I survived another year of TIFF, which was a week full of random celebrity encounters, chatting up strangers (I have 2 coffee dates with people I met in line!), and watching more movies than anyone should probably attempt in a week. Here’s what I saw (from best to worst):
Colossal: Delightfully inventive Anne Hathaway movie that starts off as an adult dramedy about an alcoholic 30-something trying to get her life in order, morphs into a monster movie when Godzilla and a giant robot show up(!), and then turns into a smart commentary on the “nice guy” syndrome. Weird in the best way.
La La Land: Old school, Singing in the Rain-style musical that made me swoon throughout. Seriously, I think I had the vapors at one point. Ryan Gosling is solid as always, but Emma Stone owns this one.
Personal Shopper: I’m not convinced Kristen Stewart can act. She just plays a version of herself everytime, with the same nervous tics and mannerisms. But once again this director proves he knows how to use a “Kristen Stewart type.”
Edge of Seventeen: A teen movie that reminded me of Easy A, which basically means I’m going to watch it eleven million times.
ARQ: Good little timeloop thriller starring Robbie Amell. Could have been 15 mins shorter, but it still kept me engaged throughout. And it just landed on Netflix so now everyone can watch it.
Lion: Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman star in this adoption story/Google Maps ad. A touch too sentimental for me, but everyone’s loving this one. In any case, the kid from Slumdog Millionaire grew up real nice, guys.
Burn Your Maps: Adorable. Jacob Tremblay is a national treasure and we must protect this kid at all costs.
American Honey: Didn’t think I’d like a three-hour movie starring Shia LaBeouf but here we are. It’s totally plotless so the running time is unforgivable, but I got sucked into this one. It was mostly street cast with non-actors, and they found the mesmerizing leading actress on a beach in Panama.
Nocturnal Animals: I liked parts of this Amy Adams/Jake Gyllenhaal movie more than others, but Michael Shannon and Aaron Taylor-Johnson steal the show.
In Dubious Battle: A James Franco-directed film that I didn’t actually hate. I didn’t love it either, but Franco and Selena Gomez don’t embarrass themselves (much).
Wakefield: Is there such thing as “too much” Bryan Cranston? I would have never thought so until now.
Catfight: Female Fight Club, without everything that made Fight Club good. Sandra Oh and Anne Heche violently beat the crap out of each other. Repeatedly. That’s it.
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