Marvel Studios’ ETERNALS takes the #1 spot at the Box Office a second consecutive week with $27.4 million from 4,090 theatres. In its two week run, it tallies-in at $181.7 million across North America.
In second this weekend is CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG $14.5 million from 3,700 theatres for Paramount/eOne Films. The Film opened Wednesday and has made $20 million already. Critics gave this 48% on the Tomatometer.
Third spot goes to DUNE with $5.6 million from 3,282 theatres for Warner Bros., a four week total of $93.2 million.
NO TIME TO DIE slips to fourth spot with $4.6 million for Universal Pictures, a six week total of $150 million.
Rounding things out in the Top Five is VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE with $3.7 million from 2,538 theatres, just surpassing the $200 million-mark for Sony Pictures.
Oscar contender BELFAST bows in eighth with $1.6 million from 580 theatres for Focus Features/Universal Pictures. Critics gave this 88% on the Tomatometer.
Sir Kenneth Branagh directs BELFAST, which premiered at TIFF ’21 to raves, winning the coveted People’s Choice Award. Here’s a first look at the Trailer for this November release.
Synopsis:
Written and directed by Academy Award® nominee Kenneth Branagh, BELFAST is a poignant story of love, laughter and loss in one boy’s childhood, amid the music and social tumult of the late 1960s. Starring Caitriona Balfe, Judi Dench, Jamie Dornan, Ciaran Hinds, and Jude Hill.
Focus Features and Universal Pictures Canada release BELFAST November 12, 2021.
(Photo/video credit: Focus Features)
The 2021 Toronto International Film Festival concludes today and Award winners were announced from this year’s Festival, which still thrived in a hybrid digital and in-person format amidst the Pandemic. Taking top honours of People’s Choice was BELFAST, directed by Sir Kenneth Branagh, in-attendance at the Festival last weekend. Traditionally this title has gone on to achieve Oscars and Awards Season success, case in point, last year’s winner NOMADLAND.
In accepting the Award, Branagh says “It was absolutely overwhelming to myself and Jamie Dornan and we talked about it over a long into a memorable night of laughter and tears in your great city!”.
Winners this year as as follows:
TIFF 2021 People’s Choice Award – Belfast, dir. Kenneth Branagh. The first runner-up is Scarborough, dirs. Shasha Nakhai and Rich Williamson. The second runner-up is The Power of the Dog, dir. Jane Campion. |
2021 Platform Prize – Yuni, dir. Kamila Andini Honourable mention: Mlungu Wam (Good Madam), dir. Jenna Cato Bass. |
TIFF 2021 People’s Choice Documentary Award – The Rescue, dirs. E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. The first runner-up is Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over, dirs. Dave Wooley and David Heilbroner. The second runner-up is Flee, dir. Jonas Poher Rasmussen. |
TIFF 2021 People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award – Titane, dir. Julia Ducournau. The first runner-up is You Are Not My Mother, dir. Kate Dolan. The second runner-up is DASHCAM, dir. Rob Savage. |
2021 Changemaker Award, presented by the Shawn Mendes Foundation, is awarded to a Festival film that tackles issues of social change, and comes with a $10,000 cash prize – Scarborough, dirs. Shasha Nakhai and Rich Williamson. |
Amplify Voices Award for Best Canadian Feature Film: Ste. Anne, dir. Rhayne Vermette Special Mention: Scarborough, dirs. Shasha Nakhai, Rich Williamson Amplify Voices Award: The Gravedigger’s Wife, dir. Khadar Ayderus Ahmed Amplify Voices Award: A Night of Knowing Nothing, dir. Payal Kapadia |
IMDbPro Short Cuts Award for Best Film: Displaced, dir. Samir Karahoda Honourable Mention: Trumpets in the Sky, dir. Rakan Mayasi |
IMDbPro Short Cuts Award for Best Canadian Film: Angakusajaujuq – The Shaman’s Apprentice, dir. Zacharias Kunuk Honourable Mention: Nuisance Bear, dirs. Jack Weisman, Gabriela Osio Vanden |
IMDbPro Short Cuts Share Her Journey Award: ASTEL, dir. Ramata-Toulaye Sy |
As announced previously, the winners at this year’s TIFF TRIBUTE GALA, which aired last night, were:
We don’t believe we made it through another TIFF! While this year’s Festival certainly was a bit more scaled-back we definitely were not short of things to do, equally putting in long days. So thankful to the Team for contributing their Reviews of the most key titles to surface at TIFF ’21 including Dave Baldwin, Amanda Gilmore and George Kozera. So thankful to be a Torontonian and be gifted every year with this amazing Festival. We’re so appreciative of the considerations for our safety and the fact that we were able to enjoy the Festival both in-person and at-home. We will never take for granted this flexibility.
Once again we must thank some of our official partners in our coverage of the Festival this year! We couldn’t have done it without their generosity and support and we’re always thrilled to get our Readers and Followers excited about their amazing products and services.
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The lucky winner of our TIFF ’21 Survival Pack Giveaway was Jessica (@SheBakesHere), who won an amazing haul of products from our official partners!
As the winner, Jessica received:
•1 $50 Starbucks Canada Gift Card
•1 $50 Chatime gift card + 1x T-shirt +1x Tumbler + 1x Stainless Steel Straw set
•1 $50 Gift Card at Lone Star Texas Grill
•1 $50 Gift Card at Frankie’s Nashville Hot Chicken
•1 Happy Gift Set including 1 Rose Quartz Roller + Gua Sha set, 1 Happy Face Mask, 1 bottle 250ml Happy Sanitizer and a Happy 3-Toothbrush set
•1 The Beauty of Eczema’s Bathing Oil and Bath Salts At-Home Spa Set
•1 Antipodes Manuka Honey Skin-Brightening Beehive Box
•1 boscia Skin Nutrition Body Collection
•1 bottle of Nature’s Sunshine new Hair, Skin & Nails capsules and BioGuard Hand and Body Cream
•1 H&M Canada VIP Card
•1 Official MR. WILL WONG Baseball Cap
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Team Mr. Will also share their favourites of the Festival and also their predictions which Film will win that coveted People’s Choice Award!
AMANDA GILMORE (Twitter: @GilmoreAmanda)
Belfast
Titane
The Worst Person in the World
Petite Maman
Spencer
Would Also Highly Recommend: The Eyes of Tammy Faye, The Power of the Dog, Dune & The Humans
People’s Choice Award Prediction: Belfast
DAVID BALDWIN (Twitter: @DaveMABaldwin)
People’s Choice Award Prediction: Belfast
TIFF’21 was a substantial upgrade from TIFF’20. Full Stop. The quality of films was substantially stronger, the in-person and digital offerings were better, and the all-around experience was so much closer to the TIFF we all know and love from those simpler, pre-pandemic times. There are some learnings the programming team will need to reflect on for next year’s festival, but I sincerely hope they continue with the hybrid experience despite some of the hiccups they encountered this year. It allows for an easier and more efficient means of discovery for everyone, and lets audiences still feel like they are part of the action even if they are watching from home. I had a blast watching so many movies this year, and am already looking forward to endlessly re-watching many of them. Yet I know in my bones that I would not have been able to see nearly as many had it only been an in-person festival. And while I am bummed to have missed out on Last Night in Soho and Spencer, I am overjoyed at everything I did get to see — including some of the more forgettable titles. Next year will no doubt look different again, but here’s hoping it will still feel like TIFF because where else can you go from watching a hit Broadway musical adaptation like Dear Evan Hansen to an Oscar-prestige play like The Power of the Dog to the absolute madness of the Palme d’Or winning Titane?
GEORGE KOZERA (Twitter: @PartyG)
People’s Choice Award Prediction: Belfast
JUSTIN WALDMAN (Twitter: @DubsReviews)
Titane
Belfast
Petite Maman
Encounter
Violet
People’s Choice Prediction: Belfast
MR. WILL (Twitter: @mrwillw)
People’s Choice Award Prediction: Spencer
We’re still mesmerized by Kristen Stewart’s work in Spencer, which almost is side-by-side as our favourite with Jessica Chastain‘s mind-blowing portrayal of Tammy Faye Bakker in The Eyes of Tammy Faye! We still are obsessed with Last Night in Soho and can’t wait to see it again in October! We missed The Power of the Dog but are thankful it will be available soon on Netflix! So excited to see some of these titles propel into Awards Season success.
#TIFF21: Can we talk about #Spencer for a second? #KristenStewart pic.twitter.com/HnsQqLL4lS
— MR. WILL WONG 📸 (@mrwillw) September 10, 2021
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Last but not least, some of our favourite moments with the talent at the Festival:
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Until next TIFF!
We hope you had a blast following our adventures and Reviews. In case you missed them, you always can catch-up right here.
Do not forget to check-out the TIFF TRIBUTE GALA AWARDS, airing Saturday, September 18, 2021 at 7PM ET on CTV and the CTV App!
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
By Amanda Gilmore
Writer-Director Kenneth Branagh makes his most personal Film yet with the semi-autobiographical Belfast.
This deeply-affecting coming-of-age Film is set during the troubles in 1969 Belfast. It follows young Buddy (Jude Hill) as he witnesses familial hardships, cultural changes, and Northern Ireland’s Civil War. His father, Pa (Jamie Dornan), fears for his family’s life and starts making plans to move them out of Belfast. However, Buddy and his Ma (Caitríona Balfe) desire to stay in their hometown with Buddy’s grandparents (Ciarán Hinds and Judi Dench).
From the beginning, Branagh shows us the uncertainty of living in late-1960s Belfast. A street filled with laughter, children and neighbourly conversation is swiftly thrown into chaos. Branagh’s camera circles Buddy, mirroring his confusion at witnessing the mob set fire and wreak havoc on his home’s street. By telling this story from a child’s point of view, the heavy themes have an innocence to them. For example, the horrific sectarian violence is shown with the gravity it deserves. However, levity comes when Buddy speaks about the two religions and makes a funny comment about why he wants to be Catholic rather than Protestant.
Branagh and Cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos make each black and white frame of Belfast breathtaking. The choice of music perfectly captures the resilience of the Northern Irish people in the face of hardship and uncertainty. Branagh’s decision to focus on one family, with each distinct member, creates an intimate and rounded view into the struggles of those who decided to leave and those who chose to stay.
The family is cast perfectly with a breakout performance from their young leader Hill. He shows Buddy’s confusion, frustration and fear at the war. Additionally, he shines as a young boy yearning for his first crush. It’s wonderful watching Hill and Hinds, who gives a delightful performance as Pop, concoct plans to get him closer to his crush. Dornan gives a charismatic performance as Pa, a man desperate to give his family safety. Balfe encapsulates Ma’s restraint to leave the only home she’s ever known while displaying worry as the war continues. And Dench gives a touching performance has the hardy matriarch, Granny.
Belfast screens at TIFF ’21:
Sun, Sep 12 at 5:30 PM at Roy Thompson Hall
Mon, Sep 13 at 3 PM on Digital TIFF Bell Lightbox
Thu, Sep 16 at 12 PM at TIFF Bell Lightbox
Today is the final day most major trade publications have their pop-ups, so it’s one last hurrah for star sightings before things quiet down significantly for the remainder of TIFF ’21. Which is wonderful for us as we can take a breath finally, and focus on seeing Films.
Causing the most commotion around town were BELFAST Director/Writer Sir Kenneth Branagh and its star Jamie Dornan, who did the rounds today. They premiered the Film at Roy Thomson Hall, receiving a standing ovation. The story is said to be deeply-personal to Branagh who grew-up in the titular city during the ’60s, and Dornan is receiving accolades for his work here. So thrilled to catch Dornan and Branagh out and about at different points in the day! Dornan was so kind to stop for a snap with beanie and I, whom I brought out with me on my travels. Her first TIFF and also tomorrow is her first birthday! What better way to celebrate than by her meeting Dornan?
So happy also to get an invite from Variety Magazine and Canada Goose to check-out their lounge, which hosted several A-Listers the past few days at the Festival including Rebecca Ferguson, Jessica Chastain, Benedict Cumberbatch and more. Today we saw Dornan and Branagh in the lounge, picking-out some new outerwear. Branagh is a huge fan of Canada Goose and we heard that he still has a parka he’s been wearing for over ten years!
Can I saw how cool it was meeting Kenny G? The legendary Saxophonist helping propel Smooth Jazz to a wider audience, was in town for Director Penny Lane’s Documentary, LISTENING TO KENNY G. The Film premiered today at Scotiabank Theatre.
And last but not least, we were so happy to see stunning Jessica Chastain as she head-off to the Premiere of highly-buzzed THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE, which has her portraying Evangelist Tammy Faye Bakker. She was so smitten by beanie!
Totally dozing-off but will be up and at it early with a few screenings tomorrow including THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE and BELFAST! Can’t wait to share my thoughts!
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
Best news all year! We’re so excited to hear confirmed today a return to the in-person component at this Fall’s Toronto International Film Festival. Along with that, the first wave of Films to screen at the Festival September 9-18, 2021 have been announced!
Denis Villeneuve‘s DUNE will headline the Festival with a special screening at the historic Cinesphere IMAX Theatre. Other high-profile films to debut at the Festival include: Le Bal des Folles, Belfast (Kenneth Branagh), Benediction (Terence Davies), Charlotte (Eric Warin, Tahir Rana), Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over (Dave Wooley), The Guilty (Antoine Fuqua), Jagged (Alanis Morissette Documentary by Alison Klayman), Lakewood (Philip Noyce), Last Night in Soho (Edgar Wright), Night Raiders (Danis Goulet), Petite Maman (Céline Sciamma), and The Starling (Theodore Melfi) are part of TIFF‘s Official Selection.
What does this mean? With Quarantine rules having relaxed in Ontario, we could be seeing the likes of Melissa McCarthy, Timothy Olyphant, Zendaya, Timothée Chalamet, Anya Taylor-Joy, Catriona Balfe, Jamie Dornan, Alanis Morissette, Riley Keough, Jake Gyllenhaal, Ethan Hawke, Jeremy Irvine and several more in-town this September!
In total there will be 100 films premiering at TIFF ’21 plus public digital experiences presented by Bell, with film screenings on digital TIFF Bell Lightbox available across Canada. In Conversation With… talks and interactive Q&A sessions with actors and creators will be hosted on TIFF Bell Digital Talks, available worldwide.
The 2021 TIFF Tribute Awards once again will be returning this year, and will be broadcast nationally by CTV and streamed internationally by Variety.
Digital ticket package sales start June 30, 2021 for TIFF’s Contributors Circle Members and all ticket dates are available at tiff.net/tickets. Ticket sales are serviced online and by phone only.
(Photo credit: Warner Bros. Canada)
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