Before Sunset' of Female Friendship
Toronto Film Festival 2010: The Movies That Had Everyone Talking This Year
'The King's Speech': Frontrunner for Best Picture Oscar? Here's What We Know About It
INTERVIEWS
Toronto Fest Programmer Colin Geddes on Midnight Movies ... and Madness
Jennifer Beals Talks 'A Night for Dying Tigers,' Family Love and Why She Has a Dagger in Her Skirt
Colin Firth Talks Playing Royalty in 'The King's Speech'
Javier Bardem on His Troubled Character in 'Biutiful'
Will Ferrell on Playing a Serious Man in 'Everything Must Go'
Woody Allen Talks 'You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger,' and How Everything Is Really Hard
Penn Badgley Talks 'Easy A' and Working with Emma Stone
Sarah Silverman on 'Peep World,' Ugly Crying and Getting Naked for Her Next Film
REVIEWS
'The Town'
"Affleck proves he's no one-trick pony. It's just as smart and well-executed as Affleck's last, and with him back in front of the camera too, it delivers on all that promise of Affleck's earlier career as an actor." [Joe Utichi]
'Stone'
"Nearly suffering a mid-life crisis of its own midway through as it sulks itself deeper into material some may describe as Bresson-ian, it never has a crisis of faith and allows three very interesting performances to come shining through the center and plenty to ponder in the end." [Erik Childress]
'Never Let Me Go'
"A delicate film to discuss but a difficult one to spoil, 'Never Let Me Go' tells a concise and slippery story of resignation that attempts to bridge the gap between what we know of the human experience and the turbulence of actually enduring it. " [David Ehrlich]
'Easy A'
"Minus a distracting John Hughes tribute, a misplaced karaoke routine and a few storyline deficiencies, Easy A is a grade A comedy and one certainly worthy of multiple viewings. The pacing is impeccable, soundtrack wildly appropriate and upbeat and the dialogue snappy and packed with inventive humor." [Perri Nemiroff]
'It's Kind of a Funny Story'
"[It] is not a funny movie. Nor is it a sincere, compelling, or interesting one. That a pair of indie-favorite filmmakers would attempt a teenager's version of 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' is not a big shock; that Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, co-directors of the very fine films 'Half Nelson' and 'Sugar,' would turn in such a mawkish, cloying, and uncomfortable film absolutely is." [Scott Weinberg]
'Barney's Version'
"A number of writers tried to tackle famous Canadian novelist Mordechai Richler's 'Barney's Version' over the years -- including the author himself -- but it was TV writer Michael Konyves who knew how to whittle away at the dense, 417-page satire and come out with a crisp tale that loses some of the bitter edge, replaces it with humanity, and gives a talented stable of actors the chance to offer up some of their best work." [Monika Bartyzel]
'Daydream Nation'
"Unlike the creations it's similar to, Daydream Nation is a messy tale over-saturated with side plots, flat characters, and a bipolar tone." [Monika Bartyzel]
'Passion Play'
"Thus is the strength and weakness of 'Scrooged' scribe Mitch Glazer's directorial debut, 'Passion Play' – a film that adeptly conveys his passion for the material (twenty years in the making), yet fails to hit the audience in that same engaging way." [Monika Bartyzel]
'Super'
Broad slapstick satires generally don't cross the line into truly disturbing material, but James Gunn's 'Super' does -- and it does so with a good deal of vim, vigor, and uniquely twisted jokes." [Scott Weinberg]
'Last Night'
"Massy Tadjedin has quickly established herself as a notable and talented new filmmaker. Last Night is an impressive first feature, knowing when to savor a moment and linger, and knowing when to retreat and tease curiosity." [Monika Bartyzel]
'Hereafter'
"Those looking for questions would be better served making their own list and checking it twice for this film can barely muster up the time to send us home with anything to think about, other than how one of the world's most celebrated directors [Clint Eastwood] can team up with one of the most interesting writers [Peter Morgan] of recent years and produce such a unchallenging dullard." [Erik Childress]
'Cool It'
"If 'An Inconvenient Truth' is our ass-kicker designed to make us put down that bottle of water and rethink our environmental attitudes, Ondi Timoner's 'Cool It' is our level-headed documentary designed to make us think rather than just react." [Monika Bartyzel]
'Casino Jack'
"From [Jack] Abramoff's early exploits dallying in off-shore sweat shops and moving forward to his abuse of Native American casinos and his horribly bad decisions regarding a gaming cruise ship, the man's most infamous crimes are detailed in sly and juicy detail. " [Scott Weinberg]
'Another Year'
"Leigh presents all of this in his typical slice-of-life fashion, light on plot but heavy on characterization, full of effortlessly funny dialogue. 'Another Year' comes across like an exceedingly well-acted stage play. Each performance is richly detailed, even when the character appears in only a few scenes." [Eric D. Snider]
'Everything Must Go'
"[Will] Ferrell is never better than in those moments when he doesn't have to out-quirk himself, or find a way to be even more flamboyant on the big screen, and Rush lets Ferrell have a field day, finding those bits of dark humor that are always present on the darkest days." [Monika Bartyzel]
'Caves of Forgotten Dreams'
"It's a quiet, mellow, and mostly captivating documentary about a prehistoric cave in Southern France ... your narrative tour guide is Werner Herzog, and the resulting film will absolutely make for a very comfortable screening once The History Channel gets around to airing it." [Scott Weinberg]
'Repeaters'
"Though Bessai does maintain his pensive, character-focused style, he ups the ante to deliver a surprising and often kinetic look at what can happen if your days start repeating, a la 'Groundhog Day.'" [Monika Bartyzel]
'Rabbit Hole'
"What I ended up watching is, quite simply, one of the best films I've ever seen at a festival. I've always contended that there's no such thing as a 'flawless' film, but now I'm going to amend that phrase to read 'There's no such thing as a perfect film.' Because 'Rabbit Hole' is, as far as I can tell, pretty much flawless." [Scott Weinberg]
'Amigo'
"This isn't a polarizing and politically critical film in the vein of 'Silver City.' It's a character study that reveals what we see only rarely in big-screen war films -- the real people behind the conflict once the pomp and circumstance are washed away." [Monika Bartyzel]
'Janie Jones'
"Even with some stellar performances, 'Janie Jones' falls a bit flat of its potential. It plays out more like a road trip of dramatic pit stops rather than a fully fleshed out journey between father and daughter." [Monika Bartyzel]
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