#TIFF25: “MILE END KICKS” REVIEW

By Amanda Gilmore

Writer-Director Chandler Levack’s hotly-anticipated second feature takes place in 2011 and follows young female music critic Grace (Barbie Ferreira), who moves to Montreal to figure out life and love. 

After leaving her job at a magazine in Toronto, Grace moves into a shared apartment in Montreal that she found on Craigslist. It’s there that she should devote herself to finishing the next great book in the 33 1/3 album exploration series that she’s already been paid an advance on. Hers will be on the iconic Alanis Morissette opus Jagged Little Pill. However, like many in their early 20s…life gets in the way.

Just like with Lawrence in I Like Movies, Grace makes a lot of bad choices. Levack has a knack for writing endearing leads that make audiences cringe at their poor decisions or indecisions. Here, Grace is a young woman whose focus is on everything and everyone but herself. This leads to Grace blowing her own life up.

This focus on others rather than herself comes from society, but also the career Grace has. There aren’t many films that depict a female critic. Here, Levack shows just how isolating it can be for a young woman. Grace is always on the outside of a circle of men. When she arrives in Montreal, she quickly becomes friends with the band Bone Patrol. Again, she’s the only woman around this band of boys. Ferreira encapsulates the indecision and enclosed rage within a young woman who is simultaneously trying to break the ceiling but at times allowing it to suffocate her.

Even with all of this heavy material, Mile End Kicks is a hilarious romantic-comedy. The semi-love triangle that happens brings nostalgia for the rom-coms we love. Devon Bostick and Stanley Simons are a joy and fully commit to their characters. Bostick as the stoner, sweet guitarist, and Simons as the sleezy, ‘artsy’ lead singer.

At its centre, Mile End Kicks is a story about a young woman learning to respect herself. All of Grace’s poor decisions lead her to respect herself and demand it from others.

Mile End Kicks screens at TIFF:

Thurs. Sept 4 at 8:30 PM at Royal Alexandra Theatre

Tues. Sept 9 at 11:55 AM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto

Sat. Sept 13 at 9:00 AM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto

#TIFF: FIRST ROUND OF SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS ANNOUNCED FOR 2025 TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

TIFF is sharing the first five Special Presentation titles of its Official Selection set to have their World Premieres at the Festival’s 50th edition this September. These are: Alejandro Amenábar’s The Captive, Steven Soderbergh’s The Christophers, Sung-hyun Byun’s Good News, Nia DaCosta’s Hedda, and Chandler Levack’s Mile End Kicks. These films hail from Canada, Spain/Italy, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States, and reflect the bold vision, global perspective, and artistic excellence that have defined TIFF for five decades. The 50th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival, presented by Rogers, will take place September 4–14, 2025.

“These first five films of our Official Selection reflect the innovation, heart, and global perspective that have made our Festival a home for great cinema over the past 50 editions,” said Cameron Bailey, CEO, TIFF. “We’re excited to kick-off our Special Presentations with Chandler Levack’s Mile End Kicks, a young, Canadian director who has very close ties to TIFF in addition to these established directors. We can’t wait to share more in the weeks ahead as we celebrate this historic year with audiences and filmmakers from around the world.”

More on Elevation Pictures’ MILE END KICKS starring Barbie Ferreira:

Grace Pine, a 23-year-old music critic from Toronto, moves to Montreal in the summer of 2011 with the goal of writing a 33 1/3 book about Alanis Morrisette’s Jagged Little Pill. Instead, she falls in love with two guys in the same struggling indie rock band, vowing to become their publicist. “Mile End Kicks” is a film about the Montreal music scene, romantic obsession, and Mile End, a place where young people go to retire.

More on HEDDA, from MGM Studios, starring Tessa Thompson (still in banner):

From writer/director Nia DaCosta comes a provocative, modern reimagining of Henrik Ibsen’s classic play. HEDDA (Tessa Thompson) finds herself torn between the lingering ache of a past love and the quiet suffocation of her present life. Over the course of one charged night, long-repressed desires and hidden tensions erupt—pulling her and everyone around her into a spiral of manipulation, passion, and betrayal.

Writer/Director: Nia DaCosta

Based on: Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen

Producers: Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Gabrielle Nadig, Nia DaCosta, Tessa Thompson

Cast: Tessa Thompson, Imogen Poots, Tom Bateman, Nicholas Pinnock, and Nina Hoss

Music by: Hildur Gudnadottir

Costume Designer: Lindsay Pugh

Editor: Jacob Schulsinger

Production Designer: Cara Brower

Director of Photography: Sean Bobbitt, BSC

These Official Selection films join the previously announced Opening Night Film, John Candy: I Like Me. This year’s official screening venues will once again include TIFF Lightbox, Roy Thomson Hall, the Visa Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre, Cineplex’s Scotiabank Theatre Toronto, Glenn Gould Studio at the Canadian Broadcast Centre, Cinema Park at David Pecaut Square, and the Royal Alexandra Theatre. The seventh edition of the TIFF Tribute Awards Gala will take place on Sunday, September 7, 2025, at Fairmont Royal York Hotel.

In addition to the film screenings, the Festival offers live post-screening Q&As, the In Conversation With… series, the Industry Conference (Sept. 5–9), as well as the popular Festival Street, which returns for opening weekend along King Street West, from Peter Street to University Avenue, with food trucks and free activations — the perfect place just to sit back and people-watch.

On the last day of the Festival, TIFF announces the winners of its various awards. Alongside the popular People’s Choice Awards, presented by Rogers, this September introduces the brand-new International People’s Choice Award. Also returning are the esteemed Jury Prizes including the Platform Award, now celebrating its 10th year, and honours from FIPRESCI and NETPAC. For a full list of past winners, visit tiff.net/awards.

Key 2025 Festival Links:
Programmers: https://tiff.net/programmers
Ticketing Dates: https://tiff.net/about-the-festival
Media Library: https://tiff.net/media/library/festival
TIFF: The Market: https://tiff.net/themarket (coming in 2026)

Film Details (in alphabetical order):

The Captive | Alejandro Amenábar | Spain / Italy
World Premiere | Special Presentation

The Christophers | Steven Soderbergh | UK
World Premiere | Special Presentation

Good News | Sung-hyun Byun | South Korea
World Premiere | Special Presentation

Hedda | Nia DaCosta | USA
World Premiere | Special Presentation

Mile End Kicks | Chandler Levack | Canada
World Premiere | Special Presentation

The 50th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival, presented by Rogers, runs September 4–14, 2025. More Festival details will be shared in the coming weeks including the return of TIFF Takeovers.