It's Official: I'm Ready to Go to Toronto
When the alarm went off on Monday morning, I woke up feeling incredibly anxious. I'd been dreaming it was the last day of TIFF and that I had somehow managed to see only six films. Time had slipped by. I'd been busy. I just hadn't gotten around to watching that many movies. It was, I guess, the cinephile's version of the final exam dream -- the one in which you've skipped every lecture and now must ace a test in order to graduate. Joanna pointed at me and laughed when I described my dream as a nightmare.
I assume the dream was a reflection of growing levels of anxiety in my life, generally. Last Thursday we signed a contract on a new house and now have to figure out how to sell this one. I'm hoping to make a job change in the coming weeks. There are other things -- big, life-changing things -- in the works. And so, despite running this site, I'd more or less forgotten about TIFF (and films and hobbies and free time and, too often, sleep) for a couple weeks.
But I'm now ready to go to Toronto. Because today new films by two of my favorite living directors were officially announced (along with 19 other Special Presentations and 1 Closing Night Gala): Claire Denis's 35 Rhums and Richard Linklater's Me and Orson Welles.
Only three more weeks. Anyone getting excited? Any films in particular you're looking forward to?
14 comments:
I'm getting very excited. I'm probably looking forward to Burn After Reading the most (although I'm still waiting for an official announcement on that), but I'm also pretty excited for JCVD, which is odd, given that I've never been excited for a Van Damme film. I also have to decide if I'm ready for 8 hours of Che.
Well, Burn After Reading opens the week after TIFF, so if it doesn't make the lineup, have no fear.
I'm reeeally hoping the Martel and Garrel are announced next week. As for stuff I'm looking forward to, the Benning, actually.
So, big changes? Best of luck!
"I also have to decide if I'm ready for 8 hours of Che."
I'm really curious to see all 8 hours of Che and am not sure when any of us will have another opportunity to do so -- at least not on a big screen. But I haven't decided yet if I'm willing to sacrifice an entire day of the festival for it.
The Martel and Garrel are at the top of my wish list, too. Every year there are one or two Cannes films that play exclusively at the Montreal Film Festival (last year it was the Ferrara and Bruni-Tedeschi), and I'm worried we might miss out on these.
Hilarious dream!!
This'll be my first year in Toronto, so I'm glad I can finally start using your guide which I've so often perused, jealously, from afar! Since the NYFF inexplicably excluded the Denis, I'm as excited as you are!
Isn't _Che_ *only* 4 hours?
Oh, you're right, Ryland. The two halves are listed separately in IMDb, so when I saw the 258 minute run time on the first film, I assumed it was for only the first film.
Daniel, I'm glad to hear you're coming. It'll be good to finally meet you in person.
You know you're only supposed to do one life changing event at a time, right? B-)
I just started getting re-excited about TIFF last night after meeting with a couple of blogger friends (hey James & Shannon!) as we went through our fave picks.
The Japanese contingent of Kurosawa, Kitano and Kore-eda are probably at the top of my list. I'm excited to see the new Aronofsky, Kaufman, Winterbottom and Linklater, but those should be reasonably easy to find outside festivals.
Bent Hamer's "O'Horten", Barbet Schroeder's "Inju, La Bete Dans L'Ombre", Christophe Barratier's "Faubourg 36" and Kim Jee-woon's "The Good The Bad And The Weird" are all top choices too. And I want to see what Rian Johnson can do with his second film "The Brothers Bloom".
And "Toronto Stories" has me curious.
Darren, the Montreal World Fest schedule is up, and the only Cannes title included (which TIFF will most likely pass on) is Khoo's allegedly awful My Magic. No Martel or Garrel.
Bob, I was deeply underwhelmed by O'Horten, but that was just me.
On the basis of only having seen Be With Me, I can't say I'll be crying too many tears over missing the new Khoo film.
Me neither. I tried to make it through Be With Me on video and found it too insipid to even finish. Many heavy hitters, Manhola Dargis chief among them, think it's a masterpiece. Whatevs.
I saw BE WITH ME at an avant-premiere in Paris in 2005, with Khoo in attendance. I burst out laughing when the miserable security guard jumped to his death and squashed the miserable lovesick lesbian in the process. People around me seemed plenty annoyed. That said, I was moved by the film's third story about blind and deaf Theresa Chan. I have no interest in MY MAGIC.
Also Toronto MIA for the moment: Fernando Eimbcke's LAKE TAHOE.
Wow, that is some dream! I can so relate. I usually find major changes come in groups which is pretty freakin' stressful!
It's hard to believe that TIFF is so soon now. I can't wait for the official film list, but more so the schedule!
Yeah, I liked the final third of Be With Me enough to will the rest of it out of my memory. I only remember the tactile sound design and gauzy look of the parts with Chan. It's possible that sitting close to a large screen helped, but I can't say I've been energized enough to track down anything else by Khoo.
If Che were eight hours long, I don't think so many Canners would have seen it. There is, however, a Lav Diaz film in the lineup, isn't there? I haven't checked the length.
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